1954….

[chrisdobson45]

My mum has boxes of old photographs, taken by my dad from the late 1940’s until his death in 2013. He chronicled everywhere he went, mostly landscapes and relatively few of people.

Tonight I was handed an old album of photographs taken in the summer of 1954. He was amongst a party that hired two boats, from Hipperson’s of Beccles & Moore and Co, Wroxham. Here’s a few…

[ExSurveyor]

A different era, it looks so much calmer.

A bicycle on floats, that will never catch on

[chrisdobson45]

A few more, most places instantly recognisable, a few are puzzling me

[Lulu]

What a fantastic set of photos to come across 

[FairTmiddlin]

Now that's the Broads I remember as a child.

Great sets of photos Chris. Thanks for sharing.

[jezhickling]

Babemore looks like a slightly longer version of Nipper. Great to see these old photos.

 

 

[Wonderwall]

Where is this ? With the rise and fall levels it must be close to Breydon, but the terraced housing has me  confused?

[jeffbroadslover]

Thanks very much for that Chris.

Hoping that you will be allowed to dig deeper into the boxes and have time to post loads more.

Brings sack some wonderful memories of the "old" broads.

Jeff

[Bluebell]

54 minutes ago, ExSurveyor said:

A different era, it looks so much calmer.

A bicycle on floats, that will never catch on

Or maybe…😎

[MauriceMynah]

Could that pic be of Berney Arms in the top right(ish) corner? There used to be some terraced houses in that vicinity. 

[BroadAmbition]

Great photo's - Tks for sharing

Griff

[Vaughan]

7 hours ago, Wonderwall said:

My guess would be the old "coal wharf", where wherries used to lower their masts at the mouth of the Bure, where it joins Breydon.  Behind the houses at left would be the Haven Bridge and off the photo to the right would be the infamous "yellow post".

I remember how a lot of private boats in those days were converted from old ships' lifeboats. There are two in this photo.

[Vaughan]

8 hours ago, chrisdobson45 said:

 

My mum has boxes of old photographs, taken by my dad from the late 1940’s until his death in 2013. He chronicled everywhere he went, mostly landscapes and relatively few of people.

Tonight I was handed an old album of photographs taken in the summer of 1954. He was amongst a party that hired two boats, from Hipperson’s of Beccles & Moore and Co, Wroxham. Here’s a few…

 

 

On the right is one of Percival's "Peter Pan" class. Very popular little boats in those days. I seem to remember they had the engine up in the bows.

8 hours ago, chrisdobson45 said:

The white house on the front at Acle Bridge was the restaurant in those days and a very good one it was.  The main building of the pub was just for drinking in!

Another converted lifeboat moored in the cut.

[ChrisB]

I like the picture of St Benets very much, that area has really changed.

Those pictures give me the impression that The Broads were, back then a real "Exploration Destination" I can imagine travelling across Norfolk by car on empty roads or Steam Train,a real adventure!

And no Berghaus, Rab, Musto etc clothes and shoes against inclement weather.

I know times have changed, but it is sad, that for many, just living, travelling and sleeping onboard is not the adventure it once was.

[FairTmiddlin]

2 hours ago, ChrisB said:

Those pictures give me the impression that The Broads were, back then a real "Exploration Destination" I can imagine travelling across Norfolk by car on empty roads or Steam Train,a real adventure!

Remember as a kid sitting in Fritton on the now A143 collecting car numbers in a little scribble pad. Nowadays would be full in 5 minutes, taking a morning to fill.

Weekly treat was the walk to St Olaves station, to catch the train to Gt Yarmouth to go shopping, or in the summer to the beach to meet with Aunts and cousins. AHH heady days

[chrisdobson45]

My first experience of The Broads was in 1977 when my parents rented Golden Arrow from Pearson Marine in Reedham and that holiday was very much an adventure. Our first night was spent at Oulton Broad, at a boatyard to the west of the yacht station, and we had to clamber over a rickety pier / plank to get to terra firma.
 

We visited places that are now firm favourites (Coltishall, Stalham, Acle, Beccles). 
 

It was a holiday so different from the usual week in a B&B in Ramsgate (not that I’ve anything against Ramsgate), and set the tone for many future holidays afloat.
 

From then on, until 1987, we had at least one holiday on the Broads every year and I then moved to Norfolk and spent eight years messing about on boats at the weekend, my then wife being friends with a work colleague whose parents operated a boatyard.

Kath and I were able to buy our own boat earlier this year and we are discovering the Broads again.
 

