Over the weekend 7th Aug, the 2010 Tall Ships Race descended on Hartlepool, that quaint fishing village on the banks of the river Tees, with an estimated 1 million visitors.

With all the attention this event brought to the town, it seemed only fitting that it should be commemorated by something memorable.

As Hartlepool Marina was the focal point of the celebrations, Mr. Allan Henderson, Marina Manager, saw the potential of this unique commemorative piece of art very early in 2009 and kindly donated a prime location for the project.

This site was cleared and prepared by supervised volunteers from the Probation Service who carried out the harder, physical work e.g. the erection of railway sleepers as boarders, the filling of the area with soil, sand, topsoil etc… (aprox. 5 tons) and any heavy lifting and shifting.

This prepared area is a 25ft x 12ft sustainable, community garden, designed and tended by 45 children from Eldon Grove School in Hartlepool. By working closely with the Allotment co-coordinator, the children produced a blue and white spectacle in plants.

Standing proudly above the blaze of colour is “TALL SHIPS EMBRACED”, a 6ft by 4ft octagonal, fabricated, metal plaque, depicting representations of tall ships entering a safe habour visualized as human hands. Raised nearly 7ft atop a metal column, the plaque is coated in a bronze-effect finish.