Hall Quay and Town Hall, p649-700.indd

Chapter 17

Hall Quay and the Town Hall

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

Top two photos inside

Quay House, 1994.

Above - Hall Quay

about 1915.

Map is Ordnance

Survey of

Hall Quay,

1885.

Attic door, Quay House.

652

Chapter 17, HALL QUAY

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

In 1994, Hall Quay starts at its north-west

corner with “B. and B. Insurance”. These

offices are however empty and for sale, having

previously offered Motor, Life, Fire, and

Marine Insurance. They were subsequently

purchased by Mr Sinclair for his Estate Agency.

(In use as such in 2000)

Mrs

Munday at

her front

door, about

1890. This

became

Steward

and

Patteson’s

as seen at

bottom.

About

1950.

Summer

business

was brisk

then.

In 1938 at no. 1 Hall Quay (where today is

Havenbridge House, built by Harry Hyam),

was the building that became Steward and

Patteson’s off-licence and wine stores.

Formerly this was the private residence

of Mrs. Munday. Taken before the turn

of the century there are some splendid

photographs of her and this beautifully sited

residence, one that compares well with that

fine site just west of the north-west tower

during the same period.

Next to the empty offices mentioned

above is the fine Georgian house that

once belonged to Sir Edmund Lacon.

This became the Hall Quay Cub,

then Falstaff’s Restaurant; now Quay

Leisure.

With regard to the Hall Quay Club,

the west end of the building is but

two stories high, having a Georgian

doorway. The main part of the house

looks to all intents as though it has

three stories, with three tiers of windows.

In fact the upper windows that appear to

represent a second floor merely reflect the

great height of the first floor rooms, and the

third storey does not exist. For many years

there has been a club at these premises.

When the Conservative Club were here,

Ernest Bullent was steward, and resided on

the premises with his wife Ethel.

Ernest Bullent, born 9/4/1900, started work

here in 1914, whereas Ethel, his wife,

did not start at the club until 1936. She

described the club as having the centre

upstairs room as a billiard room. Here a man

named Mason was employed as a billiard

marker for 50 years. He wore a bowler hat

at work. There was a boy allocated to each

room, with the bells ringing downstairs

from each. They wore black trousers and

653

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

shoes, and black jackets with a fine stripe

pattern, together with white shirts. After

11 am., they were dressed in steward’s

pointed jackets. There was a man who

frequented the club in a straw hat and

never took it off. The daily newspapers

were available, but could not be removed

from the reading room. Bridge was

generally played in the small card

room on the west end of the first floor,

although cards were also played in the

“Big card room” with the bow window.

(Photo.of “Big Card Room” on next page).

Photos taken of interior of Quay House in

1994. Tom Maltby’s Portrait on the wall above

the ﬁreplace in the billiard room.

654

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

Latterly of course this room has been used

as a restaurant. Large supper parties were

catered for at times, and on the occasion

of the club’s 50th. jubilee, there were

six courses for 70 people, including 18

pheasants. Under the house are 2 large

cellars, and a separate cellar in the back

yard for coal. If there was the combination

of wet weather and a high tide, then the

cellars could flood with 2 feet of water,

although now there is an electric pump. The

two main cellars run parallel and the length

of the house. The ceilings in the cellars are

of brick and arched, a little low, permitting

standing in the centre. In the pantry was

a wooden sink for washing glasses. The

floor was flagstone. During the war the

Bullent’s children, Gwen and Geoffrey

were evacuated, and Ethel managed the club

herself. One well-known chairman of the

club was John Clymer, who was renowned as

a gourmet and a first class golfer at County

and National level. He made some changes

in the club, including painting over the

wooden wall side stair rails. John Clymer

died in October 2000 at the age of 81. He had

served on the Lothingland Council before

joining the Gt. Yarmouth Borough Council in

1974. He was Mayor

in 1979-80, and

Conservative leader.

He was a director

of the building firm

E. Moore and Son.

He was president

of the local St

John’s Ambulance,

and a member of

the port authority,

and President of

the Gorleston and

Yarmouth Lifeboat.

He was married

to Jean who died

earlier, and left three

children and eleven

grandchildren. The

downstairs lounge of

the Hall Quay Club

was refurbished by

courtesy of Tom Maltby the millionaire, and subsequently known as “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”.

Maltby’s picture was above the fireplace shown here. (See photo at bottom right of previous

page.)

655

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

Although at the time of writing this note

(23/1/94), the Hall Quay Club was still

here, the Falstaff’s restaurant had closed

down due to poor trading, and the club,

suffering a loss of rent, decided to sell the

premises and to close entirely.

Nos 6 & 7 Hall Quay.

Malcolm Ferrow, after leaving school, took

a job at Arnolds’ as men’s wear salesman,

selling shirts and ties. He left Arnolds

and spent some months at Erie Resisitor,

which he found to be a most tedious and

unrewarding job - “Dreadful”. Malcolm

married Joy in 1955. Then the shop at Hall

Quay became available. Gibbard TV and

Radio Rentals had been at 6 & 7 Hall Quay.

Father saw the advert. Malcolm obtained a

loan from Midland Bank.The couple at ﬁrst

sold general second hand goods - items that

were in short supply after the war. Malcolm

bought at auction and then cleaned the

items up for sale on the market stall, and

later, at 6 Hall Quay. No. 7 Hall Quay had

been Gibbards’ warehouse, and Malcolm

acquired that building as well as no.1 George

Street. These buildings served them well,

until the general downturn in the mid to late

1990’s. Then the antiques business across

the country, seriously declined. No. 2 George

Street was Harry Dyer’s shop. Dyer was an

art restorer, but his father had bought many

very ﬁne works of art during the Ist W. War,

when the opportunity was there. Some of the

paintings were stored at George Ferrow’s

House in Southtown. Harry Dyer inherited

the art collection from his father. Malcolm

acquired this shop after Dyer’s death, but the

timing then proved unfortunate. The Ferrows

sold the antiques shops in the summer of

1998. Subsequently, they continued to trade

at antiques fairs and privately.

First ﬂoor ﬁreplace in Quay House

There were busy sales of antiques most weeks

at Aldreds’ Kitchener Road saleroom, as well as

at auctions in the Corn Hall on Howard Street.

Four or ﬁve hundred lots would be auctioned,

which included ﬁne furniture and antiques from

large houses in Southtown and in the countryside.

Auctions took place regularly at Beccles, Norwich,

Lowestoft and Gorleston. Ferrow could take his

pick of a large range of items, and much ﬁne

furniture. During the 60’s and 70’s there was a

booming antiques trade in Yarmouth, that also

included the businesses in King Street of Peter,

Barry and John Howkins. In addition to purchase

at auction, Ferrow undertook house clearance,

probate work, and traded specialities with other

dealers. Sales then were made to customers in

the shop, also dealers would come regularly to

Yarmouth with vans and lorries returning to

Holland and Germany with antiques piled on

high. It was sickening to see much ﬁne material

leave the country never to return, but the trade

then was lucrative. It only declined when the

Tory Government decided to attack inﬂation

and to deliberately put half the country out of

Gradually, during the 1950’s, Malcolm and

Joy Ferrow moved from cleaning up basic

chinaware and cutlery, to better quality

antiques. The antique trade was pursued

through purchases made locally. Malcolm

seldom if ever travelled to purchase outside

of East Anglia. There was no need to do so.

656

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

1971

The slipper baths, 24.10.2010

Bunting’s shop, no.7 in 1874, was Clarke’s (above) in 1971.

business with iniquitous rates of interest on borrowings; a deliberate step taken

to bankrupt many businesses in the late 1990’s, taken by Margaret Thatcher, and

her chancellor,

Nigel Lawson. (For

more about the

Ferrow family, see

“Middlegate”)

No.6

No.7

Malcolm and Joy

Ferrow’s Antiques

shop, seen in 1987.

On the extreme right

edge of the photo,

the block on the

corner of George

Street is under

construction.

657

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

27.4.2007

658

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

Dukes’s Head

Barge

Owles

The right hand building was

then the Post Ofﬁce, 1860.

This was Midland Bank in

1970, now the RBS.

Slipper Baths and public

toilets, closed up.

Westminster

Bank, 1927

659

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

Former Post Ofﬁce, see next page.

From across the bridge, about 1910.

The Prince of Wales and Mr Beevor, Mayor, opening of Haven Bridge, 21.10.1930.

660

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

The Post Ofﬁce of 1863 became Midland Bank

(right) by 1927.

Row No. 53, beside Barclay’s Bank.

17.3.2005

661

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

The Duke’s Head

John Mayhew kept the Duke’s Head

in 1863, and J.W. Davy in 1874. The

establishment was then known for its

livery stables. The London Coach called

and left from here, and the horses were

changed for fresh ones. In 2010 it is the

National Express Coach Company that

runs its service from the town to London,

being coach No. 497 to London Victoria.

One or two motor coaches now run every

day of the year. From around the middle

of the 18th century, the Swan coach of

Norwich, was the stop for the Royal Mail,

going from Great Yarmouth to Bury St.

