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POPULATION. Out of season, 10,000.
AREA. 6 square miles (approx.).
ASPECT. South Eastward to the Sea.
SUNSHINE, 1934. 1,578 hours.
RAINFALL, 1934. 19 inches.
CLIMATE. Dry, sunny, equable temperature.
NUMBER OF HOUSES. 3,360.
RATEABLE VALUE. £IO2,256.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT. U.D. Council.
RATES, 1934-35. 11/8 in the C.

GAS.Town owned. The 1934 charges were based on a sliding scale at 3/9 per 1,000 ft. for consumption of 10,000 ft. per quarter. 3/7 for 20,000, 3/5 down to 2/9 per 1,000.

ELECTRICITY.
The Mid-Lincolnshire Electrical Supply Co., Ltd. Tariff—FLAT RATE Lighting per unit 6d.
Lighting, for less than 104 units per year 7d.
COOKING 1d.
HEATING 1d.
WATER HEATING - 6/10ths of Id.
TWO PART Based on floor area of houses, plus 1d.

WATER.
Town owned. ABBUNDANT SUPPLY OF SOFT PURE water from well bores at Welton (10 miles from Skegness). Analysis reports show ONLY 5 DEGREES OF HARDNESS.

MUNICIPAL OFFICES. The Town Hall, Roman Bank.

POST OFFICES.
Head Office—Roman Bank.
Town Sub-Offices—Seathorne, Burgh Road, Drummond Road, Lumley Road, Sea View Road, Sandbeck Avenue.

BANKS.
Barclays, Lumley Road. Branch, Drummond Road.
Lloyds, Lumley Road. Branch, Drummond Road.
Midland, Lumley Road.
National Provincial, Lumley Road.

LIBRARIES.
Free Library, Town Hall.
Subsciptions etc., Libraries—Avery’s, Boots,’ Dutton’s, Smith & Son’s, etc.

SCHOOLS.
SKEGNESS GRAMMAR SCHOOL (Boys and Girls) Talbot Road. Headmaster, Mr. K. G. Spendlove, M.A. (Oxon.).
ORIENT BOYS’ COLLEGE. Boarding and Day School. Sea front position (Morrie Mead, Seacroft). All subjects. For prospectus and particulars apply to the Principal.
ELEMENTARY EDUCATION. (1) Lindsey County Council New Senior School (Pelham Road). Headmaster Mr. H. Bamber. (2) Lindsey County Council Junior School ( Cavendish Road). Headmistress, Miss Scrimshire.
INGLEWOOD PREPARATORY SCHOOL. The Misses Sweeten. A home school for children from 4 to 11 years— Special individual attention given to delicate and backward children. All the usual subjects, including drill, games, and kindergarten work.
SEACROFT SCHOOL. First-class Preparatory School. For particulars, apply Mr. W. E. Dyson.
SEACROFT GIRLS’ SCHOOL (under the London Board of Education). For prospectus, apply Principal.
THE COMMERCIAL SCHOOL FOR BOYS AND GIRLS. Principal, Mr. J. R. Shepherd Terms on application.
TENNYSON COLLEGE, SKEGNESS. Day School. For Girls all ages. Kindergarten for Boys. Apply Principals.

CLUBS and SOCIETIES.
“Avenue”, Non-political, Lumley Avenue.
“Tennyson”, Non-political, Drummond Road.
Seacroft Golf Club. North Shore Golf Club.
Rotary Club, Lumley Hotel on Tuesdays at 1-0.
Skegness Miniature Golf Club.
Skegness Swimming Club.
Skegness Amateur Dramatic Society. Skegness Players Society.
Skegness Amateur Operatic Society. Piazza Badminton Club.
Skegness Wheelers Club.
Skegness Bowling Club.
Skegness Cricket and Lawn Tennis Club. Skegness Rugby Football Club.
Skegness United Football Club.
Skegness Blue Rovers Football Club.
Skegness Hockey Club.
Skegness Angling Club.
St. John Ambulance Brigade.
British Red Cross Society.

