By 1939 this area was a thriving of somewhat select resort. The Bay Hotel had only recently been extended with sixty new rooms and a ballroom when war broke out. During the war the whole area was shut off from the public and taken over by the Army as a 'Battle School' for street fighting training. Most of the properties on the beach were badly damaged at this time and after the war controversial plans to build a new hotel,shops and a huge seafront cafe met with fierce opposition from many residents and after much discussion the remaining buildings were demolished and the area landscaped. Credit to St Margaret's History Society.