1. The story begins in 1225 when Prior Germanus of Tynemouth Priory granted permission for a small settlement by the waterside to supply the priory with fish.
2. The town’s name is derived from the Anglo-Saxon 'shiel' meaning huts or shelters.
3. North Shields grew rapidly as a fishing settlement near the Pow Burn, a brook/stream central to its development.
4. Early turf huts were built on stilts at the river’s edge and later repaired by monks.
5. Newcastle frequently tried to suppress Shields’ trade: attacks in 1267, legal shutdown in 1290, and deliberate silting of the Tyne.
6. Rebounded by 1390, now known as North Shields to distinguish from South Shields.
7. Fishing and salt production continued despite trading restrictions, with 13 bakehouses and multiple breweries run by monks.
8. Salmon traps and fishing weirs built by monks obstructed river traffic and caused disputes.
9. Forced recruitment to the Navy was once a major fear for local men. In 1796, 250 men were press-ganged into the navy near Peggy’s Hole, a notorious spot for naval conscription.
10. In the mid-1800s, North Shields harbour could accommodate over 1,000 vessels, and by 1890 it had the largest fleet of steam trawlers in the world.
11. The Tyne Lifeboat Society was formed in 1790, becoming part of the RNLI in 1862. Over the years its crews, now based near North Shields fish quay, have been awarded 22 medals for gallantry.
12. Fishing trawler, Gaul, sank in February 1974 off the coast of Norway with the loss of 36 lives, including six crew members from North Shields. The tragedy is remembered each year with a service that brings together the bereaved families from North Shields and Hull.
13. Right up to the early 1960’s Herring Lasses worked in North Shields from early summer to late autumn, cleaning and packing the herring catch. They were noted for their remarkable strength, packing fish into heavy creels - weighing as much as six stone - which they carried on their backs.
14. A sign in the window of John Woodger & Sons fish curing business in the 1860s proclaimed John to be ‘Originator of the Kippered Herring’. Whether or not he invented the kipper is impossible to prove but it was certainly a neat bit of marketing!
15. Although the local fishing industry is much reduced from its heyday, North Shields is still the biggest prawn and langoustine port in England.
16. An extremely rare - 1 in 2,000,000 - blue lobster was caught locally in 2019 and lived for a while at Collingwood Seafood on the Fish Quay, before being rehomed in Tynemouth Aquarium.
17. The area’s strong fishing identity is remembered through folk songs like “When the boat comes in” and “Bobby Shafto’s Gone to Sea”.
18. North Shields played a major role in coal exports, with keelmen ferrying coal to larger ships bound for London and other ports.
19. The famous ‘Resolute Desk’, used in the Oval Office by successive American Presidents, was constructed from timber salvaged from HMS Resolute, a ship built in 1849 in North Shields.
20. At low tide there’s a clear view from Fish Quay Sands to the Black Middens, the infamous ship-wrecking reef in the Tyne estuary.
21. A large statue at Fiddler’s Green honours fishermen lost at sea.
22. The International Passenger Terminal at North Shields welcomed 61 cruise ships to the river in 2023, carrying 164,000 passengers.
23. From time to time, lucky onlookers can see dolphins playing at the mouth of the River Tyne.
24. Making salt by boiling sea water in large pans was an important North Shields industry from early medieval times. The Pow Pans saltworks, dating to AD 800, is among the UK's oldest industrial sites.
25. An early visitor to the town said, “here is such a cloud of smoke as amongst those works you cannot see to walk”.
26. Smith’s Dock (1899–1987) built over 280 ships and played a central role in the town’s shipbuilding legacy.
27. Rope-making in the 19th century dominated entire streets, giving rise to North Shields' distinctive narrow, north-south street grid.
28. Whale oil extraction, net-making, and roperies combined to make Shields a self-sufficient hub for the fishing industry.
