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Week Commencing 25/2/08: Page 2

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Background 

Recently, Mike Bune posed the question 'What was on the site of the Ten-Pin Bowling Alley before it was built'?

The area between the Harbour and Beach Walk is a fascinating piece of Whitstable with quite a history of its own and Mike's message has finally prompted me to pull together a permanent article on the subject. As always, we will create it in stages using all the information contributed by our readers over the years.

The first step is to set out the material and then ask our readers to comment and enhance it. The paragraphs below represent a first draft. It is all a bit rough at the moment and there are things we don't yet know. Hopefully, we can refine it as comments arrive.

So, here we go.... on another Simply Whitstable escapade... 

The Bowling Alley Site....

The Scene Today....

We start by examining the area today. The following aerial picture was kindly supplied by Peter Dalrymple and I have added a few labels....

Photo by Peter Dalrymple

It  is very much a scene of piecemeal development containing a disparate collection of utilitarian architecture. Nevertheless, by default rather than design,  a common leisure theme has developed... albeit somewhat slowly and via a roller coaster ride. 

We can study this journey and start to make a few links with other articles on the web site.

From the 13th Century....

We start back in the time of King Edward I... by drawing on Brian Smith's article 'The History of Whitstable Shoreline since 1287' (Click here to view).. Brian's work is fundamental to so many things that we do on SW and this won't be the last time that we draw upon it in order to explain modern features.

Brian points out that the area was the estuary of the Gorrell Stream which flowed into the sea at Long Beach. The blue line plots the approximate course of the brook on Peter Dalrymple's modern day photo below....

Photo by Peter Dalrymple

Of course, nowadays, the waterway has been redirected into a reservoir below the Gorrell Tank car park.

In the 13th century, the stream was surrounded by little more than floodable swampland. As things progressed, it may have served some functions in the local copperas industry as Brian points out that the lower reaches (from Tower parade to the sea) gained the name 'Grand Copperas Dyke'.

One of the key words in Brian's description is 'floodable'. This is a stark reminder that Whitstable's urban progress has always hinged very much on sea defence work. In the year 1290, the Long Beach area received the protection of a sea wall - one that followed the approximate line of the modern day promenade. However, it is doubtful that this led to much in the way of residential development in that locality. It seems that it was more a case of using the land for a salt industry that supplemented the better known and more celebrated salt works to the west of Whitstable. Here, I would also draw attention to another of Brian's articles - Whitstable Windmills. This discussess the site of an old mill in the vicinity of the current day east quay of the harbour. As Brian points out, this may well have been used to raise seawater for the salt pans. (Click here to view the article and take a look at the text relating to Windmill No.8).  

In 1703, the sea wall of 1290 was washed away between Reeves Beach and current day Beach Walk. In1779, a new wall (Jurdan's Inset Wall) was constructed further inland... along the line of modern day Tower Parade and Harbour Street (upper section). In fact, that may be the reason that there IS an upper section of Harbour Street!

The arrival of Jurdan's Wall meant that the old wall was finally abandoned to the sea... along with 20 acres of land. That 20 acres must have included our bowling alley site. The old sea wall was later reinstated and that may have happened as early as 1780 when a wall called Commisioners Sea Wall was built. However, the line of Commissioners wall is a little uncertain.

It seems logical that sea defences gave the area its curious 'basin' shape.... with the Ten Pin Bowling Alley sitting in a shallow depression between the sea defences of Long Beach and the raised pathway of Tower Parade

Harbour and Railway

The next big impact on our Bowling Alley Site came in the mid 19th century when the harbour (1832) and Canterbury and Whitstable Railway Line (May 1830) were opened.

The railway line provided an important link to the City of Canterbury (particularly for imports of coal) ) and much of the land between the harbour and Beach Walk was eventually devoted to railway sidings. Not only did these provide storage for rail stock, they also served some trade related industries. For example, a coking plant occupied the angle of Long Beach and the East Quay from 1847 to 1892 (see Doug West's book The Second Portrait of a Seaside Town, page 12). By the end of the 19th century, the swampland of 1287 was beginning to look very 'developed'.....  

