Saltburn Renaissance?

Here is a picture that shook the cobwebs, Saltburn with its paddling pool (no longer PC since the Health and Safety laws and litigative society), Miniature Railway running from the tourist hot spot and the beck as a useful facility instead of the state we have today. Notice that the miniature railway (15 inch gauge) with its rake of toast-rack carriages is still in its original Saltburn Motor Services livery of red with cream lining (although we are told that the original colour was green and this was the early Council livery called ’Dustcart Red’ and white!). The four carriages were built in the SMS garages in Saltburn and the train was driven by one of SMS’s regular drivers during the brief summer season. Following our request for a date to the image, Martyn Richardson told us: ”1973 I would say – I remember playing in the paddling pool, and also going on the “boating lake” – I can remember being brave if you went close to the edge of the little waterfall bit that ran over and under the road bridge. Good memories from this photo – didn’t the pier fall foul of the weather in 1974? – I can remember that and I was only seven at the time.”Bill Fletcher asked: “Very interesting picture but did you notice all of the ships near to the horizon and has anybody any memory of the bridge structure between 2 vertical poles about half-way up Saltburn bank and just visible here?”. However Callum Duff tells us: ”Saltburn’s boating lake was laid out after Saltburn’s Centenary celebrations in 1961, opening for the Summer season in 1962. Based on a slide I own from 1963, the paddling pool was constructed at this time. Looking at the photo above and the new-looking paving around the pool (it was still being laid in 1963) I would put the likely date for this card at 1966 or 67. I always think of the 1960′s as being Saltburn’s last decade as a popular resort with most if not all of its original attractions. unfortunately I grew up in Saltburn in the 1970′s when the opposite was true!”

Thanks to Martyn Richardson, Bill Fletcher and Callum Duff for those updates.