Alum Bay and the Needles

Isle of Wight

Page 2 - Alum Bay

Old postcards are sometimes poorly produced and grainy, I've done my best to scan them. Please click thumbnails for full size picture. Dates are from the card or my estimate (where possible).

Alum Bay about 1910

Alum Bay is renown for its cliffs with coloured sand. In the past it was possible to climb the cliffs to collect them, but because of the danger of falls this is now not possible. The were also a number of independent huts selling the sand, but these have gone to be replaced by a large commercial enterprise. Some would say the whole site (designated 'Needles Pleasure Park') is now over commercialised. The picture above shows the cliffs with the Royal Needles hotel (burned down and not rebuilt in 1909) at the top left and the pier (damaged and not repaired in 1927)

Description of Alum Bay from a Ward Lock guide from the twenties:

"In the sunlight, with the waves sparkling and the hues of the coloured cliffs intensified, Alum Bay makes one impression; seen again, when the clouds lower and the wind whistles down the gully, when purple heather has turned to brown and the old pier creaks as the breakers dash upon it, Alum Bay is another place entirely. The famous cliffs are seen at their best after a storm of rain, the contrasted colours of the freshly exposed surface of the strata being then specially vivid. The Coloured Cliffs, in which twelve distinct shades of colour have been counted, are best seen from the deck of a steamer. We cannot do better than quote Englefield's description:

"The tints of the cliff are so bright and so varied that they have not the aspect of anything natural. Deep purplish red, dusky blue, bright ochreous yellow, grey nearly approaching to white, and absolute black, succeed each other, as sharply defined as the stripes in silk; and after it rains, the sun, which, from about noon till his setting, in summer, illuminates them more and more , give a brilliancy to some of these as nearly resplendent as the bright lights on real silk."

For many years there was a pier at Alum Bay opened in 1887 and was basically a long landing stage, about 370 feet long, there was a cafe at its entrance and a gift shop on the shore. It was a landing point for pleasure steamers both from the mainland and the Island. It declined after the first world war and was declared unfit and closed in 1924. It was damaged by a storm in 1927, but the remnants were visible well into the 1960's.


Looking from the Needles headland over Alum Bay 1904.	A similar view, probably from the 1930's. (Sweetman)

Alum Bay beach, again probably from the 1930's showing the wrecked pier. (Dean)	Picture is from the late 19th century according to the book 'Alum Bay and the Needles', but card has no date

This card shows the view from the head of Alum Bay pier with the chine (gorge) in the background, dated 1915. (Ideal)	An undated card showing tea being taken on Alum Bay pier

Alum Bay chine (gorge) pre war. The hut was a tea room. This was the main route to the beach. (Gubbins)	The path down the chine during the 50's (before the chair lift was built). (Dean)

The Royal Needles Hotel, centre left, burnt down in 1909 with Headon Hall just visible on the right. (Frith)	An overview of Alum Bay from 1924. The rebuilt Needles hotel is at the centre of the picture with Headon Hall above it to the left. The remains of the original hotel are just visible on the left.

All pictures on this page are from my own collection.

Alum Bay and the Needles

Isle of Wight

Page 2 - Alum Bay

15 March 2008