Themes : Historic Routes

The moorlands of North East Yorkshire have always proved an obstacle to reaching the coast. Access over the moors has never been easy, as recently as the 18th century travellers were advised to make out a will before crossing from Pickering to Whitby!

The Romans were amongst the first to establish a good communication system with their coastal signal stations. The beacons could convey messages but physically moving men and materials along the coastline was more difficult.

The sea with all its inherent dangers was, until the arrival of the railways, the best means of travel and transport. Hundreds of vessels plied the coast, not all of them in a seaworthy condition, hence the numerous shipwreck that occurred! Lighthouses and the Coastguard Service, important for hundreds of years, still have an essential part to play in coastal communications and safety.

George Stephenson’s railway to Whitby opened in 1836 and was the first of many lines serving the coast. The effects of this new means of communication cannot be overestimated, tourism and trade boomed. Visitors flocked to the coast, fresh fish travelled inland! A new age had arrived!

Today, improved roads offer somewhat better physical communication while mobile telephones and email convey the messages!