Great Yarmouth Rows - King Street to Middlegate

Numbered Map of the Rows - click on image in order to enlarge
[Source: "A History of Great Yarmouth", Frank Meeres, 2007]

Here are snippets about the rows between King Street and Middlegate Street (source, "The Rows of Great Yarmouth" by Colin Tooke, 1987):

Row 93

King the Baker’s Row (1734)

Rivett the Baker’s Row

Goddard the Whitesmith’s Row

Kings Head public house was on the south-west corner, and was converted into a bakers shop in 1734. Bread was baked here for the poor of the town.

Row 95

Kittywitches Row

Draper the Butcher’s Row (1863)

“At the eastern end of this row was four and a half feet wide, but at the western end it was barely 30 inches. It was described as a picturesque but gloomy row, with many overhanging Tudor houses on the south side” – Tooke

The name is probably derived from a former resident, Christopher Wyche.

Row 97

Barnes Row (1690)

Blick’s Row

Bell’s Row

Bayly’s Surgeon Row (1874)

Nightgale the Confectioner’s Row

Lawyer Bell’s Row

Norfolk Hero’s (1878) – a public house, on south west corner

Row 99

Castle Row

The name derives from around 1600 and described a square building with a watch tower at each corner which was built in the 1500s.  It was demolished in 1621.

This was also the site of the *Penrice Arms pub, which was on King Street between rows 99 and 101.

Row 101

Reynold’s Row ( 1781)

Charles Symonds Row

Victualling Office Row

*Penrice Stable Row

*Penrice was the name of a wealthy resident of King Street who had a mansion which once extended from St Georges Plain to row 94. One Yarmouth historian (Palmer) described it as, ‘probably the finest house ever erected in a county town for the residence of a private gentleman’. It only stood for 40 years before being demolished. Unfortunately, there is no indication of what period this was built.

Row 102

William’s Row (1760)

Benett the Cooper Row (1863)

Arnold the Brewer’s Row

William and Bells Row

Packet Office Row

Row 105

Chapel Row (1715)

Rev Cooper’s Row (1802)

Dr Penrice’s Row (1837)

Doughty the Grocer’s Row (1870)

Row 107

Post House Row (1660)

Old Post House Row

Chapel Paved Row

Step Paved Row

St Georges East Row

At the south west corner was a public house known as the Tolhouse Tavern, previously the Welcome Sailor

Row 109

Red Lion Row (1746)

Dr Borrett’s Row

Dr Meadow’s Row

Lion and Lamb Row

Red Lion pub was at the south west corner; the Lion and Lamb was on the south east corner.

Dr Daniel Meadows, surgeon, lived in a house known for many years (imaginatively) as the Doctor’s House. From the mid 1700s until 1970 there was an almost unbroken succession of doctors living here, the last being Dr Dowding.

Row 110

New Prison Row

Prison Row

Perry the Oatmeal Maker’s Row (1836)

Bellamy the Butcher’s Row

The south side of the row was used for French prisoners of war during the Napoleonic war (early 1800s). “A sentry stood guard at each end of the row and after dusk no one could pass down the row without the password. Despite these precautions several prisoners managed to escape.”

Row 113

Tilson’s South Row (1626)

Errington’s Row (1714)

Ferier the Surgeon’s Row (1836)

Thomas Tilson was a member of the GY Corporation in 1626. Near the western end of the row was a pub known as “The Bee” whose sign read thus:

‘Within this hive we’re all alive,

Good liquor makes us funny;

If you are dry, step in and try

The flavour of our honey’


~ Colin ~

A Great Source of Info!

Monument in the Kitchener Road Cemetery

I've just discovered this really interesting source of information about the town's history and archaeology:

Great Yarmouth Archaeology Map

~ Colin ~

The Resurrection Men

The archive of documents Norfolk Record Office, situated in Norwich, is a great resource for discovering the history of Great Yarmouth. However, if you are unable to get there in person, information is available online. For instance, here is a short excerpt from one of their information leaflets about bodysnatching in Yarmouth in the early 1800s...

