Isle of Wight Heritage

In the 3rd part of our series Isle of Wight Railways, we examine the South Wight town of Ventnor which for half a century – from 1900 to 1952 – had 2 railway stations: Ventnor and the lesser known Ventnor...

A 'Sleeping Beauty' submersible canoe (from the International Spy Museum In this edition of Made on the Isle of Wight, Island Echo looks at the work of the famous military canoes of Fred Goatley that were built in East Cowes...

Victoria ‒ Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India ‒ passed away at her home on the Isle of Wight at 18:30 on 22nd January 1901. Her favourite pet Pomeranian, Turi, was laid upon her deathbed as a...

A naval destroyer picked up Parkhurst prisoner Arthur James Anderson, who had managed to survive the icy waters of the Solent for 17 hours, on this day back in 1947 - some 76 years ago. Anderson had managed to survive...

It was 10 years ago today - 17th January 2013 - that snow started to fall across the Isle of Wight, which soon became the Isle of White as heavy snowfall created a blanket across towns and villages. Families took...

In the 2nd of our series on Isle of Wight railways, we look at the hamlet of Ashey that has played a significant role in the development of the Island railway network. Did you know that Ashey once boasted of...

All Saints Church in Godshill was struck by lightning during a terrible storm on the morning of 14th January 1904, causing extensive damage to the House of God. Godshill church, which stands on the top of a hill - thus...

The Saunders-Roe Nautical 4 hovercraft - more commonly known as the SR.N4 - provided a cross-Channel service between 1968 and 2000 and even featured in the James Bond film Diamonds are Forever. But did you know that it was built...

Thousands of Ryde citizens lined the streets of the town to pay their respects at the funeral of 2 lifeboatmen ‒ Frank Haynes and Henry Heward ‒ on 7th January 1907. The lifeboatman had tragically died on New Year’s Day....

Isle of Wight locals on board the Varvassi The Greek cargo ship S.S. Varvassi ‒ conveying 438 barrels of wine and 200 tons of tangerines from Algiers to Southampton ‒ hit The Needles on 5th January 1947. As well as...