The Rise of the Devon Seaside Resorts, 1750-1900 (University of Exeter Press - Exeter Maritime Studies)

The first comprehensive study of the emergence of Devon's seaside resorts. Relating the development of these resorts to the wider processes of social and economic change, it explains why early tourists were drawn to the remote Devon coast and shows how fishing villages were transformed into fashionable watering places. Themes covered include bathing rituals and sea-water drinking, health cures and cholera epidemics, sophisticated amusements and improving recreations, paddle-steamers and excursion trains.