Newsletter: Issue 6 (16th July 2018)
New Booklet: ‘A Bellow of Criers’
Thank you to those who attended the talk by Hastings’ Town Crier, Jon Bartholomew, at the Museum on Sunday 8 July. As expected, Jon’s talk was very entertaining. The event was put on to raise funds for supporting the National Town Criers Championship, which is held in ‘Hastings Week’ every year. This year, H & St. L Society is providing prize money for the event.
To further the fundraising, we have produced a booklet about the Town Crier Tradition in Hastings. This includes information about the long line of Hastings town criers and the history of the National Town Criers Championship, which has been held in Hastings and St. Leonards since 1952. Titled ‘A Bellow of Criers’, the booklet costs £4 and is available at the Tourist Information Centre and Hastings Museum.
Coach trip to Lullingstone Castle
There is a Society coach trip to Lullingstone Castle and World Garden, with the option to also visit the Roman Villa (English Heritage site), on Friday 21 September. Cost for seat on the coach is £15, plus £1 booking fee for non-members). Pay on the gate for admission to Lullingstone Castle/World Garden (£9 full; £7.50 senior citizen), and Roman Villa (£7.90 full, £7.10 over 60s, free to EH members). Pick ups at Ore Village, Hastings seafront (boating lake and Pelham Place), Warrior Square, Silverhill and Battle. All welcome, but number limited to 28 persons. To book e-mail: hstlsoc@gmail.com
Heritage Open Days
Our Heritage Open Days for this year have now been registered on the national HODs website. These free events are:
Emmanuel Church Open Days, with rolling slide-show, on Saturdays 8 and 15 September, 10 am – 2 pm. (Refreshments available for donations)
Hastings Town Hall, guided tour with Kevin Boorman on Sunday 9 September, 10.30 am.
St. Mary-in-the-Castle, guided tour with expert BrionPurdey, on Thursday 6 September, 2 pm.
Hastings Town Centre, guided heritage walk, Friday 14 September, 10am.
We are endeavouring to add other events to the HODs programme.
In Bloom
We are pleased that Hastings Borough Council has an entry in the RHS ‘In Bloom’ competition this year. The Town hasn’t been involved with the prestigious competition for several years. The judging is in August. H & St. Society has encouraged HBC to improve floral displays to make the town more attractive to visitors, and also more enjoyable for residents. We may not win this year, but further improvements will be forthcoming in future years, with the support of the Business Improvement District management for the town centre.
The Castle Down (area) ‘It’s Your Neighbourhood Group’ (RHS affiliated community group) has been working towards improving the appearance of their conservation area. A wild flower border below Castledown Terrace was a splendid attraction in early summer.
Local Heritage Information Board
With the support of HBC, Hastings & St. Leonards Society has installed a Local Heritage information board at Castle Down. This has been fixed to the wall bordering the green space below Castledown Terrace, on the walk up Castle Hill Road towards the castle.
The board is providing visitors with added interest as they make their way up to the castle or to the Smugglers’ Caves over the West Hill. It has been agreed with HBC that further Local Heritage information boards will be installed as resources become available. We are now working on one for Pelham Crescent.
Next Open Meeting
It is intended to hold our next Open Meeting in September. This meeting will be devoted to a discussion of the proposal for an application for UNESCO World Heritage Site status for Hastings. It is hoped that organisations concerned with local heritage will be represented at this meeting, and individuals interested in the proposal are also welcome to attend and contribute to the discussion. We will endeavour to set a date when the majority can attend. This will be circulated as an e-bulletin in due course.
H & St. L Society Committee
