110 years of tide gauge records compiled, referenced and made available by PSMSL are analysed. We estimate sea level change at coasts and in the ocean interior by projecting the historic measurements onto global structure functions. Typically these are derived from EOF's based on 20 years of satellite altimetry. Several approaches are tested and compared, including filling of data gaps in the PSMSL resords by neural network techniques. This way we include coherence in measured sea level change in our estimate. Results from different methods are analysed and compared to previous studies. Error levels are estimated. Our present best estimate for the global sea level rise since 1900 is 1.65 mm per year. Regionally the trend varies significantly and can be much higher. Maxima and minima are found in the Indian Ocean.