Edmunds and vice versa. The Magpie

hosted the Accommodation, which went

from Yarmouth to Cambridge and returned

the next day. The Star coach, which also

started from Yarmouth, was the only coach

stopping at Harleston that went on all the

way to London without passengers having

to change to another coach. Its Harleston

stopover was at the Cardinal’s Hat.

In 2010, the pub was advertised for sale

including furniture and equipment, for the

sum of £200,000, which it must be said was

an absolute snip for such an establishment in

a prime position. Unfortunately it had been

very run down of late, but if taken up market

with suitable investment, an hotel with much

better accommodation and food is sorely

Duke’s Head Pub., 27.4.2007

needed in the town. Then out of date, the review

on the internet read (11.10) as follows: “David &

Gina Smith have breathed life into this historic

15th C. venue. It boasts a beautiful, riverside

setting on the River Yare and is the mooring point

for the Southern Belle tourist cruiser. There are

eleven comfortable, en suite rooms and you’ll

662

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

wake up to an excellent breakfast.

Food from 11am-1am!”

The Duke’s Head was once part of

the Foulsham Group.

Henry’s Commercial Cafe, no 12., in 1938, was a

brothel. This photo. dated 1945.

The fabulous ancient roof inside the Duke’s Head, was removed in 1971.

663

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

The roof timbers have been ﬁxed to the end of the building. Hardly a ﬁt substitute for a

proper restoration.

664

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

665

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

Dawson Turner, 1775- 21.6.1858 (right)

Son of James Turner, fourth son of Rev Francis

Turner. Rev Francis Turner married Sarah

Dawson. – Hence Dawson Turner’s first name.

It was James Turner who was elected a partner

at Gurney and Co., who established a branch

on the South Quay.

17.3.05, left, and Turner’s Bank, above.

Dawson Turner and his family’s great passion

concerned historical and antiquarian subjects.

They spent their leisure time in pursuit of

music, art, -painting, drawing and engraving-

in historical recording, writing, and in the

collecting of antiquarian objects, including

40,000 letters, 4000 original drawings by

members of Turner’s and Cotman’s (the

artist) families. Grandson of the Rev. Francis

Turner, who was master of the Hospital

School and minister at St.George’s, Dawson

added hugely to Blomeﬁeld’s History of

Norfolk. After his death his library was sold

in 725 lots. The bank had been started by his

father James at what had been the “Three

Cranes” public house on the Quay between

rows 106 and 108. The business had been

removed to Hall Quay, and the upper ﬂoors

were occupied as residential quarters. The

front door opened into a lobby, to the right

of which was the bank counter, and to the left

a room that contained guns hung above the

mantlepiece. Dawson Turner’s own volume of

Cotman’s book “Sepulchral Brasses”, contains

notes in his own handwriting, correspondence,

and portraits of himself and of Cotman. Turner

gave bank clerk’s appointments to such as

Lilly Wigg the botanist, and Edmund Girling,

the artist. He also had a very ﬁne art collection.

I think it not known previously, but Dawson

Turner was in partnership for a time at least,

with Samuel Paget. This is evident from

the deeds of the “Carpenter’s Arms”, no. 72

Howard Street (the Great Eastern / Oakwood).

The partnership was known as “Messrs. Paget

and Turner, Beer Brewers”. This is noted

on the deed of 1817. They had a warehouse

behind the Carpenters Arms that had been

formerly a ﬁsh-house. In 1831, Dawson Turner

bought out Samuel Paget’s share. (See Howard

666

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

Street South, also Row 57.) Documents

of Dawson Turner’s including the

Blomeﬁeld’s Norfolk, illustrated by his

daughters, are in the British Museum.

Barclays Bank had initially been held

to be a Quaker institution. In 1690,

John Freame and Thomas Gould set up

business in Lombard Street, London.

In 1728 the two goldsmith bankers

moved to the “Black Spread Eagle” in

Lombard Street. It was not until 1736,

when John Freame’s son in law, John

Barclay, was invited to join the ﬁrm.

The bank remained in Lombard Street,

moving into larger premises in 1864.

At the end of the same century, the

bank merged with 19 others, including

Dawson Turner’s Bank, as a joint stock

banking group. This then comprised 182

branches and no less than £26 millions

in ﬂuid assets. Many of the partners

then were active Quakers. In 1902, the

bank obtained a listing on the stock

exchange. In 1905, the Consolidated

Bank of Cornwall was acquired.

In 1916 the United Counties Bank

was acquired. In 1917, Barclay and

Company Limited, became Barclays

Bank Limited. In 1918, the London

Provincial and South Western Bank

amalgamated with Barclays. In 1922,

Barclays Bank Overseas was incorporated,

becoming Barclays Bank (France). In the late

20’s, book keeping machines were introduced.

In 1937, the College of Arms granted the bank

a coat of arms incorporating the black eagle

and three crowns. In 1940 the Manchester

Union Bank was incorporated. Post war,

1945-8, courses were set up and the bank

started its own training school at Wimbledon.

In 1946, Barclays Overseas Development

Corporation was launched. Barclays led

the way in Britains banking development,

opening the UK’s ﬁrst computer centre and

initiating computerised book-keeping at an

amazingly early date, in 1961. This was just

three years after appointing the Uk’s ﬁrst

female branch manager, Miss H.M.Harding,

at Hanover Street, London. Barclays next

ﬁrst was the injtroduction of the UK’s ﬁrst

credit card, in the year of the England Football

World Cup triumph, in 1966. Only a year

later, they used the ﬁrst automated bank

note dispenser or ATM, at Enﬁeld. By 1972,

they were advertising Barclaycard on TV. In

1982, Barclays ﬂoated as a public Limited

Company (PLC). In 1987 Barclays introduced

the ﬁrst UK debit card, and sponsored the

football league. In 1995, Barclays was the

ﬁrst bank with an internet site. In 1999,

Barclays was valued at 5.3 bn, and launched

online banking. In 2001, Barclays teamed

with ﬁve international banks to link 40

million customers with worldwide free access

to ATM’s. In 2006, 50% of the bank’s proﬁts

were gained overseas, announcing pretax

proﬁts of 6.1 billion, a far cry from the joint

proﬁts in Yarmouth of Dawson Turner and

Brightwen of £6,000 in 1847.

667

In 1967, Barclays introduced the ﬁrst ATM in UK,

at Enﬁeld.

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

James Turner had two sons,

Dawson, and James. James

married a daughter of James

Sayers. Dawson Turner was

born earlier than expected,

whilst his mother was visiting

her husband’s uncle, at 40

Middlegate Street.

Dawson Turner was first

educated at North Walsham

Grammar School, then put

daughter of William Palgrave of

Coltishall. They had eleven children,

of which eight survived into adulthood.

Those children were: Maria; Elizabeth;

Mary Anne; Harriet; Hannah Sarah;

Eleanor; Gurney; Dawson William.

Those who died young, were: Dawson;

Dawson and Katherine.

Dukes Head P.H. with windows/ doors to the

ground, and Midland Bank on right.

Dawson Turner and his wife Mary were

much into the arts, and pursued historical

and botanical studies and Dawson was

an avid collector of books, manuscripts

and works of art. Mary was an artist of

considerable talent, and spent any spare

time that she had in drawing, painting

and etching. Thousands of hours were

spent copying diverse subjects for

Dawson’s collections. As their children

grew up. They were coached in art by,

into private tuition with Rev. Forby. He went to

Pembroke College Cambridge in 1793, where his

Uncle, Rev. Joseph Turner, was master. After only a

year there, his father died, and he left the university.

He did return at a later date to successfully gain

an M.A. degree.

In 1796, Dawson married Mary Palgrave, second

668

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

of Blomeﬁeld’s “Norfolk”, which is now

kept in the British Library. This amazing

collective work comprised 56 bound

volumes, associated with which were 11

boxes of deeds and a case of seals.

at ﬁrst John Crome, who was replaced in

1811 by John Sell Cotman. Many trips were

made far and wide to visit galleries, not just

locally such as at Holkham Hall, but as far

away as that at the Louvre in Paris (1814).

Mary herself was such an accomplished artist,

that 25 of her etchings are to be found in the

National Portrait Gallery. A book of 100

etchings depicting well known persons was

printed in 49 copies. A volume by Mary and

Hannah Sarah, published 1850, contained 51

lithographs of Dawson’s picture collection.

Mary Anne had a particular interest in local

history, and produced a “History of Caister

Castle”. Harriet produced a book that was

published, of the Crostwick Murals. Maria

produced illustrations for the botanical

works of her husband, William Jackson

Hooker (“A muscoloesia Britannica”)

Much later, when her mother became old,

Mary Anne, who never left home, ran the

household.

Dawson Turner spent considerable time

away from Yarmouth, staying in London

and abroad. In 1825 he made a grand tour of

Italy. Mary accompanied him on some of his

tours. She went with him on a tour of Wales

in 1802, on a tour of France in 1814, and on

a second tour through France in 1818. Such

tours then were arduous and lengthy,

expensive and far from stress free.

Mary described Rouen as “dirty, ugly,

stinking, disgraceful and disgusting”.

More detail of this excursion would

be fascinating. Yarmouth then was

brawling, heaving, stinking and full of

prostitutes, thieves and beggars, so what

do we make of her description of Rouen

by comparison? Certainly she seems

displeased to have been dragged there.

