OF THE ORIGIN OF LOWESTOFT.
LESTOFFE, Laystoft, Laistoe, or, as it was more anciently called
Lothnwistoft, is supposed by some to have derived its name from
Lothbroch, the noble Dane, on his arriving in this island about the year
864, and from wista, {23} a half-hide of land; but I apprehend,
erroneously, as it is doubtful whether these several appellations be of
any earlier date than the reign of Queen Elizabeth. In the charter
granted by Edward III. for uniting Kirkley road to the haven of Yarmouth,
we find it expressed Loystoft and Lowystofte; probably, therefore, the
present mode of expression, Lowestoft, may be only the former ones
modernized by subsequent writers. Perhaps, at this distant period, it
may be difficult to ascertain with certainty, the true etymology of its
name, though possibly it may be no improbable conjecture to suppose its
being derived, in some measure, from the fairs and market being held
formerly below the cliff, and from the town being situated upon the most
eastern point of land in England.
In the preceding section an ample description is given of the numerous
revolutions which the northern part of the island of Lothingland
experienced from the various incursions of the sea, from the earliest
period which history can furnish us with, down to the present time; and
it is equally evident that the more southern part of it, particularly
that whereon Lowestoft is situated, has been subject to as large a share
of the same vicissitudes.
In those early ages, when the Romans were in possession of Britain, it is
highly probable that the sea, by its frequent irruptions had not only
approached, but actually formed those cliffs, upon whose summits the town
of Lowestoft is situated.
During those early periods, when the rivers which form the northern and
southern boundaries of the island discharged themselves into the ocean
with an extensive and rapid current, it appears that the incursions of
that boisterous element upon the extremities of the island had made its
utmost progress; but with respect to the intermediate parts of it, the
case was somewhat different; for it is evident from the ancient maps of
the coast and from authentic records which we find interspersed in
topographical history, that those intermediate parts of the island
protruded themselves much farther towards the east than either the
northern or southern boundaries of it did, or either as they do at this
present time.
As a corroborating circumstance of what is here asserted, we shall
observe that some centuries since there was situated on that part of the
coast which lies between Yarmouth and Lowestoft, a village called Newton,
which has long since been entirely swallowed up by the ocean without
leaving any other vestiges of it remaining than a small piece of land
called Newton Green. Since that period the sea on that part of the
island appears to have receded again; as formerly we find there was
sufficient space between the bottom of the cliffs and the sea for the
neck of the Yare to extend itself south as far as Corton before it
discharged itself into the sea; although at this present time the ocean
on the same part of the island approaches very near the cliffs.
That the basis of the cliff on whose summit the town of Lowestoft is
situated was washed by the German Ocean during that era when the Romans
resided in Britain, will evidently appear from an attentive investigation
of the coast contiguous to the town, where it is very conspicuous how the
cliff inclines to the west as it advances towards the river which lies to
the south of Lowestoft, occasioned, probably, by the violence of the
current, which in those early ages united that river with the ocean; and
also the gradual descent of the cliff from the northern part of Lowestoft
to the river on the south part of it, where it becomes a perfect level
with the adjacent country is still evident, and points out the ancient
state of the river and the parts adjoining to the same. These
circumstances, undoubtedly rendered this spot extremely convenient for
fishermen resorting to the coast, and probably were those which gave
birth to the origin of Lowestoft, as similar circumstances did afterwards
to the origin of Yarmouth.
In succeeding ages, when the mouth of the Yare, from being obstructed by
sand-banks, was reduced to the more contracted limits of a narrow
channel; and when every communication between the ocean and the Waveney,
had either totally ceased, or become an insignificant stream, it is
evident, that the sea at that time receded from the extremities of the
island, and made considerable encroachments on the intermediate parts of
it. This is evident, not only from the above-mentioned circumstance
respecting the village of Newton, but also from those which follow: for
we find (Lowestoft town-book) that in the beginning of the reign of Henry
VIII a block-house, which had been erected for the defence of the town,
was then standing to the east of Lowestoft, about four furlongs distant
from the present boundaries of the sea; so that the place where Lowestoft
roads are now situated, was at that time firm land, interspersed with
houses, and defended by a fortress; which continued until the 25th of
Henry VIII when they were either taken down or destroyed by the
encroachments of the sea. And it also appears, about the 30th of Queen
Elizabeth, that the sea had made such great alterations in the roads, and
in the sands and shores bordering upon Lowestoft, that the roads before
the town, which, in the reign of Henry VIII were dry land, had not then
less than three fathoms water at the lowest ebb. This was the state of
the coast near Lowestoft in the reigns of Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth,
and since that time the sea has kept encroaching near the town; for about
sixty or seventy years ago, upon every gale of wind at north-west,
especially if it happened at a spring tide, the sea will oftentimes force
its way over the beach with great violence, and with so large a body of
water, as not only to overflow the Denes, the yards of the fish-houses,
and approach even to the bottom of the gardens formed upon the declivity
of the cliff, but would also endanger the foundations of the fish-houses
themselves. We had a remarkable instance of these formidable irruptions
of the sea, in the year 1712; when a fish-house, in the southern part of
the town, was entirely washed away, and another fish-house and barn were
so exceedingly damaged, as to make it necessary to have them taken down.
And, again, in the year 1717, the sea, in one of those raging tides,
forced its way over the isthmus which separates the peninsula from the
adjacent country, with such irresistible fury, as to carry away Mutford
Bridge, which cost the county £200 to repair the damages. But these
irruptions have for some time ceased, and the apprehensions which they
excited have, consequently, long since subsided: but so fluctuating in
her operations is this inconstant element, that upon that part of the
coast which lies opposite to Lowestoft, the sea has lately much receded,
and is making proportionable encroachments on the parts which lie to the
north of it. From all these circumstances we may form this general
observation, that whenever the sea obtrudes upon the coast near
Lowestoft, it retires from the intermediate parts or coast to the north
of it; and when it recedes at Lowestoft, it gains upon the more northern
part.
