Jan. New Coastguard House on Gorleston Pier erected.
Jan. 7th. Mr. Robert Warner’s sail and net stores at Gorleston destroyed by fire; damage about £3,500; and on Jan. 26th a large fire at Mr. C. Seiver’s net chamber, at Gorleston. March 28th, one occurred at Mr. T. Gallant’s, “William the IV.” public house, Gorleston.
Jan. 11th. The North End Mission Room opened.
Jan. 11th. A large gallery in the north-west aisle of St. Nicholas’ Church removed.
Jan. 17th. Mr. C. H. Wiltshire elected an Alderman in the place of the late Mr. R. S. Watling.
Jan. 18th. One of the worst gales experienced in the present generation, when six out of a crew of nine brave beachmen and a volunteer lost their lives by the upsetting of the surf lifeboat “Abraham Thomas” whilst trying to rescue the mate of the schooner “Guiding Star” (Thomas Jones), whose vessel was stranded on the South Beach, opposite the Asylum. Jones was also lost out of the lifeboat. Highway traffic and the Great Eastern Railway was blocked for 24 hours. About 50 lives were lost off this coast. Besides the “Guiding Star,” the schooners “Rhoda,” and “Sarah Jane,” the French ketch “Manne du Ciel,” and the brig “Battle of Corunna” were driven ashore, and from the last-named, in the South Ham, seven hands, including a woman, were drowned. The names of the men in the lifeboat who were drowned were J. Ditcham (30), H. Masterson (15), J. Sherwood (44), Robert Symonds (37), Charles Henry Beckett (21), and William Green (whose body was not recovered), leaving 4 widows and 22 children. On the day of the interment (24th) thousands of people filled the Parish Church, and lined the route to the New Cemetery. At the funeral service the organ played the “Dead March” in Samson, and the Mayoress (Mrs. T. B. Steward) placed a beautiful floral wreath upon each of the coffins before they entered the church. The funeral cortège comprised five separate hearses, and thirteen mourning coaches with the relatives. The subscriptions raised for the relief of the widows and orphans reached over £3,000. The four survivors among the lifeboat men were W. Haylett, coxswain, W. Davey, R. Brown, and W. P. Smith.
Jan. Mr. W. G. Poll, of Yarmouth, and Mr. A. E. Richmond, of Southtown, passed their preliminary examinations of the Pharmaceutical Society.
Feb. 4th. Mr. C. H. Christmas died at Yarmouth, aged 86 years. (See Oct., 1880.)
Feb. Mr. W. H. Cowl, solicitor, awarded the special prizes of the “Timphron Martin” and “John Atkinson” gold medals for 1880.
Feb. 11th. The stoker on board the steam tug “Victoria,” Robert Jackman (46), accidentally killed after towing the Norwegian steamer “Norma” (652 tons register) on to Gorleston beach the day before, where she became a total wreck.