Behind the bank house on Hall Quay,

there was then a small garden, with

a whalebone arch, hanging from

which they had a swing for the

children. Girls then were taught the

skills of painting and drawing as

well as needlework, but they were

not to become artists, since that

would be considered “unlady-like”.

Thus it was that their daughters were

employed as copyists to build up

Dawson’s fantastic expanded version

Travel in those days was a considerable

undertaking by comparison to today.

There were no railways, and only rough

View of Bank House over the bridge, about 1920.

669

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

roads, unheated crowded stage coaches;

unstable and dangerous sailing ships.

Nevertheless Dawson and Mary made trips

to see their married daughters in London

and in Edinburgh too. People then seemed

to accept difﬁculty and danger in a way

that we would no longer countenance. My

own relative, John, born in 1813, having

very little money, born to a humble family

in Middlesex, like many others, crossed

the Atlantic establishing himself as an

ultimately prosperous farmer in Michigan.

Dawson and Mary suffered some terrible

tragedies within their family. A baby son,

aged 4 years, died in a tragic accident,

being burned in his nightgown in front of

an open ﬁre. A baby son named Dawson,

died as an infant in 1809, and a daughter

named Katherine died at an age of less

than one year. They had in all some eleven

children, of which eight survived to

adulthood.

Barclays interior, 27th April 2007.

of 76, in 1851 with Rosamund Matilda Duff,

herself aged 45. They married at Gretna

Green in September 1851, then moved away

from Yarmouth to Brompton, presumably to

be nearer to the Hookers. Subsequently his

children clearly forgave him. The picture

collection was sold in 1852, and half of

the book collection in 1853, at which time

Dawson still had some income from the bank.

Despite a good income from his bank,

Dawson mismanaged his money. He was

obsessed with developing his library, which

would have been a wonderful asset for Great

Yarmouth if somehow it could have been

left for the beneﬁt of the town. He spent

over £20,000 on the library, now equivalent

to perhaps 2 million. He himself in due

course admitted the enterprise to have been

“very unwise”. When it came to a sale of the

books, after his ﬁnances collapsed, few of

the acquisitions fetched anything near their

purchase prices. The brewery venture that he

pursued with Samuel Paget also proved to be

simply a drain on resources. By 1850 he was

completely broke, although still possessing

several valuable works of art. After Mary’s

death the collections were sold at Sothebys.

The sale was regarded in Yarmouth and

Norfolk as a “National Calamity”. Although

ﬁrst auctioned in 1853, the residue was

auctioned in 1859, and the whole only fetched

about a quarter of its original cost.

One son, Gurney Turner had died in Calcutta

in 1848, providing much sadness, and Dawson

himself suffered a stroke in 1853. Gurney had

been a surgeon. Another son, William Dawson

Turner was headmaster of the Royal Institution

School at Liverpool, and wrote histories of

England, Rome, Greece, and Germany.

Mary Ann kept Dawson’s papers and letters

in order whilst the family lived on Hall Quay.

There are 82 volumes of correspondence

containing 16,000 letters that are now kept at

Trinity College, Cambridge. In another volume

are 728 letters from William Jackson Hooker.

In a further two volumes are “An Account of

a Tour in Normandy”. In this are letters home

from Dawson and from John Sell Cotman,

who accompanied him. These, with the

Only one year after Mary’s death, 17th

March 1850 Dawson upset his family and

friends by remarrying. He eloped at the age

670

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

accompanying sketches of scenes throughout

Normandy, would make a fabulous publication

if printed today. Printed works include

“Architectural Antiquities of Normandy”

in 2 volumes, dated 1822, and “Outlines of

Lithography” dated 1840. Two Volumes of

Portraits are preserved at the Victoria and

Albert Museum. Portraits of botanists are held

at Kew.

For Dawson Turner’s Bank, deposits in 1833

were £449, 532. There were 1,530 accounts,

with advances made of £204,362. Notes in

circulation totalled £25,500. The partners

took a proﬁt from each branch in which they

acted. The branches were at Halesworth,

Wisbech, Aylsham, Lowestoft, Kings Lynn

and Great Yarmouth. Bank notes were printed

for each bank by licence. Forgery remained

punishable by death until 1832, and after that

by transportation for life.

In regard to the history of banking, the Bank of

England was founded in 1694. Barclays Bank,

was founded 1690. Gurney’s Bank started

in Norwich in 1775, and Gurney and Turner

opened the Yarmouth establishment in 1781.

Banking at the end of the 18th century and

early in the 19th century proved as hazardous

as today, but there was no government bail

out then. Between 1790 and 1826, 334 banks

failed. Banking was extremely hazardous,

since no less than sixty banks failed between

1825 and 1826. This situation was brought

about by over-lending and by issuing too many

notes (excessive credit versus reserves). This

is exactly the same problem as has occurred in

2008-2009.

Dawson Turner’s proﬁt from the Great

Yarmouth Branch was:

1826- £2,500

1847 – £3,000

1851 - £1,500

1858- £2,000 (after his death)

For more about Turner, see Dawson Turner,

A Norfolk Antiquary and his Remarkable

Family Edited by Nigel Goodman, Phillimore

& Co., 2007.

671

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

Ward

Clowes

Lady

Orde

Lacon and

Youell

Bank

The Crown

and Anchor

1987

672

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

The Prince of Wales cuts the tape on the

new bridge, 21st October 1930.

Next comes Row 55, after which is “Britannia

House”, with a newsagents, tobacconist and

confectionary shop, also Charles Stenner

Associates, Accountancy, taxation and

computer services. Here previously stood

Clowes’ famous grocery store, with its heavy

ornate Victorian gable. Here were sold ends

of bacon every morning to the poor*5.

Aldred’s Estate Agent’s (below right photo.)

is housed in what was formerly more of a

typical Yarmouth building, with pantiled roof,

but it has been modernised to the nondescript

architecturally vacuous edifice presented

now, that apparently and astonishingly won an

award at one time for it’s design. Rather like

some inappropriate work around St.Paul’s in

Clowes’Stores

Britannia House, Aldred’s, Star and Garter,

27th April 2007

673

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

London it must now be considered a disaster,

almost on a par with the cleaner’s shop in

Regent Street.

Lloyd’s Bank is at 19 Hall Quay, once the

property of Sir Edmund H.K.Lacon, Bart.

(Edmund Henry Knowles Lacon), son of Sir

Edmund Knowles Lacon, who was born in

1807, and died in 1888. In 1791, he formed

his bank with James Fisher (of 55 North

Quay. This was the “Yarmouth, Norfolk

and Suffolk Bank”. The first partners were

John Lacon, Edmund Lacon, and James

and William Fisher. Somewhat later, some

members of the Youell family were partners,

and finally Sir Kenneth Kemp of Mergate Hall,

Norwich, joined the partnership, and its title

then became Lacons Youell and Kemp. The

name “Yarmouth Norfolk and Suffolk

Bank” always appeared on the bank notes.

Next south stands the “Star and Garter” public

house, and Row 57 (Sarah Martin’s). The Star

and Garter is on the site of Samuel Artis’ house

that is depicted on Corbridge’s map. Sam

Artis died in 1748, having been a prominent

merchant and post master. The house was

re-built by Thomas Cotton, merchant, the

front re-built by John Brightwen (Dawson

Turner’s partner), encased in white brick in

1854. After occupation by Lady Orde it was

demolished between 1874 and 1878, and the

current house erected.*6

Capital and

Counties

Bank, refaced

c.1821.

Crown and Anchor

Hotel

At first branches were opened

in Norfolk and Suffolk, and

in 1821, its head office was

transferred here to 19 Hall Quay,

in an Elizabethan house which

was then refaced with white

brick. Now it is stone faced on

the ground floor. In 1901 Lacons

Youell and Kemp was taken

over by Capital and Counties

Bank, which amalgamated

with Lloyds in 1918. The

two mantlepieces dated

1598, were installed by Ralph

Woolhouse, for several years

Bailiff of Great Yarmouth.

Row 59 is south of Lloyd’s Bank,

at the side of which are found

the Midland Bank premises,

formerly the Yare Hotel. A space

exists to the south side of this

building, providing access to

the bank’s private car park.

The Row no. 61 is next to the

sumptuous architecture that is

now occupied by the National

Westminster Bank. Here there

is a very fine marble doorway,

with the rest of the front in very

detailed and attractive coloured

granite. There is a stone banister

and lavish ornamentation on the

upper storey, whereas the side of

this building is of plain brick.

674

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

Lacon

and

Youell

Bank

before

1821

about 1870

675

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

about 1920

Prior to Midland Bank

Whilst describing Hall Quay, where

most of the town’s Banks have been

for some centuries, it is appropriate

to reflect upon the current financial

crisis and the inequalities within

society. In the “Sunday Times”

of 25th October 2009, the latest

type of investment being reported

on, is a company called “Harbour

Litigation Funding” that is inviting

investors to bet (invest) upon their

lawyers being able to find, uncover

and obtain for Michelle Young, a

major part of the “hidden” fortune

of her husband, Scot Young in their

divorce settlement. Looking into

this further, there is simply much

evidence of a ludicrous lifestyle,

highlighting the ever growing gulf

between the super rich and the much

larger portion of the population

world wide that struggle to survive

in an over-complex society and in

consequence of an increasingly

great social divide. That anyone

should be invited to bet upon the

consequences of the demise of

another’s marriage, is evidence of

the low point that this society finds

itself at.