Drafting Note: This map needs considerable amendment!

The railway also carried passengers and that opened up yet more commercial opportunities. The rail link had established our town not only as the port of Canterbury but also the local leisure beach of its citizens.... and they started to arrive in significant numbers... with their cossies and parasoles! 

At various stages, three stations were constructed. Two were within the harbour boundary. The first of these was sited on the South Quay and the other built near the level crossing at the harbour's east gate. The one most remembered by Natives was the third. This appeared just south of the level crossing on the current day location of the Health Centre car park.

Beach users arriving at the harbour station followed a natural path to the beach via Tower Parade and Beach Walk. These thoroughfares became ideal spots for relieving them of their cash as they made their way to Tankerton Slopes.  Meanwhile, the beach itself was occupied by tea booths, changing cubilces and ramps for boat trips. It was all so 'very Whitstable' with leisure activities sited so close to industrial areas. 

(Note: For more specific information on the Canterbury & Whitstable Railway Line, take a look at Brian Smith's latest article by clicking here)

To the 1920s/Early 1930s....

The resort aspects continued into the twentieth century and Beach Walk had some substantial buildings facing the sea.... in the form of the Beulah Hotel (later the site of the The Hotel Continental), the Marine Cafe and The Savoy. The latter was certainly a restaurant and it may also have been a hotel. (Drafting Note: If anyone can provide details of the Savoy history, please drop us an email).

As the area moved towards and into the 1920s, the west side of Beach Walk gained a ramshackle line of wooden structures that accommodated shops, cafes and amusements.Stories told to me by my mother suggest that leisure facilities and fairground amusements may also have been wedged behind these  arcades - close to the railway sidings (ie the location shown by the large question mark on the map above). However, I need confirmation from our readers on that! 

Although, we are short on photographic evidence, we can explore some aspects by way of handful of my old family snaps. 

The one on the right is taken on Long Beach looking towards the foothills of Tankerton. The old swingboats can be seen on the left in front of the Beach Walk roadway. I would date this as late 1920s... possibly!

The shot below also features Long Beach... probably around the late 1920s/early 1930s. In many ways, it encapsulates Whitstable with Natives enjoying the beach but against a dour background of industry and makeshift cafes..

It is interesting to note that Beach Walk tried to keep pace with the times. The photo on the right shows the Beulah - probably in the mid-1920s. A Victorian/Edwardian balcony provides a stout frontage. The building to the right is the Marine Cafe... with its curious pointed embellishment on the roof.

Sometime during the late 1920s or early 1930s, the Beulah was replaced with a more extensive hotel building and more minimalist fascia. Art Deco had arrived in town! 

It seems quite possible that the change coincided with the arrival of the new name - 'The Hotel Continental'. The new establishment incorporated the Marine Cafe building which became the hotel bar.

The Continental retains that look and the Art Deco description to this day.

 Late 1930s ...

With the North Kent rail track providing a direct link from London to Ramsgate and the bright lights of Thanet calling, the area began to feel the pinch. Furthermore, in 1930, the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway ceased to carry passengers. It did remain open for goods traffic, of course.  

Mind you, one group of Whitstable Natives did gain from the loss of rail passengers.... because the Second Whitstable Sea Scouts inherited the old railway station to the south of the level crossing and it became their HQ...

 
Photo kindly supplied by Jock Harnett

At the moment, I am not sure when the unit took up residence. It may have been during the 1930s... or possibly immediately after the war. (The photo above is almost certainly post war)

It is almost impossible to talk about the Long Beach area without mentioning the Sea Scouts as the shingle was the launch site for their boats. The Sea Scout photo below helps us out again and, this time, we are fairly sure that it was taken as they marched along the promenade in the mid-to-late1930s.....

Photo kindly supplied by Jock Harnett

There are a number of points to note here.

The shot was taken looking east towards Beach Walk. The swingboats are still in evidence on the shingle but all that remains of the seafront tea booths are the concrete foundations upon which that young spectator is standing. Even more significant is the fact that there is a clear view of properties on the east side of the Beach Walk roadway. That ramshackle collection of Victorian/Edwardian arcades had obviously been cleared.

