Newbiggin-by-the-Sea

Newbiggin derives its name from the Old English nīwe (new) + Middle English bigging (building, house),Anthony David Mills, A Dictionary of British Place-Names (Oxford, 2003) and may refer to an extension of the early settlement and parish of Woodhorn. Historically the name has been spelt as Newbiggen and Newbigging.Hodgson, John. 1832. A History of Northumberland, in Three Parts: Part II Volume II (Newcastle upon Tyne: Charles Henry Cook)

The church was for centuries a chapel only, with a tower surmounted by a spire which was originally used as a beacon. In the 14th century, Newbiggin was a very important maritime centre, called upon to support Edward III in his campaigns against the Scots. In the Middle Ages, Newbiggin was a major port for the shipping of grain, third in importance after London and Hull. Henry III granted a charter for a weekly market on Monday and an annual fair; in 1337, as a borough of note, it sent bailiffs to a council on matters of state, convened by the Bishop of Lincoln, the Earl of Warwick and other noblemen.{{cite web

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In 1805, two boats, with nineteen men, were lost in a storm off Newbiggin, after which £1,700 was donated by fundraising in the Newcastle region to relieve the bereaved families. As early as 1828, Newbiggin was a popular beach resort, with facilities to cater for visitors. The town had five public houses, one of which had a spa-like array of bathing facilities, several shops and lodging houses. The village featured a shore with a beach about a mile in length, well suited for bathing. By 1848 it was established as a resort in warmer seasons. Several guesthouses took hold. The bay gave good anchorage for small vessels, but even then was very little used, except for the numerous boats belonging to the fishery, in which most of the inhabitants were employed. Pilchard, herring, cod, haddock, whiting, ling, halibut, turbot, sole, and skate were caught by the fishermen of Newbiggin and sold primarily at Newcastle. Salmon, trout, lobsters and crabs were also caught, not only for the supply of the neighbouring markets but the region.{{cite web |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=51170 |title=Nevendon – Newborough |editor=Samuel Lewis |publisher=Institute of Historical Research |year=1848 |work=A Topographical Dictionary of England |access-date=11 April 2013 }}

Newbiggin-by-the-Sea has a town council.

Under the Local Government Act 1972 Newbiggin-by-the-Sea became part of the local government district of Wansbeck in 1974. The local government district was abolished in 2009, with its responsibilities transferred to the Northumberland County Council unitary authority.

Newbiggin-by-the-Sea is in the UK Parliamentary constituency of Blyth and Ashington which, since the 2024 general election, has been represented at Westminster by Ian Lavery MP.

The former local government district of Wansbeck and the Parliamentary constituency of Wansbeck both derive their names from the River Wansbeck which flows into the North Sea near Newbiggin-by-the-Sea.

Fishing has always been associated with Newbiggin, although later many inhabitants were employed in coal mining. By the Victorian era, Newbiggin was Northumberland's favourite seaside town, attracting hundreds of visitors every day in the summer months.

In 1869, there were 142 cobles (fishing boats) in Newbiggin-by-the-Sea.

Newbiggin Colliery was sunk in 1908. The colliery closed in 1967, but at its peak in 1940, 1,400 men were employed there. The former Newbiggin Colliery Band is now the Jayess Newbiggin Brass Band, named for its president and former member, cornet legend James Shepherd.{{cite web|title=Jayess Newbiggin Brass Band|url=http://www.newbigginbrassband.org.uk/|publisher=Jayess Newbiggin Brass Band|access-date=3 February 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100423113146/http://www.newbigginbrassband.org.uk/|archive-date=23 April 2010}}

To date, there are 89 active companies based in Newbiggin.{{Cite web|url=https://suite.endole.co.uk/explorer/?id=0DE618985|title=Explorer – Endole|website=Suite.endole.co.uk|access-date=7 July 2022}}

File:ParishChurchofStBartholomewNewbigginbytheSea.jpgThe town was at the end of the first telegraph cable from Scandinavia in 1868, and was laid from Jutland, Denmark. Attractions in Newbiggin today include the 13th-century parish church,[http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-235958-church-of-st-bartholomew-newbiggin-by-th "Church of St Bartholomew"], British Listed Buildings website, Retrieved 27 December 2012 and the flagship Newbiggin Maritime Centre, which has replaced the former heritage centre at a cost of £3 million.[http://www.journallive.co.uk/north-east-news/todays-news/2010/10/06/construction-work-begins-on-newbiggin-visitor-centre-61634-27410337/ "Construction work begins on Newbiggin visitor centre"], The Journal, 6 October 2010, Retrieved 27 December 2012

