The Beachlands area of Hayling Island seafront has been a tourist destination for many years. Originally a holiday spot for the well off who wished to enjoy the medicinal benefits of sea water and fresh air. Beachlands even boasted a seawater bathhouse during the 1820s, constructed shortly after the island was made more accessible by the opening of the new bridge. Hayling Island was discovered by the masses in the 1930’s, when the popularity of the motor car made travelling here more convenient. As the Island grew in popularity as a holiday destination, the attractions of safe sandy beaches and good sunshine records were joined by frequent travelling country fairs held at Beachlands. When the site was bought by Billy Butlin in 1924, these travelling fairs started to become permanent attractions and the forerunner to the modern fairground that sits on the same site today. One of the biggest attractions of this early fairground was Monkey Island. Set amid a small boating lake, Monkey Island was a rocky outcrop inhabited by live monkeys.

As well as being a place of fun, Beachlands has also served a more serious role. Taken over by the Royal Navy in 1939, Beachlands served as a barracks for the armed forces for the duration of WWII.

Today the fairground, under it’s modern name of Funland, offers attractions rather different to the old Monkey Island including dodgems, under cover amusement arcades, swing boat and a small roller coaster.

Children are well catered for in the fun factory, whilst parents enjoy refreshments at one of the kiosks or cafes on site. Open all year round the funfair even offers shelter from the elements under our very own ‘millennium dome’ and has recently become one of the stops on Hayling’s own seafront railway.

In 1824, the original 960 foot long timber bridge provided Hayling Island with its first permanent dry connection to Langstone, replacing the wadeway as the main link to the mainland. Construction of the bridge was helped by the importance of developing the Portsmouth to London canal link, which required a deep channel to be cut into the historic wadeway so that vessels could pass.

The wooden bridge was built on piles of African Oak and other timbers and had a 40ft swing section in the centre to allow for vessels to pass beneath. The 1824 bridge was described, in it’s time, as “One of the finest structure of the kind in the Kingdom”.

Motor vehicles had to stop to pay a toll at the bridge, which could not take heavy loads. Such was the fragility of the construction that bus passengers were required to disembark and walk whilst the bus crossed the bridge unladened.
Today Hayling is served by a single dry crossing to the mainland in the form of the modern road bridge. This two lane, concrete construction was opened in 1956, 5 months ahead of schedule and forms part of the A3023 to Havant.

Prior to the construction of the original wooden toll bridge in 1824, access to and exit from the Island was only possible either by boat or by use of the Wadeway. This three-quarter mile long footpath probably existed since pre-Roman times and offered a route between Langstone and Hayling for pedestrians and horse riders during the three hours either side of low water. Even today the remains of this route remain visible, extending between the Royal Oak at Langstone and Northney shore with oak stumps marking part of the route.

A piece of timber found at the Hayling end of the wadeway was proved by carbon dating to be 3,000 years old, giving us an indication to how long this route has actually been in use. The timber, which bares the mark of a bronze age axe can now be seen at the Havant museum

In 1865, an additional route between Hayling and the main land was created in the form of a railway bridge. Built as an essential part of the Hayling to Langstone branch line, this 1000ft long triumph of Victorian engineering opened in the centre to create a 30 foot gap to allow for the movement of shipping between Chichester and Langstone harbours.

The remains of the timber legs of the railway bridge, later encased in concrete for reinforcement can still be seen today and serve as a reminder of the old railway.

Up until as recently as 1989, it was a common site to see tens of thousands of bricks lined up in this field to dry in the sun. Bricks were made by hand on Hayling for the best part of a century by members of the local Pycroft family.

Today little remains in this field to remind us of the busy family business that once served as such a landmark.

Oysters were farmed on Hayling since as early as 1819, right up until the 1970s and became a delicacy that was exported throughout the country under the classification of “Emsworth Oysters”. Large complexes consisting of several pens separated by a series of bund walls were built to contain the oysters at varying stages of growth.

Although large sections of the bund walls have since collapsed into the harbour, much of shape and scale of the beds can still be seen today.
In 1996, the oyster beds on the north west coast of Hayling Island were restored by the Havant Borough Council, creating a wildlife haven which has become an important seabird breeding site. The Design Council awarded this project ‘Millennium Product’ status for the renovation.

Just off the main road onto the Island is a small turning leading to North Hayling Station (also known as North Hayling Halt). This was once a small wooden station serving the single track Havant to Hayling branch line. As well as providing a local stop to the people of North Hayling, North Hayling Station was also used to load Oysters farmed in the beds just to the North of the station.
Although similarly constructed, and lacking the albeit basic staffing common at other nearby ‘Halts’, such as Bedhampton and Warblington. North Hayling was never officially classed as such. In fact just after WW2 a brand new enamelled sign was created in error, quoting the ‘North Hayling Halt’ name. It was never used and languished for many years in the stores at Havant, until the line eventually closed.