"Body snatching was the digging up of recently buried people from churchyards to sell to students in anatomy (whose only legal source of corpses was the bodies of hanged criminals). The most famous case in Yarmouth was that of Thomas Vaughan alias Smith in 1827. He and some associates rented a room opposite the west end of St Nicholas church, in Row 6 (known later as Snatchbody Row). They dug bodies out of the churchyard, moved them into their house and then sent them to London by wagon. Although it aroused terror in many hearts, the courts regarded body snatching only as a misdemeanour meriting a short prison sentence: Vaughan received six months. Later he was found in possession of clothes he had taken from a dead body he had dug up in Plymouth. This ‘theft’ raised his crime to the level of felony and he was transported to Australia. After 1827 high fences were put up around St Nicholas churchyard to prevent a repetition of the crime."

[Source: Norfolk Record Office, Information Leaflet No 29 -> click HERE for further info about Yarmouth history]


For a more recent case of bodysnatching, please click HERE


~ Colin ~

A Riddle of Bullets

I had walked past this monument many times without paying it a great deal of attention. Then, one day, I looked up and noticed the spray of pock marks, mainly concentrated down one side. And when I looked closely at the wonderful ornate iron-work railings which surround it, I could see that the was damage on that same side...

What could have caused this? My first thought was that this might have been caused by the blast from one of the bombs dropped in this area during the Second World War. However, if this was the case, then the cemetery staff had certainly done an amazing job cosmetically restoring the surrounding area (had they really bothered to place a Victorian grave marker in the line of where the blast must've come from, purely as cosmetic restoration?). Then, John, one of the participants in the project told me that he believed this to be the result of a German plane strafing the monument with machine gun fire. Having seen quite a few pock marked target walls previously, I can see that this is the kind of damage canons and/or machine guns might cause. 


I wonder how many people have noticed this as they pass? 


~ Colin ~

Civilians in the Line of Fire

Click on images in order to enlarge

Great Yarmouth was the first place in the UK ever to suffer civilian casualties as a result of an air raid. On the night of the 19th January 1915 the German airship, Zeppelin L3, piloted by Peter Strasser, dropped bombs on the town. The fourth bomb to explode landed on St Peter's Plain, killing 53 year old shoemaker, Samuel Smith and 72 year old Martha Taylor. Although I have not yet been able to locate his grave, Samuel (who had part of his head blown away) is buried in the Kitchener Road Cemetery (Martha is buried in Gorleston). 

This is a tragically poignant moment in British history (see HERE for further details). In an ironic twist, Yarmouth was also the last town in Britain to be bombed in the First World War, and, once again, the pilot of the Zeppelin was Peter Strasser. On the night of the 5th of August the airship was destroyed and Strasser was shot down by a British plane piloted by Edgar Cadbury (a member of the famous chocolate manufacturing family). 

Peter Strasser, 1876-1918

(Main Source for this post: Frank Meeres, "A History of Great Yarmouth")


~ Colin ~

King Henry's Tower

‘King Henry’s Tower’, located on the north side of St Nicholas' church, was an ossuary chapel (from the Latin word ossuārius meaning “of or for bones”). When fresh burials were made and bones from previous burials were uncovered, these were stored in this chapel and, periodically, burned in a ‘bone fire’ (hence ‘bonfire’).

Priory Precinct wall: an amazing medieval survivor!

The tower is actually part of the priory precinct, rather than the town wall. The distinctiveness of this compared with the town wall is clear in the design of the towers. Here the towers are square turrets, whereas, the town wall ones are round constructions. 

~ Colin ~

Herring Grown...

Much of the historic wealth of Great Yarmouth was generated by a huge hoard of silver - 'silver darlings'... herrings!

In medieval Yarmouth, the fishing season began in September. The sheer volume of fish landed is hinted at by the use of 'lasts' as a measure of the catches. A last was defined by the Statute of Herrings of 1357 as consisting of 10,000 fish. 

Countless millions of herrings were the basis of the wealth that built the medieval town walls, the huge parish church - the posh buildings along the river front. 