Being almost destitute of express records (the greater part of them being
destroyed by fire in the year 1606) relative to the town of Lowestoft, it
is chiefly from selecting circumstances which we find interspersed in
history, that we are able to form any conjectures respecting its origin.
The principal evidence which now remains respecting the antiquity of
Lowestoft, is that of “The Narrative of the Proceedings between Yarmouth
and Lowestoft during the contest respecting the Herring Fishery”, {24}
wherein it appears that Lowestoft is a more ancient town than Yarmouth.
But notwithstanding the proof which arises from this evidence, it may be
necessary for us to guard ourselves against an error which otherwise
might mislead us, concerning the origin of Yarmouth; and, therefore, it
may be proper to extend our enquiries to this circumstance, and to
endeavour to place it in a true point of light. What endangers our
mistake respecting Yarmouth, is as follows:—In the tables of records,
hanging in the common hall of Yarmouth, it is expressed that in the days
of Canutus there was a sand in the sea, which began to be dry land from
Anno 1040 to 1090. And in a manuscript book, containing the originality
or antiquity of Yarmouth, it is asserted, that in Edward the Confessor’s
time, the same sand began to appear at low water; and that in the days of
King Harold and William the Conqueror the same grew so dry, and not
overflown, that they then began to build tents, and fishermen did then
begin to repair thither, about killing of herrings. These records—for
want of better, which have since been published—have embarrassed the
world with difficulties, and involved them in error; and the more so, as
these records have been regarded as authentic: but if we compare them
with those which are known to be genuine, we may easily detect the
imposition, and prove them to be erroneous. It plainly appears, from
what has been already observed, that the sand on which Yarmouth was
founded was dry in the year 495, when Cerdick the Saxon first landed
there; and that shortly after, Yarmouth began to be erected by the
Saxons, first on a sand a little to the west of that whereon it now
stands, and then shortly after, the inhabitants removed to this latter or
Cerdick Sand, upon account of the unhealthy situation of the former. And
it is also further recorded that in the time of Edward the Confessor,
Yarmouth was become so opulent, that there flourished in it seventy
burgesses. From hence it is evident that the former account above
mentioned, concerning Yarmouth being founded about the year 1040, is
evidently an error; and, consequently, to date the origin of Lowestoft
only prior to that year, would be making it, in fact, of less antiquity
than Yarmouth.
About the year 420, when the Romans had left Britain, the river Yare, at
that time very capacious, was found so extremely commodious for the
reception of a fleet of armed vessels meditating a descent on this coast,
that the Saxons made choice of this place for that purpose, and soon
after landed here; and about the beginning of the sixth century began to
lay the foundation of Yarmouth, which proved afterwards the most
formidable fortress on this part of the coast; and became a place of such
perfect security for the foreign invaders, as to resemble, in some
measure, the famous Gariononum of the ancient Romans. Prior to this time
the ground whereon Yarmouth was afterwards built was only a barren sand,
just emerging from its watery element; and if we extend our investigation
but a little farther back we shall be unable to distinguish it above the
surface of the pathless ocean; and, when it did appear, and also for some
time after—previous to the building of Yarmouth—the principal use that
was made of it was to serve the temporary conveniences of fishermen
resorting to the coast, and the other purposes of a maritime life.
But with respect to Lowestoft the case is quite otherwise. The cliffs,
indeed, whereon it is situated, might be formed during that period when
the Romans resided in Britain; but the ground itself is of the same
origin with the other parts of the island. How long the town had begun
to be erected before the sea approached so far as to form these cliffs is
now uncertain; we, therefore, can only say that as its situation was
found to be extremely convenient for every purpose respecting the
herring-fishery, that probably it was the general rendezvous of the
fishermen resorting to this coast; and, consequently, not only gave birth
to the town, but also to the establishing of a fishery, which has been
its chief support from time immemorial, and has continued to be so till
this present time. From hence we may conclude that prior to the founding
of Yarmouth, Lowestoft was the principal place of resort for all the
fishermen employed in the herring fishery on this coast; and furnished
with provisions and other necessaries, not only such vessels as were
fitted out from our own part of the coast, but, those also which resorted
hither from the northern and western parts of England; and, therefore, we
may reasonably conclude that Lowestoft is a more ancient town than
Yarmouth, as we are able to trace its origin previous to the fourth
century, and, consequently, before the ground was formed whereon Yarmouth
was afterwards erected.
Lowestoft, as we observed before, is situated upon the most eastern point
of land in England; it stands upon a lofty eminence, and commands an
extensive prospect of the German Ocean, and when beheld from the sea has
the noblest and most beautiful appearance of any town upon the coast
between Newcastle and London; it chiefly consists of an extensive
arrangement of houses, whose line of direction is nearly north and south,
and, consequently, faces the sea; it stands upon a dry soil, upon the
summit of a cliff, and enjoys a most salubrious air, keen but bracing;
and not being exposed to any of those unwholesome damps and vapours which
generally arise from low grounds and marshes, it is rendered not only a
very pleasant, but a very healthy situation.
The declivity of this cliff, which formerly was one continued slope of
barren sand, is now converted by modern improvements into very beautiful
hanging gardens, descending from the dwelling-houses above, to the fish
houses at the bottom of the hill; and being interspersed with alcoves and
summer houses, are not only extremely pleasant and convenient to the
inhabitants, but exhibit a very pleasing appearance when beheld from the
sea.
At the bottom of these gardens is a long arrangement of fish houses which
extend the whole length of the town, and are so numerous, that had they
been placed in a more compact form, would have been sufficient of
themselves to have formed a considerable town.
