5315 x 3543 px | 45 x 30 cm | 17,7 x 11,8 inches | 300dpi
Data acquisizione:
agosto 2010
Ubicazione:
English Channel looking towards village of Hallsands, Devon, England, UK
Altre informazioni:
In 1891 Hallsands had 37 houses, a spring, a public house called the London Inn, and a population of 159. Most residents of Hallsands at that time depended on fishing for a living, particularly crab fishing on the nearby Skerries Bank. In the 1890s it was decided to expand the naval dockyard at Keyham, near Plymouth, and dredging began offshore from Hallsands to provide sand and gravel for its construction. Soon, up to 1, 600 tons of material was being removed each day, and the level of the beach began to drop, much to the alarm of local residents who feared that the dredging might destabilise the beach and thereby threaten the village. By 1900, however, the level of the beach had started to fall. In the autumn storms that year, part of the sea wall was washed away. In September 1901 a Board of Trade inspector concluded that further severe storms could cause serious damage and recommended that dredging be stopped. On 8 January 1902 the dredging licence was revoked. During 1902 the level of the beach recovered, but the winter of 1902 brought more storms and damage. On 26 January 1917, a combination of easterly gales and exceptionally high tides breached Hallsands' defences, and by the end of that year only one house remained habitable. The new houses at Hallsands are built above the height of the old village and a short distance from it.