(Note: for more information about the Second Whitstable Sea Scouts of bygone days, click here)

Aftermath of War - 1945 to 1953...

After World War II, the area attempted to re-establish itself an attraction for holidaymakers. The swingboats returned to the beaches.. as did the mobile ramps for boat trips. Horse rides were available on the grass area edging the promenade and there was even a fortune tellers hut! 

Furthermore, two new amusement arcades filled the gap left by the demolition of the old wooden structures. These were single tier, whitewashed buildings and, (viewed from Tower parade), they looked something like the rough sketch below...

The smaller Jimmy's Arcade was sited on Tower Parade (to the left of the sketch). The larger establishment (on the right) was called Jacques and it occupied almost the entire western side of the Beach Walk roadway.

Some of the railway sidings remained and I recall railway trucks peeping over the concrete wall that extended along Tower Parade from Jimmy's arcade to the harbour's east gate.

However, things were never quite the same as the vibrant 1920s and the area to the rear of the arcades remained waste ground covered in cinders. In the centre was a concrete pool with raised sides - possibly a children's paddling facility but we will discuss this in more detail in a moment.

The cinders were put to good use by the Whitstable Wasps dirt track racing team during the late 1940s and early 1950s. The team's activities were nicely described by  Barry Tilley in a recent entry in the Visitors Book..... 

The area's fortunes nosedived even further when the town was hit by two depressing events. In 1952, the Canterbury and Whitstable railway line closed to all traffic. The following year, the area suffered amidst the massive sea flood of 1953. The water lapped the raised pathway of Tower Parade and swirled behind the shops to submerge the lower sections of Station, Westmeads and Reservoir Roads. Effectively, the swamplands of 1287 had been re-established by nature.

The railway line re-opened briefly to bring aid to the town during the tragedy but, when normality returned, the harbour lands were sold to the Whitstable Urban District Council and the rail tracks ripped up. This included the rails of the sidings between the harbour and Beach Walk. 

I have a feeling that the swingboats were never re-instated at Beach Walk after the floods..

Late 1950's and Early 1960s....

By the late 1950s, the whole area was in serious decline and this can be seen in this aerial photo sent us some time ago by Tony Stroud...

 
Photo kindly forwarded by Tony Stroud

In some ways, the shot shows the low point for the Beach Walk area. Let's label a few things before the discussion.....

As you can see, the area is divided by a wall (marked in blue text). This separates the working areas  of the harbour  from both the Tower Parade roadway and the former leisure areas bordering Beach Walk.

All the rail tracks have disappeared and, with the exception of the gravel works, the harbour lands look in a poor state. This includes the derelict Harbour House. 

Between the harbour land and Beach Walk, the old leisure areas are also a scene of devastation. The cinder area is derelict and the raised edges of the concrete pool contain no more than rubbish and rainwater. That pool remains something of a mystery. I was always led to believe that it was a facility for children's toy boats. Pam Steward has suggested that it was a paddling pool. A recent message from Dave Jordan outlined an even more fascinating theory - ie that it was an unsuccessful attempt at salt production. If that was so, it was an attempt to re-create an industry from Whitstable's dim and distant past. Perhaps, one of our readers can adjudicate!

The Long Beach shingle retained some of its appeal throughout the 1950s and, as you can see from the photo, beach huts still lined the fringes. 

Despite all these problems, the land bordering Tower Parade and the Beach Walk roadway remained reasonably in tact but Jacques and Jimmy's arcades became increasingly reliant on local rather than holiday trade. Thanks to a photo kindly supplied by Vicky Quinney, we can take a look at Jacques of the 1960s....

Photo kindly supplied by Vicky Quinney

The photo is taken from the sea wall looking along Beach Walk towards Tower Parade. The conical shaped building guarded the entrance to the cinder wastelands at the rear. I remember it operating as an Ice Cream kiosk for a short period but, mostly, it had its shutters well and truly closed during the late1950s/early 1960s.