I was walking through the town (Be active) thinking about this when I had an idea for a poem (Keep learning). I wrote this on the wing on my mobile, and then sent it to some friends (Connect and Give): 

Herring streets
and Herring bone
Herring fleets
and Herring stone
Everything here's 
Herring grown
<*((((><(

~ Colin ~

This Is How Eye See It...

Romantic ruin

These are some notes I wrote when during my initial planning for the Great Yarmouth Wellbeing Arts heritage walks. 


Being something of a romantic ruin myself, entering the churchyard of St Nicholas church my eye was immediately drawn to the ivy-clad doorway of the old priory. This would have once been the site of the prior's hall. The shape of the arch would suggest that this is a fourteenth century doorway. However, I allow my mind to wonder/wander beyond evidence and facts...

• Who, I wonder, was the last person to walk through this door? 
• If we can't imagine what they were like, I wonder what they would have made of us and our ways? 
• Did the Benedictine monks who once served here use the Five Ways as an implicit part of their daily culture? 

Being an historical interpreter I enjoy thinking of ways to stretch our historical imagination.

The gravestone of George Beloe

As we entered the churchyard, I note the grave of a nine-year-old boy, George Beloe. At the head of the stone, there is a depiction of a collapsing bridge. Along with 79 others, young George drowned after the bridge fell on May 2nd 1845. Presumably as a publicity stunt, on the afternoon of this day, a clown from 'Mr Cooke's Circus' was passing down the river in a tub drawn by four geese. Drawn to this surreal spectacle, the people of Yarmouth gathered to see him go by. Tragically, the weight of the spectators gathered on one of the walkways on the side of the bridge caused the supporting rods to snap, plunging several hundred folk into the river below. Out of 79 people who died, most were young, with, for instance, 33 being ten or under. In addition to this, 29 of the deceased had lived within 150 yards of the bridge. We can't imagine the emotional impact of this tragedy to the Yarmouth community. 

Mindful that this is intended to be an experience which enhances the wellbeing of the group, I approach the tragic story of George Beloe with some caution. However, my view is that his clearly heartbroken parents wanted to memorialise their son, and we, in our time, are able to pay our own tribute to his memory. I will lay some token on his grave on the day as a mark of respect.

It is also true that, on that tragic day there were also some stories of amazing resourcefulness. For instance, in the words of the Norwich Mercury, reporting the enquiry into the disaster:
"One woman, of the name of Gillings, the wife of a carpenter, was on the Bridge with her child; when she was hurled into the water, with extraordinary presence of mind she seized her child's clothes with her teeth - thus preventing the rush of water, and paddled herself to a place of safety."

Tracy Island meets Medieval town wall!

Great Yarmouth was granted permission to build a wall and ditch in 1261; not being completed until 1391. Despite the tendency of some to denigrate the town, it has - among other things - one of the most impressive stretches of medieval civic wall in Britain (see, in particular, the section along Blackfriars Road). As well as the obvious defensive purposes, in the medieval period a wall was also a reflection of the status of a settlement. It would seem that local people quite literally bought into this idea. As the archivist Frank Meeres notes, many Yarmouth citizens chose to leave money for its' construction in their wills.

The photograph (above) shows that, due to some rather heavy-handed planning, the juxtaposition of old and new in some areas of the town centre is... startling! However, at least the wall still stands...

As we made our way through the town, I was watchful, looking out for the quirky, the curious and the unusual. At this point I would like to make a point about how I feel we can enhance our wellbeing in urban environments. First of all, in any busy town or city setting there will be quiet corners or places where you can go to take some time for yourself. There will also be beautiful spaces where you can slow down and/or stop and just be (mindfulness). Another way to apply 'Take Notice' is to actively engage with the environment around you...

If empty bottles could speak...

For instance, by going a little off the main routes I happened upon a section of the town wall, which had obviously undergone quite recent restoration. As you can see, the builders decided to recycle some empty wine bottles, using them to fix a hole. For me there is an echo here: just as many folk in medieval Yarmouth left money in their wills for the construction of the wall, people are still making history in small ways today. 

Ball in the wall...

