The first long-living Hastings newspaper was published for the first time. The Hastings and St Leonards News, based in 42 George Street, cost 3 pence. It was published initially by William Ransom jnr, but that August he became ill and ...
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Mayday
From the Hastings News of 05/05/1848
Mayday - May 1 - was celebrated around the town, with the “shovel and broom gentry” in their “annual bal masque”. A wide range of characters, including Jack in the Green and the “characters of the soot bag”, were “tripping ...
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Hastings magistrates gaoled a man for a week for begging. He was in a “miserably ragged condition”, with one foot bound up, and his head “all in an uproar”.
A High Street resident complained bitterly about the fishing class: “I would more especially direct your attention to the juniors; those chiefly from the age of 10 or 12 to 30: to their disgusting language, poured forth with stentorian lungs: ...
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Hastings Council clamped down on the expanding beach trades by creating tough new bye-laws regulating the use of the beach by pleasure boats, their capstans and bathing machines, and introducing charges for them. Ladies bathing machines were the only facilities ...
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Fairs
12/06/1848
This was Whit Monday, the liveliest day in the town’s annual calendar. Large numbers of people came in from the surrounding countryside, and all kinds of fun, games and events took place. The three benefit societies hold processions and rural ...
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A one-legged, homeless and unemployed sailor was gaoled for a week for begging.
A wooden battery and 32 pounder cannon were landed at the Coastguard’s 40th Martello Tower, near West Marina railway station.
Hastings Council was told that Union Street, uniting the High Street and All Saints Street by extending Courthouse Street, was finished; £455 was spent on buying properties and then clearing them away, particularly 86 All Saints Street and three cottages ...
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Juvenile Crime
From the Hastings News of 25/08/1848
Thomas Mann, a fishing boy aged 13, was sent to Battle House of Correction for 14 days for stealing a turnip from a field at Ore, and for the physical attempts by his friends to stop him being arrested.
A lifeboat for Shoreham, built near Tackleway by Hastings boatbuilder George Tutt, was launched.
Gas Works
From the Hastings News of 20/10/1848
A third gasholder had been erected at the Gas Works, off Queens Road. It was 60 feet in diameter and 18 feet deep, weighing 19 tons. Iguanodon skeletons were found.
This was the last issue of the News in 1848; it started again on Friday January 5 1849.
The East Well water spring in Rock-a-Nore Road had been completed, Hastings Council was informed. It was funded from the surplus collected following the burning down of 20 net shops in 1846, and was the only free fresh water in ...
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New waterworks, supplied from springs, were being excavated in Newgate, Thornden and Ore woods. Also: Portable stocks were to be obtained and kept in the jail.
Start of a three-month stay by Louis Phillipe, ex-King of France, at the [Royal] Victoria Hotel. He was in exile after escaping from the 1848 French revolution in a fishing boat. In addition, the Queen of Belgium arrived on June ...
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Lighthouses
From the Hastings News of 11/05/1849
Hastings Council decided that the Lower Lighthouse, close to the Cutter pub, which was nearly burnt through, should be rebuilt like the Upper Lighthouse, which was near the Caves entrance.
Guestling Murder
From the Hastings News of 24/08/1849
Mary Ann Geering was executed at Lewes for poisoning her husband at Guestling, with arsenic.
Mill
From the Hastings News of 14/09/1849
A steam flour mill was erected on the West Hill [close to Priory Road / Gordon Road junction] by Mr TN Ward of Ore.
Workhouse
From the Hastings News of 26/10/1849
The Board of Guardians of the Hastings Union had decided to exclude the press from its meetings.
Gas Monopoly
From the Hastings News of 07/12/1849
The News published a letter complaining about the gas monopoly in the town, resulting in consumers paying nearly twice as much as in other towns for “an article miserably bad in quality”. The News had two letters on the issue ...
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Gas Monopoly
From the Hastings News of 01/02/1850
The price of gas was to be reduced from eight shillings to six shillings per cu ft in 1851.
