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14 Hunstanton Town & Around September 2017 Tel: 01485 540620 email: editor@townandaround.net
A Page from the Sage

or-blimey, don’t the time fly; another hectacres) a shallow bay that lays between the
month has gone by and it is time for the Lincolnshire coast, the Norfolk coast and the
CSage to do another write up for Issue North Sea. Between 1632 and 1660 a massive
143 of the Hunstanton Town and Around for 17,374 acres of the Wash around Gedney,
the month of September 2017. Whaplode, Holbeach and Moulton Seas End
Of late there has been a lot of correspon- had been reclaimed. The five main rivers that
dence in the Town and Around about the lack of flow into the Wash are the Steeping, the
sand to the north of the pier and in the vicinity of Witham, the Nene, the Welland and the Great
the sailing club. For the council to recharge this Ouse. Before their alteration, the river estuaries
is out of the question as the cost would be far too were sandy and a mecca for the cult of sea
high. bathing in the late 18th and 19th centuries most
In the Town and Around Cllr Richard Bird particularly at Freiston Shore where hotels were
has come up with the idea to get a gang of local developed and an annual summer sand fair was
people together with some tractors and trailers by held with horse races. All of this came to an
go out to the sandbanks at low water and bring Dick Melton abrupt halt with the opening of the Witham Cut
back enough sand and shingle to cover the in 1885 which stimulated salt marsh to develop
green rocks, but there are very tight restrictions along the shores to the north.
laid down by the government, sea fisheries and dwelling or house to be used as apartments. Over the years many projects have been pro-
the Crown Estates as to what can be taken from Looking on an old map the original building posed and thought about for the Wash area. In
the sea bed around our coast. was substantially altered sometime before 1928; 1839 a plan was put forward to turn the Wash
At one time a few years ago the Le Strange over the years it has been put to many uses, for a into a new county and call it Victoria after the
Estate would employ a bailiff to patrol the while it was three different businesses, Cassie's Queen. In 1928 it was proposed to harness the
beach and foreshore and if anyone wanted sand Cafe at the north end, a newspaper shop in the tidal power of the Wash and turn it into electric-
or shingle they would have to pay for it. Also middle and Jones's fish and chip shop it was ity. In 1960 some businessmen came up with the
out on these sandbanks there are many beds of also over the years been a bookmakers, a power idea to build a barrage with locks and sluices to
cockles so if these beds were disturbed the fish- boat showroom a caravan accessories shop, and cut off about half the area of the Wash to build a
ermen would be most upset and this would start a restaurant more than once. Also it was the city for 700,000 people with an airport and road
not another cod war but a cockle war, so I think main pick up point for Eastern Counties buses and rail links to the rest of the United Kingdom.
the only answer to this problem is to wait for when their garage was down Southend Road A lot of people have come up with all sorts
mother nature to bring the sand back which I am with the buses stopping right outside the build- of ideas over the years to change the format of
sure it will but it might take time. ings to pick up and set down their passengers. the Wash, such as a ferry or hovercraft service
Whilst looking into this I found an interest- John Maiden also mentioned The Waterside from Hunstanton to Skegness, a new pier and
ing story about gravel and shingle being stolen Bar. This area had built on it the Mikado inner harbour for Hunstanton, a bridge from
from our beaches. Concert Hall, a cinema, fish and chip shop and Gore Point near Holme to Gibraltar Point near
In August 1928 a beach scandal at an oriental bazaar, then in 1924 all of these Wainfleet, a sea life park with performing dol-
Hunstanton and Heacham was reported in the buildings were destroyed by fire. The land lay phins and wales, but up to this day none of these
local press; foreign crews and ships were scoop- barren until the middle of the 1930s then the projects have come about, so for the present
ing up boat loads of gravel and shingle from railway company (LNER) built the railway time the wash will just stay as it is a haven for
these two beaches, one of these ships was the Refreshment Rooms on it but the area that is wildlife and people alike for us all to enjoy it is
‘Citie-de-Londres and there were others too, now the car park they rented out to the also a winter feeding ground for over 3000,000
thousands of tons of gravel and shingle was Sandringham Hotel (opposite) who turned it visiting water birds waders and wildfowl.
being stolen from the shore daily, this was of into a tennis court with a 30 feet high wire fence In the July issue of Hunstanton Town and
much concern to the people of Heacham and to stop the balls going over the beach or on to Around I wrote a bit about the old Country Club
Hunstanton as this caused a lot of erosion and the road (Beach Terrace). The Refreshment that was on Cliff Parade, I said that it took over
great havoc was caused as the tides began to Rooms were built in a style to blend in with the the building that had been Lydgate House
approach even further up the beaches, but the rest of the town. School. Well this was not correct, a lady whom I
menace was stopped and the practice ceased In 1960 the Refreshment Rooms were put up know has told me that the Country Club only
when the authorities were brought to bear upon for sale and they were bought by Brooke and took up half of the old school, the other half
the stealing of the shore and its security for the Brooke who owned the Kit-Kat; the shops were being turned into flats as she and her family
land. built down below and the end shop was a lived in one of the flats from 1948 till at least
Whilst looking into this story of stolen sand I Wimpy Bar also there was a shellfish stall up 1956 and most of her neighbours were
was looking through some of my old maps of the corner by the steps run by Mr Bert Wells. American servicemen and their families that
Hunstanton and I don't know much about this The name of the Refreshment Rooms was then were stationed at Sculthorpe.
but in 1887 between the power boat slipway changed to the 3 in 1 as there were three bars. I will finish of this month with one of my
(not there then) and the Heacham boundary (the After a while it was turned into two bars one recipes for a good hearty breakfast; cook a basin
hump) there was a 700 yards long rifle range. If was named the Top Twenty and the other the full of nice fresh cockles, then get a large frying
it was a private range or a military one I do not Victorian Bar. The Top Twenty bar had a juke- pan, fill it up with bacon, eggs, mushrooms,
know; this area of foreshore and marsh was box in it and every Monday the top twenty black pudding and a sausage or two fry the lot
called the Buttlands. I cannot find it on any records would be put on it. In the 1980’s the up put it all on a large plate, chuck the cockles in
other maps so how long it was there I do not name of the bar was again changed back to the 3 the frying pan for 30 seconds then spread the
know. in 1. In 1978 when we had another flood and we cockles over the contents of the plate. This is
John Maiden had a good write up in the lost the pier the Wimpy Bar was flooded out and just the job for a Christmas morning fry-up or
press about one or two old buildings in the town not long after that it was turned into a sweet any other time of the year.
and he mentioned no 3 to 5 Le Strange Terrace shop like it is today, in later years the 3 in 1 was Well that’s all for now, with a bit of luck we
which is now a bar and gift shop, this building rented out and its name was changed a time or might be able to sit in the Cliff Top shelters
was built around 1864 and the lease was to a two until it was called The Waterside. before Christmas! Just keep a troshin’, the Boy
Jane Platten. In 1914 the freehold was sold to Many people ask me questions about the Dick.
Lewis Jones the use was restricted to a private Wash, that’s that large area of sea water (4,157