WELCOME TO THE HOLT OWL TRAIL

Designed to take you on a tour of our historic Georgian town

JOIN THE TRAIL ANYWHERE!To assist you on your way, just find any of the 24 numbered pavement plaques

and follow the direction of the owl

Follow the trail online atwww.holtowltrail.co.uk

INTRODUCTIONFOLLOW THE OWLThe main Holt Owl Trail can be completed comfortably in 45 minutes and is suitable for all ages.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO START THE TRAIL AT PLAQUE 1?

The first plaque can be found at Feathers Hotel Yard which is where the High Street meets the Market Place.

The Holt Owl Trail Guide contains some interesting anecdotes and things to look out for along the route.

There are a number of ‘looped trails’ that lead off the main Holt Owl Trail which you will find detailed in this Guide.

Extra time will be needed to complete the ‘looped trails’ which will reveal some of Holt’s hidden secrets. All are certainly worth discovering, either by separate visits or by incorporating them into your trail tour today.

All the ‘Yards of Holt’ can be discovered in the ‘looped trails’.

The Holt Owl Trail derives its name from an ancient legend when some local men caught an owl and put it in the Town Pound for “safe-keeping”, whereupon the owl flew away.

CONTENTS

Holt Owl Trail Map 2Plaque 1: Feathers Yard 4Plaque 2: Feathers Hotel 5Plaque 3: Millennium Clock 6Plaque 4: War Memorial 7Plaque 5: Old Railway Yard 8Plaque 6: Old School House 9Plaque 7: Church Street 10Plaque 8: Nelson House 11Plaque 9: Star Plain 12Plaque 10: Hanworth House 13Plaque 11: Old Bull Inn 14Plaque 12: Lees Yard 15Plaque 13: Hopper’s Yard 16Plaque 14: Franklyns Yard 17Plaque 15: Chapel Yard 18Plaque 16: Old Post Office 19Plaque 17: Shirehall Plain 20Plaque 18: High Street 21Plaque 19: Town Sign 22Plaque 20: Lion Yard 23Plaque 21: Jacobs Place 24Plaque 22: Stone Lion 26Plaque 23: Appleyard 27Plaque 24: The Manor House 28

The orientation of the owl featuring on each plaque points towards the direction of the next plaque. All 24 pavement plaques are numbered too!

1

HIGH ST

OB

ELISK

PLAIN

MARKET PLACE

WH

ITE

LIO

N S

T

SHIREHALL PLAIN

NE

W ST

ALBERT ST

BULL ST

CROMER RD

STATION

RD

CHURCH ST

FISH HILL

HOLT OWL TRAIL MAP

2 3

Hopper’s Yard

Franklyns Yard

Chapel Yard

Old Post Office

Shirehall Plain

High Street

Town Sign

Lion Yard

Jacobs Place

Stone Lion

Appleyard

The Manor House

Feathers Yard

Feathers Hotel

Millennium Clock

War Memorial

Old Railway Yard

Old School House

Church Street

Nelson House

Star Plain

Hanworth House

Old Bull Inn

Lees Yard

Holt Owl Trail

Looped Trails

THE HIGH STREET MEETS THE MARKET PLACE. . .

From Plaque 1 there is a looped trail that takes you through ‘Feathers Yard’ eventually leading to Holt’s largest car park at Budgens supermarket.

It was here that the original site of the livestock market once stood, hence Holt being previously referred to as “A Market Town”. This busy pedestrian thoroughfare once echoed to the sight, sound and smell of animals being brought to market.

Today, retail developments can be found, firstly “Old Stable Yard” and then “The Market Place” where the conversion of existing buildings have been intermixed with sympathetically designed new properties.

The Holt Owl Trail will unveil a number of Yards that feature throughout the town as popular shopping destinations.

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PLAQUE 1 FEATHERS

YARD

PLAQUE 2 FEATHERS

HOTEL

A FORMER COACHING INN.. .During the 19th Century the ‘Regulator’ coach used to depart from the Feathers Hotel, three times a week, for the fourteen-hour journey to London.

The Feathers Hotel is a Grade II Listed Building and the rendered and colour washed façade was once richly decorated with ornate lettering.

The Hotel has been a hospitable meeting place since 1650. The three-feathered Coat of Arms of the Prince of Wales once hung above the main entrance.

