Don Williamson knew our lobs personally as he explained:
"I met Lobby Lud! When working as a beach cleaner as a summer job in 1976. My shift started at 6 am on Broadstairs Beach. We noticed a man placing advertising placards around the harbour and he came straight up to us and said "I'm Lobby Lud and you have won nothing!" The real surprise was that he then proceeded to sell the newspapers directly to the holiday makers wearing a pair of sun glasses for the rest of the morning."
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My days seem to have taken on a new routine. It consists of getting up much later and prancing around in my nightclothes. But before you start feeling sorry for me, there's no need to worry.
I may be staying in bed longer but I am using the time to work my way through the complete writings of Charles Dickens. Admittedly to date I've only managed David Copperfield and threequarters of Pickwick Papers but it's a start. I have decided to read the novels etc in the order they were written although David Copperfield wasn't his first and I have taken that out of synch. Next up will be Oliver Twist and I'm sure that will have me asking for more (that's a carefully constructed joke by the way).
I stay in the old nightwear whilst I catch up on writing and various other stuff. Isn't that a great word - stuff. I had a job once where I met up with colleagues early morning. "What shall we do today" asked one of them. "Let's do stuff" replied another and invariably that's what we did.
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Being a pretty miserable day, I was able to spend most of it putting the finishing touches to the February Hethersett Herald. Still have plenty to do but it will come out either on Saturday or Sunday.
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A number of days ago I featured some interesting gravestones in Wymondham Abbey and my cousin Belinda, who shares my obsession for all things history, decided to do some research into the Howes family of Wymondham and it soon became interesting.
Belinda is the graveyard equivalent of a rampant Sherlock Holmes. In fact she makes the Baker Street sleuth look like a detective graduate who is wet behind the ears (and probably a bit wet in other places as well). Mind you I don't think she does cocaine or play the violin, although she does occasionally sport some rather strange looking headgear.
Belinda likes researching and I like writing. So here are our findings and some storylines regarding Walter Howes which I hope you enjoy.
Walter was born in Wymondham on 18th October, 1845, which was a Saturday (I told you we were obsessive). His parents were James Howes and Susannah (nee Todd). Walter was the fourth child of eight (four boys and four girls).
In the 1841 census the family (obviously without Walter who had yet to be born) was living in Damgate Street and James was a weaver.
Ten years later the family were still living in Damgate Street and Walter was listed as a scholar.
By 1861, the family had moved to Church Street and Walter was a 14-year-old shoemaker and this is where it becomes interesting. Wymondham at the time was awash with ale houses and pubs. James was listed as a worsted weaver and publican. It looks as if he was licensee of the Goat Public House which was next door to another pub - The Rose and Crown.
James was licensee from 1856 to 1865. But things didn't go swimmingly and we are told that "Following an objection to the licence renewal on Friday, 8th September, 1865, Messrs Crawshay and Youngs informed the bench that it was their intention to remove Mr Howes on 6th January, 1866." As a consequence a licence was granted for just six months.
The next licensee didn't fare much better - James Skipper was fined "for permitting drunkenness in his house at two o'clock in the morning of Tuesday, 22nd June 1869." Two months later the licence was renewed but with a caution. As for the Goat Public House. Well it started its life in 1794 and closed in 1926.
But back to James Howes. Sadly he didn't live long and prosper after leaving the pub. By 1871 both he and his wife had died and Walter had moved away. He was living as a shoe and boot maker with the Cook family in Old Market Plain, Lowestoft, Suffolk.
But Walter's time in Lowestoft was short. He died on 17th, January, 1872, in Dukes Head Street, Lowestoft. He was unmarried and just 26-years-of-age. Present at the death was F. Howes who may have been his older brother Frederick. The cause of death is given as apoplexy which could have been a stroke or fit of some kind.
Walter was buried in Wymondham Abbey on 21st January, 1872, which was a Sunday. A Frederick Howes is listed as licensee of the White Horse Pub from 1879 to 1886 - could this have been James' son and Walter's brother?
Think of Wymondham today with a handful of pubs for a population of 14,000 plus. In 1622 there were 33 alehouses and, in 1747, 39 alehouses for a population of 3,213. By my maths that means one alehouse to every 82.38 people and if you've ever seen .38 of a person I would like to know!
Over the years many of the alehouses were closed as demand dropped and many became redundant and unable to pay their way.