Samuel Brock 1804-1873

By Julie Smith Since the dawn of time man has depended on the sea to provide food for survival but equally so, the sea has taken lives leaving families bereft of husbands, sons, fathers and brothers. Samuel Brock was a man who made a living from the sea, however, he would not allow it to

Arthur Diver Bunn 1876-1910

By Julie Smith This is the story of Arthur Bunn who was born in Yarmouth, moved away to join the Fire Brigade but then returned to his home town to die a tragic death. Arthur Diver Bunn was born on 7th April 1876 in Great Yarmouth and baptised in St Nicholas’ church later that year

Thomas Henry Styles

By Steve Smith It’s very satisfying to have amongst the tangles of your tree, a relative for whom something was named. I am particularly proud that the name of a great uncle adorned a well-known building in Great Yarmouth for almost a quarter of a century. The building was the Styles Secondary Modern School and

Robert Moon Brand 1823 – 1900

By Julie Smith Robert Moon Brand was our great, great, great grandfather and out of all our ancestors I have researched he is the one person I would love to have met. I don’t know what he looked like although I can picture him in my mind. I would love to know his story, why

Heading South

The Development of the South Denes (Part One) By Steve Smith I developed an interest in the South Denes whilst researching a book on a relative, Henry Howard Brand, who moved part of his Yarmouth and Lowestoft tailoring empire here in the late 19th century. I wanted to understand more about the area he chose

Susannah Hastings

By Julie Smith Susannah Hastings (1816-1869), was a spinster lady who was killed in a freak accident by her nephew Edward Hastings Forder. Originally arrested for murder Edward was found guilty of manslaughter. This is their story. The story starts off a bit confusing but I am pretty sure I am following the same family.

Great Yarmouth Rows

A year or so ago I was involved in a project organised by the Great Yarmouth Preservation Trust that was researching theRows. Some of the results of which can be found here The Rows or on their facebook page The Rows of Great Yarmouth. During that time I pieced together a database listing the Rows

Great Yarmouth Mayors 1684-2019

A list compiled by Steve Smith Originally Yarmouth’s local government structure was headed by Bailiffs. In 1684 a Mayor was introduced for the first time but only for 5 years. In 1702, a Mayor was once again introduced by Charter and although the position was removed for a decade in the 1990s it was restored

Frederick Pigg 1841- 1912

By Julie Smith   Fire has been destroying properties and lives since it was first discovered and I am sure it will continue to do so until the end of time. Such is the nature of the beast. Frederick Pigg only spent a short time in Yarmouth having moved from Norwich but in a brief

The Herring Industry

By Cyril A. Bowyer If you read the recent blog on Great Yarmouth and Gorleston Toc H, you’d have seen the name Cabby Bowyer appear several times. During my research I chanced upon this article he wrote for the Tamworth Herald in 1930, presumably when his father was Methodist preacher in that twon. I thought