Views of Southend

Pete,
And I thought I was in Essex!

When I was growing up in the east end of London, our holiday was often a day trip to Southend, so it was interesting to see that it seems to have changed little in the last 50 years and remains the quintessential British seaside resort from the mid-20th century.

Amusements dominate the front
Amusement park on the sea front

Hold onto your hat
The beach shop
Anyone for sand castles?
The Kuursal (built 18940 was the main amusement park in Southend when I was young. It has declined over the years. the amusement park closed in 1973 (now housing) and the main building was shut down in 1986. Following redevelopment, it re-opened as a bowling alley and casino in 1998.
Sweet rock – the traditional gift for those at home
Traditional Bed and Breakfast hotels were in houses on the front like these

 

Unknown's avatar

Published by Pete

I am semi-retired after a career in medical sciences. I now work from home doing independent research and consultancy amongst other things. One advantage of this is that I do have time to indulge my interests including birdwatching, natural history, steam trains and history particularly ancient history.

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.