Inequality has been at the root of

all power struggles, since modern

man first walked upon the earth that

is sure. We make token gestures to

protect our most vulnerable citizens,

but greed, abuse of power and

corruption, is on a grander scale than

ever before. In a capitalist system,

the greed of the rich must be checked

by them going bust when they

have over-reached themselves, but

recently this necessary check has

been removed by the intervention

of government, intent on preserving

the status quo.

If modern scientists still cannot

fathom the simplest mechanisms

of the structure of the universe,

having not the wit to recognise that

gravity is not present in space, and

that the force that keeps us on the

ground is provided by the denseness

of the invisible micro-matter which

is the main constituent of the

universe, then is it any surprise

that economists have no idea how

to correct the imbalance of the

financial system. In both cases, the

“experts” have been unable to return

676

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

to first principles, and to reassess

from the ground up.

Steam Packet Hotel

c. 1900.

In the case of the scientists, they

refuse to drop the idea that light

is bent by gravity, whereas they

know that refraction occurs within

mediums of different densities. In

the case of the economists, they are

obsessed with bending the financial

system to create new wealth. Instead

they need to look at the very basis

of the system and how this impacts

society.

This article will address some of

the basics of economics, and the

scientific argument is to be found

on other pages.

Money is simply a very old

mechanism to replace barter. The

monetary system does not determine

who shall have what. That one

person shall have more, and another

less, derives from physical power.

The strong have always abused their

power, and today, almost anyone

holding power, wields it almost

entirely to their own advantage, only

giving so as to receive a “profit”

in return.

When there were only two human

beings on the planet (conceived

by God, since two such incredibly

complex identical new beings of

opposite sex could not arise at the

same time just by chance), they

had to live together if they were

to breed, which clearly they did.

There was so much abundance

that they did not need to fight over

objects of possession. They may

well have fought over sex, and also

have squabbled over labour, that is

who did the work, and how long

to rest up, where should they live,

was spitting permissible, and so

on. Now remember that the human

body has not altered in any way

whatsoever since Homo sapiens

first breathed. Remember that the

first human placed upon the earth

was every bit as intelligent as

that last one born this second. If

the first baby born to this couple

were placed in a modern hospital

cot, it would grow up in every way

exactly the same as the infant in the

cot next to it.

Midland Bank, c.1920.

677

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

678

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

about 1880

679

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

Occupants and Premises, Hall Quay (with thanks to Percy Trett)

1863 Page, grocer,

No 7

Buck Inn, No.8 J Owles,

No.9

Barge Inn,

No.10

Dukes

Head,

No.11

Post Ofﬁce,

No.12

1874 Bunting, No.7 Buck Inn, no.8 Owles, No.9 Barge,

No.10

Duke’s

Head

No.11

Bessey, coal

merchant

No.12

1886 Watson, hatter

and hosier

No.7/ Bunting

Buck Inn

No.8

Owles

No.9

Barge,

No.10

Duke’s

Head

No.11

Bessey, coal

merchant

No.12

1909 Freeman, No.

8, picture

framer/

Bunting No.9

Buck Inn

No.10

No.11

missing

Barge,

No.12

Duke’s

Head

No.13

Chapman, china

and glass

No.14

1927 Freeman, No.8

/ White, No.9

Buck Inn

No.10

Westminster

Bank No.11

Barge,

No.12

Duke’s

Head

No.13

Midland Bank

No.14

1938 Pendle,

wireless, No.8

/ Dunbar,

electrician,

No.9

No.10 missing Westminster

Bank No.11

Henry’s

Cafe

No.12

Duke’s

Head

No.13

Midland Bank

No.14

1955 Clarke,

hardwareNo.8

Dunbar

electrical

No.9

Public slipper

baths

Corporation

Housing

Dept

No.11

Snack Bar

No.12

Duke’s

Head

No.13

Midland Bank

No.14

1970 Roadway Public slipper

baths

Corporation

Housing

Dept

No.11

No.12

missing,

Norwich

Building

Society

No.12a

Duke’s

Head

No.13

Midland Bank

No.14

1987 Roadway Roadway Trett

Consulting

Duke’s

Head

No.13

Royal Bank of

Scotland

No.14

2010 Roadway Roadway empty

ofﬁce

building

Norwich

Blind

Association

Duke’s

Head

No.13

(empty)

Royal Bank of

Scotland

No.14

680

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

Gurney’s

Bank,

No.13

Cobb,

printer

No.14

Clowes,

No.15

Lady

Elizabeth

Orde,

No.18

Horth;Kirby;

Clark;

Star and Garter

Lacon and

Youell Bank

Barber, draper

Crown and

Anchor

Hotel

(John

Franklin)

Steam Packet

Tavern

(H.Savory)

Gurneys

Bank

No.13

Hunter,

Draper,

No.14

Ward,

George

No.15

Clowes,

No.15

Lady

Elizabeth

Orde

No.16

Star and

Garter-

No.17

Lacon and

Youell Bank

- No.18

Crown and

Anchor

Hotel

(John

Franklin)

Steam Packet

Tavern

(Fred Booty

Last, Vetinary

surgeon)

Gurneys

Bank

No.13

Clowes

No.14

Clowes

No.15

Star and

Garter PH

No.18

Capital and

Counties Bank

Crown and

Anchor

Hotel (King)

Steam Packet

(G.Fisher)

G t.Yarmouth

Piscatorial

Society

Barclays

Bank

No.15

Clowes

No.16

Clowes

No.17

Star and

Garter P.H.

No.18

Capital and

Counties

Bank

Crown and

Anchor

Hotel

Steam Packet

Hotel

Barclays

Bank

No.15

Clowes

No.16

Clowes

No.17

Crown and

Anchor

Hotel

Steam Packet

Hotel

Barclays

Bank

No.15

Clowes

No.16

Clowes

No.17

Star and

Garter P.H.

No.18

Lloyds Bank

Limited

No.19

Crown and

Anchor

Hotel

Steam

Packet

Hotel

Barclays

Bank

No.15

Temporary

Library

No.16

Temporary

Library

No.17

Star and

Garter P.H.

No.18

Lloyds

Bank

Limited

No.19

Crown and

Anchor

Barclays

Bank

No.15

Aldreds

Estate Agent

Star and

Garter P.H.

No.18

Lloyds

Bank

Limited

No.19

Crown and

Anchor

Barclays

Bank

No.15

Neptune

Restaurant

Aldred’s

Estate Agent

Star and

Garter

P.H.

Lloyds

Bank

No.19

Midland

Bank

National

Westminster

Bank

Barclays

Bank

No.15

Stenner

Accountant

Aldreds

Estate Agent

Star and

Garter P.H.

Lloyds

Bank

No.19

Midland

Bank

National

Westminster

Bank

681

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

The amounts of these are relatively fixed. Labour

within the world is now in oversupply. The other three

resources are unequally distributed. The population has

grown larger than is beneficial to the common good, no

longer controlled by disease (or overall by food supply

either). Population does appear to be correcting itself

secondary to contraception within the western world,

but this is not so within other communities, and the

effect of contraception, which in any case would take

some time to manifest, has not begun to be applied

within many overpopulated societies.

The distribution of wealth within the world at large is

inequitable. Those who have wealth are more than ever

21.2.2007, interior of the Star Hotel

(formerly the Cromwell).

Money became necessary only when the population

grew and the supply of food and the use and acquisition

of materials became more complex. At first an item

such as a worked stone tool would have its own value

and could be traded for something else such as food.

This mechanism involved supply and demand, with

the apportioning of relative value, at a very early stage

of human civilisation.

Even at that stage, there was the beginning of inequality

setting into society. One tribe would have bows and

arrows, spears, and stone tools, persons who knew

the best hunting methods, and had developed skills

that were of value to the group. From that time on,

wars and fighting were common, and the distribution

of wealth was unequal.

able to take advantage. Those without are increasingly

in the cold because basic labour is no longer at a

premium.

No two humans are exactly alike, nor have they ever

been. No two individuals have precisely the same

potential, the same ability, or develop exactly the same

complex mix of skills. This inequality

was always essential to society. But

increasingly, with the development of

sophisticated machinery, the need for

manual labour is reduced. The need

for some tasks within society has been

reduced to a degree that has created a

great imbalance in the social structure.

Labour was so vital to the powerful that

they bought and sold slaves, and forced

families to send their children out to

work. Now labour is so little needed,

that some countries pay large numbers

to do nothing. In others there is so little

allocated to the poor, that there are now

more persons in the world subjected to

slavery than ever before.

It is necessary for society to reassess priorities in the

distribution of resources. The alternative is the ultimate

breakdown of society as a result of revolution and

There are certain basic principles that

need to be examined in order to establish

or re-establish the social process.

The resources available to society

include labour, food, goods and land.

This is the Cromwell Hotel, which was renamed the Star, when

the latter was demolished to make way for a telephone exchange.