Belmont
From the Hastings News of 01/03/1850
The sale was taking place of the Belmont Estate [the area around what became Belmont Road in Clive Vale]; nine acres of building land and two Italian villas were on offer.
Crime
From the Hastings News of 08/03/1850
Counterfeit 2/6d coins were reported circulating in the town.
Visit of Lord Mayor of London Thomas Farncomb (a former prominent Hastings businessman).
Hastings Council decided to heighten and lengthen the easternmost groyne, at Rockanore.
Building Society
From the Hastings News of 11/10/1850
The first AGM of the Rape of Hastings Permanent Benefit Building Society was held.
The Lord Mayor of London Thomas Farncomb laid the final brick in the Ore railway tunnel [the Bopeep-Ashford line opened February 13 1851].
The Bopeep-Ashford railway line was officially declared open, after more than three years construction, and at great expense; it connected with the Bopeep-Brighton line, giving Hastings indirect routes to London until the more direct line from Bopeep-Tonbridge opened in 1852.
Blockade on railway lines at Bopeep and conflict at Hastings Station between South Eastern Railway (owners of the Bopeep-Ashford line) and London Brighton and South Coast Railway (users of the SER tunnels); court settlement.
The Duke of Brunswick and Henry Green made a balloon journey to Neufchatel near Boulogne from a field near the gas works [where Morrisons is today]. Thousands of people watched as the balloon was inflated with gas and then took ...
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Public Health Act
From the Hastings News of 15/08/1851
The Public Health Act came into force in Hastings, but not St Leonards.
Upper Lighthouse
From the Hastings News of 24/10/1851
The old lighthouse (the Upper Light) in Hill Street had been superseded by a new structure on the West Hill close to the Caves entrance.
Gant Maps
From the Hastings News of 12/12/1851
The first-ever large scale plans of the town were deposited at the Town Hall by council officer/surveyor Mr William J Gant; scale 1 inch to 44 ft. They were surveyed in order to implement the Public Health Act, and showed ...
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Completion of the Tunbridge Wells to Bopeep-Hastings railway line, by South Eastern Railway.
Hastings and St Leonards Rifle Corps was formed.
Sea Walls
From the Hastings News of 14/06/1852
Repairs of the sea wall were to be undertaken, as well as purchase of the Esplanade between the two towns of Hastings and St Leonards.
The Commissioners of Customs surrendered the lease of their condemned yard (for the boats of smugglers etc) under the East Cliff [the site of what is now the Fishermen’s Museum].
Gas Works
From the Hastings News of 22/10/1852
A new chimney was to be erected at the gas works.
Cliff Fall
From the Hastings News of 10/12/1852
Cliff fall at East Hill.
Christmas Dinner
From the Hastings News of 24/12/1852
Musgrave Brisco MP had given his tenants their annual dinner at his Coghurst Hall.
The Hastings Homeopathic Dispensary opened at 8 Hill Street.
Illicit Still
From the Hastings News of 31/12/1852
Inland Revenue officers seized an illicit still at Guestling
Hastings Background
From the Hastings Chronicle of 22/02/1853
The Chronicle published ‘Some Particulars of Hastings’ by William Durant Cooper FSA.
Carpenters on Strike
From the Hastings Chronicle of 01/03/1853
About 80 carpenters were on strike, seeking a wage rise from 4/- a day to 4/6. Over 40 had left the area, having “found work easily elsewhere at the higher rate”.
A trade body - the Operative Painters Association - was formed in the Royal Standard pub “to discuss and study the scientific principles inherent in the profession”. The 40 painters were seeking a 6d pay rise, to 4/6 per day, ...
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The annual Rock Fair took place in a field in St Michaels, White Rock, 26/7 July.
Sale of the Castledown Estate, next to the Castle, to a gentleman from the metropolis for his own residence. Did not reach the reserve price of £4,200 at auction.
