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Some more Yorkshire geekery.
I really ought to be sponsored by @Welcome2Yorks
Today we went to Ravenscar;
THE TOWN THAT NEVER WAS.
I really ought to be sponsored by @Welcome2Yorks
Today we went to Ravenscar;
THE TOWN THAT NEVER WAS.
The original settlement was known as Peak (or Old Peak), pretty much a small farming hamlet.
The area became industrialised in the 17th century, as alum - for dyes in the textile industry was extracted from the shale that's prevalent in the area. By the 18th century the Peak Alum Works was a huge operation.
Undoubtedly this was the reason the Whitby - Scarborough railway passed through here. The station was opened in 1885 and was originally known as Peak. In 1897 it became known as Ravenscar, after a company had been formed to market the area for investors.
The name Ravenscar is taken from the name of the local hall (Raven Hall) and the Yorkshire suffix for a cliff, Scar. It is said that King George III stayed at Raven Hall as it was the family home of his physician - Dr Francis Willis.
At the turn of the 19th–20th century, plans were made by investors to turn the village into a holiday resort similar to those at nearby Scarborough and Filey.
Unfortunately, finacial discrepancies, arguments between investors and the long rocky trail to the beach meant Ravenscar never took off. Roads were built, streets planned and sewers were dug but yet there are no grand houses, guest houses or shops.
Ravenscar did however enjoy a purpose in WWII, when a listening and radar station was built close to the clifftops. (Its now a NT site so you can visit it via The Cleveland Way)
But now, Ravenscar, as it always has, enjoys some of the most stunning natural beauty in England, yet despite sounding like a name from a Harry Potter book, it's relatively little known. Except for some exceptional visitors to THE TOWN THAT NEVER WAS.
