Seaham: County Durham Coastal Town Where Byron Married and Sea Glass Washes Ashore
Seaham is a town on the Durham coast, about six miles south of Sunderland. The population is around 22,000. Lord Byron married Annabella Milbanke at Seaham Hall in January 1815; the marriage lasted barely a year but produced Ada Lovelace, often credited as the first computer programmer. Seaham Hall is now a luxury hotel. The town developed around coal mining and its harbour, built by the Marquess of Londonderry in the 1820s to export coal from his collieries. The harbour is still intact, though coal exports ceased decades ago.
Seaham has gained a reputation in recent years for its sea glass beach. Decades of bottles and glassware dumped at sea and in local tips have been ground into smooth coloured pieces by the waves, creating a beach sought out by collectors and jewellery makers. The Durham Heritage Coast path runs through the area, and the coastline has cleaned up dramatically since the end of coal dumping in the 1990s.
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Seaham is a town on the Durham coast, about six miles south of Sunderland. The population is around 22,000. Lord Byron married Annabella Milbanke at Seaham Hall in January 1815; the marriage lasted barely a year but produced Ada Lovelace, often credited as the first computer programmer. Seaham Hall is now a luxury hotel. The town developed around coal mining and its harbour, built by the Marquess of Londonderry in the 1820s to export coal from his collieries. The harbour is still intact, though coal exports ceased decades ago.
Seaham has gained a reputation in recent years for its sea glass beach. Decades of bottles and glassware dumped at sea and in local tips have been ground into smooth coloured pieces by the waves, creating a beach sought out by collectors and jewellery makers. The Durham Heritage Coast path runs through the area, and the coastline has cleaned up dramatically since the end of coal dumping in the 1990s.
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