Brief History of Hartlepool
Once a prosperous ship building and fishing town that also produced quality iron and steel at its mills, like so many other coastal towns and cities, Hartlepool fell into decline when the shipyards closed and fishing quotas were introduced. Hartlepool has seen its fishing fleet reduced to just three all-weather trawlers.
On 16th December 1914 Hartlepool became the first place on mainland Britain to be bombed by the Germans. Over 100 people were killed when over 1000 shells were fired from three German battle cruisers.
During the Napoleonic War a French ship was wrecked off the coast of Hartlepool, its only survivor was a monkey dressed in a sailors uniform. The locals not knowing what a Frenchman looked like questioned it, then hung it. Fact or folklore, the people of Hartlepool are proud of their heritage, and the branch have this depicted on the crest, in the form of gallows around the ‘Jimmy’.
After huge investment modern day, Hartlepool is now a busy coastal town that boasts a modern marina and shopping centre. It played host to the 2010 Tall Ships Race.
