Morecambe Promenade and Stone Jetty

Description

Morecambe Promenade has seen extensive refurbishment over recent years, making it a clean, flat and accessible area perfect for a stroll along the seafront. As part of the refurbishment, the Stone Jetty has been revamped as a public area incorporating public art and games.

The present Stone Jetty is one side of the former harbour, built around 1853. In 1861, a railway line was completed from the Jetty to Hest Bank, where it linked in with the Lancaster to Carlisle line.

This line brought in coal and coke from Durham and North Yorkshire for the flourishing export trade to Ireland. When the port of Heysham was built in 1904, trade declined rapidly in Morecambe and the harbour was eventually used for breaking up ships, giving employment to hundreds of local people during the bad times of the 1920s and 1930s. The most famous casualty was the SS Majestic, a huge old White Star liner broken up in 1914.

Today, the Stone Jetty is a miraculous place of public art which has already won the heart of locals and visitors alike. To so many people now, a visit to Morecambe is not complete without a walk down the Stone Jetty - a breathtaking experience during one of the Bay’s famous sunsets. The materials used, the art created, the children's games, the information about the teeming birdlife of the bay, together with the cast iron birds atop the railings and bollards, all express so superbly the links between nature and the bay. Access is available at all times. Car parking is available nearby.