The Lost Norfolk Village of Eccles

Tony Harper mentioned the lost village of Eccles at the Christmas lunch so I thought a related article would be of interest.  Eccles-On-Sea is south of Happisburgh and was a thriving village during medieval times but most of the village has been taken by the sea as a result of a series of storms over the years, however occasionally the remains of St Mary’s church tower can be seen on the beach (last seen in 1986).  Some say you can still hear its bells ringing underwater as you sail by.  To find out more, please select the following link:  

https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/20753608.weird-norfolk-lost-village-eccles-sometimes-appears-storms-graveyard-dead-cannot-rest/

The Growth of Old Catton during 18th and 19th Century

From the 16th century wealthy families were looking to live outside the centre of the city of Norwich, if nothing else to escape the over crowding, the poor sanitation and the risk of plague.  Old Catton was convenient for those who had business north of the river in Norwich-over-the-Water and what was once an agricultural village had, by the early C20, become ‘the best residential suburb adjoining Norwich’   This gentrification had begun in the mid-1700s when wool merchant Robert Rogers (Sheriff 1743, Mayor 1758) built Catton Place. In 1816 this was to become the home of Samuel Bignold, son of the founder of Norwich Union. 

Probably the most important house in the village was Catton Hall, built on a rise that afforded a view of Norwich Cathedral now challenged by the Anglia Square development. The wealthy worsted weaver Jeremiah Ives, moved here from No.1 Colegate. In the city he had lived within hailing distance of his relatives, the Harveys, and he joined them in Catton as a fellow landowner. 

Catton Hall was inherited by Ives’ wife from her father. This was significantly more than just ‘a house in the country’ for in 1778 Ives gave Humphry Repton his first paid commission to transform the surrounding 45 hectares into Catton Park.

The Harveys had a considerable presence in Old Catton as well: Thomas Harvey built Catton House but there was also Robert Harvey at The Grange and Jeremiah Ives Harvey at Eastwood.  But the Harvey who built Catton House was the one who married Ann Twiss – daughter of an English merchant from Rotterdam – and whose collection of Dutch paintings had a formative influence on the co-founder of the Norwich Society of Artists, John Crome.  Here is a picture of Catton House:

The Gurneys also had a presence in Catton: in 1854 Catton Hall was bought by the seriously rich John Henry Gurney Snr who had inherited the bulk of the fortune accumulated by Hudson Gurney (1775-1864) of Keswick Hall (see below). The Gurneys were Quaker weavers who, through an ‘extended cousinhood’ of alliances and partnerships, formed the country’s largest banking network outside London.

Influenced by the Great Exhibition’s Crystal Palace, Gurney extended Catton Hall with a cast-iron Camellia House designed by local architect Edward Boardman and manufactured in Boulton & Paul’s Norwich factory. The fine cupola was removed in WWII to prevent enemy planes using it as a landmark on the way to RAF St Faith’s (now Norwich Airport).  You can see the cupola on the second picture below:  

Eight Amazing Facts About the History of Christmas

Here is an interesting article about Christmas.  I didn’t realise that the Victorians were so fond of morbid Christmas cards e.g. dead birds, which was because of their fascination with death and spirituality, and such morbid images were mean’t to bring you luck!

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/q65ZWTxTrTjfYVT5Ft3lrJ/8-amazing-facts-about-the-history-of-christmas

The Golden Age of Weaving in Norwich

The 100 years from 1750 is often recognised as the Golden Age of Norwich Weaving.  The following article describes this period and also other important topics including, the Norwich Red, Norwich Stuffs, the impact of the Industrial Revolution and Norwich shawls:  

https://paulharley.wordpress.com/2019/05/22/norwich-weaving-1750-1900/#:~:text=Manufacturers/employers%20needed%20houses%20or,India%20and%20the%20Far%20East.

Mary Chapman

We had an interesting talk about Mary Chapman and the Bethel Hospital on Tuesday.  It was interesting and somewhat disturbing to learn about the treatments for mental health in 18th century Britain and it was because of Mary's pioneering work that some of these treatments were changed.  For those that would like to read some more about Mary, here is an article from the Norfolk Record Office:

https://norfolkrecordofficeblog.org/mary-chapman/#:~:text=Founder%20of%20the%20Bethel%20Hospital,Chapman%2C%20the%20Rector%20of%20Thorpe.

 

Africans in Tudor and Stuart England

Since I saw the last Mary Queen of Scots film which had Adrian Lester playing one of Queen Elizabeth’s advisers, I have always wondered whether there were prominent black people in Tudor society and it appears there were.  It all started with Catherine of Aragon and her entourage which included Moors from her native country.  One such black person became a freeman of the City of York but who was he?  Over 300,000 poor souls were transported across the Atlantic in bondage mainly by the Spanish and Portuguese but of course some by Francis Drake, so did many of these find their way into Tudor society?  There is evidence that Francis Drake held one such captive in such high regard that he named a fort after him.  To answer these questions and learn more, please select the following article: 

https://www.tudorsociety.com/africans-in-tudor-and-stuart-england-by-conor-byrne/#google_vignette

Dragon Hall

Many thanks to Pat Wright for her talk on Dragon Hall on Tuesday.  It's an incredible building and a shame that I haven't visited it yet.  Hopefully this will be soon rectified.  For those that would like to read some more about the history of Dragon Hall, here is an article from their website:

https://www.dragonhallnorwich.org.uk/pages/history-of-dragon-hall.html