The Victoria Building Company

While the Victoria Building Company had been in great financial difficulty, the tourist centre of the future was developing in the North, with a row of fashionable private houses being built in a classical style in 1848 (see Figure 6), and by 1855 the 20th house had been completed. In front of this was the Britannia Esplanade which later became the starting point for the Marine Parade, and in 1858 another pier, called ‘The Britannia’ was constructed, leading off from the Marine Parade opposite the Britannia Terrace, and was opened in July of the same year.

Figure 6: Britannia Terrace

The fishing industry in Great Yarmouth was still thriving, with more and more ships coming into port. This led to an increase in the number of accidents out at sea, and so after the RNLI took over the Norfolk Shipwreck Association in 1858, a Coastguard Station and Lifeboat House were constructed on the Marine Parade in 1859, with a home for shipwrecked sailors nearby being built in the same year (see Figure 7).

Figure 7: Maritime Museum (originally the Home for Shipwrecked Sailors)

By 1865 the Marine Parade still had many gaps in it (see Figure 8), where buildings could be constructed, with the Victoria Building Company trying to fill them out at the South end, as they had let three plots of land to private developers in the years previous.

Figure 8: 1859 map of Great Yarmouth

The first plot that was used was South of Kimberley Terrace and was for a Mr Faloke as his private residence. It was finished in 1860 and named ‘Sutherland Lodge’ (see Figure 9).

Figure 9: Regency Flats (originally 'Sutherland Lodge')

In 1863 the Company gave permission for an Assembly and Reading Rooms building to be constructed on the plot just South of the Victoria Hotel, as it would be a great asset to the companies development (see Figure 10). It was completed in the same year and housed billiard rooms and a large reading room which could accommodate Balls and Concerts, with Tennis courts and Croquet lawns to the rear.

Figure 10: The Masonic Lodge (originally the Assembly and Reading Rooms)

The final plot was built in 1865 as a private residence for a Mr Cuddon and was called the ‘Shadingfield Lodge’ (see Figure 11), and in 1872 the Prince of Wales stayed here after Mr Cuddon invited him.

Figure 11: The Shadingfield Lodge

The letting of these plots (see Figure 12) signified that the Victoria Building Company was gradually realising that they could never fully complete their grand scheme due to the lack of finance, and with only maintenance work being carried out from the 1870’s onwards, the vision of creating another Brighton was fading away slowly, as the companies predicted clientele of the upper classes were never really attracted to Great Yarmouth in a major way. Instead, a new class of visitor was turning to Great Yarmouth for their holidays, this was the Working Class.

Figure 12: Plan of the 'Victoria Estate' in 1860