Victorian photo #83: Shanklin Village, Isle of Wight (100 Gems of English Scenery)

From ‘One Hundred Gems of English Scenery’, 1901

The phenomenal growth of all attractive seaside resorts threatens to modernise them into being commonplace, but the natural situation of Shanklin among the hills, and surrounded with such rich and luxuriant foliage, enables it to retain much of its pristine charm. Could anything be more picturesque and satisfying than the little corner opposite the old-world Crab Hotel, with its quaint gables and thatched roofs just as they were generations ago? In the summer time the myrtles and fuchsias, which grow so freely in this genial atmosphere, add colour and beauty to the scene already beautiful. the march of progress may inexorably demand more of the modern villa in Shanklin, but we trust this perfect corner may long be spared untouched.

The Millman family walked through the town of Shanklin on their way to experience the scenic beauties of Shanklin Chine in 1892 (see The Millman Letters).