“Building operations on a very large scale are contemplated on the Eversfield estate, the whole of which, comprising about 400 acres, is about to be laid out for terraces, detached villas, pleasure grounds, etc. The ground is to be let ...
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Halton House Fete
From the Hastings Chronicle of 16/08/1853
A fete was held at Halton House, Robertsons Hill (off Old London Road), by owner Patrick Robertson MP, with music, dancing and fireworks.
Fishponds Farm
From the Hastings Chronicle of 16/08/1853
Mr Isaac Arkcoll will retire from his business in a few weeks. He had occupied Fishponds Farm, Ecclesbourne Glen, for a great number of years. Mr Waters will succeed him.
A fete was held in the grounds of Hastings Lodge, Old London Road, by the owner, Frederick North.
New Gaol
From the Hastings Chronicle of 06/09/1853
A new Borough Gaol was to be erected, it was announced.
Gas Light
From the Hastings Chronicle of 01/11/1853
Notice of intention to apply for Act of Parliament for Hastings and St Leonards Gas Light and Coke Co.
Ninety Hastings Coastguards were sent to Portsmouth as part of the new crews of warships in the Baltic Fleet.
The first service was held at the new Fishermen’s Church [now the Fishermen's Museum], at Rock-a-Nore.
The Council approved the report of John Braithwaite CE on the drainage scheme, costing £16,627.
Frozen Sea
From the Hastings News of 23/02/1855
The sea was frozen at Hastings, out to 300-400 feet from the shore. Congers were floating on the water. The temperature was 15 degrees Fahrenheit.
The museum building of the Hastings Literary Institution was sold. The Hastings Mechanics Institute had hired a room at 62 George Street to the museum.
The song about Fairlight Glen, Music of the Stream, was published, with words by Arthur Ransom and music by George Lindridge.
New Gas Mains
From the Hastings News of 15/06/1855
New gas mains, larger than the old ones, were being laid by the gas company.
The Act legalising unstamped newspapers became law, prompting Mr TB Brett to turn his monthly Hastings and St Leonards Penny Press into the weekly Hastings and St Leonards Gazette, which he published for the next 40 years.
Bathing
From the Hastings News of 10/08/1855
A bye-law was to be made that no person should undress on the seashore or beach except in a bathing machine.
Roman coins were found by Mr John Howell's workmen building the west side of Warrior Square.
Crimean War: The fall of Sebastopol was celebrated with St Clements Church bell-ringing and cannon on the East Hill.
Submarine Forest
From the Hastings News of 28/09/1855
Exhibits from the submarine forest near Carlisle Parade were on view at the museum in George Street.
The Hastings and St Leonards Towns Improvement Association was founded.
Death of William Ransom snr, printer and proprietor of the Hastings and St Leonards News. His brother John took over production. William jnr was the editor, as he had been since the start in 1848. Based 42 George Street.
Surveyor Sacked
From the Hastings News of 28/01/1856
Mr Gant, Hastings Council’s town surveyor, was dismissed. John Laing was appointed in his place in March.
Bigger Gas Works
From the Hastings News of 22/02/1856
The Gas Company was to extend its works as demand was so great.
Murder of the Hastings gaoler, James Welland, aged c70. He was in service for 14 years. John Murdock, alias Joseph Willis, was executed at Lewes for the murder in August 1856.
Surveyor Missing
From the Hastings News of 02/05/1856
Mr Gant, the ex-town surveyor, was missing when police tried to serve a warrant on him to give up possession of certain plans in his possession. A week later, the News reported that Mr Gant had given back the plans ...
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Last Hastings Gaol
From the Hastings News of 30/05/1856
Hastings Gaol was to cease to be a gaol under the Gaol Act 1856. It was now to be only a lock-up. Some policemen were to be dismissed from the force by the Council’s Watch Committee.
Crimean War Ends
From the Hastings News of 06/06/1856
Peace celebrations in Hastings at the end of the Crimean War, with parades, fetes etc.