I was diagnosed with cancer last year and after surgery in August we decided that there was more to life than the 8-5, 2 kids, 1 dog routine and felt the need to make memories. We agreed that I had talked about owning a boat for years so it was now or never. It was probably the best (and most worrying) thing we’ve ever done and we’ve a history of doing things that have caused eyebrows to be raised (living in Saudi Arabia for seven years and having our son born there, working in Canada for three years, etc). 

Somethings have changed, others haven’t and there’s still glimpses of what I remember the Broads to be. We were in Reedham last weekend, we went exploring to the east of the Ship Inn, where 46 years ago it all started. PearsonMarine is long gone but there still remains the basic infrastructure of what was once there. 
 

Whilst the Riverside Estate in Brundall has changed significantly since the 1980’s, there remains some of the old sheds, we think we’ve identified where holidays started & ended with the likes of Bounty Boats, Brister Craft, etc. 

My life is full of circles, returning to Norfolk and the Broads is one of several, and whilst there has been change, the is sufficient that has remained unchanged to bring me comfort in what has turned out to be a challenging period in my life. 

 

[Aboattime]

We hired Red Arrow from Pearsons.Lovely Alpha boat, last time i saw her was years ago she was one of the Ricos hire fleet.

[chrisdobson45]

54 minutes ago, Aboattime said:

We hired Red Arrow from Pearsons.Lovely Alpha boat, last time i saw her was years ago she was one of the Ricos hire fleet.

My only disappointment was that Golden Arrow III was in fact grey and not egg yoke yellow as depicted in the Hoseason's brochure (there were three Golden Arrow's, each having a different colour gel coat)

[webntweb]

13 hours ago, Vaughan said:

My guess would be the old "coal wharf", where wherries used to lower their masts at the mouth of the Bure, where it joins Breydon.  Behind the houses at left would be the Haven Bridge and off the photo to the right would be the infamous "yellow post".

I remember how a lot of private boats in those days were converted from old ships' lifeboats. There are two in this photo.

As usual Vaughan is spot on. There are three hanger type buildings in the background of the original photo (top centre). Attached pic from that era shows those buildings (arrowed).

[webntweb]

ps. ignore the arrow in the centre of the pic . . .

[Vaughan]

13 minutes ago, webntweb said:

As usual Vaughan is spot on.

 

Phew, I am glad about that, as the area has changed greatly since then.  Chrisdobson's photo would have been taken from the old Vauxhall railway bridge and the coal wharf in those days was a railway yard, fed by "kick back" sidings from the North Quay and Fishwharf, in Yarmouth Haven.

Nowadays, you would not recognise the Coal Wharf as it has been developed, and you certainly could not moor there to lower the mast any more!

In 1954 the Breydon swing bridge would still be there, in more or less the same place as the present Breydon bascule road bridge, although it had been closed to rail traffic the previous year, in 1953.

 

[trambo]

The Hoseasons craft on the photo at the mouth of the Bure is Hipperson's 4 berth "Elaine" and the aft cockpit cruiser in the photo below, Pearson's (or Pearson - Barber as it was in 1954) 2-3 berth "Albatross". Both are also in a couple of other shots. At Potter Heigham there are two Hearts Cruisers for Vaughan to identify. "Babemore" looks immaculate but they always did. Thanks for sharing, a great set.

Fred

[chrisdobson45]

40 minutes ago, Vaughan said:

 

Phew, I am glad about that, as the area has changed greatly since then.  Chrisdobson's photo would have been taken from the old Vauxhall railway bridge and the coal wharf in those days was a railway yard, fed by "kick back" sidings from the North Quay and Fishwharf, in Yarmouth Haven.

Nowadays, you would not recognise the Coal Wharf as it has been developed, and you certainly could not moor there to lower the mast any more!

In 1954 the Breydon swing bridge would still be there, in more or less the same place as the present Breydon bascule road bridge, although it had been closed to rail traffic the previous year, in 1953.

 

@ Vaughan,

Is the Breydon swing bridge in the background of this photograph?

[Bluebell]

6 hours ago, Vaughan said:

 

The white house on the front at Acle Bridge was the restaurant in those days and a very good one it was.  The main building of the pub was just for drinking 

I remember it like that. The restaurant was run by ‘Chalky White’ and it was a great place to be as a kid. The landlord of the pub was Ted Nugent and it was a Morgan’s House prior to being taken over by Steward and Pattesons, and subsequently Watney Mann (oh dear, Starlight and Red Barrel 😩)…😎

[Broads01]

This is a fascinating thread. This era was before I was born and that makes it all the more interesting to read about.