THE PLAN IS....

......we're going to leave Hull city centre and head east into Holderness, out to Spurn Point, then up the coast to Hornsea. After that we'll return to the city of Hull, looking at the bits to the north of the centre. Once that's complete, the general direction will be westerly.

In the last post, I left you in Hull's Old Town. Now we must cross the River Hull. Near its mouth is the sluice gate. It prevents surge tides entering the city.

We'll cross the river by more conventional means, the Drypool Bridge, which has just been traversed by this trolleybus on an enthusiasts' tour.

There's a couple of pubs to do on the east side. First up is the Blacksmiths Arms, an ex Darley's house.

Not far away is the Plimsoll Ship Hotel, owned by the "new" and short-lived Hull Brewery.

Our next stop is the Holderness Road depot of Hull Corporation. Both motorbuses and trolleybuses were billeted here.

The trolleybuses were able to go through the washing plant!

Sadly, many of the old trolleybuses are ready for the scrap man.

The North Eastern Railway's Southcoates station, on the Withernsea branch. Reckitt's staff are awaiting an excursion.

Southcoates level crossing, circa 1904. The H&BR bridge can be seen in the background.

The first of the docks we come across is the oldest, Victoria Dock.

Hedon Road is nearby, seen in 1896, with a steam tram.

Hedon Road passed under the H&BR, on its approach to Aexandra Dock.

Opened in 1885, Alexandra Dock and its associated sidings were built to handle coal.....a lot of it!

The opening day train carrying dignataries at Alexandra Dock, headed by H&BR 0-6-0 No. 14 on 28th My 1885.

The H&BR employed a few tiny Kitson shunting locos based at Alexandra Dock.

Here's the SS Pearlmoor in Alexandra Dock.

The H&BR maintained a loco shed at Alexandra Dock, seen here in early LNER times. It was later demolished, but remained as a stabling point into BR days.

Further east is King George Dock, opened jointly by the H&BR and the NER. This is the opening ceremony on 26th June 1914.

A busy scene at King George Dock in the 1930s.

King George Dock is today the main ferry terminal in Hull.

Rail traffic still serves King George Dock. In 1984 it was sufficient to justify the use of a diesel shunter.

We now leave Hull behind, following the NER's Withernsea line, and soon come to Hedon station.

From here it' a short walk to the first pub, the Kings Head.

That's where I'll leave you for now.

In the next post, as promised we'll head out into the wilds of Holderness.

OLD HULL

We're still in Hull - there's so much to see! In this post we'll look at the Old Town, to the east of Humber Dock, which is south of Princes Dock. On the other side is the River Hull. Here's an old view of Humber Dock.

Much of the old town escaped the bombing of WW2, including the parish church at its centre.

Take a walk through Hepworth Arcade.....

......and you'll find a hidden door into the market hall. Within, Vittles & Co. have a bar, off license and micro brewery!

There are plenty of historic buildings around here, including the Old Grammar School and Trinity House.

There's an impressive number of pubs in this area. The Kingston is the most prominent.

Across the square is a new one, the Head of Steam.

A smidgeon of a distance away, the Corn Exchange, a showpiece for Atom Brewery.

In the Land of Green Ginger (I kid you not!) is the George.

This building was once the Missions to Seaman HQ, now it's a pub owned by Old Mill Brewery. It's called The Mission.

The Oberon was an old favourite when it was a Bass Charrington house.

There are several really historic boozers in Old Hull. Ye Olde Black Boy is one of them.

Walters, on Scale Lane, had a decent beer range. The name has changed and the ale variety isn't as it was.

A few yards down the road, Wm. Hawkes, a good new free house.

Another great pub, down an alley, Ye Olde Whyte Harte.

The Manchester Arms is a down-to-earth Marston's house (ex Hull Brewery).

On the High Street (one of the narrowest thoroughfares in Hull) is the Lion & Key. It once had a brewery installed, but whether it ever brewed.....?

The Sailmakers is also on the High Street. It was once renowned for its chipmunks!

Not far away, the transport museum, now called 'Streetlife'. It holds a steam tram loco, a Ryde (Isle of White) horse tram and various other exhibits.

Not all the Old Town's pubs made it into the 21st Century!

We now come to a railway station that never saw trains! Hull Corporation Pier station was built by the Great Central Railway to sell tickets for the ferry to New Holland. Transfer from Paragon station was by tram.

In later years, this minibus sufficed for the trade on offer.

Corporation Pier was originally named Victoria Pier and was a busy place by the end of the 19th Century.

Now it's 1923.

The Wingfield Castle departs for New Holland, circa 1971.

There was also, for a short time, a hovercraft service to Cleethorpes.

There's still time for one more pint, at the Minerva, which once had its own brewery. It has wonderful views across the Humber.

In the next post, we'll cross the River Hull and head out towards Holderness.