682

21.2.2007

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

anarchy. The current system has been propped up, but

remains unaltered.

In the current system, society expects the individual

to survive by working, but does not provide equal

opportunity. Equal opportunity has never existed,

but now those in the lower half of educational ability

are much more severely disadvantaged. Whatever

certificates of qualification are awarded, the bald fact

remains that the mean of human educational ability is

and will always be, an IQ of 100. Half of the entire

global population has an IQ of less than 100. Of this

half, 30 percent have an IQ less than 85 (15 percent of

the total 100). In 2009, the UK population is 69 million.

Thus 34,500,000 persons have an IQ less than 100,

and 10,620,000 have an IQ less than 85. The British

Government expects all persons to achieve a university

education, and claims that in today’s environment, all

persons should be employed!

A reappraisal of the distribution of wealth, and of what

society can do to provide a meaningful and rewarding

life would ultimately benefit all.

The Government at present is “printing” money so as to

prevent the wealthy shareholders of banks and financial

institutions becoming bankrupt. Many of them are

already bankrupt, if all their assets and liabilities were

fully declared, but this is hidden and not so declared,

for fear of widespread loss and panic. The majority of

the population have no significant real assets. Only a

small proportion of the population is being protected in

this way. A quicker movement to equality could have

been achieved by not intervening, but the short-term

consequences

may have been

unthinkable.

In the longer

term, since

21.2.1007

The current system of public funding is hugely

complex, and widely abused.

The basis of public funding is that a proportion of the

nation’s product is spent upon public works (including

health, and every public service).

Instead of collecting money by taxation - a very hit and

miss method, the alternative is to simply decide how

much society requires to spend upon each public service

and pay the money at source. The government prints

the money to be circulated. Instead of circulating the

money and then attempting to collect back a variable

proportion, it would be hugely more efficient to print

say 70 % for distribution and allocate 30% for public

works and services. This latter 30% of the money is

not issued and reclaimed: it is simply directed to those

unemployment is ever increasing, and for the UK,

assets such as North Sea Oil are diminishing, there

are grounds to think that productivity in the west is

on a continuing decline.

This panelled room was in the original Star Hotel.

683

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

items. The public then pays no tax of any sort. There

is no tax evasion. It could be said that this would lead

to inflation, but some inflation is necessary to promote

growth. With no inflation, or deflation, resources are

locked up in property [real estate]. Modest inflation

(7-10%) is necessary to unlock wealth from property

and shares, allowing its redistribution. With zero

inflation, an economy will always stagnate, because

property is now used as the reserve instead of gold.

There would be no ongoing inflation simply because

of direct allocation of public money, so long as the

amount remains in proportion, directly linked to gross

domestic product. In conjunction, indirect taxation

can still be applied (purchase tax or V.A.T.). Then the

population as a whole pays tax, but the benefits are

allocated by means of considered agreement. Such

things as TV licence fees and car tax are abolished,

along with income and capital gains tax. Death duties,

may remain necessary so as to keep accumulation of

wealth mainly to an individuals lifetime 1 . This benefits

the poor as much as the rich. State benefits can be

allocated according to need. They do not have to be

arbitrarily taken away because someone does an hour

of work. They can be awarded up to an agreed income

level, and thereafter diminished slowly. This will

and administration, can be better employed in health

care of an ageing population, and in improvement of

the worst parts of the infrastructure. Money that is

paid abroad will be allocated in the same way as all

public funds. It might be thought that this system will

affect the value of our currency, but once instituted, the

pound, or whatever other currency we use, assumes its

level in just the same way as it did before, and as long

as the overall expenditure of the government is at the

same proportion of GDP as before, then the currency

will remain at the same exchange rate.

1 It might be thought that abolition of death duty and

tax would serve to increase the assets of the rich. The

current system of taxation has never prevented the rich

from getting richer, and the poor poorer. If the amount

of money allocated to provide employment and health

benefits for the poor is found to be insufficient to

balance the excesses of the rich, then the proportion

of the money supply to that sector must be increased

to restore the balance. If this balance is kept adjusted,

then the poorer sector will be able to gain the assets

that they deserve. They, after all, will always provide

the labour in the equation.

2 Provided always, that there is

sufficient inflation to drive the

spending impulse.

All countries could use the same system,

and would be as well served. As it is,

the system is to some degree already

in place, although no-one realises it.

In Greece, there is the largest public

deficit, currently 127% of GDP (gross

domestic product). Shocking as it may

seem, other countries are not far behind.

In Greece this means that the country is

consuming double what it is producing

internally, by means of imports. This

seems even more shocking when the

largest industry is tourism. In Greece,

mean a greater distribution

to the poor sector of the

community. Conversely,

if one earns money, none

will be taken away. Instead,

it will all be spent 2 . The

allocation of funds for such

as health, roads, medicines

etc. can be agreed upon as

a percentage of GDP and

will have then to be spent as

wisely as possible within the

budget that the country can

afford. Much bureaucracy

that is currently employed

in all sorts of tax gathering

can be entirely done away

with. Thousands of persons

employed in tax gathering

15.05.2008, main

lower picture

21.8.10, Inset, the building taken over

by Herring House Trust as a hostel

684

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

tax evasion at all levels and of both income tax and

duties on goods, is widely practised. So little tax is

collected, that a move to abolish taxation altogether, as

here proposed, would not be difficult. Other countries

are not far behind, and the adjustment required to a non

tax economy with modest inflation, could in fact be

achieved. Instead, the politicians

will attempt to collect more tax

and cut services in years to come,

and economies in the western

world will drastically decline.

One of the most basic fallacies in

recent years has been the notion

that zero inflation is a good thing.

If there is no inflation, or worse

- deflation - then people will hold

on to assets, both property and

cash, and will not borrow because

those assets will only depreciate.

If you wait then whatever you

want will become cheaper still.

Conversely, modest inflation

drives spending. This seems to

be entirely forgotten. If there

is inflation, then everyone must buy

today, for tomorrow the asset will cost

more, and what we have acquired will be

worth more. It is the politicians craze for

zero inflation that has brought the world

to its financial knees, much more than

over-lending. With some inflation, the

overlending could have self-corrected,

and controls could have been put in place

to curb further excessive lending.

spending was done as one single exercise, considering

what is needed, rather than worrying how to claw in

more tax, then a whole new approach to the general

outcome will be possible.

At the same time as the Colorado is drying up, here in

At the beginning of January 2010, two

television programmes were shown, as

follows:

Piers Morgan, a celebrity presenter who

had previously been a newspaper editor of

the “Daily Mirror” and the “News of the World”, took

us first to Las Vegas, and secondly to Marbella. The

idea was to show how people there were faring in the

current recession. In Las Vegas, work on many lavish

new building projects had ceased entirely, the buildings

being left as empty shells. At the same time there was

considerable (about 50%) devaluation of property there

in general, yet the casinos still did business, and were

hoping for better times ahead. Meanwhile, the Colorado

river, dammed up behind the Hoover dam, was drying

up, and if the rainfall does not increase then in ten

years, Las Vegas will run out of water entirely, and

revert to desert. All the effort that has been put into

creating Las Vegas is only as a play-park for the wanton

rich may be “wasted”. All of that effort should in any

event have been put into projects such as rebuilding

Manhattan, Detroit and the suburbs of New Orleans

and other impoverished places, but there is no proper

overview of what is going on. A change to the method

of allocation of wealth is needed. If allocation of public

Ramey’s house was on the site of the Post

Ofﬁce before Beazor’s was built at the corner

of the new Regent Street.

685

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

UK, we seem to be getting more and more rain and

floods. Hundreds of billions of dollars have been

expended in creating a playground for the ultra rich

at Las Vegas, which in a few years will all revert to

uninhabitable desert.

The Cromwell

In Marbella the ultra rich have bought the most

incredibly lavish and opulent properties. These can

cost as much as £20-50 million, yet many of them

are seldom or never occupied. In the resort, people

drink and party all night. On the beach were found a

large group including a famous footballer’s family,

having a champagne spraying party. For this, they

purchased several dozen bottles of champagne

at around a hundred pounds a bottle, and whilst

drinking some, proceeded to spray the rest over each

other – which – apparently was the whole point of

the party.

In both cases described above, those

participating in the party have deliberately

avoided all responsibility to anyone else on

the planet; bent only upon self-indulgence

they worship idols. This is idolatry of

money. Such wastage of human resources

and such an ignorance of the problems of

those around them is unredeemable sin.

Such activities in the past have led to the

downfall of whole civilisations, as will

surely come to pass again. At the same

time as those people party and squander

resources, there are ordinary workers in the

USA who have already given up the idea

that they will ever gain employment again.

There are seventeen million households in

USA who unable to buy enough food to eat,

14% of USA households have difficulty in

keeping food on the table in 2009, according

The Star

686

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

to a USDA (US government) report (Time

Magasine 174 – no. 21, p.13). This is in the

apparently richest country in the world. It is

not lack of resources that is the problem; it is

the inequality within society. The recent bailout

by government has thus far simply preserved

the wealth of the rich, and prevented levelling

and distribution. If more radical action is not

taken to redistribute resources within society

it is simply a matter of time before the society

will collapse. In the meantime, inequality

grows ever greater and the consequences will

be all the more severe.