The lifeboat station was opened in 1851 following a fishing disaster in which ten Newbiggin fishermen lost their lives in stormy seas. It is the oldest operational boathouse in the British Isles.{{cite web |title = Newbiggin Community website |url = http://www.newbigginbythesea.co.uk/ |website = Newbigginbythesea.co.uk |access-date = 15 August 2009 |archive-date = 10 November 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101110060858/http://www.newbigginbythesea.co.uk/ |url-status = dead }} Celebrating over 160 years as a lifeboat station, Newbiggin has had 13 different station lifeboats over the years; today it operates an inshore Atlantic 85 lifeboat. The crews have been presented with 16 awards for gallantry.{{cite web

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A £10 million renovation to rebuild and improve Newbiggin's rapidly eroding beach involved importing 500,000 tonnes of sand from Skegness, delivered by the trailing suction hopper dredger (TSHD) Oranje{{cite web

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}}{{Dead link|date=August 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} and deposited on the beach{{cite web

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}} through a pipe approximately {{convert|1|m|in}} in diameter. A new offshore breakwater was installed to accompany the matching breakwater on the opposite side of the bay.{{cite web

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}}{{Dead link|date=August 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} Also installed is a brass statue by sculptor Sean Henry named Couple, anchored in the centre of the bay.{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/tyne/6953070.stm|title=Giant coast sculpture installed|publisher=BBC News|date=18 August 2007}}{{cite web

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Newbiggin-by-the-Sea boasts the longest promenade in Northumberland.{{Cite web|url=https://www.nmcentre.org.uk/|title=Welcome|website=Newbiggin Maritime Centre|access-date=7 July 2022}} Each spring and autumn, the promenade becomes a prime location for naturalists watching the North Sea seabird migratory passage.[http://www.fatbirder.com/links_geo/europe/england_northumberland.html "Birding . . . England Northumberland"], Fatbirder.com, Retrieved 27 December 2012

The 13th century Parish Church of St Bartholomew, bleakly situated against a North Sea backdrop at Church Point, contains a notable collection of medieval gravestones. Eight complete cross slab grave covers have been reset in the walls of the north aisle which was rebuilt in 1912. The chancel, the east and western bays of arcades and the west tower are all 13th century, while the spire dates to the 14th century.

Woodhorn Church was once the mother church in the Parish of Woodhorn with Newbiggin. When she was declared redundant in 1973, that role passed to St Bartholomew's.{{Cite web |url=http://stbartholomewsnewbiggin.co.uk/history.html |title=St Barholomews Church, Newbiggin by the Sea |date=11 August 2013 |access-date=7 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130811031305/http://stbartholomewsnewbiggin.co.uk/history.html |archive-date=11 August 2013 |url-status=dead}}

The Salvation Army has had a presence in Newbiggin-by-the-Sea since 1902 and its current premises consist of a worship hall on Front Street, opened in 1939, and a community hall on Vernon Place.{{Cite web |url=http://www.newbigginsa.org/newsalarmy.htm |title=The Salvation Army – Newbiggin by the Sea – Welcome |access-date=27 December 2012 |archive-date=4 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004224258/http://www.newbigginsa.org/newsalarmy.htm |url-status=dead }} The Salvation Army band features in the recollections of those who have grown up in Newbiggin or spent summer holidays there. Mary Heynes, who in her childhood was once head girl at the former West Junior School in Newbiggin, recalls that in the 1960s, "The Salvation Army would be on the Quay wall every Sunday doing a service and the band would play."[http://www.francisfrith.com/newbiggin-by-the-sea/memories/My-Family_306961/ Heynes, Mary (2012). "My Family: A memory of Newbiggin-by-the-Sea in Northumberland, shared on Sunday, 15th July 2012"], Francis Frith antiquarian website, Retrieved 27 December 2012 In 1991 the Newbiggin-by-the-Sea Salvation Army Songster Brigade (the choir) recorded songs for BBC Radio.{{Cite web |url=http://www.newbigginsa.org/history.htm |title=The Salvation Army – Newbiggin by the Sea – Welcome |access-date=27 December 2012 |archive-date=4 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004232714/http://www.newbigginsa.org/history.htm |url-status=dead }}

