Overstrand, the Cloisters and the Sunken Garden, the Pleasuance c1955

Jetty Street

My ancestors lived in Jetty Street around 1890 and at one time had a chocolate shop at No 8. Next door at No 6 was a shoemakers, I believe (now called Jacob's Rest). The family name of my great grandmother (Emily nee Newman) and great grandfather (William Harry) was Gower. My great great grandfather, John Newman was involved in the building of Cromer Pier and he was married to Jane Jacob in 1848. My great grandmother moved from Jetty Street to 17 Vicarage Road, Cromer but her son Rupert moved back to Jetty Street and it was he and probably his sisters who ran the chocolate shop.

Flecher Convalsecent Home

I worked at the convalescent home for 6 months, (my name was Lansdale then) as so-called 'nursing aide' - more like 'maid of everything' - cleaning baths, polishing old brass taps and scouring equally old claw-footed baths, while waiting to start nursing training in Norwich.
It was a lovely building in a lovely area (although with the war still on, barbed wire barricades were on beaches for fear of invasion). Matron was an old Tartar! - but it was a good introduction to nursing life as in those days the junior on the ward did the cleaning - and the ward sister made sure it was done properly before Matron did her round!

An account of my time at Cromer is included in my book "The Patchwork Years".

Lighthouse keeper

My great grandfatherwas lighthouse keeper at Cromer - Mr Hopkins

Summer Holiday 1958

This is a front view of the Elmhurst Hotel, which stood - or stands? - in Cabbell Road, where my family and I stayed for two weeks in August 1958. I wonder if the building is still a hotel? I took a similar photo, which is in my album for that year. I also have two group photos of all the folk who were staying in the hotel at the same time as my family and I.

Summer holiday, 1958

My family and I stayed in the Elmhurst Hotel, Cromer for two weeks during August 1958. My brother and I made several coach excursions from Cromer - to Yarmouth, Lowestoft, Sandringham, King's Lynn and Ely. I went alone to Sheringham by train - the trains were still running then! - and found a most interesting book - which I still have - in a secondhand bookshop. I remember the beach there was most peculiar - divided by an almost straight line into areas of shingle and sand. We all went on a boat trip on the Norfolk Broads, and by train to Norwich for the day. On Cromer pier there was the Guinness clock telling Guinness time - on the hour the clock would open up, played a tune and all sorts of funny figures appeared and moved. It was a great attraction. Thank goodness, I took a photo of it, because I don't think the clock exists now. In later years my parents took my younger sister to Cromer every summer and they stayed not at the Elmhurst Hotel but at Grange Court. I remember that at the Elmhurst there was a microphone system and one day my brother and I amused ourselves with it when our parents were out - but when they returned they told told us they could hear us all the way down the road!