29. The tug depicted in J.M.W. Turner’s famous painting *The Fighting Temeraire* was constructed in North Shields.
30. One of the oldest businesses in North Shields is Turnbull & Son Funeral Directors, established in 1790 and now run by the seventh-generation descendant of the founder. In 1907 it introduced the first motor car to North Shields - a Vauxhall Model 719.
31. In May 1941, a single bomb from a lone enemy aircraft destroyed the public air raid shelter in the basement of Wilkinson’s Lemonade Factory, killing 107 people. It was one of the worst single bomb death tolls during the provincial blitz of WW2.
32. The DFDS ferry services has operated since 1995 and still runs daily from North Shields to Ijmuiden (Amsterdam), sustaining its long-standing maritime connections. The ferry ships well over half a million passengers every year.
33. Ralph Gardner, a 17th-century brewer and chronicler, resisted Newcastle’s attempts to suppress North Shields’ independent economy and published vivid accounts of trade and brewing in the town.
34. The Tyne Brand Factory was started during WW1 to produce canned meats and soup for the troops. In 1964, Tyne Brand Sliced Roast Beef was awarded the prestigious Prix d’Honneur at the Paris Canned Food World Olympics!
35. The town once housed over 200 homes on land reclaimed from the River Tyne, showcasing its ongoing industrial expansion.
36. In the 1990’s The Royal Quays development transformed former docklands into a mixed-use area with a marina, outlet shopping, and housing.
37. The Royal Quays Marina in North Shields has won numerous awards, including the Yacht Harbour Association’s ‘Marina of the Year’ award three years running.
38. North Shields lies on the same latitude - 55 degrees latitude north - as Moscow.
39. With the River Tyne flowing a from west to east, North Shields enjoys spectacular sunrises over the mouth of the river.
40. Navigation lights, first erected in 1536 and rebuilt multiple times, guided ships into the Tyne. Four historic beacons remain: the Old Low Light, Old High Light, New Low Light, and New High Light. Together they have guided ships into the Tyne for centuries. Today, the Old Low Light serves as a museum and heritage centre.
41. Clifford’s Fort, originally built in 1672 to defend against Dutch attacks, later housed the Royal Engineers who managed submarine mines. Its walls and gun ports remain visible.
42. The Newcastle and North Shields Railway, which opened in June 1839, is said to be the oldest commuter railway route in the world. The original line ran from Newcastle’s Carliol Square to North Shields, and was later extended to Newcastle Central Station. The Metro now runs along the route.
43. The Dockmaster’s House, built in 1896 beside Clifford’s Fort, once controlled maritime traffic at the mouth of the Tyne.
44. Northumberland Park has provided 30 acres of welcome green space since 1885 and includes beautiful flower beds, a bandstand, herb garden, ‘Himalayan dene’ and labyrinth.
45. Christ Church on Preston Road was rebuilt in 1791, but its architecture creates the illusion of medieval origins. It is one of several interesting and historic churches in the town.
46. Georgian terraces in Northumberland Square reflect the development of the 18th-century New Town, built uphill by wealthier residents.
47. Camp Terrace in North Shields is one of the finest examples of Georgian architecture in the region. It’s said to have been built at the end of the Napoleonic Wars for officers of military camps nearby.
48. The Master Mariners’ Asylum, funded by the Duke of Northumberland in the 1830s, offered housing for retired sailors. It is found just outside North Shields on the road into Tynemouth.
49. Toll bridges and medieval causeways once crossed low-lying marshland near the Fish Quay, connecting the old town to the surrounding area.
50. The Pow Burn, the ancient brook/stream close to which the early settlement was built, is now mostly culverted, but still flows into the Tyne near Tanners Bank.
51. Before slum clearances in the 1930s, North Shields had around 67 sets of steep stairs linking the lower and upper parts of the town. One of the town’s steep set of stairs is said to have inspired Laurel and Hardy's famous piano removal scene in the film "The Music Box".
52. The Borough Road footbridge, constructed in 1936, provides a great view of the area. The local council planned to demolish it in 2022 but a determined local campaign saw it saved.
