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JOLLY SAVES THE DAY, Skegness Civic Society

Skegness Civic Society has just published a colouring and story book called “Jolly Saves the Day” to promote beach safety at Skegness.

The publishing of the book is linked to the opening of the Jolly Trail on Wednesday, 21 May and it will be made available as a printed book to those who complete the Jolly Trail and also be downloadable from the internet.
“Jolly Saves the Day” has just been published by Skegness Civic Society. The book, which is both a story and colouring book, was written by Steve Kirk, Chairman of Skegness Civic Society, to mark the opening of the “Jolly Trail” along Skegness’s seafront.
In the book Skegness’s iconic Jolly Fisherman saves two children who have drifted out to sea on an airbed. The book is intended to carry the message of beach safety to young children and adults alike in an entertaining and fun way.
Skegness Civic Society, with financial assistance from Regeneration Across Communities of Lincolnshire (RACoL), has printed five thousand copies of the book to be given away, together with a set of crayons, to children who complete the Jolly Trail.
To complete the Jolly Trail children must first obtain a free leaflet with questions at the beginning of the trail at the Tourist Information Office situated at the entrance to the Tower Gardens on Grand Parade. The children can find the answers to the questions as they follow the big yellow footprints that mark the trail. The footsteps take the children back to the Tourist Office – where they can claim their prize. The trail takes about an hour to complete.
As well as being given away as a prize the book will also be available as a free download from as many websites as possible.
The Jolly Trail was first envisaged by Steve Kirk three years ago and, after much persuasion, taken up by Lincolnshire Tourism, Lincolnshire County Council, East Lindsey District Council and Skegness Town Council. The Jolly Trail will be officially launched on Wednesday, 21 May at 11.00 am at the Tower Gardens, Skegness.
Steve Kirk, Chairman of Skegness Civic Society, said:
“For such a small book I have been surprised how much work it has entailed. The “Drier Side of Britain” is renowned for it’s beautiful golden beaches. With the hot sunny weather we are having who could blame anybody for taking a dip in the sea. However if this book helps to dissuade just one person from taking their inflatable into the sea with them it will all have been well worth it.”
And on the subject of the Jolly Trail he said, “I can’t believe it’s finally going to happen. After over three years of planning I believe it will be a big success and another tourist attraction for the town. I must say a huge heartfelt thank you to the officers of Lincolnshire County Council, East Lindsey District Council and Skegness Town Council for making my dream a reality.
Further information may be obtained from: Mr Steve Kirk, Chairman of Skegness Civic Society, 105 Beresford Avenue, SKEGNESS PE25 3JL Tel: 01754 766258 Email: steve@skegnesstown.com

(click the picture above to download ‘Jolly Saves the Day’ in pdf 4.63Mg- note: you will need Acrobat Reader to download the pdf file)

news story date 24th June 2006

Today saw the grand opening of the Royal Renaissance Hotel, noe renamed the Royal Hotel, in Skegness. The £1.8 million project to completely renovate the former, tired looking Seacroft Hotel on South Parade, was undertaken by the Bola Family, T.K Bola, his brother Raj and sister Pam Kaur. A family member said that it was aptly named ‘Renaissance’ because the word means ‘rebirth’.

The hotel was officially opened by the Earl of Scarbrourgh, whose ancestor by the same title pioneered the building of Skegness as a seaside resort in the nineteenth century.

Guests to the Grand Opening of the Royal Renaissance included the Mayor and Mayoress of Skegness, the Town Clerk, Town Councillors, including the former Mayor of Skegness, Coun Brian O’Connor, members of the local clergy and the local authoress, Margaret Dickinson.

Guests were greeted in the reception hall by the Jolly Fisherman, the mascot of Skegness.

The VIPs gathered for the official opening, (L to R) Coun Mark Anderson, Jolly Fisherman, Margaret Dickinson, an East Lindsay District Council Representative, Henrietta, the Earl’s partner, the Earl of Scarborough, Mayor and Mayoress of Skegness. Mrs Crawshaw and Town Clerk, Alan Crawshaw.

The Earl of Scarbrough declared the Royal Renaissance Hotel officially open…

…and hundreds of balloons were released, almost swamping the VIPs…

momenteraly blotting out the sky…

…to finally drift off over the rooftops of the hotel.

The Earl of Scarbrough congratulated the Bola Family and wished them well in their venture.

The interior designer of the new Royal Renaissance hotel was presented with a bouquet of flowers by the Earl.

below: local authoress, Margaret Dickinson with the Earl of Scarbrough.

The Grand Opening was a huge success.
The Royal Renaissance has breath-taking views of the sea and beach, and has been refurbished to a luxurious, but certainly affordable, standard as seen in the photos below:
top left- the reception desk; top right- one of the dining rooms; bottom left- looking down a corridor; bottom right- the luxuriously painted renaissance style ceiling in the reception lobby.

The Royal Renaissance has a stretched limo and (below) two Tuk-Tuks, which have been specially shipped in from India.
The vehicles are to be used to transport the hotel’s guests.

Raj Bola, one of the hotel’s owners is pictured in the Tuk-Tuk.

