Gt Yarmouth during WW2

Great Yarmouth was bombed extensively during the war.  It was bombed more than any other coastal town in the Country.  Between 1940 - 1944 217 people were killed in air raids.  There were 90 air raids altogether in the town.  237 properties were destroyed in total.  Much of the bombing occured in 'The Rows.'  Great Yarmouth was famous for it's many rows, and years ago, there used to be many more rows than there is today.  There used to be a total of 145 rows in the town.  Many of these narrow rows were homes to families, and many of these were bombed heavily.

On 8th April 1941 the town suffered considerable bombing from an air raid.  17 people were killed, and 68 were injured.

With Great Yarmouth being by the coast, and also being flat, it was at high risk of invasion.  Because of this risk, the town had to be protected.  There were mines and scaffolding placed on the beaches, and also pill-boxes placed in certain locations on the beach.  On 11th May 1943 an air raid took place at the ATS Hostel on North Drive.  Tragically, 26 ATS girls lost their lives.  The Burlington Hotel now stands on this spot, and there is a plaque on the wall to commemorate these brave ladies.

St Nicholas Minster damaged during an Air Raid.

As you can see from the image, Great Yarmouth Minster, then known as Great Yarmouth Church, was also heavily bombed during an air raid.  The Church was completely gutted.  Only the walls and Norman tower remained standing.

History of the seaside

People relaxing on Gt Yarmouth beach.

Way back in the 1800's it was generally the Gentry and aristocracy that visited the coast.  Back in those days, it was said that the sea water had medicinal purposes and was beneficial to ones health.  As such, the seaside was promoted as a healthy place to visit.  It was in 1759 that the Bath House was opened.  The baths were filled with sea water.  The sea, in those days, was not somewhere you swam for fun, unlike nowadays.

By 1846, around 80,000 people were visiting the town.  This was duch much to the introduction of the railway in 1844.  The addition of the railway changed who visited the town considerably.  People from towns and cities across the country flooded to the town.  People began swimming in the sea for fun.  The swimming costumes were almost like wearing their daytime clothes, and it was common to see men in fully clothed costumes.  There were very strict rules about men and women swimming together, and the rules were that they bathed on separate beaches.  You cannot imagine that these days, can you?  People were even fined if they were caught bathing together.

When you see how Great Yarmouth is today compared to those days, you can't image that there were such laws about men and women swimming separately.  The beach was considered good for your health, and the seaside was the place to be for the benefit of ones health.  You still hear people saying that these days, how the sea air is good your health.  But the holiday industry has, indeed, changed considerably and the beach is now packed with people from all walked of life, as has the costumes we bath in!

The Tolhouse Museum

The Tolhouse Museum

The Tolhouse is one of the oldest prisons in the Country.  It was built around 800 years ago and it was once the home of a rich merchant.  It then became the Courthouse and gaol.  Its dungeon was known as The Hold.  It was also the local Police Station at one point.  During WW2 it was gutted by bombs.  It has been a museum since the 1880's and today is still a popular museum with dungeons to visit and special events throughout the year.

While it was a gaol this was where the 16 people were held that were accused of witchcraft.  In Medievil times it was also used as a meeting place for the Baliffs of Great Yarmouth.  Sarah Martin, who was a prison visitor, also  used to visit the prisoners here regularly.  She moved from Caister to Great Yarmouth so she could help people less fortunate than herself in the nineteenth century.

Situated close to the Quay, it is now very different to how Yarmouth was when it was first built 800 years ago.  The Museum today has had visits from Ghost Hunters and enthusiasts.  Today the Library is just behind it, and is in excellent walking distance to town and other local museums.

Sarah Martin - Prison visitor of Great Yarmouth

Sarah Martin

Sarah Martin was born in June of 1791 and died in October of 1843.  She was the only child who was brought up by her Grandmother.  She learnt at an early age to sew and be a dressmaker.  Born in Caister, Norfolk, she used to walk the 3 miles to work in Gt Yarmouth every day.  After hearing a sermon one day, she was inspired to help those less fortunate than herself.  She began by teaching children in Sunday School.  She then learnt that the workhouse did not have a Chaplain.  so Sarah devoted one day a week to visit the workhouse.  She also provided comfort and friendship to the sick and elderly.

It was in 1818 that she first visited the Gaol in Great Yarmouth (now the Tolhouse Museum.)  This is where she discovered that the conditions were dreadful.  Her first visit was to visit a female inmate.  She went on to visit this gaol for seventeen years.  She read the Bible to the prisoners, and she also conducted services on Sundays.  She also taught practical things ready for when the prisoners were released, like teaching the women how to sew baby clothes.  She also taught the men how to make cloth caps, and also how to make needles and spoons from bone.  This gave the inmates invaluable experience and life lessons for when they were released.

When her Grandmother passes away, she left her just enough money to live on.  She also relied on her dressmaking skills to bring in money.  But when people saw the good she was doing, they were also kind enough to donate money to her to help her with her work.  There is a stained glassed window in Yarmouth Parish Church dedicated to her.  She worked in the gaol until bad health prevailed and she passed away on 15 October 1843.  She is buried in Caister graveyard alongside her Grandmother.