Lowestoft derives many conveniences from the fish houses being detached
from the other buildings of the town, and placed at the bottom of the
hill; such as the easy conveyance of herrings from the boats; also the
avoiding those very offensive smells arising from the smoke and drainage
of the fish, which otherwise it would be subject to, if the houses
wherein the herring are cured had been intermixed with the
dwelling-houses; and, consequently, the town is thereby exempted from
those disagreeable nuisances, so much and so justly complained of in
other places. Between the fish houses and the top of the beach stand the
boats employed in the herring fishery, which are arranged before the town
to a considerable length; also the lower light-house, conveniences for
boat building and the bathing machines. {26}
The shore opposite Lowestoft is bold and steep consisting of a hard sand
intermixed with shingle and perfectly free from ouze and those beds of
mud too frequently met with on other shores.
Lowestoft is about a mile in length; and consists chiefly of one
principal street, running in a gradual descent from north to south, which
is intersected by several smaller streets or lanes from the west; it is
well paved, particularly High Street, and consists of about 445
houses—exclusive of the fish houses—which are chiefly built with brick;
several of the houses have been lately re-built in the modern style, and
make a handsome appearance. {27a} Lowestoft contains about 2231
inhabitants. An extract from the parish register of Lowestoft shews the
number of marriages, christenings, and burials from the year 1561 to
1713, marriages 2539, christenings 10,548, burials 10,056.
During the civil war and to the restoration of Charles II., no entries
were made in the parish register. The Rev. Jacob Rous, then vicar, says,
that on the 14th March, 1643, himself with many others were carried away
prisoners, by Colonel Cromwell, to Cambridge; so that for some time
following there was neither minister or clerk in this town; but the
inhabitants were obliged to procure one another to baptize their
children, by which means there was no register kept; only a few were by
myself baptised in those intervals when I enjoyed my freedom. Parish
register, 7th June 1646, Jacob Rous. There are many entries in this
register of people being married by a justice of the peace, as was usual
at this time. Thomas Pacy, widower, and Mary Arnold, widow were married
first by a justice and then by a minister, 20th August, 1655. By an Act
passed in 1653, those who were in the commission of the peace were
empowered to perform the office of matrimony; previous to the marriage of
the parties, the bands were to be published three times, either in the
church or chapel, on Sundays after morning exercise, or on the market
days in some neighbouring town.
Lowestoft is bounded on the north by Gunton, on the east, by the German
Ocean, on the south by Kirkley, and on the west by Oulton. The soil next
the east is light and sandy, but in the adjacent fields it is
considerably heavier, being in many places intermixed with clay. There
is a market here on Wednesdays, and also two fairs are held in this town,
one on the twelfth of May, the other on the tenth of October. {27b}
In 1735 the number of inhabitants in this town were computed to be 2,200:
but by an acutal survey, taken by the minister and churchwardens on the
7th and 8th of August, 1775, the number of inhabitants in Lowestoft was
found to be 2231, including lodgers; the number of dwelling-houses 445,
of which 438 were occupied; and the number of public-houses, 24; the
principal of which is the Crown, kept by Mr. Capon, and is a very good
inn. It appears from an actual survey of the houses and lands in this
parish, as taken in 1642, that the yearly value of the former was £412
6s. 8d.; and of the latter, £447 11s. 8d.: total value, £859 18s. 4d.
But in the year 1649 they appear to have decreased in value considerably,
as is evident from the following return of their value, taken that year,
in consequence of an order of Parliament.
Lowestoft, in Suffolk, within the half hundred of Lothingland, the
16th of June, 1649.
We whose names are hereunto subscribed, inhabitants there, being
appointed Surveyors by virtue of a warrant from the commissioners,
authorised by an Act of the present Parliament, to return the true
value of all the lands and tenements within the said town; have, in
obedience thereunto, considered thereof; and in our judgment we do
return the yearly value to be about £655 per annum.
(Signed),
ROBERT ALLIN, HENRY WARD, FRANCIS KINGSLEY,
JAMES WILDE, EDWARD BROWNE.
(The decrease was occasioned, probably, by the civil war).
After you have ascended Rant’s score, and crossed High street, the first
turn out of the Blue Anchor Lane to the left will bring you into a large
area, where was formerly kept the market, and is now called the Old
Market.
In the year 1698, the Corn Cross, the Town chamber that is over it, and
the adjoining chapel were built by subscription. They are situated about
the middle of the town, on the west side of the High street, and formed
originally a handsome building. This structure is entered by three large
folding palisade doors or gates. In the upper part of it is a clock, and
on the top of it a cupola, in which is a bell to summon the inhabitants
to attend divine service at the chapel, and for other necessary purposes
of the parish. {28} The chamber over the Cross is the place where the
parish usually assemble to consult about town business; it is also fitted
up as a schoolroom, and has been used for that purpose ever since the
building was first erected, till within a few years past. In the year
1768 the north door of the Cross was closed up, and that part of the
Cross was converted into a vestry for the chapel. In the year 1698, when
this building was first erected, and the front part of it reserved for
the purposes of a Market Cross, the market was removed from the place now
called the Old Market, to that part of the High street contiguous to the
building; but the spot being afterwards found an inconvenient situation
for the market to be held in, it was resolved by the parish, in 1703, to
take down an inn—called the White Horse—which stood on the ground where
the market is now kept—the whole front was parallel with that of the
adjoining houses—and re-build it, further backwards; which resolution
being carried into execution, the market was removed from the Cross to
the spot of ground where that inn formerly stood, and has continued there
ever since. It is now the sign of the Queen’s Head, from Queen Anne, in
whose reign it was re-built.
How long the market and fairs have been held at Lowestoft will appear
from the following account of the grant, taken from Bishop Tanner’s
Collections, in the registry at Norwich, wherein it is said, that in the
reign of King Henry IV. the king granted to William de la Pole, marquis
and earl of Suffolk, one market and two fairs, below the village of
Lowestoft—in the reign of Henry IV. the fairs and markets were held below
the cliff—which is in the ancient demesne of the Crown of England; and
also appoints him his steward, to hold his courts of market and fair; and
ordains that no justice, viscount, escheator, inquisitor, bailiff,
steward of hospital, or clerk of market, tax the said village in any
manner. And that all people holding of, and residing in the said
village, be free from all custom and toll of their goods and vendable
wares throughout the whole kingdom. This last-mentioned privilege, how
trifling soever it may appear now was deemed an important one at the time
it was granted; and was so far accounted valuable in the reign of Queen
Elizabeth, as to be renewed in the writ of exemption granted to the town
by that princess.
