The railway that brought the beach to your bathroom

Blackpool, Health & Pleasure, Glorious Sea. Midland Railway, 1868 – 1893

Think that a week relaxing at the beach is good for you? In the early 1900s, visiting the coast for a dip in the sea was thought to cure all manner of ailments. But what happened when the summer season was over and you had to leave all that fresh air and sea water behind?
Its nice to know that back in 1908 the Great Eastern Railway company was thinking about its passengers’ ongoing health. For a small fee, it offered seawater delivered direct to passengers in London and its suburbs so that they could enjoy the benefits*of sea bathing in their own*home. The Railway Magazine reported;

Now that the seaside holiday season is over, it is valuable information to those who have enjoyed the recuperative qualities of sea bathing to know that it is possible to continue their sea water baths in their own home through an enterprising arrangement made by the Great Eastern Railway to deliver sea water in kegs daily from Lowestoft to any part of London including the Great Eastern Railway Suburban stations within the ordinary railway cartage delivery radius for the small sum of 6d. for three gallons. The Superintendant of the Line at Liverpool Street station will be pleased to supply any further information gratis upon application being made to him.
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I wonder how popular the GER’s scheme was with passengers…
Visit our poster exhibiton Hints for Holidays (until 2 September 2012)*to find out more about the origins of the seaside holiday.

Filed under: Image collections Tagged: beach, holidays, posters, seaside, seawater