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Bessie Surtees House
41-44 Sandhill,
Newcastle Quayside

Tel : 0191-2611585

Bessie Surtees was the daughter of Aubone Surtees, a wealthy merchant who lived on the Quayside in Newcastle in the latter part of the eighteenth century. When she fell in love with John Scott, a coal merchant's son, the match was frowned upon. So the headstrong Bessie climbed out of a first floor window and eloped to Scotland.

This house, though, has more than just romantic significance. It provides a rare example f well preserved domestic architecture from the Jacobean period. It stands five stories high, with each floor slightly overhanging the one below, and the windows extending across the full width of the house.

Inside, the heavy oak panelling, elaborate plaster ceilings and ornate chimney pieces show why a rich merchant considered himself several notches above a coal merchant in the social order of the day.

Open Monday to Friday all year long (10.00am to 4.00pm)
Admission free
Closed bank holidays