Cleethorpes

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Cleethorpes

Cleethorpes is a town in North East Lincolnshire, England, situated at the mouth of the River Humber.

Cleethorpes is a seaside resort and is physically linked to the neighbouring town of Grimsby (the main town boundary runs along the residential, Park Street). Interestingly Cleethorpes also hosts the home ground of the football club, Grimsby Town F.C., one of few, but not the only, English league clubs with a town or city name to have their home ground in a different community. Residents in older Cleethorpes are called Meggies but it seems very unclear where the name "meggie" comes from. Some say that the top of Isaac's Hill used to be called "Megs Island", while others say a "meggie" was the cost of a tram fare from Grimsby to the resort.

History

Before joining into one town, Cleethorpes was made up of three small villages, or "thorpes": Itterby, Oole and Thrunscoe, which were part of a wider parish called Clee. The name "Cleethorpes" is thought to come from joining the words "clee", an old word for clay, and "thorpes", an old word for villages.

In the 19th century Cleethorpes was a fishing village but after the construction of the railway between the industrial towns of Yorkshire and the coast it grew rapidly. It has been a popular day resort for many years. Recent years have seen the growth of large residential caravan parks.

Cleethorpes was constituted a Local Board of Health District in 1873, and under the Local Government Act of 1894 it became an urban district. During the 1920s the town's boundaries were extended to include parts of the Humberston and Weelsby parishes.

In 1936 its status was raised to that of municipal borough. Cleethorpes successfully resisted attempts by Grimsby to absorb it and in 1974 it became the borough of Cleethorpes within the new county of Humberside. However when Humberside was abolished in 1996 Cleethorpes was merged with Grimsby as the unitary authority of North East Lincolnshire.

Places of interest

The sea front provides excellent views of the considerable shipping traffic entering and leaving the Humber for the ports of Grimsby, Immingham, Hull and Goole.

Two large fortifications, the Humber Forts are visible in the mouth of the river.

The Greenwich meridian passes through the town and a signpost shows some interesting distances in miles. North Pole 2517 miles (4051 kilometres), South Pole 9919 miles (15,963 kilometres), New York 3481 miles (5602 kilometres), London 143 miles (230 kilometres).

Other visitor attractions

Redevelopment

Cleethorpes recently has undergone significant development, with JD's nightclub and the Lifeboat hotel both being demolished in favour of apartments overlooking the beach, and plans for more sites to be converted, including the Winter Gardens, a venue for a variety of events in the past and present. Recently a North East Lincolnshire Council's committee accepted proposals for the Winter Gardens to be replaced by 47 apartment dwellings. This has resulted in some local opposition. Cleethorpes has recently enjoyed the pleasure of a newly constructed multiplex Cinema, Parkway Cinema, along with other attractions at the Meridian site.

Politics

Cleethorpes is represented by the Parliamentary Constituency of Cleethorpes with the Member of Parliament for Cleethorpes being Shona McIsaac (Labour). The constituency also represents other towns in the region (including Immingham and Barton-upon-Humber).

Other information

Cleethorpes is twinned with Königswinter, Germany. Actress Michele Dotrice was born in Cleethorpes.

While commonly referred to as a seaside resort, Cleethorpes actually sits on the Humber estuary. The "sea" at Cleethorpes is actually the mouth of the River Humber.

References

Cleethorpes and the Meggies by Margaret Hart

External links

Seaside resorts in England | Towns in Lincolnshire | North East Lincolnshire

Cleethorpes | Cleethorpes

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