Interesting Cleveland and Teesside facts
Famous Sussex People
Redcar
Did you know that the oldest surviving lifeboat in the world is The Zetland, still in Redcar more than 200 years after she was delivered? The boat, built in South Shields , arrived on October 7 1802 at a cost of £200 and was soon earning her keep – the first rescue with the craft taking place on December 6 that year when some 15 sailors were saved.
Saltburn by the Sea
Did you know that it was on Saltburn sands that Sir Malcolm Campbell set his first speed record? His borrowed 350hp Sunbeam V12 reached 138.08 mph on June 17 1922, breaking the record set in the same car at Brooklands by Lee Guinness a month earlier by more than 4mph. Sadly the French body then overseeing such records wouldn’t accept the new figure as hand-held instead of the regulation electric timers had been used.
Stockton-On-Tees
Did you know that Stockton claims to have the widest High Street in England? And that it possesses the oldest railway station structure in the world?
Did you know that the world’s first safety match was invented in Stockton-On-Tees by local chemist John Walker? His first sale of the product was made on April 7 1827 – some may consider him foolish for refusing to patent it.
Famous Cleveland and Teesside people
Bob Mortimer | Brian Clough | Captain James Cook | Chris Kamara | Chris Rea | Chris Tomlinson | Christopher Furness | Compton Mackenzie | Don Revie | Edward Mellanby | Ernest W Hornung | Joseph Ritson | Paul Daniels | Paul Smith | Reg Smythe | Richard Griffiths | Thomas Sheraton | Wendy Richard | Will Hay |
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