The narrow part of High Street, which has for long proved a great inconvenience, owing to the obstruction to traffic, thereby stopping the growth of this part of Lowestoft, has been widened, and smart places will undoubtedly take the place of the somewhat tumble down houses and shops, relics of “ye olden time,” which formerly existed. While the work of demolition was in progress, an ancient crypt was found to extend some distance beneath one of the buildings. The roof is groyned and arched, and rumour has it that the crypt is a portion of a subterranean way leading from the Cliff to the Church. Be this as it may, the discovery is an interesting one for the antiquarian to ponder over, and it should be carefully preserved.
The fine old Parish Church of St. Margaret’s was completely restored in and about 1870, when the Rev. W. Hay Chapman was Rector, at a cost of over £5,000. Thanks to the energy of the present Rector, Hon. Canon Charles D’Aquilar Lawrence, the sacred edifice has been entirely re-roofed at great cost. St. Peter’s Church at Kirkley has also been restored, beautified, and added to, mainly through the munificence of Mr. E. K. Harvey, J.P. A fine new Seamen’s Church and Institute has been erected in Suffolk Road under the auspices of the Missions to Seamen Society. This building is the gift of the Misses Hume, in memory of their late brother, the Rev. H. S. Hume, M.A., a beloved Vicar of St. John’s, who died on November 9th, 1895, after an energetic and useful ministry in Lowestoft, of not quite three years.
In the early part of 1897 a Bill was promoted in Parliament by the Midland and Great Northern Joint Lines for the purpose of making a railway from Yarmouth to Lowestoft, entering the town across the Denes. The scheme also provided for a Dock at Gorleston. It was felt that this would attract a good deal of fishing trade from Lowestoft, besides which, it would ruin the Denes, and destroy the future prospects of North Lowestoft. The Council, by a majority of three, were in favour of the Bill, but a large public meeting protested against it. A petition was got up and largely signed, with the result that the Midland & Great Northern dropped their Bill, and made a compromise with the Great Eastern Railway, to have joint running powers over a new line, which they, too, proposed making from Yarmouth to Lowestoft, by a route which will go to the West of the town and join the present main line near the Coke Ovens Signal Box. There will be a Station on the Yarmouth Road, which will also be used jointly. Thus Lowestoft will he in direct communication with the Midlands.
Lately, Lowestoft Harbour was a source of trouble owing to the periodical accumulation of sand at its entrance. To obviate this the Great Eastern Railway Company will carry out extensive works, by which the North and South Piers will be considerably lengthened, and the Harbour space greatly added to. The necessary Bill for the purpose has passed through Parliament.
Another event of the last few years is the building of the splendid Reading Booms and Concert Hall on the South Pier, this handsome and well appointed building taking the place of an older structure which was destroyed by fire on the night of June 29th, 1885.
It will be seen that Lowestoft has not stood still. There is no reason why she should not go on in her onward march; and there can be no question but that the chronicler of the future will have plenty of material at his command wherewith to continue the History of Lowestoft.
PUBLISHED BY ARTHUR STEBBINGS, 56, HIGH STREET, LOWESTOFT.
FOOTNOTES
[Note: In the 1897 edition of the book all footnotes were printed as part of the narrative text, often in parenthesis. This made it almost impossible to follow the narrative, where a sentence would have a multiple sentence footnote inserted in the middle of it. In this Project Gutenberg transcription, the most obvious footnote cases have been converted back into proper footnotes. Gillingwater’s original edition had footnotes in this manner.—DP.]