It is not known where origin of the name Black Rock arose, but it has been suggested that the name derives from black coal stains on the beach and white chalk cliffs. Apparently, when Brighton Council introduced charges for landing coal on the beaches within their remit, colliers (vessels carrying coal) landed the "black rock" on the beach just outside their boundary, at Black Rock. From at least the early 19th century, Black Rock was the site of an inn and a few houses overlooking cliffs to the east of the then town of
Brighton. In 1922,
Ralph Seymour, signal officer for Admiral David Beatty during
WWI, committed suicide at Black Rock by jumping into the sea. In 1936 an
Art Deco lido was constructed at beach level, but this was closed in 1978 and demolished in 1979. The area is served by an extension of the
Volk's Electric Railway, which has remained in use thanks to the proximity of the marina, although the line was shortened when the marina and associated coastal defences were built in the early 1970s. The cliff-top houses were also lost to allow for the marina's approach roads. A new Black Rock railway terminus station for the
Volk's Railway was constructed in the 1990s, controversially slightly off-centre when compared with the terraces behind it which lead up to Lewes Crescent,
Kemp Town. ==Future==