Yachting and the Nottage Maritime Institute.

Boat Building and Marine Engineering

Wildfowling, Marshmen and Inland Waterways

Seaside Holidays and Leisure

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introduction
Yachting and the Nottage Maritime Institute. (current page)

Introduction

The first people to begin to use the East of England’s coastal towns as a leisure destination were wealthy people who came to visit the new bathhouses that sprung up along the coast to cater for the emerging fashion of taking the sea air and sea water for medicinal purposes.

In the mid 1800s the railway arrived, bringing with it day-trippers, many of whom were industrial workers looking for brief respite and distraction from the hardships of their everyday lives. The Victorian era transformed many coastal communities, with hotels, piers and entertainment venues springing up along the newly constructed promenades.

Throughout much of the 20th century numbers of holidaymakers visiting the seaside steadily increased. After the hardships endured during World War II, visitors flocked back to coastal resorts in search of distraction and entertainment.

The birth of the cheap package holiday in the 1970s undoubtedly had an impact on visitor numbers but now there are signs of resurgence in popularity and coastal resorts across the East of England are beginning to benefit from the renewed support of day-trippers and visitors on short break holidays.

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Seaside Holidays and Leisure

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Yachting and the Nottage Maritime Institute.

Photograph of King Coel.

Yachting has been important on the River Colne since the early nineteenth century when it was very much a rich man's sport. Many notable early yachts were built at Wivenhoe, Brightlingsea and Rowhedge and the professional crews who manned often came from these same places.

The founder of the Nottage Institute was himself, of course, a yachtsman and the Institute trained many of the yachts' crewmen as well as smackmen.

The Nottage exhibition displays many old photographs of the big yachts and their crews, together with half models and the pierhead paintings they brought back.