53. The old smokehouse that sits on the 17th-century walls of Clifford's Fort has been converted into a unique living space using 40 curved windows made from the windscreens from Ford Transit vans.
54. Famous painter JMW Turner visited the North East in 1818 and completed a number of paintings and sketches of North Shields, including one of the Low Light.
55. North Shields was well known for its theatres and music halls, including the Princes Theatre, which could seat 1,600 people.
56. North Shields FC aka ‘ The Robins’ are the local football team. In 2015 fans made the trip to Wembley to see the team win the FA Vase, beating Glossop North End 2-1 after extra time.
57. Public artworks like the Fiddler’s Green statue and the Herring Girls sculpture honour the town’s fishing families and working women.
58. The Wooden Dolly, a carved figure of a fishwife, has been a symbol of North Shields for over 200 years—its most famous incarnation is displayed in the library at Northumberland Square.
59. The BBC drama *When the Boat Comes In* was filmed locally and drew heavily on the working-class life of Tyneside.
60. The phrase “The Jungle” was used to describe the overcrowded and polluted riverside area in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was also the nickname of the Prince of Wales pub which still stands but is currently empty.
61. The ‘Low Town’ was home to a cosmopolitan, floating population, representative of every maritime nation, with many different languages spoken. In the 1860s, a Scandinavian Lutheran church was built for Danish, Norwegian and Swedish seamen.
62. A medieval leper hospital once stood in Spital Dene, where its ruins can still be seen.
63. A mysterious whale vertebra remains in the park at Spital Dene—its origin a topic of local curiosity.
64. The Globe Gallery opened in 1995. After relocating several times, it returned to its original site in 2024 and now hosts regular exhibitions in the heart of the North Shields Cultural Quarter.
65. Small blue plaques on dozens of homes across North Shields mark the homes of men who were either killed during the war of 1914-1918 or died later of their injuries. The memorial trail shows the devastating losses suffered by local communities during the Great War.
66. North Shields has long had a reputation for enjoying a drink—historically it boasted an unusually high number of pubs for its population.
67. The Low Lights Tavern is the oldest pub on the fish quay, built in the 17th century, with some of the original beams made from ships’ timbers. Another notable feature is Sam Fender’s first Brit Award, which has been repurposed as a beer pump.
68. The town’s drinking culture continues today with a number of independent microbreweries, including Three Kings Brewery and Flash House Brewing Co., contributing to a lively local scene.
69. North Shields people are known as friendly, feisty and community-minded. The town has a wide range of local charities and community support groups; a volunteer-produced community magazine called I Love North Shields; and regular street painting and litter picks to brighten up the town.
70. The annual North Shields Fish Quay Festival ran from 1987 until 2006. Large crowds attracted big-name acts, including Jools Holland, Take That, The Levellers, The Wailers and Bob Geldof. It eventually became too big to take place safely and has now become the Mouth of the Tyne festival.
71. Open mic poetry and spoken word evenings are a regular feature of the North Shields cultural scene.
72. North Shields has a buzzing music scene, ranging from a music education hub for young people at one end of the spectrum, to a full-time alternative music venue run by an internationally acclaimed DJ at the other - and a host of fantastic venues in between. The local dance music scene has been given a boost through the efforts of North Shields DJ ‘Manpower’ hosting nights at the King Street Social Club.
73. The well-known North Shields pub, The Gunner, is name checked by Sam Fender in the song - ‘Rein Me In’ - on his new album, ‘People Watching’.
74. The ITV detective show Vera is often filmed in and around Shields and also gave Sam Fender an early acting break. Its author Ann Cleeves lives a few miles away in Whitley Bay.
75. Fans of the town enjoy posting pictures of the popular ‘I Love North Shields’ tote bag on Instagram. It’s recently been spotted in Amsterdam, Rome, Istanbul, New York and Sydney #ToteBagOnTour
76. Admiral Lord Collingwood, naval commander and hero of the Battle of Trafalgar, lived in the region and is commemorated with a prominent monument overlooking the Tyne.
