Fishing
Staithes was established in the mid 15th C simply as a
landing place for a settlement known as Seaton Garth a
little further inland. But from the 16th Century it developed
a reputation as shellfishing village. By the early 1800s
Staithes was the largest east coast fishing port north
of the Wash. Boat building, especially the traditional
cobles and five-man boats, also took place in the shelter
of the beck and many workshops once lined its banks.
The auction of fish on the harbourside was apparently
a lively affair with hundreds of buyers from far afield
competing for the best catch. Those fish not carried off
in panniers by teams of packhorses to market towns in
the region would be cured for long keeping and Staithes
was once buzzing with this as an associated industry.
However, by the 1860’s the last of the Staithes fish curers
had been put out of business by the coming of the railway
that could take fresh fish to distant markets.
Decline of both the fishing and the
boat building industry at Staithes came with the coming
of steam trawlers following the fish down from Scotland
and the eventual collapse of the herring stocks. Although
the bigger boats had ceased their trade by the early
20th Century the smaller cobles continued fishing right
up to the current day. Today a small amount of line-caught
fish and some fine lobsters and crabs are brought ashore
by local fishermen and can be sampled at local eateries.
Smuggling
This was a less orthodox industry that thrived all along
the coast at the time of high taxes on many imported
and luxury goods in the 18th and 19th Centuries. Activities
were literally underground at times as contraband was
shifted up through the village from the sea to be spirited
away from the sights of the customs officials - who
apparently had a particularly hard time of it trying
to get the better of the Staithes locals!
Tourism
and artists
Although the coming of the Victorian railway put paid
to the fish curing industry it also brought new visitors
to Staithes in the form of tourists and, more notably,
artists who were drawn to the village by its picturesque
views, its characterful people and its quaint customs.
For 30 years from 1880 a collection of artists known
as the Staithes Group lived and worked in and around
the village and played their part in revolutionising
the British art scene. In this period the place was
host to artists of international stature as the group’s
work evolved from realism to impressionism. One of the
best known was Dame Laura Knight who met her husband-to-be,
Harold, here in 1897 – the couple later making it their
home for many productive years before heading south
to join the Newlyn School in Cornwall. There is a collection
of the Staithes Group works in the Whitby Museum in
Pannet Park.
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