The original design of the Cross of Lowestoft was the providing a
convenient shelter for the farmers to stand in when they brought their
corn to market; and was always used for that purpose till the year 1768,
when part of it was inclosed for a vestry to the chapel, and the
remaining part is now made use of merely as a passage to that place of
worship.
I should now proceed to give an account of the several benefactions which
have been given to this parish by charitable and well-disposed persons,
such as a large donation in land, for repairing and ornamenting the
church and assisting the poor; an alms house for the residence of four
poor people; and also the very liberal donations for instituting two
grammar schools in this town, exclusive of several other benefactions of
lesser importance, which I shall pass over in this place, referring the
reader to Section V., where they are more particularly enumerated and
described.
Lowestoft being part of the ancient demesne of the Crown, has, in
consequence thereof, been entitled to many privileges; though many of
them, through the various vicissitudes which all human affairs are
subject to, are now become useless, and almost forgotten; such as paying
toll, stallage, frontage, etc., and an exemption from contributing to the
charges of the knights of the shire during their attendance in
Parliament; which privileges, with several others which are particularly
mentioned in the following writ of exemption, were, some centuries since,
esteemed as valuable ones, however they may be regarded now. But there
is one privilege which the town is entitled to by virtue of this writ,
which is of too advantageous a nature to be passed over unnoticed,
namely, that of being exempted from serving on juries, either at the
assizes or quarter sessions, being subject to those juries only as are
empanelled by the lord of the manor, coroner, etc. This privilege the
town enjoys to this day, and is the only one out of the many specified in
the writ, from which the town at this present time receives any real
benefit; though, possibly, were they duly attended to, they might not at
this distant period be found altogether unprofitable.
The above-mentioned privileges, which were granted to the town of
Lowestoft, as part of the Crown, appear, by the said writ, to have been
confirmed in the fifteenth year of the reign of Queen Elizabeth; and were
again renewed in the fourth year of Charles I.—and is now allowed by the
sheriff of this county—as is evident from the writ itself.
A writ of exemption granted to the town of Lowestoft, the 15th of Queen
Elizabeth, 1573, and renewed the 4th Charles I., 1604:
CHARLES, by the grace of God, of England Scotland, France, and
Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, to all to whom these presents
shall come, greeting.—We have seen the enrollments of certain letters
executory, bearing date the twenty-seventh day of May, in the
fifteenth year of the reign of our dearly beloved sister, the lady
Elizabeth, late Queen of England, made and granted to the men and
tenants of the town of Lothnwistoft, in the half-hundred of
Ludingland, in the county of Suffolk, enrolled in the rolls of
chancery, and remaining there on record, in these words: ‘The Queen,
to all sheriffs, mayors, bailiffs, constables, officers, and others,
her liege people, as well within liberties as without, to whom these
presents shall come, greeting.—Whereas, according to the custom in
our kingdom of England, hitherto obtained and approved, the men and
tenants in ancient demesne of the crown of England, should and ought
to be free from toll, stollage, chiminage, pontage, pannage piccage,
murrage, lastage, and passage, throughout the whole kingdom
aforesaid, according to the custom aforesaid, concerning men and
tenants in ancient demense of the crown of England, who always
hitherto, time out of mind, have been wont to be free from
contributing towards the expenses of the knights coming to the
Parliament of our ancestors, formerly kings of England, for the
community of the county; also, according to the same custom, the men
and tenants of the manors which are in ancient demesne of the Crown
aforesaid, upon account of the lands and tenements which they hold in
the same demesne, ought not to be returned to the assizes upon juries
or any recognizances, except only in such cases as are to be
transacted in the courts of such manors: {29} and forasmuch as the
town of Lothnwistoft, in the half-hundred of Ludingland, is in
ancient demesne of the Crown, as it appears by a certificate sent to
us by the treasurer, chancellor of our exchequer, from thence into
our court of chancery aforesaid. We enjoin and command you, and
everyone of you, to permit all the men and tenants in the town
aforesaid, to be free from toll, and the rest of the premises, and
every one of them, throughout our whole kingdom aforesaid, from the
expense of the knights of the shire aforesaid; and, also, not to
return the men and tenants of the said town to the assizes, upon
juries or any recognizances, except only in such cases as are to be
transacted in the courts of such towns. In testimony whereof, etc.,
witness the Queen, at Westminster, the twenty-seventh day of May, in
the fifteenth year of her reign.’ And we thought fit, by these
presents, to exemplify the tenor of the enrollments of the premises
aforesaid, at the request of Robert Mellinge, Esq., in witness
whereof we have caused these our letters to be made patent. Witness
Ourself, at Westminster, the twenty-sixth day of February, in the
fourth year of our reign.
The town of Lowestoft appears to have experienced, at different times, a
large proportion of the many miseries and distresses arising from those
dreadful calamities, pestilence, fire, war, storms, and tempests, which
mankind are frequently exposed to.
The great plague which made such dreadful ravages in Europe in 1346, was
brought into England in 1348. In the following year it raged with great
fury at Yarmouth, where there died in one year 7000 persons; and, most
probably, Lowestoft had its share of the calamity, as it was so general,
that not above the tenth part of the inhabitants escaped.
In 1547 the plague raged with such violence in this town, that it cost in
some weeks, for distressed people, three pounds per week, exclusive of
the weekly collections, amounting in the whole to fifty pounds at the
least. This weekly collection was a voluntary contribution of the humane
and charitable; for the poor were not provided for by Act of Parliament
till the reign of Queen Elizabeth. The town did not receive, on this
occasion, any assistance of consequence, either from the country, or from
the town lands. It was customary in these times, when there was no
poors’ rates, and a town was distressed with any grievous calamity, for
the neighbouring towns to give their assistance.
