From the Darlington & Stockton Times of September 3, 1871

IN Redcar, Rear Admiral Thomas Chaloner, of Guisborough, had driven the first pile of the pier into the beach.

“The weather was exceedingly fine, and Redcar being full of visitors, there was a large number of spectators on the sands to witness the ceremony,” said the D&S.

Admiral Chaloner was chairman of the Redcar Pier Company. After speeches, he “pulled a string, which liberated the pile driver, and the first pile sank a little deeper in the sand”, said the D&S. “The band played God Save the Queen, and the people cheered.”

The pier, he said, would be 1,300ft long with a ballroom at the pierhead which would accommodate 2,000 dancers.

“Piers, however, he said, were not made for dancing, or for ornamentation. The great object in making a pier was to enable people who came to the seaside to walk along a promenade and enjoy the sea air.”

Redcar pier was opened in 1873 but demolished in 1980.