Ivor Parrington sent the Seaham Family History Group a 1976 photograph of the now demolished acoustic mirror at Seaham.
The design looks like the World War I sound mirrors at Boulby, Redcar and Sunderland in the northeast, and the one at Selsey in Sussex. The sketch of the reported mirror at Hartlepool looks the same too.
This evidence could date the Seaham mirror to about 1916.
There is some discussion from people who remember it and a painting of it at Seaham Scenes.
Location
There is nothing left at the site now.
David Angus of the Seaham online community history project www.east-durham.co.uk has tracked down the probable location of the Seaham sound mirror, though cautions “it is at least 55 years since I saw it and then only once.” He found two men who agree on the location shown. Apparently the mirror may have been used for shooting practice by the local Home Guard during World War II.
More
News and updates about the Seaham sound mirror.
I can confirm that the location of the mirror as described is correct. I recall playing around it some 40 years ago.
Yeah agree it’s the correct location I used to play on it as a child the field was called the hollow
Played around it 70 year ago. There was a sound gathering post in the middle then, fixed in concrete. I understand it was used to detect approaching zeplin raiders.
I remember it well trying to climb up it about 50 plus years ago. I assumed it was demolished to make way for the houses north of The Graham Way. However looking at the map I think the location is correct.
Yes that’s the correct place for the mirror
I played around it in the early 1950s
The sound collection device stud on a post in the dome of the mirror
Used to run up it in early 70’s, the higher mark you made on it defined your man status, even as a 10 year old! It was sourrounded by trees called “the holla” or hollow if you were posh
From looking at an old map from 1956, the exact position was at:
54.829879,-1.363360
There doesn’t seem to have been any real reason to demolish it, sadly.
https://www.old-maps.co.uk/#/Map/440996/548524/12/100954
(Zoom out a few times until the map appears)