The view across Holt’s Market Place remains relatively unchanged and has been depicted in paintings by many artists.

As you leave Plaque 2 glance at the gable end of the C.T. Baker building to see the date 1631 incorporated in the brickwork.

LINKING TWO BUSINESSES TOGETHER. . .

Erected and unveiled in the year 2000 this clock symbolises the merger of two of Holt’s biggest retail businesses.

In 1977 the famous ironmongery and builders’ merchant C. T. Baker Limited purchased the premises next door, trading as Larner Brothers Ltd, a highly specialist grocery and fine wine retailer. Bakers and Larners is now the largest retailer and employer in Holt town centre. Their premises at No 8 Market Place were built in 1631 and a 2000 square feet wine cellar lies beneath the Larners building.

Where the Trail continues on the South side of the town centre there are many fine examples of Grade II Listed Georgian buildings that line the opposite side of the Market Place. A desirable feature of Georgian architecture and town planning was to ensure symmetry, proportion and balance. Simple mathematical ratios were applied to determine the height of a window in relation to its width.

THE HEART OF THE MARKET PLACE. . .

The War Memorial was designed and built to commemorate the names of the fallen in the 1914 - 1918 Great War and the 1939 - 1945 World War. It was unveiled on 29th May 1921.

The Grade II Listed memorial is a Clipsham stone cross which is on a large seven-tier square base and square plinth. The cross is decorative and has a carved trefoil between the arms of the cross linking them. Amongst the four shields centrally placed on the tapered column is one featuring three stars and an ermine chevron commemorating those from Gresham’s School who were killed on active service.

An inscription was subsequently added for 19-year old Private Edward Farrow of the Royal Norfolk Regiment who died in the Korean War in 1952. The most recent inscription is the name of Simon Ware, a Lance Corporal in the Coldstream Guards who was killed in 1991 while serving in South Armagh, Northern Ireland.

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PLAQUE 3 MILLENNIUM

CLOCK

PLAQUE 4WAR

MEMORIAL

ONCE THERE WERE ELEVEN PUBLIC HOUSES IN HOLT. . .

The Railway Tavern was the latest public house to close in Holt. It now houses the EACH charity shop (East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices) which was opened by HRH The Duchess of Cambridge on 18th March 2016.

The highly popular horse-drawn ‘Holt Flyer’ operated from Old Railway Yard from 1991 to 2004 bringing passengers into Holt from the North Norfolk Railway terminus at High Kelling.

Today, during the holiday season, a London Routemaster bus meets the steam and vintage diesel trains that run along the ‘Poppy Line’. Travelling through some of North Norfolk’s most outstanding countryside the line connects with the seaside resort of Sheringham via the beautifully preserved railway station at Weybourne.

Please take care when crossing Station Road to Plaque 6.

THE FACE OF GRESHAM’S SCHOOL. . .

The imposing doorway that can now be seen on the South gable once stood centrally on the front façade of Old School House. The entire doorway was moved brick-by-brick to its current rather ill-fitting location.

The two shields above the door are replicas of the original heraldic shields of the school’s founder, Sir John Gresham, and The Fishmongers Company of London. The school’s Charter was granted in 1555.

Old School House forms the backcloth to Holt’s historic Market Place and remains as a fitting reminder of the important link between ‘Town & Gown’.

On Christmas Day 1650, the Rev. Thomas Cooper, a former usher of Gresham’s School was hanged in front of the school-house for his part in a Royalist rebellion.

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PLAQUE 5 OLD RAILWAY

YARD

PLAQUE 6OLD SCHOOL

HOUSE

THE PARISH CHURCH OF ST. ANDREW THE APOSTLE. . .

A looped trail leads from Plaque 7 into Church Street which terminates at St. Andrew’s Church. The Parish Church has occupied this site for over 700 years. On 1st May 1708 the Great Fire of Holt quickly spread to the church, completely destroying the steeple, thatched chancel and melting the lead on the roof.

A plaque in the Church lists the names of seven crew members killed in a mid-air collision on 19th August 1968 when two Royal Air Force jet aircraft collided immediately above the town at 14,500 feet.

Holt Library in Church Street was converted from former stable buildings constructed of traditional close-laid small flints of matching size, an attractive style that can also be found in other areas of the town.

Please take care when crossing Church Street to Plaque 8.

LINKS WITH ADMIRAL LORD NELSON.. .

