Chain Pier Site
James Gray: It is a pity that these six [actually seven] charming cameos, [jgc_05_033 to 039] taken from the Chain Pier and looking east and west, are so faded as they show so much of interest. A view from the Pier. Additional Information: Note the buildings on the Esplanade. jgc_05_034
2020: Sadly, after suffering damage from a series of violent storms, the structure collapsed into the sea in December 1896 and today nothing is visible in the sea or on land. (Photographer: David Sears)
James Gray: No comment. jgc_05_078
2020: The amenities at the shore end of the pier originally included a bazaar, saloon lounge, reading room and camera obscura. Fortunately, the buildings in the background have endured rather better and are still easily recognisable. (Photographer: David Sears)
James Gray: This very clear photograph, also by Mr. A.H. Fry, shows the downward gradient of Volk’s railway to take the line under the Pier. Note Snelling’s Bazaar and the Camera Obscura. jgc_05_081
2020: See above. (Photographer: David Sears)
James Gray: No comment. Additional Information: Photographer: Lane. jgc_05_103
James Gray: All three photographs [see also jgc_06_053 on the Brighton East Seafront: images on the beach (A) page and jgc_06_054 on the Brighton East Seafront: images on the beach (3) page] probably date from the mid-1890s, as the skeleton of the Palace Pier appears in one and the remains of the Chain Pier, destroyed 4 December 1896, in another. Note how at that period the sea swept right up to Madeira Drive wall and reflect on how much has been reclaimed from the sea since then. jgc_06_052
2020: There are many photographs showing the remains of the Chain Pier after its collapse into the sea on 4 December 1896. Today there is little left to mark its passing. (Photographer: David Sears)
James Gray: No comment. Additional Information: Palace Pier in distance. jgc_05_107
2020: The entry kiosks on the far right of Gray’s image were eventually incorporated into the new Palace Pier. (Photographer: David Sears)
James Gray: Two years after the destruction of the Pier these remains were still there. The two toll houses and entrance gates. One was then used for the sale of sweets. The level of Volk’s Railway had been raised and the incline done away with. jgc_05_120
2020: The earlier image shows the two distinctive kiosks (or toll houses) on Madeira Drive which marked the entrance to the Chain Pier before its destruction in December 1896. At some time after Gray’s image was taken, the kiosks were incorporated into the Palace Pier, in front of the Grand Ballroom and Winter Garden, and remain there to this day. The tall white tower to the right is the entry to Brighton Zip, a recent addition to the Brighton seascape. (Photographer: David Sears)
James Gray: These two photographs [see also jgc_05_150 on the Madeira Drive page] need little comment as their location is quite obvious. In fact the doubt is when were they taken. There is no obvious sign of Volk’s Railway (1883) but the present teak and iron railings (1880) are there which suggests that they date from between these two years. jgc_05_149
2020: Brighton beach is still a popular place to visit, although bathing machines are no longer available and the Chain Pier has disappeared into the sea. (Photographer: Simon Cooper)
James Gray: The Pier, which was constructed under the supervision of Captain Samuel Brown during 1822 and 1823, was opened to the public on 25 November, 1823. It stood approximately opposite the steps leading down from Marine Parade by New Steine, and was approached by an esplanade, 1250 feet in length and 33 feet wide. The tollgates giving access to this esplanade were a little to the north of the present aquarium entrance. The length of the Pier was 1134 feet and it was 13 feet in width.
When the Aquarium was built in 1871, the Chain Pier lost its esplanade and the tollgates were removed to the entrance of the Pier itself. Competition of the Aquarium and the recently opened West Pier affected the Pier Company financially, and successive gales and storms seriously damaged the structure. It was closed to the public on 9 October 1896 and destroyed during a storm on the night of 4 December that year.
The photograph above [top left] dates from 1852, but most of the others shown are of the period 1880/1896. jgc_05_001
James Gray: This photograph [top right] dates from before 1872 and shows the entrance to the Pier when the tollgates were some 300 yards away to the west. From these gates Chain Pier Esplanade led to the Pier itself. jgc_05_017
James Gray: Close up of the first arch – about 1870. jgc_05_020
James Gray: Four ancient photographs [jgc_05_021 to 024] of the Pier, dating from the 1860s or 1870s. jgc_05_021
James Gray: [See below for image and text.] jgc_05_022
James Gray: View from the Esplanade. jgc_05_023
James Gray: Another view from the Pier looking north. jgc_05_024
James Gray: The photograph above [bottom left] is my own personal favourite of all these of the Pier in my collection. Taken early one summer’s morning it shows the Pier in all its simplicity without any pretensions to grandeur. Note the primitive gas jet in the overhead lamp. jgc_05_025
James Gray: This photograph shows the entrance to the Chain Pier Esplanade, which followed the curve of the cliff to the Pier about ¼ mile away. The tollgates were erected in 1824 and stood until 1871 when the original Aquarium was built on the site of the Esplanade. Later they were re-erected at Furze Court, Dyke Road Avenue and remained there until quite recent times. The photograph is a modern enlargement of an old one certainly dating from before 1871. jgc_05_002
James Gray: The Esplanade was done away with when the Aquarium was built and Madeira Road formed in 1872. The tollgates were then re-erected at the entrance to the Pier as shown in [jgc_05_006 below] the other, and later, photograph. jgc_05_018
