Old Hessle

Hessle is at the East Yorkshire end of the Humber Bridge and at one time was a more important place than Hull. It was founded by King Ella, who gave his name to a neighbouring village, in the 6th or 7th century and the low-lying salt marshes made a perfect landing place for successive invaders. Chalk was first worked here in the 14th century and the industry was still going strong when the front cover image was photographed. The book deals with this industry, the building and development of the Humber Bridge, and of course the growth and history of this old town and how it has changed down the years. The railway and shipbuilding feature too and the last dozen pages of the book deal briefly with the satellite villages named in the title.