The County of Norfolk’s strong association with Admiral Lord Nelson can also be found in Holt.

The naming of “Nelson House” resulted from its former ownership by relatives of Nelson and he is reputed to have stayed here as a boy.

One of Holt’s iconic buildings, the strongly colour washed 18th Century house is Grade II Listed. The steep pantiled roof boasts two gabled dormers with casements, a fine entrance porch and modillion eaves.

Most of the medieval town was destroyed in the Great Fire of Holt in 1708 and its rebuilding was made possible from £11,000 donated from all over the country. Today the town is particularly notable for its fine Georgian buildings.

Please take care when crossing White Lion Street to Plaque 9.

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PLAQUE 7CHURCHSTREET

PLAQUE 8NELSON HOUSE

CLOSE TO THE SEAT OF THE GREAT FIRE OF HOLT. . .

The open square of ‘Star Plain’ is often confused with ‘Fish Hill’ which leads towards the Market Place. The name dates from medieval times when fish was sold from market stalls.

A grapevine motif can be seen above the entrance door of the mock-Tudor former Star Inn, previously called ‘The Dolphin’.

The White Lion Coaching Inn stands within close proximity to Star Plain. Built in 1713 it continued to trade until 1996. The highly ornate wrought-iron bracket and hanging pub sign remains on the corner.

The two adjoining properties, ‘Old Town’ and ‘Chester House’, conceal the site of Holt Steam Laundry, a major employer with extensive factory premises that used to operate behind Bull Street.

Please take care when crossing Bull Street to Plaque 10.

A FINE DWELLING HOUSE WITH A DISTINGUISHING PLAQUE...

‘Hanworth House’ is one of the finest examples of Georgian architecture in Holt. The impressive Grade II Listed three-storey property would have originally been a dwelling house and the date of 1744 is visible in the brickwork on the east-facing gable.

The classical principles of Georgian design are evident by the symmetry of fenestration, flat rubbed arches with key stones, red brick quoins and a steeply pitched roof with black-glazed pantiles.

The centrally placed doorway has moulded brick surrounds and pilasters and fixed immediately above the canopy is a lead Fire Insurance Plaque bearing the emblem of the Norwich Union Insurance Company.

Fire plaques were used as identification marks in the eighteenth and nineteenth century as a guide to the insurance company’s fire brigade in the days before municipal fire services were formed.

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PLAQUE 9STAR PLAIN

PLAQUE 10HANWORTH

HOUSE

DISAPPEARING LANDMARK CHANGES HOLT’S SKYLINE. . .

Dominating the skyline at a height of 56 feet (17 metres) a brick-built water tower holding more than 150,000 gallons of water stood at the head of Bull Street on Shirehall Plain.

The town’s water was pumped to the water tower from Spout Hills situated to the west of Holt. When the tower was demolished in the mid 1950’s, the central position of ‘The Bull’ was considered an ideal choice to rename the street... but within a few years the public house closed!

The Owl Trail continues towards the Shirehall where it was thought that the large stone block at the left-hand side of the entrance was a ‘mounting block’. However, the relatively recent restoration of the Shirehall revealed the possibility of it being a foundation stone matching the size of the remaining stone and supporting post which is visible inside the building today.

ONE OF HOLT’S EARLY ENTREPRENEURS. . .

A looped trail leads into Lees Yard. The narrow entrance opens into a courtyard where wine and spirit merchant Alfred Lee built his wholesale warehouse complex in 1896.

The largest warehouse is in excess of 100 feet long and would have represented a significant investment. The cast iron circular plates from the tie-bars along the façade are embossed with the name ‘Baker-Holt’.

In order to leave his mark on the building, Alfred Lee had a series of stone plaques inserted at eye-level bearing engraved initials. One plaque is dedicated to himself, one for his wife Amelia May Lee and another is believed to have been for his brother, William Cooper Lee.

Lees Yard was sold in 1971 and the warehouses were converted into commercial units. Picturecraft, the first art gallery to open in Holt town centre, was established here in 1972.

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PLAQUE 11OLD BULL

INN

PLAQUE 12LEESYARD

UNLOCKING HOLT’S HIDDEN PAST. . .

There are many retail Yards to discover in the town centre and ‘Hopper’s Yard’ is one of the most recent additions.