James Gray: Here are the small photographs of the Chain Pier entrance gates of which an enlargement appears previously (jgc_05_002). This photograph shows the entrance to the Chain Pier Esplanade, which followed the curve of the cliff to the Pier about ¼ mile away. The tollgates were erected in 1824 and stood until 1871 when the original Aquarium was built on the site of the Esplanade. Later they were re-erected at Furze Court, Dyke Road Avenue and remained there until quite recent times. jgc_05_005
James Gray: The pier as it appeared during the 1880s. Taken at low tide, it shows the rock foundations into which the stout wooden piles were sunk. jgc_05_009
James Gray: [Undated.] No comment. jgc_05_062 and 063
James Gray: The Brighton Royal Suspension Pier, about 1870. Projected by Captain Sir Samuel Brown. Commenced in October 1822, and opened on 25 November 1823. Length 1,150 feet, cost of building £30,000. jgc_05_072
James Gray: The Pier and beach in 1865. Note the bathing machines being pushed into the sea. jgc_05_019
James Gray: No comment. jgc_ 05_064
James Gray: Here the abandoned skeleton of the new Palace Pier tells us that this photograph was taken between 1891 and 1896. Note how far out the tide went at this time and the voluminous clothing of the women seated on the beach. Photographer: Philippe Garner jgc_05_084
James Gray: At low tide the old wooden piles were clearly seen, many of them still embedded in the seabed. jgc_05_121
James Gray: Another view from the beach looking east. jgc_05_022
James Gray: [Top right and below.] No comment. jgc_05_060 and 065
James Gray: [Middle left.] The old and new. jgc_05_092
James Gray: [Middle right.] No comment. jgc_05_094
James Gray: [Bottom left and right.] No comment. jgc_05_101 and 102
James Gray: Another view of the Pier from the Esplanade. jgc_05_026
James Gray: Another similar view. jgc_05_027 and 028
James Gray: West of the Chain Pier. jgc_05_029
James Gray: East of the Chain Pier. jgc_05_030
James Gray: This photograph dates from the mid-1870s, but the next image copied from a very faded original could well be a decade earlier. Additional Information: Snellings Bazaar. jgc_05_031
James Gray: A copy of an earlier photograph. jgc_05_032
James Gray: It is a pity that these six [actually seven] charming cameos [see below], taken from the Chain Pier and looking east and west, are so faded as they show so much of interest. jgc_05_033
James Gray: These photographs [see also jgc_04_008 on Brighton Central Seafront: images on the beach (2) page] are not as old as their faded appearance may suggest. As both the Hotel Metropole and the Chain Pier are shown, they must date from between 1891 and 1896. Judging by the elevation they must certainly have been taken from the skeleton of the Palace Pier. jgc_04_009
James Gray: [Top right] It is a pity that these six [seven] charming cameos, taken from the Chain Pier [jgc_05_033 to 039] and looking east and west, are so faded as they show so much of interest. For example in this photograph can be seen the old entrance to the Toll House but with the wall of Madeira Drive built out seawards in front of it. Also the large array of building material suggest that the Aquarium was being built. jgc_05_035
James Gray: No comment. jgc_05_052, 053 and 056
James Gray: Two photographs of the Pier, dating from 1871 or 1872. jgc_05_058 and 057
James Gray: These four photographs are of the same period, which I would put at 1870, or perhaps a year or two earlier. The Esplanade, removed in 1871, is clearly visible. jgc_05_040, 041, 042 and 043
James Gray: Chain Pier photographs all of the period about 1870. jgc_05_044, 045, 046, 047, 048 and 049
James Gray: No comment. jgc_05_050, 051, 054 and 055
James Gray: View of the Pier Head and Landing Stage. jgc_05_061
James Gray: No comment. jgc_05_066 and 069
James Gray: No comment. jgc_05_068
James Gray: No comment. Additional Information: Dr Brakes Electro-Chemical Galvanic Magnetic Spinal & Ozone Baths advertised. jgc_05_100
James Gray: No comment. jgc_05_067, 070 and 071
James Gray: These three photographs, taken in 1887, show the Pier as it was a few years before its destruction. jgc_05_073, 074 and 075
James Gray: [See caption above.] Note the ice-cream vendor standing just in front of Volk’s Railway line. jgc_05_075
James Gray: No comment. jgc_05_079
James Gray: Photographed by Mr Allan Hastings Fry. jgc_05_080
James Gray: No comment. jgc_04_056
James Gray: View from the east side of the Pier. Additional Information: Skeleton of Palace Pier visible at RHS. jgc_05_086
James Gray: No comment. jgc_05_087, 088, 089 and 093
James Gray: Looking at the Pier across the Aquarium Terrace, showing a Volk’s Railway Car – probably about 1890. jgc_05_097
James Gray: No comment. jgc_05_098
James Gray: The old Pier shortly before the storm of 4 December 1896. jgc_05_104
James Gray: Immediately after the storm. Additional Information: Palace Pier in distance. jgc_05_105
James Gray: No comment. jgc_05_106
James Gray: Two photographs [jgc_05_108 and 109] taken within a short time of each other. This one, of the mid 1890s, shows men fishing from the covered walk beneath the main platform deck, at the sea end of the Pier. jgc_05_108
James Gray: This one is yet one more view of the destroyed structure in late 1896. jgc_05_109
James Gray: No comment. Additional Information: Crowds on the beach to see the demise of the pier. jgc_05_110
James Gray: No comment. jgc_05_111 and 112
James Gray: No comment. jgc_05_113, 114, 115, 116, 117 and 118
James Gray: [Bottom left.] The wrecked pier and a section of Volk’s Railway on 5 December 1896, the day after the great storm in which the Pier was destroyed. Note the skeleton of the Palace Pier, then under construction. jgc_05_119