St Mark's Church on Gibson Street was built in 1868 by the local stonemason William Gibson.[http://www.newbigginbythesea.co.uk/history/hritage_trailx.html "Newbiggin's History: Newbiggin-by-the-Sea Heritage Trail"], Newbiggin Community website, Retrieved 27 December 2012 Once a busy Presbyterian church,[http://www.newbiggintowncouncil.gov.uk/history/newbiggin1950s.html?style= Lawson, Tony (2010). "Life in Newbiggin in the 1950s: A reflection"], Newbiggin Town Council website. Originally published in A Creeful of Coals (2010). Retrieved 27 December 2012 after the 1972 union of the Presbyterian and Congregational denominations in England St Mark's became a United Reformed church. St Mark's has now closed to worship. St Andrew's Methodist Chapel on Front Street was built in 1876.[http://communities.northumberland.gov.uk/005522.htm Photograph of Front Street with caption. Northumberland Communities website of the Northumberland Archives Service], Communities.northumberland.gov.uk, Retrieved 27 December 2012 In 2010, the United Reformed and Methodist congregations in Newbiggin combined to form a single congregation in the South East Northumberland Ecumenical Area, meeting at St Andrew's which is now known as St Andrew's and St Mark's (Methodist/United Reformed) Church.{{Cite web |url=http://www.saam-newbiggin.org.uk/index.html |title=Home – St Andrews and St Marks |date=4 October 2013 |access-date=7 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004230258/http://www.saam-newbiggin.org.uk/index.html |archive-date=4 October 2013 |url-status=dead}}

Prior to the building of St Andrew's in 1876, the Methodists used to meet in the Wesleyan Chapel on Robinson Square, which was built in 1844.{{NHLE|num=1153791 |desc= Wesleyan Chapel, Newbiggin by the Sea|access-date= 2 January 2013}} In the early 20th century, the Robinson Square building was used by the Salvation Army before the Salvation Army acquired its current premises.[http://www.newbiggintowncouncil.gov.uk/history/newbiggin1950s.html?style= Lawson, Tony (2010). "Life in Newbiggin in the 1950s: A reflection"], Newbiggin Town Council website. Originally published in A Creeful of Coals (2010). Retrieved 2 January 2013

The Apostolic Church, whose beginnings can be traced to South Wales during the 1904-05 Welsh Revival, arrived in Newbiggin in 1936, initially hiring a room above the Co-operative store which still stands on Cleveland Terrace. Subsequently, the Apostolic Church acquired a building at 15–17 Gibson Street,[http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/30329/response/84116/attach/4/Places%20of%20Worship%20listApril2010.pdf Places recorded by the Registrar General under the provisions of the Places of Worship Registration Act 1855 (published in response to FOI request)], Whatdotheyknow.com, Retrieved 2 January 2013 but this closed to worship in 2010 and now houses the Newbiggin Boxing Club gym.[http://www.newspostleader.co.uk/sport/new-home-for-boxing-club-1-5033898 "New home for boxing club"], News Post Leader, 17 October 2012, Retrieved 27 December 2012 After a long association with Newbiggin-by-the-Sea (Mary Heynes, former head girl of the West Junior School, reports that her father was an Apostolic preacher in the 1960s), the Apostolic Church now has no congregation in the town.

St Mary's Roman Catholic Church, a small building on Front Street, is part of the Parish of St Aidan's in Ashington.

Until 2004 Newbiggin was host to a street fair that attracted thousands of people every year. In its final years, the fair was set out in the following format: starting at the beginning of the shopping area of Front Street, up to the Cresswell Arms public house flowing into Church Point car park and continuing along the seafront promenade. The lifeboat house and boatyard became the music venue. A stage replaced the boats and the lifeboat house opened its doors, serving food and afternoon tea. Appearances were made by Slade, Leo Sayer and TV show Gladiators star Michael Van Wijk.

Starting in 2010, the annual Old Ship Music Festival is attempting to bring back a summer event to the village. It invites bands from the region and worldwide to play, as well as local comedians, and raises money for charity with the help of local businesses. In 2010 it raised £700 for Help for Heroes, where in 2011, the chosen charity was the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, and raised £1,100.{{Cite web |url=http://www.fortunate-events.com/ |title=Old Ship Music Festival |date=25 March 2012 |access-date=7 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325053310/http://www.fortunate-events.com/ |archive-date=25 March 2012 |url-status=dead}}

• John Braine was working at the library in Newbiggin (1954–56) when he wrote his best-selling novel Room at the Top.
• James Shepherd (1936–2023), principal cornet of the Black Dyke Band, was born in Newbiggin.

{{reflist}}

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• [http://www.visitnewbiggin.co.uk/ Visit Newbiggin – The Official Visitor website for Newbiggin-by-the-Sea]
• [http://www.northumberland-cam.com/newbiggin/index.htm Newbiggin Photos]
• [http://www.newbiggintowncouncil.gov.uk/ Newbiggin Town Council]

{{Coastal settlements

|place = Northumberland

|settlement = Newbiggin-by-the-Sea

|anticlockwise = Cresswell

|clockwise = Cambois

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Category:Seaside resorts in England

Category:Towns in Northumberland

Category:Populated coastal places in Northumberland

Category:Civil parishes in Northumberland