In that same section of wall, looking up, I noticed a small yellow ball curiously lodged near the top of the wall. How on earth did it get there? The shrub on the top of the wall also brings me to another point. There is a widely held view that nature resides in rural spaces and not in urban ones. This is not true. In fact, given the mono-culture in much of the contemporary British countryside, there is often more eco-diversity in towns and cities - and not least in old walls. Lichen, plants, insects, birds - the nature of these spaces is often very diverse and, for me, interesting. Let's put it this way - we're not the only ones scurrying around. 

Fragile heritage

Walking down an uninviting alley, I happened upon an unloved nineteenth century structure, which had been built onto the frontage of one of the town walls. Looking inside, I could see some rubbish and rags, and the smell was none too pleasant. However, I was captivated by the pattern and silvery shimmer of the shattered glass window as it reflected the bright low sun of this splendid winter day. If I could freeze-frame this little structure and cacoon it for a thousand years, archaelogists of the future would swoon. So much evidence; a snap-shot of this present-day. The value of things changes, and survival may make the most unexpected of things into heritage...

An official ruin: the remains of Yarmouth Greyfriars

... Strange, then, to think that the people profiting from the dissolution of wonderful buildings such as the Yarmouth friary, saw their value only in terms of pounds, shillings and pence. Deprived of its function by wider events, the friary was eyed covetously in terms of the lead and timber and dressed stone. How different the ruined cloisters appear to us now. Unique in having the only wall paintings of any friary in England, this is a beautiful and poignant space. I do hope my unloved structure with its silvery shattered window doesn't develop a significant development value; or that, in the name of 'place-marketing' it isn't sanitised and tidied away...

'Growing Together' totem pole outside Yarmouth library

Towards the end of my walk I was delighted to find a new piece of public art and a community garden under construction outside Yarmouth library. As part of a project - 'Growing Together' - local sculpture Jason Parr carved this 4.5 metre high totem pole. As you can see, it features (from bottom to top) waves and rays of sun, with racks of bloaters (smoked herring) at the summit - a fitting tribute to a town founded on the silver from the sea.

On the lower levels of the 'totem' volunteers involved in the project were invited to connect with their town's history and memorialise themselves by carving their names into the timber. It is great to see communities coming together and getting involved in marking their history and making their present-day richer and more meaningful. I look forward to early summer 2011, when the flowers in this garden have burst their buds and the vegetables begin to grow. We are but a stone's throw away from the Greyfriars  site, where there was once a garden with mulberry trees and a strawberry yard. It is lovely to see a new garden bloom.

~ Colin ~

Great Yarmouth - Take Notice

~ Colin ~

Wotsaname... Jolly Buffum and John Jelly

One historian has estimated that, on average, an English country church graveyard contains around ten thousand bodies. How many people, then, are buried in and around St Nicholas church, Great Yarmouth? Impossible to say for sure. Here, the living are walking on the dead. However, the dead were once alive - and they had names. 


During the late Nineteenth century, this man...

Edward Lupson, pictured here with the church silver

... Edward J. Lupson, a parish clerk, listed names of some of these hitherto 'invisible' folk in his lovely little book, "St Nicholas' Church, Great Yarmouth: Its History, Organ, Pulpit, Library, Extracts from Registers, Unique combination of Names, Etc" ( a typically snappy Late Victorian title!)

The book was published in 1897. I am struck by the number of gravestones
in the illustration on the left. 

Edward chose names selected across hundreds of years of the parish registers. I was pleasantly surprised to find that he had chosen to theme the names according to some surprisingly playful categories. For instance...


Food...
Abigail Spice
Annie Mustard
James Suett
John Cheese
John Jelly


Alcoholic drinks...
Charity Beer
Thomas Gin
Louisa Ales
Bernard Brandy


Moods...
William Jolly
Sarah Funney
Margaret Laughter
Happy Brown
Jolly Buffum
Larking Thompson


And many more besides...

Click image in order to read the full list of names

Well, Edward's lovely list has made me think again about what kind of man he was. I like him. I am also fascinated by these the people who left their names to us here...


Who were they? 
What were their stories? 
What did they look like? 
Does a name reflect or shape a personality at all? 
Was Larking Thompson serious or silly I wonder? 


I'm sure you've got your own questions.

~ Colin ~