The New Class of Visitor

Up until the introduction of the first bank holiday in 1871 the working class people never had the opportunity or time to travel. This changed on August 14th, when with an extra day added to their weekend and the reasonably cheap modes of travel which existed, the chances were grasped. Many families left the industrial towns by rail or boat to travel to the seaside.

By 1877 nearly every major town in Great Britain had a railway running into it, and Great Yarmouth was no exception. It now had three stations (see Figure 13), the first at Vauxhall with the other two at Southtown and North Beach. These provided excellent links with London and the Midlands, and it is the latter that provided Great Yarmouth with its visitors.

Figure 13: Great Yarmouth in 1883 (Railway Stations highlighted)

Unlike the upperclasses unhurried way of life the workers never knew how to relax or had the time, as their life only consisted of work. Therefore, the idea of sitting all day on the beaches bathing in the sea, or walking the promenades did not have the same appeal to them as their superiors. They wanted to be entertained. Realising this an Aquarium was constructed on the site of the old town battery, with the first stone being laid by Lord Suffield in 1875. It was to be on a grander scale than the present day building (see Figure 14), to compete with Yarmouth's rival resort of Brighton. The plan was for a building to incorporate a restaurant, billiard rooms, croquet lawns and a skating rink with glass covered gardens on the roof. However the company had landed themselves in financial difficulty and so the plan was reduced in scale, housing only the Aquarium section and opened in September 1877 by the same noble gentleman, Lord Suffield. The Aquarium which could be compared to the modern day 'Sealife' centres contained 18 tanks varying from 17 feet to 50 feet in length, 14 of which were salt water and 4 for fresh water fish, with an additional 8 smaller table tanks.

Figure 14: The Hollywood Cinema (originally the Royal Aquarium)

The first and only large purpose built hotel in Great Yarmouth, was constructed in 1880, it was called the “Queens' Hotel” (see Figure 15) and after being enlarged in 1885 had 125 rooms. The proprietor of this establishment was a London gentleman called Mr JW Nightingale, who wanted to look after the welfare of Great Yarmouth and to cater for its numerous visitors. By 1883 Mr Nightingale was beginning to build up his empire of hotels and entertainment establishments, and so in this year he purchased the Aquarium complex, which had closed due to the fall in attendance as the novelty of fish in tanks had worn off. It was then almost completely rebuilt for a sum of £10,000 before being opened in July 1883. The building was divided into two departments, namely the Aquarium refreshment department seating up to 1,000 people and the Aquarium theatre.

Figure 15: The New Beach Hotel (Originally The Queen's Hotel)

Business in Great Yarmouth was booming, both for the fishing and the tourist industry with more people coming by train every year. In 1897 another new attraction was constructed next to the Britannia Pier and opposite the Aquarium, with the lease being held by Mr Nightingale. This was a revolving tower which elevated to a height of 150 feet, and proved to be a great source of entertainment to all visitors to Great Yarmouth. Journeying to the top in a corkscrew fashion it was stated that “on a clear day you could see Norwich Cathedral, 20 miles away!”

In the same year a Mr George Barron who was a pioneer in slot machines opened the Jubilee Exhibition (named to commemorate Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee). It contained side shows, slot machines, rifle ranges and fortune tellers. However on the 5th September 1901, a fire broke out and destroyed this and the buildings next to it, which were the Goode Brothers Academy of dance and the Sea View hotel. Mr Barron then purchased the hotel, which was north of his property and built a larger arcade called the Paradium which was Great Yarmouth's first amusement arcade (see Figure 16).

Figure 16: Barron's Amusement Arcade (Originally 'The Paradium')

The twentieth century had arrived and the popularity of Great Yarmouth as a seaside town was increasing. The private sector began to invest more in the Marine Parade than the Corporation, with the Britannia Pier being a prime example. After two incidents of ships partly destroying sections of the Britannia pier, it was looking in a sorry state. With the owners not being in a position to refurbish it they offered the Corporation the opportunity to purchase the pier, but they declined. Forming a private company Mr Nightingale saved the amenity by spending £65,000 on constructing a new pier structure and pavilion. It was completed and opened in 1902 by Lord and Lady Claud J Hamilton, at a total length of 810 feet, and with the pavilions seating capacity of 2,500. The pier also served as a vital landing stage for the many steamers, who provided sea trips for the visitors.