In 1579, the plague raged so violently in this part of England, that at
Yarmouth there died, between the month of May and the Michaelmas
following, above 2,000 persons. In consequence whereof, the Mayor of
Newcastle, on the 22nd September, in that year, sent a letter to the
bailiffs of Yarmouth, forbidding their going to that place for coals;
and, probably, the plague at this time was at Lowestoft. In 1579 twice
the number of people died in Lowestoft, than in 1578. In 1585 there was
a great sickness in this town; for it appears by the register, that in
the month of August only, in that year, there were buried 36 persons; and
in the whole year, the number amounted to 134. The burials, on an
average, for the preceding seven years, were annually about 44.
But the greatest sickness which the town ever experienced, was that in
the year 1603; in which year 280 persons were buried in this parish
during only the space of five months; and in the whole year, 316.
There died in May, 21; in June, 79; in July, 100; in August, 55; in
September 25; Total 280.
In the year 1635 there was another great sickness in this town; in which
year, 46 persons were buried in August only; and the number of burials in
the whole year, amounted to 170. Probably it was the plague.
Another calamity, by which this town has greatly suffered, is war. If we
recollect the many injuries it sustained in Kett’s rebellion; the money
it was obliged to raise, when threatened with an invasion from the
Spanish Armada; the frequent plunderings and other depredations it was
exposed to, from its attachment to the cause, during the usurpation of
Oliver Cromwell; the distress which it laboured under, when deprived of
its principal inhabitants and the greater part of its most useful
sailors, to serve in the navy, during our wars with the Dutch; and the
heavy expenses it has been subjected to in succeeding wars with the
French, in erecting fortresses for the defence of the town. During our
wars with the Dutch, the British navy was furnished by the town of
Lowestoft with three admirals, viz., Sir John Ashby, Sir Thomas Allen,
and Richard Utber, Esq.; also with four captains, viz., Robert and John
Utber, sons of the admiral; Captain Canham, and Captain Whiting;
exclusive of a great, number of excellent seamen. All these
circumstances being duly attended to, we shall find too much reason for
including this calamity, not only among the many, but even among the
greatest misfortunes which the town ever laboured under.
To the above calamities of pestilence and war, many be added that of
fire. In the year 1606 the Vicarage-house belonging to this town was
burnt down, and never re-built; so that there has not been any
Vicarage-house belonging to the parish ever since. This house was
situated upon a small piece of glebe land near the Church, which, a few
years ago, was taken into the church-yard, and lies at the north-west
corner. The Vicarage, when burnt, was occupied by John Glesson, vicar;
at which time the old parish register and many of the ancient records
belonging to the town, in his possession, were destroyed.
On the 10th March, 1644–5, there happened in this town a great and
terrible fire, which consumed dwelling-houses, fish-houses, and goods, as
much property as was estimated at £10,297 2s. 4d.
The General Account of each man’s particular loss, in dwelling-houses,
fish-houses, goods, wares, etc., which happened the 10th day of March,
1644–5, by a lamentable fire at Lowestoft, in the county of Suffolk, as
it was surveyed, and viewed, and given into the committee appointed for
the same, at Lowestoft, the 25th day of April, 1645; namely:—
John Arnold, dwelling house £143, goods £40—total £183. Thomas Smiter
dwelling-houses, £43 10s.; goods £15 8s. 4d.—total £58 18s. 4d. William
Greenwood, dwelling-house £590. Thomas Webb, dwelling-house £544;
fish-houses £450; goods £77 3s.—£1071 3s. Thomas Arnold, dwelling-house
£167 10s.; fish-house, £81; goods £127 3s.—total £375 13s. Thomas
Mighells, dwelling-house £353; fish-office £21—total £374. Mr. Rivit,
dwelling-house, £269; fish-houses £195; goods £240—total £704. Robert
Ashby, dwelling house £303 10s.; goods £250—total £558 10s. James
Smiter, dwelling house £102. Nicholas Pattin, dwelling-house £34 10s.;
goods £23—total £57 10s. Mr. Simonds, dwelling-house £435. Thomas
Barrett, dwelling-house £5. Oliver Ashby, dwelling-house £27 10s.; goods
£6—total £33 10s. Samuel Fisher, dwelling-house £71 10s.; goods
£30—total £101 10s. John Fisher, dwelling-house £215. Robert Ferney,
dwelling-house £91 10s.; goods £14—£150 10. Richard Rooke, goods £6.
Robert Bits, dwelling-house £162; goods £370—total £532. Mr. Abertson,
dwelling-house £200; fish-house £163—total £363. Thomas Harvey,
dwelling-house £383; fish-house £108; goods £40—total £531. Mr. Smith,
fish-house £230; goods £100—total £330. James Munds, fish-house £145;
goods £113 10s.—total £258 10s. Josiah Wilde, fish-house £400; goods
£280—total £680. John Barker, fish-house £25; goods £85—total £110.
James Wilde, fish-house, £120; goods, £40—total £160. Robert
Brissingham, fish-house £94. John Brissingham, fish-house £10. Mr.
Allen, fish-house £140; goods £40—total £180. Thomas Guler, fish-house
£5. Robert Tooley, fish-house £146; goods £8 8s.—total £154 8s. Mr.
Reeve, fish house £102. Thomas Fulwood, fish house £240; goods £32—total
£272. Robert Coe, fish-house £156; goods £49—total £205. John Page,
fish-house £54; goods £12—total £66. William Cauliam, fish-house £210;
goods £15—total £225. John Muese, sen., goods £100. John Meuse, jun.,
goods £50. William Muese, goods £150. Thomas Muese, goods £20. Henry
Geury, goods £35. Henry Ward, jun., goods £97. William Underwood, goods
£80. John Dennis, goods £55. James Mendham, goods £2. Richard
Mighells, goods, £190. Michael Bently, goods £112. George Woodgate,
goods £200. Daniel Sterry, goods £2. Stephen Trip, goods £5. John
Jerhenson, goods £7.—The totals are—dwelling-houses, £4145 10s.;
fish-houses, £3085; goods £3066 12s. 4d.—grand total, £10,297 2s. 4d.