Viable businesses existed on the western edge of Beach Walk. The building on the left is the Beach Cafe and, just beyond that, is Dadd's seaside gift shop. There was still a variety of successful shops on Tower Parade. The one with the substantial wooden balcony was a popular newsagents.

However, despite the reasonably smart look of Beach Walk, holiday businesses were making way for more practical ventures. Thus, while the Savoy Restaurant retained much of its original appearance, it was now the base for Rybar Laboratories. We can take a peek at this thanks to some more fascinating photos from Vicky Quinney....

   
Photo kindly supplied by Vicky Quinney

As you can see, the name Savoy still appeared high on the masonry and the only real evidence of its change of use was contained on that small plaque alongside the main door. However, the interior was now very different...

Photo kindly supplied by Vicky Quinney

I am sure that many of our readers will recall that Rybars was run by Mr Barnes...

Mr. Barnes of Rybar Laboratories
Photo kindly supplied by Vicky Quinney

Mid 1960s.

The first major steps to regenerate the leisure areas came in the mid 1960s. The concrete wall was removed along Tower Parade and Harbour Garage and the AMF ten pin bowling alley were constructed. The garage and bowling centre forecourt occupied a thin strip of land that formerly supported a railway siding. 

It was curious that such a small backwater as Whitstable should have something as modern and grand as Ten Pin Bowling. However, there may have been a hidden agenda. The AMF company had a factory at South Street and it was rumoured that the Whitstable bowling centre was partly intended as a showroom for potential customers.

The bowling centre extended seaward across the old cinder areas. The photo below is another from Vicky's lovely collection.....

Photo kindly supplied by Vicky Quinney

It was taken from Beach walk and it shows the rectangular bowling alley peeping from behind Jacques Arcade. 

In some ways, the bowling alley helped rather than competed with Jacques and Jimmy's arcades. In effect, it helped to create Whitstable's Golden 150 yards! Another factor that played a part was the advent of the Swinging Sixties. All three establishments had juke boxes and youngsters flipped between the various establishments.

The arrival of the new buildings allowed the derelict cinder area to be tidied up somewhat. The old 'paddling pool' was removed and the remaining vacant land served as car park. 

Photo kindly supplied by Vicky Quinney

This shot was taken from the upper floor of the Rybar Laboratory and it shows that, despite the new buildings, the boundary between leisure and harbour activities was retained by virtue of that substantial fencing. It also shows some of the changes taking place around the harbour. In the top right hand corner, you can see the large warehouse of Daniels Bros. By now, the east quay had completed its sprat fishing phase and was now receiving sizeable vessels such as the Luminence and Resurgence - mainly exploiting the sea links to Esbjerg. (For details of sprat fishing, take a look at John Harman's article and more of Tony Stroud's photos by clicking here).

The Bretts gravel tower is located top left - close to the harbour's east gate. In the centre, there are two substantial warehouses. As yet, I am unsure of their function. The reason for my confusion is that this section of the site progressed fairly rapidly through a couple of phases. Initially, it became a fish canning factory but it was soon replaced by a Cash 'n Carry warehouse called Massmart. Massmart was seen as a life line to some local corner shops. As many will recall,  the town was now starting to embrace its first supermarkets - Fine Fare (on the site of the old Regal Cinema in the High Street) and, later, Tesco (at the old Horsebridge Assembly Rooms).

Whilst the beach still accommodated beach huts in Vicky's photo, it was destined to become a bit of 'no go' area. One  factor that may have played a part concerned the rules imposed by the local authority. After assuming responsibility for the harbour, the Whitstable Urban District Council closed quayside areas to the public. As a result, the Long Beach promenade became something of a  cul-de-sac that walkers tended to avoid. 

Between the beach huts and the canning factory, a substantial hut can be seen. This is the 'new' hall of the Second Whitstable Sea Scouts. During the late 1950s/early 1960s they were removed from the old railway station amidst proposals fro re-development. The wooden structure was built by the staff and older scouts. It remains to this day.

Decline and Redevelopment.... The Late 1960s Onward

After the vibrant years of those Swinging 60s, further decline occurred but gradually this was offset by redevelopment partly brought about by Whitstable's re-emergence as a chic tourist destination during the 1990s.

