Cromer Museum

14/10/2026

SATURDAY 17 OCTOBER
A Day Conference on the fossils of Norfolk, the Cromer Forest-bed and the search for Doggerland. Dr Neil Adams and Professor Adrian Lister of the Natural History Museum, Alfie Bower of Queen Mary's College, and Dr James Walker of Bradford University.

***This event is now fully booked BUT you can access the Youtube stream on Saturday 10am-1pm & 2pm-4pm via
www.youtube.com/

13/10/2026

Mounted photograph of the East Beach, looking East, on the cliff top in the distance are both light houses, to the extreme right is North Lodge and the Old Coastguard Station, on the promenade is Beach House, on the beach are boats and a bathing machine and the horse and cart used to carry stones. 1866.

12/10/2026

Black and white photograph of Cromer taken from the air, post 1963

11/10/2026

Black and white print taken from a RAF helicopter by Frank Muirhead showing Cromer's Tucker Street and north face of the church on the 29th November 1981.

10/10/2026

Crowd of people outside church October 18th, 1906 for the wedding of Benjamin Bond Cabbell's daughter, Miss Beatrice Evermar Bond Cabbell to the Reverend Humphrey Gordon Barclay of Hanworth Hall.

09/10/2026

Last week we asked you who this character might be. Our volunteer, Jane Crossen, has written an update for you all...

"Contrary to popular belief, it is NOT Billy Bunter. He IS called Billy: he’s the Hon Billy and features in one of this country’s most popular Victorian weekly publications. That illustration is likely to be by the artist who took over illustrating the publication in 1885. And his Hon Billy looked nothing like Billy’s appearance in earlier editions - that’s because previous illustrations were the work of different artists and consequently he looked completely different.

Billy Bunter didn’t appear in print until 20 years later - in The Magnet (and then book form) and, similar to the Hon Billy, at that stage, he looked nothing like the iconic image he was to become (same thing – Billy Bunter was originally drawn by different artists). In 1911 C H Chapman took over the pencil and Billy Bunter’s image was completely transformed. Chapman continued to work on brand Bunter for a staggering 50 years.

So where did Chapman get his inspiration for the new Billy Bunter image? Could it have been the Hon Billy? Here’s the thing - Chapman briefly worked on the same publication – in 1908. Coincidence? As your responses show, he clearly looks like Billy Bunter. Did Chapman use the earlier manifestation of a different Billy to represent HIS version of the new, iconic, instantly-recognisable Billy Bunter?"

Watch this space for a blog post taking a deeper dive …

Whilst researching the Empress of Austria’s (aka, Sisi) trip to Cromer in 1887, our volunteer, Jane Crossen, found this image of someone sitting on Cromer beach.

Does anyone think he looks like the character from a book? If so, who? (Hint: you’d have to be of a certain age to recognise him!)

08/10/2026

Black and white photograph of the lifeboat, William Henry and Mary King approaching the East Beach, in heavy seas in October 1964.
This was the last lifeboat to be operated from the beach station which closed on 22.6.1967, the William Henry and Mary King came on station on 4.10.1964

07/10/2026

A view from the front doors of the museum!
Post Office, Church Street, from a collection of images held by the North Norfolk District Council taken between 1963-76.
A few features have changed but essentially the businesses remain the same.

06/10/2026

Bike shops seems to be few and far between these days, but Cromer has had several over the years. Where did you buy your bike from in Cromer? Here are just a few from the archives.

First image is A.A Beck Cycle Stores, Church street ( year unknown).
Second image is of Mr William J. Miller outside his cycle shop in Clifford House in the 1890s.
Third image is of Cromer Fire Brigade at a fire at Gee's Cycle Shop, Bond Street c1925.

05/10/2026

Watercolour by Dr Colvin-Smith of the wreck of the 'Fernebo' on the East Beach at Cromer, 1921.

On 9 January 1917, the Swedish cargo ship SS Fernebo was making its way from Gävle, Sweden, to London carrying a cargo of timber when disaster struck off Cromer.

Just off Cromer Pier, a huge explosion tore the vessel in two, killing the chief engineer. The exact cause of the explosion remains uncertain, it was reported as a German sea mine, although a boiler explosion has also been suggested.

The remaining 17 crew members were left in two sections of the wreck. Six men managed to drift toward the shore, where local onlookers formed a human chain to help bring them ashore. The other 11 men remained stranded at sea. Conditions were becoming increasingly dangerous, with a powerful north easterly gale producing heavy seas.

The Cromer lifeboat, Louisa Heartwell had only just returned from another rescue when coxswain, Henry Blogg ordered the crew back out to sea. The lifeboat had to be launched three times before eventually reaching the wreck and rescuing the remaining 11 crew. Blogg was awarded the RNLI Gold Medal and his second coxswain the Silver Medal. The rescue became one of Norfolk's most celebrated lifeboat rescues.

Sadly, the body of chief engineer (Johan Adolf Anderson) was later washed ashore at Mundesley, where he was buried.

Part of the Fernebo still remains on Cromer's east beach. Around 20 metres of the wreck lays beneath the sand, occasionally revealed by exceptionally low tides and coastal erosion. The remains were notably exposed in June 2018 and January 2020.

Over a century later, the Fernebo remains a fascinating reminder of Cromer's maritime history and the courage of the town's lifeboat crews and local people.