On Sunday the 14th August, 1670, there happened another terrible fire in
this town, which consumed six dwelling-houses and two barns filled with
corn; which loss amounted to three hundred and fifty pounds. {31}
LOWESTOFT IN SUFFOLK.
Whereas, upon the 14th of August, 1670, being the Lord’s day, about
twelve o’clock at night, the wind being very high, there happened a
sudden, dreadful and lamentable fire in this town, which consumed six
dwelling houses with their goods, and two barns with corn, which
loss, upon examination, and in the judgment of workmen, amounted at
least, to three hundred and fifty pounds; to the utter ruin of six
poor families, whose wives and children are left in great distress:
in testimony of the truth thereof, we, the ministers, his Majesty’s
justices of peace, and principal parishioners of Lowestoft, have
hereunto subscribed our names; and do humbly recommend their
condition to the christian charity of your town, and beg the favour
that you would promote it by such way and means as in your wisdom
shall be thought well, either by recommending it to your minister or
otherways; so that a speedy collection may be made answerable to
their present distress. That they beholding God’s goodness handed to
them by you, may bless and praise his holy name for the same. And
what monies shall be collected and conveyed to our hands, we shall
distribute it to those who are truly the objects of charity; and
thankfully remain, etc.,
SIR JOHN ROUS, JOHN YOUELL, vicar; SIR JOHN PETTUS,
SIR ROBERT KEMPE, JOHN BEDDINGFIELD, ESQ., EDWARD
NORTH, ESQ., and several inhabitants.
There was collected on this occasion, in Lowestoft, £18 11s. 3d.; at
Beccles, £6 1s. 6d.; at Pakefield and Kirkley, £4 1s. 7d.; by Sir John
Pettust at different towns, £7 16s. 3d.—total £36 10s. 7d.
And on the 12th of November, 1717, about four in the morning, another
sudden and terrible fire broke out in this town, in the fish houses
belonging to the co-heirs of Captain Josiah Mighels, then in the
occupation of Joseph Smithson, which in a short space of time, entirely
consumed the said houses; together with part of those houses belonging to
William Mewse, which laid to the south, and part of those belonging to
Mr. John Barker and Mr. Thomas Mighels, on the north. The wind blew
pretty fresh at south east, so that the sparks flew over the town, and
once actually fired the thatch of a house in the Swan Lane: but men and
water being ready for that purpose, it was immediately stopped; and it
pleasing God of his mercy both to damp the wind and to bring it more to
the southward, the town escaped as a brand plucked out of the fire. The
damage sustained by the fish houses was estimated at £1000.
And also on Sunday, July 30th, 1780, at one o’clock in the morning, the
east Mill, at the north end of the town, by some cause unknown, took
fire; which fire being communicated by a strong wind to another wind
mill, situate about forty roods distance to the westward, they were both
totally consumed.
The other misfortune to which the town of Lowestoft is peculiarly liable,
and from which it has greatly suffered, is that of a dangerous coast,
when exposed to violent storms. This is, in a great measure, owing to
the singular nature of this coast, arising from its numerous sands and
shoals, and not having any harbour, or other place of security, to
protect the shipping from the violence of a storm; consequently they have
been too often sacrificed to the fury of the relentless ocean.
It is impossible to describe every dreadful shipwreck and melancholy
scene of distress which have happened on this dangerous coast, they being
too numerous to be recounted, as well as painful to be related; it shall
suffice, therefore, only to mention a few of the most remarkable ones,
such as were attended with the most distressing circumstances, and
exposed the unhappy seamen to the most alarming situations.
At the end of the annals of Norwich, a manuscript in the chapter
archives, an account is given, that in the year of Christ 1530, in the
night immediately following the 4th of November, a violent storm, as it
were, all over England, happened; and the next day following, namely, the
5th day of the said month, about one in the afternoon, the lord cardinal
Thomas Wolsey was seized in his own house, at Cahowe, within his diocese
of York; and afterwards, in his journey towards London, in the vigil St.
Andrew next following he died at Leicester, upon which day a storm, _as
if from Hell_—(a remarkable instance of the prejudice of the times; and
shews how much better Christianity is understood in this more liberal and
enlightened age)—again happened almost all over England, by the fury of
which at Lowestoft, within the diocese of Norwich, and elsewhere in
divers places within the realm of England, many ships were lost.
On the 30th July, 1730, happened in this town and neighbourhood, a most
remarkable storm, accompanied with a dreadful tempest of thunder,
lightning, and hail; the hailstones were of such prodigious magnitude as
to measure from six to nine inches in circumference, and descended with
such violence, as to break all the glass windows on the west side of the
town, which cost the inhabitants £300 to repair the damage. All the corn
was beat down and spoiled, for about a mile in breadth and three in
length.
On December 24th, 1739, that severe frost called the hard winter,
commenced with a violent gale of wind; when sixteen sail of ships were
driven ashore on the coast between Yarmouth and Lowestoft, and were all
totally lost, after their respective crews had undergone the severest
hardships from the inclemency of the weather.
And in another storm, which happened on the 15th of December, 1757,
twenty two sail of ships were driven ashore on the coast between Yarmouth
and Kessingland, the greater part of which were lost. A particular
account of the damage each ship sustained was soon after published in the
_London Gazette_.