Excavations had taken place on the East Hill by T Ross, local secretary of the East Sussex Archaeological Society, and Mayor. The graves of 40 people had been found.
First Drains
From the Hastings News of 19/09/1856
The first stone of Hastings drainage was laid near the East Hill by the Mayor.
Death of William Guest, 84, a veteran of the Peninsular war, in Hastings Union Workhouse.
New Gasometer
From the Hastings News of 05/12/1856
A new gasometer came into use, capable of holding 150,000 cu ft of gas.
Excavations for drains in George Street revealed the remains of former fortification. A drawing was being made by town surveyor Mr Laing. A copper groat of Henry VIII was found nearby.
An electric telegraph line on the South Coast Railway was opened as far as Bopeep.
A small collier, en route from Newcastle to Falmouth, is wrecked in a gale on the rocks at Rock-a-Nore. Many people try to rescue the four crewmen, but the sea is too rough and the gale too strong. After an ...
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Gun on Display
From the Hastings News of 09/10/1857
A captured Russian gun was to be sent from Admiralty as a trophy of the Crimean War. It would be placed on the seafront, in Marine Parade.
Report of the newly formed Hastings Cottage Improvement Society.
RNLI Branch
From the Hastings News of 02/02/1858
The RNLI expressed a wish that a branch should be formed in Hastings, independent of the Royal Humane Society. This was agreed.
The new lifeboat was launched. It cost £300, had a crew of 13 and was called Victoria.
The first RNLI lifeboat arrived in Hastings on Easter Monday, the 5th. This followed the tragic loss of a collier on the rocks at Rock-a-Nore on 7 October 1857, when four men drowned. As a result, a local branch of ...
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Castle Finds
From the Hastings News of 09/04/1858
In an excavation for coins on the West Hill near the Castle under the superintendence of Frederick North MP, some coins and old bones were found.
Gas Injury
From the Hastings News of 07/05/1858
There was an explosion of gas at the house of Mr Ticehurst, the surgeon. A child employed in the house was burnt.
Hastings Council published an important new map of Hastings and St Leonards by the town surveyor, Mr Laing.
Hastings Police were to have new uniforms, with a frock coat replacing the ‘swallow tail’.
A group of local men willing to take up arms against the French was launched. The First Company of the Cinque Ports Rifles was formed in John Banks' schoolroom at a meeting organised by Hastings News owner William Ransom, Mr ...
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A local Volunteer Artillery Corps was to be formed, because of the imminent fears of war with France.
Strikes
From the Hastings News of 20/04/1860
Plasterers in Hastings were on strike for a 4 o'clock finish on Saturdays. Walkout by washerwomen.
Proposed Harbour
From the Hastings News of 04/05/1860
A harbour was proposed to be laid in Hastings, off the Castle. A bill was now before the Board of Trade on the question of levying tolls on vessels using the harbour. A public meeting was held on 31 August ...
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Fishing Disaster
From the Hastings Mail of 02/06/1860
Ten Hastings fishermen were lost at sea in a heavy gale. Seven drown at Shoreham, when the big lugger Endeavour was driven ashore. Another two died off Newhaven and one at Brighton. This was one of the worst-ever Hastings disasters. ...
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Builders on Strike
From the Hastings News of 27/07/1860
Masons working for Mr Howell on the new Holy Trinity Church in Robertson Street walked out when their employer refused to dismiss a man who was not a union member.
Postal Problem
From the Hastings News of 21/09/1860
Only one postal sorting office was now working in Hastings. There was a dispute with St Leonards over this.
Laundry women still trying to get shorter working hours walked through the streets in protest, with fife and drums
Drunks
From the Hastings News of 23/11/1860
All the magistrates' bench reports this week were of drunkenness - the News headline was ‘Liquor Madness’. Report on the dangers of drink.
Severe Winter
From the Hastings News of 18/01/1861
The severity of the winter had lead to much suffering of workmen thrown out of work. The men formed a marching band, appointed a committee and canvassed the town for help.
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