*1 writing by C.J.Palmer

*2 writing by H.B.Johnson

*3 East Anglian Magazine April 1950. (Rumbelow,

diary vol. 24.)

*4 The Rise of Great Yarmouth- Ecclestone.

*5 as described by Florence Waters and others, see

row 137.

*6 Rows of Gt.Yarmouth by M.Teun, pt.2.

*7 Rumbelow’s Diary, vol. 20, p.42.

The Star Hotel was previously called the

“Cromwell” Hotel. Cut flint faces the front,

with Tudor style timbering. This an hotel of

the “Queen’s Moat House” group, of national

hotels that in 1993 had to be written down

in value by many millions of pounds. Julian

Wooldridge and Gerald James Bell were the

licensees in 1994.

The Star Hotel overhangs Row 62, Ben

Dowson’s Row.

There is a large doorway to the side of British

Telecommunications, the old telephone exchange. This

building is of brick with a stone front on the ground

floor. Built in 1936, it is of three stories, but with five

dormer windows in addition on an attic floor, cut into

the roof. There is a winged head in stone over there

doorway here. (nos. 25-26) The post office, of small red

bricks, has red sand stone detailing around the windows

and door. George V is celebrated as the monarch at the

time of its construction, with his name over the door on

the corner of Regent Street. Reported

June 18th. 1881, found in the old

post office premises, was a human

skeleton, and that of a small monkey.

Two clerks had gone exploring in the

roof. It was pitch dark, so they took

some tiles from the roof to let in some

light, and so saw an iron bedstead,

enclosed at the sides head and foot

by wood, and upon it the skeletons,

which fell to dust when touched.

The Government had then acquired

the premises between the Star hotel

and Mr. Barnaby’s establishment for

a Post Office. The house had many

years before been the property of Dr.

Cox.*7 Who the skeleton once was,

and how the bones got there. remains

a complete mystery.

The Cromwell, rebuilt to

be taller than the Star.

The Star

This and opposite page, the original Star Hotel

687

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

World Champions from Great Yarmouth and District

Row 55……

14. Cobb, William and Co., printers,

publishers, book sellers, stationers and printers

of the Yarmouth Independant. Agents to

Lobdon Assurance Corporation, ﬁre and life

15. Clowes, John, grocer and tea dealer, agent

to Eagle Life Assurance Co.

16. Orde, the Lady Elizabeth

...... Row 57 ......

Horth, James, ﬁsh curer

Kirby, Mr. George

Clark, Mr. Edward

17. Porter, Edward, victualer, Star and Garter

18. Lacon, Sir E.H.K., Youell and Co.,

bankers. Draw on Glynn and Co., house -

Youell, Edward

19. Barber, William, tailor and woollen draper

20. Franklin, John, victualler, Crown and

Anchor

21. Savory, Henry, victualler, Steam Packet

22. Barton, Mrs Mary

23. Dowson, Benjamin and son, corn

merchants &c.

Dowson, Benjamin, house here

Dowson, William Postel, , house 8

Trafalgar Road

24. Bessey and Hylton, ship owners and coal

merchants

Bessey, William Henry, house, South Beach

Parade

Hylton, John Bessey, house 17 South Quay

25. Driver, George Holmes, victualler, Star

Hotel, and livery stables

26. Blake and Co., ship owners and Merchants,

agents to Phoenix and Pelican Life Ofﬁces

Telegraph Ofﬁce, manager, Thomas

Robinson, house Row 90

Corn Hall, proprietor, R. Steward, Esq. J.P.,

Lessee J.W.Foreman Esq., keeper, William

Hunt

27. Holmes, George William, manager of East

of England Bank

28. Spelman, and sons, auctioneers, estate and

land agents

Spelman, Henry, House, Norwich

Spelman, Samuel Waters, house, South

Beach

29. Cooper, John, printer and stationer, house

79 Southtown

30. Easter, William, beer house

31. Purdy, Joseph Henry, printer

Brian Colclough Roller Dance Skating 1962, 1965

Patricia Colclough Roller Dance Skating 1962, 1965

Edna Allen-Fletcher M.B.E. Table Tennis 1998, 2002

Matthew George Saunders Table Tennis 1997, 1998

Martin Pigott Power Lifting 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002

Nicola Coral Banham Korean Martial Arts 2002

Kevin Burgess World Athletics 1999

Stuart Brown Eskrima Stick Fighting 2001, 2002

Mervyn King Darts 2004

(List as on plaque in Town Hall)

The Occupants, Hall Quay, 1863

1. Stagg, George, ironmonger, (shop, Broad

Row)

2. Preston, I., and C.A., solicitors

Preston, Isaac, clerk to Haven

Commissioners, house – Chapel Dene

Preston, Charles Abbott, house – South Quay

3. Grimmer and Co., wine and spirit

merchants, (and at Norwich)

Grimmer, Alexander John (house here)

4. Lacon, Mrs. Jane

5. General Steam Navigation Co.’s Ofﬁces

(and at Lombard Street, London, and

Norwich, local manager, A.J.Harpour

6. Cobb, Mrs Mary

7. Page, Walter, grocer and tea dealer; (house

Southtown)

Boreham, John, smack owner and ﬁsh

merchant

…….Row 53…..

Reed, Charles Lancelot, bricklayer

8. Leggett, Edward, victualler, The Buck Inn

9. Owles, John, .JP., chemist and druggist

10. Blaxell, Samuel, victualler, Barge

Tavern

11. Mayhew, John, victualler, Dukes Head

Inn, livery stables &c.

12. Post Ofﬁce, postmaster, John Coxon

13. Gurneys, Birkbeck and Brightwens,

bankers, draw on Barclay and Co.

Brightwen, Thomas, Esq., house here

688

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

Carpenter, William, auctioneer

..... Row 72 .....

Moore, John Christmas, Whitesmith

32. Denew, James Manning, printer, and depot for

British and Foreign Bible Society

33. Bell, Louisa, day school

34. Crowe, William, victualler, Yarmouth Arms

35. Foreman, William James, ship owner and

coal merchant

36. Hall, James, baker

37. Hunn, Mary, victualler, Royal Oak

38. Tolver, Samuel, Esq.

Town Hall, keeper, Robert Collins

Police Station, Superintendant, George

Tewsley

Fire Brigade Station ‘’ ‘’ ‘’

16. Orde, The Lady Elizabeth

Orde, Major,J. H., Hopton Hall - this is

incorrect- the Ordes lived at Hopton House.

.....Row 57.....

17. Hellenburgh, Joseph, victualler, The Star

and Garter

18. Lacon, Sir E H K., Youell and Co., draw

on Glynn and Co., Sir E Lacon - Ormesby

House, Youell, E.P.,house - Gorleston.

Dick, W R P., lives here

.....Row 59.....

20. Franklin, John, victualler, The Crown and

Anchor

21. Last, Frederick Booty, “Steam Packet

Tavern” and vetinary surgeon

.....Row 61.....

22. National Provincial Bank of England,

manager Mr George Upward

23. Owles, Mrs.

Ferrier, Fred. W., solicitor and notary,

Registrar of Births and Deaths for north

district

.....Row 62....

24. Shales, William, Star Hotel

.....Row 67.....

25. Hall Quay Chambers, Blake, Garson,

coal merchant and ship broker, house

74 Southtown, Blake, Lovewell, public

accountant house, 75 South Quay; Downett,

F.J.,solicitor

26. Barnby, J.E.,

.....here is Regent Street.....

The Occupants of Hall Quay, 1874

Foreman, W J, coal wharf

1 Stagg, George, ironmonger, shop, Broad Row

....here is North Quay......

2. Louttid, E D, Insurance Agent

3. Pearce, Edward, commission agent, house at 62

St George’s Road

4. Larkman, James

5. Steam Navigation Co.’s Ofﬁce, local manager,

A J Harpour

6. Cobb, Mrs Mary

.....Row 50......

7. Bunting, Thomas, grocer and tea dealer

Phillips, Bareham P., dealer in works of art, furni-

ture and at 80 George Street

.....Row 52.....

8. Leggett, Edward, victualler, the Buck Inn

9. Owles and son, chemists and druggist

10. Helesdon, William, victualler, Barge Tavern

11. Davy, J W, victualler, Dukes Head Livery

Stables

12. Bessey, W H & son, coal merchants and

ofﬁce of the Norfolk and Suffolk Finance and

Reversionary Interest Company (Ltd.)

Goff J J., ofﬁce, corn merchant, house, 13 Henry

Place. Board of Trade Ofﬁce

.....Row 53.....

13. Gurney’s Bank, Buxton, H E., resides here.

......Row 55.....

14. Hunter, William, draper and silk mercer

15. Ward, George, hairdresser and perfumer

Clowes, John, grocer and tea dealer, house,

Southtown

27. Cracknell, Richard, manager of bank

28. Spelman and sons, auctioneer, estate and

land agents

Spelman, Henry, house – Norwich

Spelman, Samuel Waters, house South Beach

….Row 71…..