But the most dreadful storm that ever happened on this coast in the
memory of man, was that of the 18th of December, 1770. The following
account of which was written by Mr. Robert Reeve, attorney-at-law, and
merchant at Lowestoft, who was a spectator of this dreadful scene, and
was published in the _Ipswich Journal_ of the 29th December, as follows:
The dreadful storm on Wednesday the 19th instant, began about one
o’clock in the morning, and continued with increasing violence till
five; when the wind suddenly changed from south-west to the
north-west, and for two hours raged with fury that was hardly ever
equalled. Anchors and cables proved too feeble a security for the
ships, which instantly parting from them, and running on board each
other, produced a confusion neither to be described nor conceived;
not a few immediately founded, others were dismasted, and none
escaped unhurt. At day-light a scene of the most tragic distress wag
exhibited; those who first beheld it assert, no less than eighteen
ships were upon the sand before this place at one and the same time,
and many others were seen to sink; of those upon the sand, one half
were entirely demolished, with their crews, before nine o’clock; the
rest were preserved a few hours longer: but this dreadful pause
served only to aggravate the destruction of the unhappy men who
belonged to them, who betook themselves to the masts and rigging;
these continually breaking, eight or ten were not unfrequently seen
to perish at a time, without the possibility of being assisted.
Fifteen only, about two in the afternoon, were taken off one of the
wrecks, and about as many more were saved by taking to their boats,
or getting on board other ships when they boarded each other. It is
impossible to collect with certainty how many lives, or how many
ships were lost in this terrible hurricane. Twenty-five at least,
perhaps thirty ships, and two hundred men, do not seem to be an
exaggerated account. This, indeed, is too small a calculation, if
credit is to be given to one of the seamen, who declares he saw six
vessels sink not far without the Stanford, among which was a large
ship bound for Lisbon, with sixty or seventy passengers on board.
One or two of the ships which were lost belong to Yarmouth, and one
to Plymouth, but the generality are colliers and belong to
Sunderland, Shields and other places in the north. The concern this
destructive scene occasioned to the spectators of it was increased by
the following circumstance: when the masts of one of the ships, on
which were eight or nine men, fell, two of them were some time
afterwards seen struggling among the wreck, and at length, after
unremmitted efforts, got upon the hull. In the afternoon, the pilot
boat ventured from the shore, but it was found impracticable to
administer any relief to the unfortunate sufferers, whom they were
compelled to leave in their forlorn state; an approaching dark, cold,
stormy night, heightening the horrors of their situation. The next
day to the astonishment of everybody, one of the men was observed to
be alive, and about noon the boat again attempted to save him, and
approached so near as to ask the poor fellow several questions; but
the hull, on which he was, being surrounded with wreck, and the sea
running high, it was impossible to rescue from the impending danger.
He was at the stern of the ship; towards her head the sailors
conceived it barely possible to board her with safety: this they told
the unhappy man and bid him walk to the place, but replying he was
too weak to change his situation, they were again obliged to leave
him, making signs of his inconceivable distress. The ensuing night
put an end to his misfortunes and life. {34} If such calamities as
these, which are the dispensations of Providence, occasion any
painful reflections, how great must our emotions be to consider the
thousands of lives wantonly butchered in wars, killed merely to
gratify the whim of princes, to feed the ambition of aspiring men, or
to furnish men of dissipation with the means of indulging their
excesses? To a dispassionate mind it seems equally wicked and
absurd, that great civilized nations should sacrifice the property,
the repose and the lives of their subjects to determine which of them
has the best right to a desert, as truly worthless to them as if it
was placed in the satellites of Jupiter.
I cannot conclude this section without recommending to the consideration
of the inhabitants of Lowestoft, and all other sea-port towns, the
possibility of constructing a vessel, or some other machine, on such
principles as should not be liable to overset, but should be capable of
approaching any vessel in distress, during the most violent storms, and
when surrounded with the most tumultuous waves. The wretched situation
of so many distressed mariners as are wrecked on this coast, must be a
sufficient excitement to the undertaking; and the pleasure of saving so
many valuable lives, will be an ample recompense for any expense or
trouble that may attend its execution.
That a scheme of this nature is not totally impracticable will be evident
from the following description of a new-invented vessel in France,
something similar to that recommended above; and of an experiment that
was lately made at Paris to discover its utility:
Monsieur Bernieres, director of the bridges and causeways in France, has
contrived and constructed a boat, or sloop, fit for inland navigation,
coasting voyages, and short passages by sea, which is not like ordinary
vessels, liable to be overset or sunk by winds, waves, waterspouts, or
too heavy a load.
Some trials were made on one of these vessels on the first of August,
1776, at the gate of the invalids, in Paris, in the presence of a
numerous concourse of spectators of all conditions.
A boat of the same sort had been tried, October 11th, 1771, at Choisy,
before Louis XV., and his present majesty, then dauphin. During the
experiments it was shewn, though eight men were in one of these boats,
and the boat filled brim full with water, yet, instead of sinking, it
bore being rowed about the river without any danger to the people in it.
M. Bernieres carried his trial still farther. He ordered a mast to be
erected in the same boat, when filled with water, and to the top of the
mast had a rope fastened, and drawn till the end of the mast touched the
surface of the water; yet, as soon as the men who had hauled her into
this situation let go the rope, the boat and mast recovered themselves
perfectly, in less than a quarter of a second; a convincing proof that
the boat could neither be sunk nor overset, and that it afforded the
greatest possible security in every way.
In consequence of the above trials, the provost of the merchants and the
corporation of Paris gave the sieur Bernieres permission to establish his
boats on the river Seine, at the port near Pont Royal; and, moreover,
promised him all the protection and encouragement in their power: and the
sieur Bernieres, on his side proposed to supply the public with a certain
number of these boats before the end of the next year; but whether he
fulfilled his engagement, or whether he has been as successful in the
subsequent trials of this useful invention as he was in the former, I
have not been able to learn.
It is much to be lamented that the general principles on which this
ingenious mechanic constructed his vessel, were not communicated to the
public. However, it is some satisfaction to know that such an invention
has been discovered, and where the author of it resides. And it is hoped
that the known humanity which the sieur Bernieres possesses will surmount
every illiberal restriction, and that he will generously impart to the
public the principles of an invention that may be of such universal
utility, and the means of rescuing many valuable members of society from
those distressful situations which they are so very often exposed to
whenever they frequent this very difficult and dangerous coast. {35a}
Thus, it too plainly appears, that from the many grievous calamities
abovementioned, such as the plague and other sicknesses; the civil war in
the reign of Charles I.; the great fire in 1644; the Dutch war in the
reign of Charles II.; the many losses from storms and tempests; to which
may be added the great law-suit with Yarmouth, which continued from 1659
to 1664; the town of Lowestoft must have been reduced many times to the
greatest distress; and it evidently appears that it really was so from
the many petitions presented to Government during the above suit with
Yarmouth, wherein these misfortunes are frequently alluded to.
