Marsden Grotto and Marsden Rock – England - Atlas Obscura

Marsden Grotto and Marsden Rock

This large sea stack and the man made cave on the nearby cliffs was once the haunt of a smuggler but the cave now houses Europe's only cave-based bar. 

1
0

Marsden beach is just south of the Tyneside  town of South Shields. To get to the actual beach you need to walk down a steep path on the cliffs but if you want to visit the bar and restaurant at the foot of the cliff the owners have provided a convenient  elevator. The bar is based in a cave which if not entirely artificial  has been widely extended. Across a narrow  strip of  beach, which is completely  inundated  at high tide, is a large sea stack called Marsden Rock, famous for both its resident wildlife (nesting fulmars, kittiwakes, razorbills  and cormorants) and its history.

The history of both the rock and the grotto starts with a character called Jack the Blaster, a lead miner from the lead mining area of Northumberland who, finding himself homeless, blasted a cave (or opened out a small existing one) at the foot of the Marsden Cliffs (later to become the Grotto) to create a  home. He also created a set of steps down the cliff. He quickly became involved in smuggling, the large sea stack of Marsden Rock providing cover (from the seaward side) for mooring and unloading smuggling boats transporting brandy and tobacco. Caves on the rock and close to his home formed ideal hiding places. He also provided catering to the smugglers.

A local man  and pub landlord Peter Allan took over the grotto and extended it into a 15 room home with a kitchen and a ballroom. Jack the blaster’s house became an inn. Peter Allan later lost a court case (in 1849)  to a John Gray who claimed the freehold of the Grotto. Allan’s family continued as tenants for 35 years extending the Grotto at the front. During this time they also worked on the Rock, adding ladders and a staircase to get visitors to the top. In 1903, using Allan’s stairs a choir apparently performed a choral service which was very well received.

After a couple of changes of hands, 1898 the Vaux brewery took over the tenancy and purchased the freehold in 1938. It was they who installed the cliff elevator in 1952. When the brewery stopped operating the site as a bar it entered a state  of disrepair  and there has been several refurbishments since then. The most recent owners have  recently refurbished the entrance to the cliff elevator and started to offer  overnight accommodation after a many years break. 

Locally  there are numerous  legends about things that happened  during the period  as a smugglers haunt including  a story about an informant to the Revenue Officers who was sealed in a barrel suspended from the cliff and starved to death.

Community Contributors