29. Cooper, John, printer and stationer, house,

79. Southtown

30. Easter, Sarah, beer retailer, Hall Tavern

31. Coleman, Edward, eating house and wine

cooper

…..Row 72…..

32. Yarmouth Independent Ofﬁce, secretary,

H.Goodwin,

Denew, James Manning, printer &c.

Spilling, William, builder, house – 28

Southtown

689

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

….Row 75…..

….Row 53…..

15. Barclay and Company Ltd., bankers

(T.W.Swindell, manager)

…..Row 55…..

16 and 17., Clowes stores, grocers

18. Star and Garter P.H., Edwin Joseph Gill

…..Row 57…..

19. Capital and Counties Bank Ltd. (Herbert

Willoughby Youell J.P., and George Merchant,

joint managers)

…..Row 59…..

21. King, Allison Henry, Crown and Anchor

Hotel

22. Steam Packet Hotel, George Fisher

22. Great Yarmouth Piscatorial Society Walter

Woolverton, Hon.Sec, club house

…..here is Row 61…..

23. National Provincial Bank of England,

(John Parry Evans, manager)

24. Cromwell Temperance Hotel, James

Cornelius Holmes

….Row 62…..

25. Star family and commercial Hotel, Henry

Taylor

….Row 67…..

26. Head Post Ofﬁce, Albert Bell, post master

26. Telephone call Ofﬁce

here is Gaol Street

south side

33. Wilshire, Charles H., solicitor, ofﬁce;

house, 33 Camperdown Place

34. Eagleton, John, general business agent

Norton, James Thomas, merchant, house – 45

Albion Road

Teasdel, James E., architect and surveyor,

house – Gorleston

35. Foreman, William James, ship owner, and

coal merchant

36. Hall, James, baker

37. Hargreaves, J., victualler “Royal Oak”

38. Barnes, Miss

Fenner and Sufﬂing, auctioneers, &c.

Town Hall, erected 1716, Harvey, George,

hall keeper

Police station

Fire station superintendant – George Tewley

Occupants, Hall Plain, 1886

1. Yarmouth and Gorleston Steam Boat Co.

Platford, Leonard

….here is North Quay….

….Regent Street…..

2. Boam, Joseph Ltd., coal merchants

3. Great Yarmouth Conservative Club (H.H.

McClatchie, sec., Geo Tate, steward, Quay

House

6. General Steam Navigation Co.,Ltd.

(Bejamin C. Rofe, agent)

7. Powell, William, dining rooms

Town Hall, (William Edgar Stevens, town

clerk, clerk to the Urban Sanitary Authority,

clerk to Burial Court and Registrar of Borough

Court of Record)

Borough Surveyors Ofﬁce (John William

Cockerill, M.I.C.E., Borough surveyor and

architect)

Medical Ofﬁcer of Health’s Ofﬁce (Andrew

Norris Stevens M.R.C.S., L.R.C.P. Lond.,

D.P.H.)

Weights and Measures Ofﬁce (Joseph C.

Buddery, inspector)

Quarter Sessions Court, (Henry Hamilton

Lawless, recorder)

Richard Turner Ruddock, Clerk of the Peace

Sanitary Inspectors Ofﬁce (Samuel Hassall,

Urban Sanitary Inspector; George Spinks, Port

Sanitary Inspector and inspector of ﬁsh)

Dowsett, F.J., solicitor

Jay, B., J.P.

….here is George Street…..

…..Row 50…..

8. Freeman, Edward Bennett, picture frame

maker

9. Bunting, Thomas, grocer

….Row 52…..

10. Buck Inn, Edward James Atkins

11. Mayes, William Edward, bootmaker

12. Barge Tavern, William Robert Porter

Corn Market Hall

Telephone Call Ofﬁce (Corn Market Hall)

13. Dukes Head Hotel, Lacon and Co., Ltd.

14. London Joint Stock Bank Ltd.,

690

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

36. Hall, J., ship biscuit maker

37. French, Mrs., Royal Oak Tavern

38. Barnes, Miss

Overseer’s Ofﬁce

Town Hall (erected 1882)

Ofﬁces of – town clerk, etc.

manager

White, Ernest

12. Barge Tavern, George G. Gibson

Corn Market Hall

13. Duke’s Head Hotel, John William Rich

14. Midland Bank, Thomas Stanley Taylor,

manager

…..Row 53…..

15. Barclays Bank, C.H.Alexander, manager

…..Row 55…..

16. & 17., Clowes Astores and provision

merchants

18. Star and Garter Public House, Ronald

Clayton

…….Row 57…..

19. Lloyds Bank S.T.Blink, manager

19. Blink, Seymour Terry

…..Row 59…..

21.George, A.V., Crown and Anchor public

house

22. Steam Packet Hotel, Chas. A. Baker

….Row 61…..

23. National Provincial Bank, Frank Compton

Dare, manager

24. Cromwell Hotel, Frank Wolseley, manager

25. Star Hotel, C.W.Cooper, manager

United Kingdom Commercial Travellers

Association, A.E.Sharman, sec.

…..Row 67…..

26. Head Post Ofﬁce, (Wm.F.Dewar, post

master)

The Occupants, Hall Quay, 1913

From Regent Street

28. Spelman’s auctioneers

……..here is Row 71……

29. Town Hall Tavern, A.R.Tod

30. Yarmouth Mercury,

31. Campling, C.A., Ltd., printers

32. Harmer, Ruddock and Son, solicitors and

commissioners for oaths

32. Harmer, Ruddock and Gowing

33. Yarmouth and Gorleston Steam boat Co

Ltd.

34. Williams, Hanbury, auctioneer

35. Baker, Charles Gilham, architect

35. Martin Percy, solicitor and commissioner

for oaths

35. Girling, J and H., coal and coke merchants

37. Cushing, Leonard, tailor

38. Danby Palmer and Blake, solicitors and

commissioners for oaths

39. Blake, Garson Henry Lovewell, solicitor

and commissioners for oaths

38. Hazell, Robert, Deputy Registrar for Births

and Marriages

…..Regent Road…….

Town Hall

Wm. Edward Stevens, solicitor, Town Clerk

Medical Ofﬁcer of Health, Andrew Norris

Stevens

Sanitary Inspector, Samuel Hassall, George

Henry Spinks, port inspector

Quarter Sessions Court, Maj. William Rowley

Elliston

Powles, Barnabas Joseph, keeper of town hall

The Occupants, Hall Quay, 1927

1. Steward and Patteson Ltd., brewers

…North Quay…

3.Mason and Mason, coal merchants

Great Yarmouth Conservative Club (C.J.

Kirkham, sec, A.Harlock, steward, Quay

House)

6. General Steam Navigation Co., ofﬁces

7. Powell, Sidney, dining rooms

…..George Street…..

…..Row 50…..

8. Freeman, Edward Bennett, picture frame

maker

9. White, Eric M., grocer

…..Row 52…..

10. Buck Inn, Joseph Herbert Smith

11. Westminster Bank Limited, E.White,

The Occupants, Hall Quay, 1936

1. Steward and Pattesson Ltd., brewers

…..here is North Quay…..

Great Yarmouth Conservative Club, (Capt.

J.W. Challice, sec., A.Harlock)

Great Yarmouth Radio RelaysLtd., wireless

relay station

7. Yarmouth Independent and Gorleston Times

691

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

….George Street….

….Row 50….

8. Pendle, Robert James, wireless dealer

9. Dunbar, P.J.P., electrical contractor

…….Row 52…….

11. Westminster Bank Ltd., Fred Lynch,

manager

12. Henry’s (H.J.Julier, prop.), restaurant

Corn Market

13. Duke’s Head Hotel, John William Rich

14. Midland Bank Ltd. (A.S.Vaughan,

manager)

……Row 53……

15. Barclays Bank Ltd., V.C.Corke, manager

….Row 55…..

16 & 17. Clowes Stores, grocers

17. Star and Garter Public House, Raymond

Clayton

….Row 57…..

19. Lloyds Bank Ltd., S.T.Blink, manager

Blink, Seymour, Terry

….Row 59…..

20. Crown and Anchor Hotel, Harry Sayers

21. Steam Packet Hotel, W.T.Topps

…..Row 61…..

22. National Provincial Bank, W.E.Dix,

manager

23. Star Hotel, Great Yarmouth, 1930 Ltd.,

W.J.Oldman, sec.

United Kingdom Commercial Travellers

Association, Joseph Arthur Smith Hon.Sec.

….Row 62…..

…..Row 67….

26. Head Post Ofﬁce (P.E.Webber,

Postmaster)

Town Hall

Town Clerk’s Ofﬁce, William Edgar Stevens

O.B.E, solicitor, town clerk

steward)

6. Great Yarmouth Radio Relays

6. National Radio Hire Service

....George Street....

....Row 50....

8. Pendle, Robert James, wireless dealer

9. Dunbar, P.J.P., electrical contractor

....Row 52....

11. Westminster Bank Ltd., (Frederick

I.Lynch, manager)

11. Lynch, Frederick I.

12. Henry’s Restaurant (H.J.Julier,

proprietor)

Corn Market Hall

13. Dukes Head Hotel, J.Guy Talbot,

proprietor.

(family and commercial)

14. Midland Bank Limited (A.S.Vaughan,

manager)

....Row 53....

