*** Welcome to piglix ***

Southend-on-sea

Southend-on-Sea
Borough of Southend-on-Sea
Town, unitary authority area & Borough
June 2008 aerial view of Southend-on-Sea
June 2008 aerial view of Southend-on-Sea
Official logo of Southend-on-Sea
Southend-on-Sea Borough Council
(Civic arms of Southend-on-Sea)
Motto: Per Mare Per Ecclesiam
(By Sea, By Church)
Shown within Essex
Shown within Essex
Country United Kingdom
Constituent country England
Region East
Ceremonial County Essex
Unitary Authority Southend
Government
 • Leadership Leader & Cabinet
 • Governing Body Southend-on-Sea Borough Council
 • Executive Conservative (council NOC)
 • MPs David Amess (C)
James Duddridge (C)
Area
 • Total 41.76 km2 (16.12 sq mi)
Population
 • Total Ranked 101st
178,700
 • Density 4,279/km2 (11,080/sq mi)
 • Ethnicity 93.6% White
2.5% S.Asian
1.5% Black
1.4% Mixed Race
Time zone GMT (UTC+0)
 • Summer (DST) British Summer Time (UTC+1)
Grid reference TQ883856
ONS code 00KF (ONS)
E06000033 (GSS)
Website www.southend.gov.uk

Southend-on-Sea (About this sound pronunciation ), commonly referred to as simply Southend, is a seaside resort town and wider unitary authority area with borough status, in Essex, England, on the north side of the Thames estuary 40 miles (64 km) east of central London. It is bordered to the north by Rochford and to the west by Castle Point. It is home to the longest leisure pier in the world, Southend Pier.London Southend Airport is located 1.5 NM (2.8 km; 1.7 mi) north of the town centre.

Originally the "south end" of the village of Prittlewell, Southend was home to a few poor fisherman huts and farms that lay at the southern extremity of Prittlewell Priory land. In the 1790s landowner Daniel Scratton sold off land either side of what was to become the High Street, and the Grand Hotel (now Royal Hotel) and Grove Terrace (now Royal Terrace) were completed by 1794, and stagecoaches from London made it accessible. Due to the bad transportation links between Southend and London, there was not rapid development during the Georgian Era like Brighton. It was the coming of the railways in the 19th Century and the visit of Princess Caroline that Southend's status of a seaside resort grew. During the 19th century Southend's pier was first constructed and the Clifftown development built, attracting many tourists in the summer months to its seven miles of beaches and bathing in the sea. Good rail connections and proximity to London mean that much of the economy has been based on tourism, and that Southend has been a dormitory town for city workers ever since. Southend Pier is the world's longest pleasure pier at 1.34 mi (2.16 km). It has suffered fires and ship collisions, most recently in October 2005, but the basic pier structure has been repaired each time.


...
Wikipedia

...