Witchcraft in Gt Yarmouth

Matthew Hopkins

Great Yarmouth has had it's fair share of witchcraft in years gone by.  In 1645 Matthew Hopkins, the Witchfinders General, visited Great Yarmouth to find these witches.  Yarmouth Assembly actually invited him here to find witches.  Eleven people went to The Tolhouse (which is now a Museum) to be tried before the court there.  Two of these eleven people were men.  Five of the eleven people tried were hanged.  These were:-

• Alice Crissell
• Bridgetta Howard
• Maria Blackborne
• Elizabeth Dudgeon
• Elizabeth Bradwell.

Mary and Rebecca Town were sisters and were accused of black magic.  They were hanged in 1692.  Mary Town was baptized in St Nicholas Church (now St Nicholas Minster).  She was finally exonerated 20 years after her hanging.  In September of 1646 there were no trials against witchcraft.  And there was only one case in April 1647.

Regarding Matthew Hopkins, he was a witchfinder general from 1644 until 1647, so his career only spanned three years.  He died on 12 August 1647 and is buried in St Mary's Church in Mistley Heath, Essex.  It is strange to think that he thought that a wart or mole to be a mark of the devil.  Just in Bury St Edmunds he had 68 people put to death.  You can't imagine the fear these people must have gone through, can you?

Anna Sewell

Anna Sewell

Anna Sewell's Birthplace in Gt Yarmouth

Anna Sewell was the author of Black Beauty.  She was born on 30th March 1820 in Great Yarmouth.  She was born into a Quaker family and had one brother called Phillip.  At the age of 12 the family moved to Stoke Newington in London.  This was where she started going to school for the first time.  At the age of 14 she had an accident, falling over injuring both her ankles.  This left her unable to stand or walk for any length of time.  She was mainly confined to the house, and managed to get around on horse and cart.  This, at least, gave her a little bit of freedom.  This was no doubt where she got her love of horses from.

Black Beauty was written in Old Catton, near Norwich, Norfolk.  It was published in 1877.  Unfortunately, Anna died just 5 months after its publication on 25th April 1878.  So unfortunately she never got to see its real success.  The cause of her death was hepatitis.  She is buried in Lammas, which is near Buxton in Norfolk.   She was buried on 30th April 1878.

There is a memorial fountain to her in Norwich.  This was erected in 1917 by her cousin, Ada Sewell.

Gt Yarmouth Suspension Bridge disaster

On 2nd May 1845 the greatest tragedy Great Yarmouth has ever seen occured.  The day started off like any other normal day.  There were trains travelling into Yarmouth from Norwich full of tourists and holiday-makers ready to see a spectacle on the River Bure.

Nelson the clown was a performer with William Cooke's circus.  In a highly publicized campaign, William had taken to swim in a barrel pulled by 4 geese.  The route he took was to undertake was from Haven Bridge on Hall Quay to the Suspension Bridge on North Quay.  There were hundreds of people gathered along the river banks to watch this.  As Nelson got nearer to the Bridge, around 400 people had gathered on the Suspension Bridge to watch him sail under it.  As he passed under the bridge, people gathered on the other side of it to watch him go past, when disaster struck.  The bridge collapsed as people shifted from one side of the bridge to the other.  79 people tragically lost their lives, most of which were children.  The rods that supported the bridge snapped and the chains broke.  58 of the 79 people that lost their lives were under the age of 16.

There is now a memorial where the tragedy happened, which is a fitting tribute to all those that lost their lives.

Great Yarmouth Minster

Gt Yarmouth Minster

A stained glass window

Gt Yarmouth Minster is no doubt a magnificent and highly popular place for locals and visitors alike.    It is the Parish Church of St Nicholas and is the largest Parish Church in Gt Yarmouth.  It was founded in 1101 AD by Herbert De Losinga.  The Church was finally completed in 1119.  This was also the last year of Herbert De Losinga's life.  He was the Bishop of Norwich.    In Medievil days, Gt Yarmouth was the fourth richest town in the Country, and the Minster had 19 guilded chapels, tapestries and stained glassed windows.

In 1649 the Church was divided into three sections.  This was because the Puritons demanded the use of the Church.  The Anglican Church used the south side, and the Puritons and the Presbytarians made use of the north aisle.  The Puritons was led by Rev Bridge.  All three demoninations held their services at the same time.  You can only imagine what this would have been like for the congregation, can't you?

The Church was enlarged in 1190.  This was largely due to replacement of Norman work with 8 arches each side of the Nave.   In 1286 the chancel aisles were added.  This was during the reign of Edward I.  And thirdly the transepts were build.  The Church was completed in 1332.  This was in the reign of Edward III.  Work began on a further enlargement in 1330 to a western transept.  The walls were 4 foot high when the work was stopped.  This was due to the outbreak of the black death in 1348.

From the birth of the Church up until 1536 the Church was used as a Priory of the Benedictine.  This was established by Bishop Losinga.  But sadly, under the reign of Henry VIII the monasteries were dissolved.

During WW2, the roof of the Minister and all the interior furnishings were destroyed when there was a fire caused by enemy bombing.  The current restoration began in 1957 with the help of the War Damage Commission.  There were 53 men from the Yarmouth area who aided in the restoration of the Church.  The Minster has since been restored to its original shape.  The Bishop of Norwich reconsecrated the Church in 1961.

On 9 December 2011 St Nicholas Church was designated a Minster by the Lord Bishop of Norwich.  It's official title now is The Minster Church of St Nicholas.

Great Yarmouth Minster Official Website