WINTER ENTERTAINMENTS AND PASTIMES.
Golf, Putting Greens, Badminton, Horse Riding, Hunting with the South Wold, Skegness Beagles,
The Sun Castle and Orchestra.
Twice nightly performances at the Central, Parade and Tower Cinemas (including Sundays).
Frequent plays and entertainments at the Arcadia Theatre.
Whist and Bridge Drives weekly.
The Pier is open throughout the year.
For information required relating to any of the above clubs or organisations, please write to the Publicity Manager, Town Hall, Skegness.

FOOTBALL.
Grimsby Town is a 1st Division team, and excursions are run fortnightly throughout the winter for their home matches.

Source: Skegness Herald 1888

The Skegness Herald printed transcripts of the monthly Local Board meeting and from these it is possible to piece together part of the history of Skegness.

The following is a transcript from a Local Board discussion about the piece of land, and the lamp and fountain, in front of the Lumley Hotel near the railway station in Skegness. The  fountain discussed now stands in the Fairy Dell, formerly in the Marine Gardens where the Embasy Theatre now stands. The picture below shows the fountain outside the Lumley Hotel.

The lamp which is discussed in the article is shown in the photo below:

Leather Hill

In the newspaper article, Mr Charles Houghton reveals that the piece of land used to be known as “Leather Hill”, and used to be the village green. He also reveals that a sign post once stood on this portion of land. The picture below (1860)  shows the sign post, looking down High Street.

The Open Space in front of Lumley Hotel

Mr Rowley asked what the Board intended doing with the open space near the railway station where the lamp and fountain recently stood.
The Chairman remarked that they had no record of the lamps etc being mad over to the town
Mr Clarke said they were made over to the parish.
Mr Rowley remarked that the lamp which had been removed stood on parish property.
The Surveyor said he had asked Mr Wingate, the late Surveyor, and he had informed him that that piece of land was Lord Scarbrough’s.
Mr C Houghton said part of it was parish property.
Mr Wardle said that he had heard it said that a market cross stood there at one time.
Mr C Houghton said there used to be a three cornered pice of land there called “Leather Hill” and a guide post stood on it.
The Chairman (to Mr Houghton): Do you say that the guide post stood where the fountain recently stood?
Mr Houghton said all the fountain did not stand on what was known as the “village green” it was partly on the old road.
Mr Clarke said it was misleading to place the lamp and fountain there and get people to build around it and then take it away again. If it was parish property he could not have done so.
Mr Houghton said that a part of the fountain stood on parish property.
Mr Wardle thought it was a great pity that it was taken away, but the question was whether it was worth while to bother about it now it was gone.
It was ultimately decided that as complaints had been made by the ratepayers as to the removal of the fountain and lamp the question be further considered at the special meeting on Monday next.

Source: Skegness Herald 1895

Skegness Land Becomes Freehold

The land in this town has up to this time been let for building purposes on 90 years lease, but we understand arrangements have just now been completed for selling out the freehold after the houses are built - and it can now be obtained upon very advantageous terms.
This will, no doubt, induce builders to secure land at once and erect some houses, which are very much needed…in Skegness.

Source: Skegness Herald 22nd January 1897

Thirty-three Years in a Workhouse

John Neal, son of Mrs Neal residing in High Street, Skegness, and who is now dangerously ill, died on Sunday last, at the age of 58 years, in the Spilsby Union Workhouse, in which institution he has spent thirty-three years of his life in consequence of a serious affliction.
The mortal remains of the deceased were taken here and interred in the Skegness Churchyard [St Clement’s] yesterday.
Neal, we understand, was the first man who introduced donkeys into Skegness and the first to use them on the sands.
The first donkey he had was a black one and which died about seven years ago at a good age.
It was purchased of the deceased before he went into the workhouse by Mr Parker, of Burgh, in whose possession it remained until the animal’s death.

We decided to find out more about John Neal the first donkey man in Skegness.

John was born in Skegness in 1844 to Enos Neal and wife Mary. The parents can be found on the 1841 census with John’s elder brother, Henry, living in Great Hale, Lincolnshire. Enos was an agricultural labourer. The family moved to the Parish Houses on High Street, Skegness just before John was born.