The diminutive Station, together with the rest of the line, was closed in 1963 when it fell under the axe of Dr. Beeching. Although little evidence remains of the sites railway history, the site of the old station at North Hayling does still provide access to the Coastal Path, Oysterbeds and the RSPB nature reserve.
The site was also the location of one of Hayling’s anti-aircraft batteries during the Second World War, serving to protect the Island during frequent air raids. Equipped with heavy 5.5 inch guns, the remains of the emplacements are still visible if you travel down the coastal trail from this point.

The current Manor House was built in 1777, by the Duke of Norfolk, close to the site of it’s predecessor. This ancient moated site has history dating back at least to the Norman period. The Manor House is considered by some to be the location of the Hayling’s lost priory, but is more likely to have been the site of the grange belonging to the priory.

Within the grounds of the Manor house are two structures worthy of particular note. The first is the old barn which contains a mixture of thin red roman tiles, large stone lumps, flint and brick in its walls and is support by massive timbers salvaged from an early German wreck. The second is a Norman Dovecote which could have accommodated a hundred or so doves or nesting pigeons. As keeping doves was a manorial privilege this gives added credence to the idea that the Priory farm was once located on this spot.

The Pound, located next to the roundabout at Havant / Manor roads was originally used to impound stray animals. Animals were held until a release fee was paid to the Lord of the Manor. Although the exact age of the pound is not known, records show that is received restoration in 1778.

Partially demolished in recent years to allow for road improvements, the remains of the pound were refurbished by the Bosmere Hundred Society. The three sides of paving stones visible in the foreground of the picture indicate the original size of the structure.

Standing on the Island’s highest point, at 20 ft above sea level, St. Mary’s Church became the central church on Hayling after flooding claimed the priory church, along with much of the southern edge of the Island in the 13th or 14th century. Built mainly in the early thirteenth century from imported stone, the church gained the addition on a timber porch in the fifteenth century and received significant interior restoration and alteration during the reign of Queen Victoria.

Although the original stocks and whipping post that were housed in the church yard have now been removed to Havant Museum, St. Mary’s church still has many features worthy of note. The most noticeable of these is the ancient yew that dominates the church yard, believed to be one of the oldest in the country with a girth of some nine metres. Although estimates as to its age vary, they range from over a thousand to nearly two thousand years old.

Carved into the outside walls of the church four sun dials can still be seen by the keen observer. Used for timing the frequent church services in the days before mechanical timepieces, these now receive too much shade from the surrounding yew trees to be of any functional use.

In 1803 the three bells in the belfry, once impressed “1324” were replaced by a tolling bell.
Inside the church notable features include a stained glass window depicting the Tree of Jesse and two interesting fonts. The first font, a Saxon stone basin with interlacing patterns, was excavated from a site near the vicarage in the nineteenth century. The second is a Norman font of a much squarer, less intricate design.

Tournerbury woods is the most outstanding woodland area on Hayling Island. Consisting predominantly of oak and beech trees, the woods are an area of great natural beauty and a sanctuary for birdlife. The private woods and grounds of Tournerbury also hide many historic features.

Within the woods a rough semi-circular earth bank and ditch betray the remains of an iron age fort. The full circumference of this structure, believed to be an ancient Vallum & Fosse (defensive rampart and moat or ditch). This is described in a text from 1826* as being clearly defined around the entire circumference with nearly pristine southern and eastern parts. The construction is estimated at being 240 yards across at it’s widest and 200 at it’s narrowest with the vallum standing 7ft tall to match the width and depth of the fosse.

Elsewhere the remains of an eighteenth century kiln and brickyard remains clearly visible, as are ancient sea defences on the North East shore of the farm. North of the wood “windmill hill” is the site of an ancient barrow re-used as a mediaeval windmill mount.

Although the historic woods remain unspoilt, today Tournerbury is better known as the site of a 9 hole golf course and driving range.

* Topographics & Historical Account of Hayling Island
– Frank Westwood : I. Skelton

This marshland area, fronting Mengham Creek has been the site of several interesting ventures throughout the years. Oyster farming and salt panning were both prevalent here, but possibly the most unusual was a venture to extract gold from seawater. Readers may not be surprised to hear of the failure of this particular venture, but may be more surprised to hear that with over 9 billion tons of gold believed to be in our oceans experiments like this have regained a recent popularity.

Mengham Rythe is probably best known though as the site of one of the Island’s sailing clubs. Mengeham Rythe Sailing Club was formed in 1950, as a “Club for all of moderate means” on the original site of Hayling Island Sailing Club at Mengham Rythe. Although the club was originally a sailing and fishing club, the fishing side of the club was dropped after ten years or so as sailing gained in popularity. The club is still popular today and is now housed in a brand new club house, opened in 2003 to replace its 1973 predecessor.