Coordinates: 51°31′54″N 0°47′52″E / 51.5316°N 0.7978°E
| Shoeburyness | |
  Shoeburyness
Shoeburyness shown within Essex |
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| Population | 19,991 (2001 Census) |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | |
| Unitary authority | Southend-on-Sea |
| Ceremonial county | Essex |
| Region | East |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | SOUTHEND-ON-SEA |
| Postcode district | SS3 |
| Dialling code | 01702 |
| Police | Essex |
| Fire | Essex |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| EU Parliament | East of England |
| UK Parliament | Rochford and Southend East |
| List of places: UK • England • Essex | |
Shoeburyness is a town in southeast Essex, England, situated at the mouth of the river Thames. It is within the borough of Southend-on-Sea, and is situated at the far east of the borough, around 3 miles (5 km) east of Southend town centre. It was an urban district of Essex from 1894 to 1933, when it became part of the county borough of Southend-on-Sea.[1]
The eastern terminus of the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway (c2c line) is at Shoeburyness railway station. Oddly enough, the station was served by London Underground trains from 1911 to 1939. The eastern end of the A13 is at Shoeburyness. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) site at Pig's Bay is situated nearby.
Shoeburyness has two beaches; East Beach and Shoebury Common Beach (also known as West Beach), both Blue Flag beaches:
East Beach is a sandy/pebbly beach around a quarter of a mile long and is sandwiched between the Pig's Bay MOD site and the former Shoeburyness Artillery barracks. Access to the large gravel/grass pay-and-display car park is via Rampart Terrace. East Beach is the home of a defence boom, built in 1944, to prevent enemy shipping and submarines from accessing the River Thames. This replaced an earlier similar boom built 100 yards (91 m) east. The majority of the boom was dismantled after the war, but around one mile still remains stretching out into the Thames Estuary. East Beach benefits from a large grassy area immediately adjacent to the sands that is suitable for informal sports and family fun.
Shoebury Common Beach is bounded to the East by the Shoeburyness Artillery Barracks and continues into Jubilee Beach. Shoebury Common Beach is home to many beach huts located in the promenade and on the sand. Uncle Tom's Cabin provides visitors with the usual seaside refreshments. A Coast Guard watch tower at the eastern end of the beach keeps watch over the sands and mudflats while listening out for distress calls over the radio.
A tower is currently in the planning stages that will one day stand in the Shoeburyness Garrison housing development. The tower, proposed to be 18 storeys high, is being designed to mark the start of the Thames Gateway development.[2]
Popular Culture
Shoeburyness is also mentioned in The Meaning of Liff by Douglas Adams et al. The Meaning of Liff is a fictional dictionary assigning names to local English towns. Shoeburyness is described as "that uncomfortable feeling one experiences when sitting in a chair that is still warm from the last occupant."
In the fifth Temeraire novel Victory of Eagles, it is the setting of a fictitious climactic battle in which Wellesley and Nelson drive Napoleon out of England in early 1808.
References
- ^ Shoeburyness UD Essex through time | Administrative history of Local Government District: hierarchies, boundaries
- ^ BBC - Essex - Thames Gateway - A new landmark for Shoebury?
External links
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Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Shoeburyness. |
- Shoeburyness Model Railway Club
- East Beach
- Shoebury Common Beach
- Shoeburyness and Thorpe Bay Baptist Church
- Shoeburyness High School
- South Shoebury Parish
- Shoebury Youth Football Club
- Defence Boom
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