The hotel also caters for special functions including weddings, gay weddings, wedding fayres, fashion shows or conferences.

Wedding, functions, events, public relations photographer Paul Gooch 07801540866

The Royal Hotel may have been plushly decorated fit for a King, but check out the prices at the hotel’s website - they are definitely not ‘Princely’
Visit the Royal Hotel Website

SKEGNESS AND ITS LANDOWNERS

Skegness is mentioned in a Charter granted by Richard I (Richard the Lion Heart, pictured left) in the tenth year of his reign (1199) to the Abbey of Revesby, by which he confirmed to them their possessions in Skegness. Without giving details of the land owned, which is somewhat uninteresting to the general reader, a list of subsequent landowners should prove interesting:

Walter de Marescall (Henry III), Simon de Kyle, Robert de Tateshall, John de Orreby (1316), Sir Robert du Wylughby and Margaret his wife, Roger de Somerville (1338), Philip de Somerville (1355) Prior and Convent of Bolington, John Newdigate (sixteenth century), William Smyth, D.LL. (Brazen Noze College, Oxford), Michael Arragebyn (1523), Lionel Quadring, Thos. Lyytlebury (1546), Chas. Duke of Suffolk.

Nicholas Saunderson, Viscount Castleton, held at his decease in 1641 the advowson of the Church of Skegness, tenure not known. The family of Saunderson was descended from Alexander de Bedick, alias Saunderson of Washington, in the Bishopric of Durham, who lived at the time of Edward 111. His son James married Margaret, daughter of William Wilton, alias Saunderson, and had a son, Alexander, who assumed the surname of Saunderson. By Maria his wife, daughter of John Filton, he had a son Robert, who married Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Stavely, of Stanhope. A descendant of these was Robert Saunderson, Bishop of Lincoln.

A later descendant of one branch of the family was Sir William Saunderson, who wrote the history of Mary, Queen of Scots, King James and Charles I. His brother Nicholas married Frances, daughter of Sir George Manners, of Haddon, and had issue Nicholas (who at the time of taking the above inquisition was upwards of fourteen years of age, and was then styled Nicholas Saunderson, Baronet, Lord Saunderson, Baron of Bautne and Viscount Castleton), Peregrine, George, Mildred, Grana, Rutland and Francis. To each of his daughters he left £3000.

The property in this neighbourhood came into his possession as heir to his mother, the daughter, as above noted, of John Hiltoft Mildred, the eldest daughter, married Thomas Belayse, Viscount Fauconberg, and died without issue.
Nicholas, his successor, died prematurely, and Peregrine, his next brother, in all probability died before him, as George, the third brother, succeeded to his titles. By Grace, his wife, he was father to four sons. The youngest, James, succeeded to the dignity and estates, and in 1714 he was created Baron Saunderson of Saxby, and in 1716 he was raised to the dignity of Viscount Castleton of Sandbeck, and in 1720 to that of Earl Castleton, in the county of York. He died in 1723 without male issue, when the said honours became extinct.

His great estate he devised to his cousin Thomas Lumley, Earl of Scarbrough, by Frances, daughter of Henry Belayse, with whose descendants it still continues.

Source: A Topographical and Historical Account of Wainfleet and the Wapentake of Candleshoe in the County of Lincoln by Edmund Oldfield, 1829.

Flash back to the horse era
THIS photograph of Mr John Wells, 13 Richmond Drive, Skegness, was taken 25 years ago. He is seen delivering parcels for the railway company with a horse and dray. A few days afterwards lorries were introduced for the task.
When Mr. Wells first started the horse and cart delivery for Hydes and Son of Skegness, he had to cover the whole of the town on his own. Later his task became lighter when he worked with three agents.
Now aged 78, Mr Wells passes his time by doing a certain amount of jobbing gardening. This month sees the 25th anniversary of the replacement vehicles.

Unfortunately, I haven’t got an exact reference date for this news story, so if anyone can help please leave a comment. However, I have found John Wells on the 1901 census for Skegness, living in Mayfield Villas on Wainfleet Road, with his father, aged 57, working in the Gravel Pits, and mother, Maria. John (in the photo) is aged 21 on the 1901 census, so from the clues we have, we can date the news article to 1958. Therefore we can deduce that the picture was actually taken around 1933, which it seems is the year that the horse and cart was ousted by the railway in Skegness, in favour of delivery lorries.

If you require more research into John Wells’ family history, or any other Skegness families, please ask.

Skegness herald 1901

DEATH OF A CHILD by POISONING

An inquest was held at the Vine Hotel on Tuesday last by Dr. Walker, of Spilsby, coroner for the district, on the body of Sarah Jane Toyne, three years of age, who resided with her parents at Croft Marsh, and who died from irritant poisoning. It appeared from the evidence that the deceased and a younger sister had eaten some mutton which had laeen in the house Borne days and smelt very strong. They were soon after this taken ill, and Dr. Wallace sent for.

The younger of the two recovered, but the other died in great pain. The jury returned a verdict to the effect that the deceased died from inflamation of the bowels caused by irritant poisoning, but that there was not sufficient evidence to show how the poisoning was caused.

Mr. S. G. Randall was foreman of the jury.