15. Barclays Bank Ltd. (V.C.Corke,

manager)

....Row 55....

16 & 17. Clowes Stores, grocers

18. Star and Garter P.H., Frederick Ewels

The Occupants, Hall Quay, 1938

....Row 57....

(from North Quay to South Quay)

19. Lloyds Bank Limited (S.T.Blink,

manager)

1. Steward and Patteson Ltd., brewers

19. Blink, Seymour Terry

....North Quay....

....Row 59....

3. Eagle Star Insurance Co.Ltd.

(H.J.Rushen, resident inspector)

21. Crown and Anchor Hotel, Harry Sayers

Great Yarmouth Conservative Club

(Capt.J.W.Challice, sec., Ernest Bullent,

22. Steam Packet Hotel, W.T.Topps

692

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

....Row 61....

27. Head Post Ofﬁce, W.Allot, Post Master

23. National Provincial Bank Ltd. (W.E.Dix,

manager) ....Regent Street....

….Regent Street…

Town Hall

Borough Magistrates Court

Borough Engineer

Borough Architects

Perry, Robert, keeper of Town Hall

38. Howard, John H., auctioneer

38. Danby Palmer and Blake, solicitors.

24. Star Hotel Gt.Yarmouth Ltd.

(W.J.Oldman, sec.)

24. United Kingdom Commercial

Traveller’s Association (Rupert Potter, Hon.

Sec.)

....Row 62....

....Row 67....

26. Head Post Office (P.E.Webber,

head postmaster)

The Occupants, Hall Quay, 1973

Here is North Quay

3. Eagle Star Group, Insurance

Company

4/5. Yarmouth Hall Quay Club

6/7 Ferrow, Malcolm and Joy

….George Street….

….Row 50….

….here is Stonecutters Way….

Great Yarmouth Public Slipper Baths

12. Norwich Building Society

12. Estate Valuers (Borough Council)

13. Dukes Head Hotel

14. Midland Bank

….Row 53…..

15.Barclays Bank Ltd.

…Row 55…..

16. Norfolk Steak House

18. Aldred and Partners, Estate Agents,

Chartered Surveyors and valuers

Star and Garter Public House

….Row 57…..

19. Lloyds Bank

21/22 Yare Hotel

….Row 61….

23 National Westminster Bank

24. Star Hotel

….Row 62….

The Police Station

became a ﬁre station,

then was used as a

council meeting room

after the Fire Station

moved to Friars Lane

on 8th June 1972 (new

station cost £146,500).

Photo 21.5.1972, P.G.Trett

693

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

694

The Town Hall, 15.05.2008

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

The Town Hall

Daniel Defoe referred to the town

hall as being a “little palace”, when

he visited the town. Defoe was much

taken with Yarmouth, but the Quay

was certainly much more splendid

in his time, and the Town hall in

its Romanesque design, then more

imposing than the brash Victorian

design that we are stuck with today.

Daniel Defoe was the son of James

Foe, a tallow chandler of St Giles,

Cripplegate, London, born about 1659,

died 1731. At first Defoe was a general

merchant and entrepreneur, incurring

substantial debt, and marrying Mary

Tufley. Daniel undertook his travels after release from

prison, some time after 1692. His tour through the

whole of Great Britain with its description of Great

Yarmouth was not written until 1724-27, whereas his

novel “Robinson Crusoe”, which also mentions this

town, was written in 1719. Crusoe set sail before his

shipwreck, from Great Yarmouth.

Charles Palmer refers to the practice in Georgian times,

of covering over the old buildings, but the Victorians

in contrast tore many down, such as the town hall.

“The folly of this is now generally admitted, and much

would be given if what was so ruthlessly destroyed

could be restored; for the fascination which clings

to an old building can never be revived in a modern

habitation.”

The old Town Hall opened in 1713.

The corporation in previous times conducted their

business at the Guild Hall outside of the Church Gate at

St Nicholas, as has been described previously. The Guild

Hall was pulled down in 1849, at a date when Palmer

was very much alive, and not without influence. The

“New Hall” was opened in 1713, as a venue for Balls,

Dinners, Feasts and Entertainments. There was at that

time a double row of trees down the quay, maintained

by the householders. Palmer tells us that there had been

a grand sessions dinner with ten courses, held at the

town hall for the Mayor and Bailiffs at the start of each

of the sessions of Oyer and Terminer. (this is simply

a name derived from the French, and was a court set

up to try all treason, felonies or misdemeanors). The

corporation was then in the habit of inviting royalty

and other important dignitaries to the town, entertaining

them at the new hall. They sent a present each year to

Samuel Pepys, since he was attendant at court and the

mayor and corporation clearly thought that they could

thereby acquire influence. Palmer gives an

example of one of the lavish balls held at

the hall. On 28 th August 1812, a ball was

held to celebrate the victory at Salamanca,

under Wellington. “Music to commence at

eight o’clock, and dancing at half-past.”

When the old town hall was built, the rows

continued uninterruptedly down the quay.

The act to permit the opening up of a space

to create Regent Street, was passed in 1809.

At that time there was no road of any sort

between South Quay and Middlegate, all the

way south to Friars Lane. Likewise there

was no way from East to West other than

695

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

the rows, from the Market Place all the way to Friars

Lane. The widest passage in that direction was Broad

Row, and the Market Row remains quite narrow to

this day. Passage for processions of dignitaries from

the church to the town hall was easy enough, down

George Street to the Hall Plain. The formal opening

of Regent Street was on 29 th September 1813.

The present town hall building was completed in 1882.

The architect was J.B.Pearce. His design was chosen

from several alternatives (see next page).

The new Town Hall (completed 1882) started

to sink and had to be underpinned.

Teacher’s Conference at the Town Hall.

During 2007-2009 1.5 million of local taxpayers money

and English Heritage grant was expended on repairs

to the roof and to the sandstone walls and windows.

A considerable portion of the money paid was to the

scaffolding company who had to buy the scaffolding

especially for this job. Now they can let it out to

others. Only a few years previously the building had

been scaffolded whilst sandblasting cleaned the walls.

At that time the roof had not been repaired, so that it

was not long before further attention was needed. The

roof has however been insulated, and the clock was

removed from the tower and refurbished. The panels

in the face are now acrylic, and an electric winder has

been fitted to avoid a man being employed to wind up

the mechanism each week. The South Quay was closed

for two days over the weekend in February 2008 to

allow roof trusses to be lifted into place.

Until 1990 the magistrates and coroners

courts continued to be held here in the

purpose built courtrooms. Until the new

police station was opened in Howard

Street, the police station was next door,

conveniently housing the cells, with

prisoners easily brought into court.

Likewise the fire station was housed

adjacent to the town hall until it too moved

in the 1970’s. The old police station and

fire station fronted Middlegate Street, and

will be described under that heading. The

new courthouse was built by J. S. Hay

Ltd., based at nearby Lingwood. Courts

are much busier than in former times, what

27.4.2007.

696

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

Presumably this rather ornate design was too expensive to build. The west facing bow windows

would have been rather ﬁne. Note the buildings on Hall Quay and South Quay, which are likely

to be faithful reproductions of what was there.

10th January, 2010.

697

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

10.01.2010

27.4.2007.

with motoring offences and public health matters, in

addition to such items as theft and public order that

had been formerly dealt with. The single court room

in the town hall became insufficient for the large

number of cases heard every day. As an example of

the diverse items now dealt with, a kebab shop owner

from Gorleston, on 2 nd October 2009 was fined £6,000

for non-compliance with the hygiene regulations. In

contrast, the more serious crimes are now tried at

Crown Court, either in Norwich or Ipswich.

The assembly room at the town hall remains open for

conferences, and it is possible to hire it along with the

council chamber and robing room. It is considerably

underused nowadays, whereas large conferences were

often here in times past. See for example the picture of

the delegates leaving the town hall after the National

Union of Teacher’s conference in 1926. The problem is

largely that the hall has been deemed unsuitable for use

by more than 230 persons, not because it is too small,

but because of fire regulations. In order to compete

with hundreds of splendid venues costing much more

elsewhere, the compliance with regulations needs to

be addressed. Formerly 500 to 1000 persons could be

accommodated. Provision of additional emergency

exits to allow greater use is surely more important than

worrying about minor alteration of a listed building

that gets relatively little use now.

27.04.2007.

In 2010, much of the council business is conducted

in the annexe to the town hall, the rectangular

Victorian “pile” that sits to the south of the main

hall. This building although just office space, and

698

A New Perlustration of Great Yarmouth

This old trunk, known as The Hutch”, used to

contain the ancient records of the council.

Butcher’s painting of the jetty hangs in the

Town Hall. (detail) Photo. 27.04.2007.

having no aesthetic value inside, has remained mainly

unaltered. It is unable to accommodate all of the

council departments, and some of the housing offices

have moved into the converted Middlegate Church,

and the planning department is lodged in temporary

“portacabin” buildings at Gorleston, on the site of the

former Watney’s maltings.

27.4.2007

15.05.2008.

Bottom right, the grand

Assembly Room, much

under utilised these days.

27.04.2007

699

The Revised History of Great Yarmouth

photo. 1987

700