Designed & Maintained By Carol Gingell
© C.Gingell 2007 - all photographs, personal stories and written articles on this site are copyright and should not be reproduced anywhere else without the permission of the copyright owner and Broadland Memories.
The final photograph in the collection from Bill Cooper shows the River Ant in 1973.
The next collection of photographs were taken by John Chesney and date from the mid
to late 1970s. Sadly, John passed away in July 2010, but his wife Joyce sent me a
large collection of the wonderful photographs he had taken of Broadland over many
years of boating holidays. John and Joyce first visited the Broads in 1967 aboard
the wooden motor cruiser “Cumulus” from Johnsons yard at St. Olaves. A lifelong love
of Broadland began on that trip and, over the years, they revisited over 70 times
on various cruisers. John was a keen photographer who developed and printed all of
the photographs seen here himself, and the collection provides a wonderful record
of the Norfolk and Suffolk broads during this era.
Norwich Yacht Station, photographed from Foundry Bridge in October 1978 - even at
this time of year you can see that it was quite busy! On the left is the Norwich
Recorder Motor Company, a site which is now occupied by the Riverway Court development
of apartments.
Another view of Norwich yacht Station from the late 1970s, this time a little earlier
in the season, where the boats can be seen double moored up ahead.
The view from the moorings at Norwich Yacht Station, looking up towards Bishops Bridge,
also pictured in the late 1970s. In the foreground is G804 “San Remo 2” which was
hired from Johnsons of St. Olaves. “San Remo” was a Mk 2 Hampton Safari which went
on to become “Lochmore” with Moore & Co at Wroxham before being sold to a private
owner in the 1990s.
Heading upstream towards Foundry Bridge on the River Wensum - the Hotel Nelson, which
had opened in 1967, can be seen on the left. On the right, nearest the bridge, you
can see the vessel which was used by the Norwich Sea Scouts and, in the foreground
is the passenger boat “Regal Lady” which used to run river trips out of Norwich at
this time.
A view of the riverside area of Norwich which has changed dramatically in recent
years! Looking downstream towards Carrow Bridge, on the left was the engineering
works of Boulton & Paul and in the foreground on the right was Moys coal yard. In
the distance, on the right, you can see the buildings of R.J. Reads Flour Mill which
originally began life as the Albion Yarn Mill. Reads moved their business to the
site in the 1930s and large quantities of grain were regularly delivered by river.
Closing in 1993, the buildings spent the next ten years or so becoming ever more
derelict until the site was sold and work began in 2005 to redevelop the former mill
and surrounding land into the massive “Reads Mill” apartment complex which we see
here today.
Another view of R.J. Reads Flour Mills from the late 1970s. The Novi Sad swing bridge, which opened to pedestrians and cyclists in November 2001, now crosses the river at roughly the same point where the coaster “Siri Maria” can be seen moored above. You can compare the modern view with this one in the Norwich section of “Then & Now” photographs within the Broadland Memories archive.
Looking upstream from a similar location to the last photograph. The coaster “Bokanier”, seen on the left, was moored beside Moys coal depot with Boulton & Paul’s engineering works on the right. From humble beginnings as an ironmongery shop in Cockey Lane in Norwich which was set up by William Moore, Boulton & Paul went on to produce a vast range of products including agricultural implements and buildings, fencing, gates, electric generators, kitchen ranges, conservatories, glasshouses, sheds, garages and summerhouses, and a range of sectional buildings and bungalows, some of which can still be found around Broadland. The riverside works closed in 1986 and in the 1990s the site was cleared and the riverside retail park and the Wherry Road housing development were built in it’s place. Once again, a modern comparison photograph of this view can be found in the Then & Now section of the website.
A little further upstream, just beyond where the Novi Sad bridge now crosses the river, approaching the Ferry Boat Inn and ABC Wharf on the left, with Boulton & Paul’s seen once again on the right. The Dutch barge seen moored on the left was the “Gestetner”. Looking at this view today you would see the Wherry Road housing development on the right and, in the distance, the Lady Julian footbridge. This photograph also features in the Norwich section of the Then & Now pages of the website.
The John Chesney Collection
