Seaham Harbour

Seaham Harbour Pubs - I

The coastal village of Seaham Harbour was created by the Marquess of Londonderry in 1828 to provide a harbour from which to transport coal from his mines to London. My parents both grew up in Seaham and several members of my family ran pubs in the town from the 1930s to the 1970s.

The oldest pubs in the town were The Golden Lion and The Londonderry Arms.

The Golden Lion in 1986 with my mother, Doris, wife Pam and daughter, Victoria

The Londonderry Arms in 1973 (with Terry Smith in the foreground and The Vane Arms in the background).

My maternal grandfather, Jack Stuart, ran the Lion for many years during times of prosperity and the Great Depression. 



Photograph take outside The Blanford in Seaham Harbour



As a child in the 1950s and early 60s Seaham Harbour was a magical place. It had absolutely everything, a steam railway, two docks, two beaches, a dene, a picture house and several pubs. Although I was too young to drink, I loved visiting my relatives in the Engineers Arms, The Edinburgh Castle and The Golden Lion. I think it was an early case of forbidden fruit ;)



The Edinburgh Castle in 1973. My uncle's name, E C Stuart, is just visible above the door

Over the years I have taken several photographs of Seaham, in particular the pubs, and these reflect the changes that have occurred to the town over the past four decades.

The Golden Lion (left) and The Noah's Ark (right) 1998

The Engineers Arms in 1973

During the Second World War, my grandfather, Jack Stuart, ran the Golden Lion, a large pub set back from the coast and only a few hundred yards from the docks. On one particular day, the family were waiting for my uncle Teddy who had just returned back to port after serving on an Atlantic/Baltic convoy ship. The ship was in dock and Jack’s daughters were looking out of an upstairs window for Teddy’s arrival. As they spotted him walking towards the pub, a German fighter plane had also seen him and proceeded to attack him using machine guns. Teddy ran and took cover in a public toilet which stood opposite the Lion. The plane continued its attack, but when it passed over, Teddy ran from the toilet and dived behind the pub yard gates and then escaped into the bar. It is not recorded what happened next, but I like to think that he then enjoyed a drink or two to steady his nerves.



The Public Toilets opposite the Golden Lion 1991.

This should have been preserved as a national monument!