Purchased in 2010 as a derelict site comprising an old coaching inn and ale house with numerous outbuildings, an extensive programme of restoration took place. Intermixing the sensitive conversion of existing buildings with newer additions a complex of small commercial units has been achieved. Some of the earliest buildings date back to 1715.

Adjacent is the former ‘Paul Pry’ public house which was the home of the late Arthur Hopper who was renowned in the town for his meticulously maintained ‘secret garden’. The garden has been retained and now features a vintage tea room.

The ‘Paul Pry’ was named after the title character in an immensely successful comedy of 1825 whose catch-phrase was “I hope I don’t intrude”.

HOLT’S NEWEST RETAIL DEVELOPMENT. . .

The Holt Owl Trail now turns off Bull Street and leads through Franklyns Yard to a recently completed complex of shops overlooking the Albert Street Car Park. Three dry wells and a cellar were discovered when the building work took place.

The deeds of the property revealed that ‘Franklyns Yard’ was formerly named ‘Hulls Yard’, names that may have originated from tenants living in rows of small cottages that were demolished in order to construct the car park. Early aerial photographs reveal extensive allotments and smallholdings once occupying land behind the cottages.

The remaining cottages have been restored into a complex of retail units found in Chapel Yard today. A 16th Century fireplace was uncovered during the building work.

Please take care as Plaque 15 is situated at the entrance of the Albert Street Car Park.

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PLAQUE 13HOPPER’S

YARD

PLAQUE 14FRANKLYNS

YARD

A LABYRINTH OF SURPRISES. . .Plaque 15 is located at the gable-ended façade of a former Primitive Methodist chapel which over the years has seen many changes including use as a Fire Station. This building reflects the naming of ‘Chapel Yard’ which makes an interesting ‘looped trail’ from the Holt Owl Trail.

Opposite the entrance to the car park is The Methodist Memorial Garden which was opened to the public on 23rd April 1992. To celebrate its 50th Anniversary in 2015, The Holt Society launched an appeal to purchase a commemorative slate depicting wording from Holt’s entry in the Domesday Book of 1086. The slate was unveiled in the Memorial Garden by Holt Methodist Minister, the Rev. Jenny Pathmarajah. The carved lettering on the slate is by Norfolk sculptor Teucer Wilson.

As you leave Chapel Yard the charming ‘Bluestone Row’ terrace of cottages built from small pebblestones can be seen.

The Holt Owl Trail now leads in the direction of the town centre.

INTRIGUING STONE CARVING ABOVE THE DOOR.. .

The previous use of No. 7 Shirehall Plain as a post office was only recently established when this 1930 photograph was found.

Charles William Jex, a dominant character in Holt devoted himself to finding work for local unemployed people and set up and managed Holt’s first Labour Exchange here after the Post Office was relocated to 1 Cromer Road.

Of particular note is the detailed oak leaf carving on the key-stone above the entrance door.

The building attached to The Shirehall was the Free Methodist Manse from 1896 to 1926 which replaced the ‘Black Boys’ public house. Little more than a lean-to building, it belonged to the Cozens-Hardy family’s brewery.

Please take care when crossing to Plaque 17 on Shirehall Plain.

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PLAQUE 15CHAPEL

YARD

PLAQUE 16OLD POST

OFFICE

A TRIANGULAR PLAIN SURROUNDED BY HISTORY. . .

‘Shirehall Plain’ is named after the historic Shirehall building standing prominently in the centre which is an 18th Century rebuild of the medieval Corn Hall. The first floor of the Shirehall was used as a magistrates’ court until the 1970’s.

The notice board erected on Shirehall Plain was installed in 2008 to commemorate the 300th Anniversary of The Great Fire of Holt which destroyed most of the medieval town in a matter of three hours.

The beautifully restored ‘Byfords’ building is believed to be the oldest house in Holt and is known to have survived the Great Fire. The restoration generated significant media interest including visits from HRH The Prince of Wales. When the rendering was removed from the facade, two small stone mullioned windows were found with leaded glass still intact.

Please take care when continuing towards High Street.

NORTH NORFOLK’S FINEST SHOPPING DESTINATION.. .

The views from Plaque 18 afford a fascinating glimpse of Holt in both directions of the High Street and Market Place and comparisons with early photographs reveal very little has changed to the town’s general layout and appearance.