77. William Harbutt was born in North Shields in 1844. He invented plasticine for use by his students in around 1897.
78. In 1889, Miss Alma Beaumont, ‘American Aeronaut and Parachutist’ astonished a large crowd by jumping from a hot air balloon. With no way of steering her primitive parachute, she drifted and became entangled on a 70ft chimney, and had to be rescued by locals who lashed ladders together to reach her.
79. Stan Laurel, beloved comic actor of *Laurel and Hardy*, lived in Dockwray Square as a child. A statue marks the spot.
80. Norah Balls, a pioneering suffragette and civic leader, was born in North Shields.
81. Mary Ann Macham, born in Virginia USA, escaped from slavery and stowed away on a ship bound for Europe. She arrived in North Shields on Christmas Day 1831, was supported by local Quaker families, married and made her home here. A statue to her will be erected in the town later this year.
82. North Shields people were particularly vocal in the anti-slavery movement, petitioning Parliament for the abolition of slavery, and inviting former slave and abolitionist Fredrick Douglass to speak at meetings in the town.
83. John Dobson - famous architect was born and raised in Shields. The family home still stands and has become ‘The Pineapple’ pub on Tynemouth Road.
84. Lena Ashwell, born in North Shields in 1869, was the first person to organise large-scale entertainment for the troops in WW1, engaging 600 singers and entertainers and raising over £100,000 to send them to France and Belgium.
85. Thomas Brown, a courageous NAAFI seaman, helped retrieve German Enigma codes during WWII—his bravery is commemorated in the town centre.
86. Sapper Frederick George Shorey from North Shields was on the first glider to land, just after midnight, 6 June 1944, in the D-Day operation to capture Pegasus Bridge; one of the key actions of the Second World War.
87. Hilton Valentine, guitar legend with The Animals, and the man responsible for one of rock’s most famous intros - House of the Rising Sun. Also the only person from North Shields ever to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
88. Sam Fender, award-winning singer-songwriter known for his working-class anthems, hails from North Shields, and is a proud champion of the town.
89. Conversely, Neil Tennant, co-founder of synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, was born in the town, but rarely admits it!
90. Music superstar, Sting, who spent his teenage years in the area returned to North Shields in November 2023 to be awarded the Freedom of the Borough of North Tyneside in a ceremony held at the Exchange 1856 building on Howard Street. He travelled to the venue by Metro, to enjoy the nostalgia of being back home!
91. Alan Hull, lead singer of Lindisfarne and writer of “Fog on the Tyne,” had strong links to Shields. Fog on the Tyne is also the not-quite-official ‘national anthem’ of North Shields. It’s lyrics are worth a second look!
92. Kathryn Tickell, celebrated Northumbrian piper and folk musician, has local roots.
93. Alan Young born in North Shields, starred in the popular 1960s American sitcom, Mr Ed, alongside his ‘talking horse’. He was also the voice of Scrooge McDuck, Donald’s very rich but miserly uncle!
94. Madeleine Stringer, crowned Miss United Kingdom in 1977, grew up in the town.
95. Trevor Horn, influential music producer behind hits like “Relax” and “Video Killed the Radio Star,” was raised here.
96. Tom Hadaway, playwright and screenwriter, born in North Shields and worked on the Fish Quay. The BBC broadcast eight of his plays in the 1970s. He was described by Tim Healy as “the finest playwright of all time”.
97. Chris Donald, creator of the satirical comic *Viz*, grew up in North Shields.
98. Sean and Matty Longstaff, Premier League footballers, were born and raised locally.
99. Aran ‘Azza’ Embleton, former England Women’s footballer and advocate for women’s sport, is a proud Shields native.
100. Robert Westall - author of The Machine Gunners was born in North Shields, with the book based on his early life here. There’s a road named after him in Royal Quays and some of the BBC dramatisation of the book was shot in Shields
Note: We think this list is pretty accurate but accept no responsibility whatsoever if it isn’t!
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