Let's revisit Peter Dalrymple's modern day photo ....

Photo by Peter Dalrymple

We can now catalogue some of the more recent changes...

• As holidaymakers and day trippers lost interest in Long Beach, the shingle was increasingly eyed up as a safe location for a variety of watersports. Initially, it was water skiers but later came windsurfers and others.
   

• Jacques Arcade finally succumbed to progress but it was eventually replaced by the Waterfront Club (which provides a base for watersports) and the shop of Whitstable Windsurfing.
   

• Jimmy's arcade also fell by the wayside and, whilst there has been talk of the land being used for apartments, it remains an open space.
   

• Initially, The Hotel Continental ceased to trade as a hotel and, for a period, operated as a licensed bar under the name 'Harbour Lights'. With Whitstable's tourist trade experiencing an upturn during the 1990s, it has been reinstated as a hotel by the Whitstable Oyster Fishery Company and retains the art deco style that it gained in the early 1930s.
   

• The Savoy no longer provides a home for Rybar laboratories and it has rejoined the leisure industry as the Savoy Snooker Club
   

• The ten pin bowling alley has survived. However, it did feel the pinch when the sport temporarily lost its popularity  and a number of large bowling centres closed around the UK. At one stage, ownership was transferred to Humber Bowl but it is now back under the AMF title. How did it survive the bad times? Well, one reason might be that, with much of the town's leisure facilities disappearing, it remained one of the few sources of entertainment. Another possibility is that it was a relatively small enterprise with just 10 lanes and therefore more likely to remain viable during a fall in demand.
   

• Harbour Garage remains but its function has changed a little. With Tesco and Sainsbury supermarket chains opening petrol stations on the Old Thanet Way, the enterprise switched to the role of a car showroom and has the local franchise for Kia. I believe it is now the only Whitstable garage with a major franchise.
   

• The boundaries of Whitstable's leisure industry have been extended as the harbour's working areas have contracted. The wall between the two has long since disappeared and the site of the old canning factory now plays host to the Oyster Indoor Bowls Centre. Bretts gravel works has been moved from the harbour's east gate to a site closer to the beach. This has enabled car parks to be constructed in the heart of the leisure facilities and a new roadway to be inserted. This thoroughfare creeps along the side of the bowls centre and provides access to the western end of Long Beach.
   

• A much needed town swimming pool has been added close to the beach and this has finally obliterated the old cinder wastelands of the 1950s.
   

• There are proposals for a regional Sea Scouts Centre close to the units current wooden hall. However, the plans appear to have been delayed amidst flood and sea defence issues.
   

Thus, the area has made a belated return to its roots in the leisure trade. However, as I have pointed out, it is now littered with utilitarian buildings devoid of any common architectural theme. Could it have been different if architects and town planners had been let loose back in the 1950s. Well, quite possibly! However, I doubt that the old Whitstable Urban District Council had the financial clout to make it happen.

Thus, we have ended up with something that some might argue is typical Whitstable... a hotch potch of unco-ordinated development in which leisure and industry are never far apart! 

However, with plans put forward for a yacht marina for Long Beach and Canterbury City Council providing a lukewarm response, I doubt that we have experienced the last of the controversy.

It's a case of watch this space!  
  

Thanks and Next Steps....

In putting together this first draft I would like to extend thanks to Brian Smith, Peter Dalrymple, Tony Stroud, Barry Tilley, Jock Harnett, Pam Steward, Dave Jordan.... and everyone who has contributed to discussions in the Visitors Book. 

It's a bit rough and ready at the moment as time has been limited. There may even be some errors or misconceptions that need to be ironed out. However, I am sure we can collect a great deal more information and smarten it up in the next few weeks.

So, it's over to our readers for comment, corrections and further contributions. In the meantime, I will try to create some more impressive plans and diagrams!

Reaction to Article...

Christopher Roberts has written to add more information regarding the shops on Tower Parade. In doing so, I am sure that he will bring back more memories for our readers...

Thanks, Christopher. I have also added your message to the Visitors Book and included a reply there.

Comments...

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