Tour - Scarborough Marine Drive the history

Scarborough Marine Drive the history

England YO12 7TP, United Kingdom

Created By: Scarborough Civic Society

Tour Information

Scarborough has always been proud of its magnificent promenade which now stretches over three miles from Scalby Mills to south of the Spa. As recently as the mid-nineteenth century however, none of this existed. This tour explains how the the two bays of Scarborough were connected by the Marine Drive.

Tour Map

Loading Tour

What You'll See on the Tour

Scarborough Marine Drive the history board 1

The first part of the promenade to be developed was Foreshore Road in South Bay, dating from the 1870s. Then came Royal Albert Drive in North Bay, completed in 1890. However, there was still no easy way from one bay to the other - the usual... Read more

Scarborough Marine Drive the history board 2

Royal Albert Drive, opened in 1890 by the Duke of Clarence and Avondale, eldest son of the Prince of Wales, was the second part of Scarborough's sea side promenade to be developed, following the building of what was originally called South ... Read more

Scarborough Marine Drive the history board 3

When the eminent engineer Sir John Coode reported in 1883 on the feasibility of a proposed promenade and marine drive connecting Scarborough's two bays, he anticipated that any difficulties would be more to do with the cost than with engine... Read more

Scarborough Marine Drive the history board 4

Opposition to the proposed Marine Drive had a number of causes. Some did not want to see the castle cliffs reshaped, something that was necessary to reduce the risk of boulders falling on to the new promenade and road. Others were afraid th... Read more

Scarborough Marine Drive the history board 5

"Round the foot of the Castle headland is the Marine Drive, an unrivalled seafront promenade which provides a direct link between the North and South Bays with magnificent views of sea and cliffs from Ravenscar to Flamborough Head." This e... Read more

Scarborough Marine Drive the history board 6

In order to meet the cost of the Marine Drive project, the town council needed to make more money from the new road than could be raised from tolls alone; there was also a desire to provide additional entertainments for both residents and v... Read more

Scarborough Marine Drive the history board 7

Early in 1906 Harry W Smith, the Borough Engineer, submitted plans for the toll houses at the north and south ends of Marine Drive to the Town Council. Their total cost was estimated at under £1,000. The toll houses were necessary because ... Read more

Scarborough Marine Drive the history board 8

Scarborough's shipbuilding industry developed in the Sandside area in the seventeenth century, starting at the northern end but then spreading southwards as the number of shipyards increased. Families with names such as Breckon, Porrett, Al... Read more

Scarborough Marine Drive the history board 9

After the building of Foreshore Road in the 1870s it was suggested that a road around the castle headland might be built to connect Scarborough's two bays by a route that would enable visitors and residents to walk or drive easily from one ... Read more