Bill Quay
| Bill Quay | |
|---|---|
  Bill Quay Location within Tyne and Wear | |
| OS grid reference | NZ297626 |
| Metropolitan borough | |
| Metropolitan county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | GATESHEAD |
| Postcode district | NE10 |
| Dialling code | 0191 |
| Police | Northumbria |
| Fire | Tyne and Wear |
| Ambulance | North East |
| UK Parliament | |
Bill Quay is a suburb in the northeast of Gateshead in North East England, situated between Hebburn to the east and Pelaw to the southwest. It lies on the south bank of the River Tyne, facing Walker-on-Tyne.
History
During the 19th century it was an industrial area catering for chemical works, bottle works, Robson's Paint and shipbuilding. The area saw an economic upturn at the end of the 19th century when the CWS (Co-Operative Wholesale Society) opened its vast and extensive string of factories along its main thoroughfare, Shields Road. Boutlands, Harrisons and Wood-Skinner were shipbuilders at Bill Quay with Harrisons remaining the last shipbuilders on the Tyne's south bank until its closure recently.
Notable establishments
- Bill Quay Community Farm
- An important urban farm and one of only 16 farm parks nationally recognised by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust in the UK. Breeds include Tamworth pigs, Jacob sheep, Hebridean sheep, Scots Grey hens and Bagot goats. It used to play host to Chickenstock, an annual showcase festival for local Gateshead based bands.
- Bill Quay Albion Cricket Club
- Bill Quay Albion Cricket Club compete in the Durham Cricket League.
- Bill Quay Methodist Church
Bill Quay in fiction
The novel Schoolfrenz by Ray Crowther (ISBN 0-9541110-3-6) is set mainly on Tyneside. Bill Quay is mentioned several times and is the location for a murder scene in the book. The author's website (Ray Crowther) contains an extract from Schoolfrenz about Bill Quay, and has photographs of Bill Quay and the surrounding area.