On an elevated point of land near the edge of the cliff on which
Lowestoft is situated, and a little to the north of the town, stands the
upper light-house. {35b}
When the high light-house is in the same direction with the light-house
which stands below the cliff, it directs the vessels which are either
coming in or going out of Lowestoft roads, to the Stanford channel, which
lies between the Holme and Barnard sands. This channel is about a
quarter of a mile broad, and three quarters of a mile distant from that
part of the shore that is opposite to it; and though it has existed from
time immemorial to parts contiguous to its present situation, yet, from
the effects of storms and currents, and other causes, beyond perhaps, the
reach of human investigation, it is of such a fluctuating nature, that it
never continues long in the same situation. Of late years its motion has
been northerly, as is evident from the several changes which have been
made in the situation of the lower lighthouse—which is a movable one—to
bring it in a line with the upper light-house and the channel; which
removals have always been towards the north. About a century ago this
channel was situated more distant to the south-west from where it is at
present: for on the spot of ground whereon the upper light-house stands,
there stood, about a hundred years ago, a beacon; and there was also at
the same time, another beacon standing on the north side of the passage
going down the Swan score, as guides to the Stanford; and therefore to
bring these two beacons on a line with the Stanford channel, that channel
must necessarily, at that time, lie more to the south-west than where it
does now.
In the year 1676 the beacon at the north end of the town was taken down,
and on the place where it stood was erected, the upper light-house. This
building is a round-built tower, consisting of brick and stone materials,
is about 40 feet in height, and twenty in diameter. About two-thirds of
the upper part of it next the sea—and about thirty feet from the
ground—was originally sashed, that the fire might be visible to the
spectators on the sea. In this part was placed a hearth, whereon a coal
fire was continually kept burning every night; and was always conducted
in this manner until the alteration in this light-house, in the year
1778, was made.
In the year 1735, when the Stanford channel had proceeded so far to the
north that the beacon near the Swan score became useless, from its being
brought on a line with the upper light-house, {36a}—a moveable
light-house, framed of timber, was erected on the beach below the cliff,
whose construction was such as to admit of its being removed according as
the channel should happen to change its situation. {36b}
On the western side of the upper lighthouse, underneath the arms of
Trinity House are the arms of Samuel Pepys, Esq., beneath which is this
inscription.—
Erected by the Brotherhood of the
Trinity House of Deptford Strond, in
The Mastership of Samuel Pepys, Esq.,
Secretary to the Admiralty of England,
Anno Dom. 1676.
In the year 1777, when the upper part of this lighthouse became so much
decayed that it was necessary to have it repaired in a short time, it was
resolved by the brethren of the Trinity House, to take the top wholly
off, and to erect in its place one of the new-invented reflecting
cylinders. Accordingly in the month of June, 1778, the Trinity yacht,
with several of the elder brethren, arrived at Lowestoft, and brought one
of these curious inventions with them, in order to observe what effect it
would produce. In consequence of this design, a temporary scaffold was
erected on an eminence a little to the north of the lighthouse, and the
cylinder was hoisted upon it; and in the evening the Trinity yacht sailed
off to sea, to a considerable distance, in order to discover what
appearance it would have: when it was found to answer beyond expectation.
When the yacht returned, the cylinder was ordered to be immediately taken
down, and to be shipped on board the yacht, with a view of sending it to
the Isle of Scilly, which was then in immediate want of it, and a new one
was ordered to be sent to Lowestoft presently after, which was
accordingly sent, and erected upon the remaining part of the old
lighthouse. The following account of this reflecting cylinder, with an
engraving of the same, was published by the author of this work, in the
_Town and Country Magazine_, for April, 1788:
This curious machine consists of a glass lanthorn about seven feet
high, and six in diameter, glazed with the best plate glass; the
frame of which is copper, and covered with a roof of the same metal.
In the centre of the lanthorn is set upon a frame a large hexagonal
reflecting cylinder, four feet in height, and three feet in diameter.
This cylinder is made of copper, the outside of which is covered with
cement, upon which are placed nearly 4,000 small mirrors, each mirror
about an inch square. In the centre of this cylinder is fixed a
reservoir of oil, which, by fixed pipes passing through hexagonal
divisions of the cylinder, support and convey the oil to a large
circular tube, which is placed about eighteen inches from the surface
of the cylinder, and upon this tube are fixed 126 lamps. One of
these lighthouses was made by an order of the elder brethren of the
Trinity House, sent on board their yacht, with several of the
brethren, and sailed for Lowestoft, in Suffolk, to make a trial of
its utility. Accordingly in the night of the 23rd of June, a
temporary scaffold being erected for that purpose, the machine was
hoisted and the lamps lighted; when it was found to answer beyond
conception, exhibiting a globe of fire of a steady and most vivid
brightness. This experiment was made at a small distance from the
lighthouse commonly made use of, the light of which is supported by a
coal fire, and was exerted to the utmost on this occasion, to
maintain, its superiority; and was appointed to be the criterion by
which the difference was to be determined. The yacht accompanied by
some boats, sailed off to sea the preceding day, so as to be out of
sight of land before sunset—the time appointed for lighting it. They
sailed in for the land, and discovered the new light-house as soon as
the convexity of the sea would permit, it being at least twenty miles
from the shore, and sailed five or six miles nearer before they could
perceive the fire of the old light-house.
The brethren of the Trinity House being thus convinced of the great
utility of this invention, gave orders the next day to have it taken
down and sent to the Island of Scilly.