The New Student's Reference Work/Shields, South

Shields, South, a town of England, is a seaport in Durham, at the mouth of the Tyne, nine miles northeast of Newcastle-upon-Tyne. The coast is fine, with picturesque caves hollowed out in the cliffs. The south pier, a gigantic breakwater 5,218 feet long, was begun in 1854. The harbor is lined with ships and boat-yards, iron, glass, alkali and rope works and paint and varnish factories. The Tyne docks also, which cover 50 acres, are near the town. The first lifeboat (q. v.) was built at South Shields and used first in 1790. The town was a military station in the time of the Romans; salt-works were established as early as 1489 and glass-works in 1619. Population 111,400.