Staithes North Yorkshire poster – John Bee

The Staithes North Yorkshire Coast poster was created by the artist John Bee, who often signed his posters with the letter ‘B’. It was produced by British Railways to promote tourism to Staithes through railway travel to the nearest railway station at Whitby. The vintage railway poster formed part of the railway company’s ongoing ‘See England By Rail’ advertising campaign. Bee’s image perfectly captures one of the most picturesque villages on the Yorkshire Coast, which, as the Englandscoast website explains even today is, unspoiled by the modern world.

John Bee has included the rugged towering cliffs that shelter the beautiful cove. Bee’s ‘old village’ painting has captured the higgledy-piggledy huddled cottages with red pantile roofs standing on a labyrinth of winding cobbled streets. Traditional wooden rowing and fishing boats float in the harbour next to the small, sandy beach. In the foreground “B” has included two old fishermen leaning against a wall, looking over the charming village.

What is Staithes famous for?

Whilst Staithes North Yorkshire Coast has a history dating back to the Vikings it wasn’t until the 15th Century that the village began to develop. Even then it was only used as a ‘landing place’ for the ancient village of Seaton Garth on what is now the uphill part of Staithes. By the 19th Century, the village had over 80 fishermen using the harbour to moor their Coble fishing boats. The small port had grown to be the largest fishing port north of The Wash. The region was also a busy marketplace for the trade in locally quarried ‘alum’, used as a fixing agent for dyeing cotton cloth.

Despite all this, Staithes is probably best known for its links to Captain Cook. The village was once home to the renowned British explorer, navigator and cartographer who led the famous expedition on the HMS Bark Endeavour in search of Terra Australis in 1768. Born in 1728 in Barton near Middlesbrough, a young James Cook moved to Staithes in 1745 where he was apprenticed as a draper. It was at this fishing village, Cook would fall in love with the sea.

The apprenticeship would not last long. In an online article on the Britain Express website, historian David Ross writes “Cook fell in love with the sea and pined to become a sailor. Sanderson introduced him to a friend named John Walker, a Quaker shipowner living in Whitby. Walker agreed to take Cook on as an apprentice, and he moved to Whitby”. From there Cook joined the Royal Navy and rose quickly through the ranks until he was promoted to command. He went on to become famous for his voyages of discovery to Australia, New Zealand, and Hawaii.

The Sanderson shop where Cook worked was destroyed by a storm in 1745. Parts of the shop were incorporated into a new building known as Captain Cook’s Cottage at the harbourside end of Church Street.