The family continued to live at the same house for a long time. But looking at the 1861 census, John, now aged 17, was classed as an ‘idiot’ (look at the extreme right-hand column of the image below). There was no mention of employment for John.

We are told in the news article that John was institutionalized in 1864 and he appears on the 1871, 1881 and 1891 censuses in Spilsby Union Workhouse. John did not marry.

So, we can draw no evidence from the censuses of John or the family ever operating a donkey on Skegness beach. We shall have to take the word of the Skegness Herald newspaper.

But if John did, and he was the pioneer of the, to this day, ever popular Donkey Rides on Skegness Beach, then maybe he wasn’t such an ‘idiot’ after all!

Source: Skegness Herald 1887

Not many people will know that there was once a tramway on Skegness beach.

The horse-drawn trams idea, which was a private enterprise, solved the problem of the soft sands being difficult to walk upon, especially by the Victorian ladies.

The tramway didn’t last that long, as it seems sand blew onto the tracks and eventually caused more problems than it solved.

We are indebted to 80 year-old, Mr Mike Richards of Skegness for providing this photograph of the tramway.

enlarged image

The ‘old ship on the sand’ referred to in the article is of course the Whale Ship Eliza.

Tramway on Skegness Beach

A tramway is being constructed on the beach by Messers. Rowley and Storr, and when completed it will afford great accommodation to visitors desirous of having a walk on our beautiful sands, which are several hundred yards from the parades.
This intermediate space consists of soft sands, which is very difficult to walk on, and which is usually, during the season, occupied with shows, swings, merry-go-rounds, Aunt Sallies etc.
Complaints have frequently been heard from visitors during the past two or three years of the difficult approach to the sea, and various suggestions have been made as to best means of providing a remedy for the same.
One of these, made to the Local Board some months ago, was the forming a wooden footpath from the Parade, opposite Lumley Road, to the highest elevation on the beach near the old ship on the sands, but the subject was not entertained by the Board.
We are glad, however, to state that private speculators have come to the rescue, in the persons of Messers. Rowley and Storr, who are now providing the accommodation so greatly needed, and which we hope, and have no doubt, will prove remunerative to them.
They are now constructing a tramway from the parade, directly opposite Lumley Road, over the soft sands, and at a distance of about five hundred yards to the sea.
The work is being rapidly proceeded with and will be completed by Good Friday, on which day it is intended to be opened for traffic.
The tramway will consist, the greater part of the distance, of two lines of rails, which are being laid on sleepers on a level with the sands.
The gauge will be 2ft 6in and four cars are being specially constructed, and each of which will carry twenty-one persons.
One of these cars will be constructed in such a manner that sedan chairs and perambulators can easily be conveyed in it.
The cars will be drawn by horses.
The starting point will be at the left hand corner of the North Parade, and here a platform about 60ft long and 22ft wide is being constructed.
The platform, which is a few feet below the level of the parades, will be approached by a slight incline, and will be enclosed with ornamental railing.
The tramway will run along by the side of the new Marine Gardens for a distance of about 50 yards.
At the entrance to the platform, adjacent to the parades, will be a turnstyle and ornamental ticket office.
It is expected that the charge will be one penny for the single, and three-half-pence for the double journey.
Passengers entering the car at the sea end, or anywhere on the homeward journey, will pay their fares at the turn-style near the parade.
We trust that this accommodation which is being provided for visitors will be greatly appreciated, and patronizes, by them.

This letter to the Editor of the Skegness Herald was published in the newspaper in response to the new tramway:

The Tramway on the Sands

Sir - I am very pleased to see the great improvements that have taken place in Skegness since my visit here last year, more particularly in regard to the tramway, which is a grat boon to the public and supplies a long-felt want.
Great credit is due to the promoters of the same.
For some years past great difficulty has been experienced, especially by ladies, in traversing the intervening soft sand, and many complaints have from time to time been made in respect of the difficulty in getting to the beautiful sands at the water’s edge, and which are firm and clean.
Yours truly
H R Shepherd