The town of Holt is one of the finest independent retail centres in East Anglia. Its close proximity to the stunningly beautiful North Norfolk Coast and Countryside makes it the perfect location for a wonderful day out and an ideal base to stay. The majority of the 200 shops and business services in Holt are independently owned and the sense of pride within its close knit community is a constant attraction to visitors.

A week-long ‘Holt Festival’ takes place each year where poets, dancers, musicians, actors, artists and comedians perform at venues all over the town as well as at the Auden Theatre and open-air Theatre in the Woods at Gresham’s School.

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PLAQUE 17SHIREHALL

PLAIN

PLAQUE 18HIGH

STREET

THE LEGEND OF THE HOLT OWL. . .

The legend associated with the Holt Owl can be found inscribed on the brass plaque attached to the bottom of the Town Sign.

The name ‘Holt’ derives from the Anglo-Saxon word for ‘wood’.

The town would have been a natural place for a settlement as Holt is located at a high level on the Cromer-Holt ridge at a point where two ancient byways crossed.

The town is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 and described as a market town benefitting from its port at Cley-next-the-Sea. It was recorded as a viable, thriving settlement with five watermills and twelve plough teams.

Please take care when crossing New Street to Plaque 20.

THE NARROWEST PART OF THE HIGH STREET. . .

The complex of buildings that can be found in Lion Yard were once used by Alfred Lee as a bottling plant for non-alcoholic drinks. As a leading entrepreneur in Holt, he provided accommodation for some of his employees. A residential property, ‘Lees Terrace’ in New Street, still bears his name today.

It is difficult to imagine that vehicles travelling along the A148 King’s Lynn to Cromer road once passed through the middle of our historic Georgian Town. Today the traffic is diverted along the Holt By-Pass following the route of the old track bed of the Midland & Great Northern Joint Railway.

The M&GN Railway was often fondly referred to ‘Muddle and Go Nowhere’ and fell victim to the cuts imposed by Dr Beeching, the infamous ‘axe-man’ responsible for the closure of thousands of miles of railways in the 1960’s and 1970’s.

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PLAQUE 19TOWN SIGN

PLAQUE 20LION YARD

ONCE HOME TO HOLT’S MEDICAL SURGERIES. . .

From Jacobs Place a ‘looped trail’ continues towards ‘Obelisk Plain’ where two of Holt’s most interesting landmarks are located, both bearing their own stories.

The pineapple-topped Obelisk is one of a pair of gateposts relocated from Melton Constable Park, the other was given to the town of East Dereham in 1757. Each stone panel bears the distance in miles to various locations in Norfolk, calculated correctly when the gatepost originally stood at the entrance to Melton Constable Hall and the reason why the mileages are not at all accurate from Holt. At the start of World War II the townsfolk of East Dereham decided to dump their obelisk down a well so as not to assist the enemy in the event of an invasion. The four panels on Holt’s obelisk were simply white washed over!

The Queen Victoria Golden Jubilee Lantern was erected in 1887 and originally stood in the centre of the Market Place.

In 1921 the Lantern was moved to Obelisk Plain in order to make way for Holt’s War Memorial. The light was powered by the town’s rather unreliable gas supply proving so erratic that the light was more ‘off-than-on’, earning it the nickname of ‘Blind Sam’. The copper lantern housing mysteriously disappeared which prompted a restoration scheme in the 1990’s where an exact replica was built using the original design drawings.

The High Street terminates where it reaches the A148 King’s Lynn to Cromer road but dominating this busy ‘T’ junction is the United Methodist Chapel, designed by Thomas Jekyll of Norwich, and considered to be one of the finest examples of Victorian church architecture in the UK. Built in 1863 for the then huge sum of £2,000 the turreted spire was originally designed to accommodate a clock, but the high building costs meant the circular brickwork panels remain empty.

Please take great care if you visit Holt Methodist Church or the nearby Spout Hills Common signposted from Obelisk Plain. The Holt Owl Trail now crosses the High Street to Plaque 22.

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PLAQUE 21JACOBSPLACE

PLAQUE 21JACOBSPLACE

A NEW RESTING PLACE AT GROUND LEVEL. . .

The stone lion statue now lying at ground level once graced the top of the façade of ‘Lion House’ supported by two stone brackets immediately beneath the parapet. During a programme of building work the excessive weight of the lion was considered too great for the statue to remain at such a high level.

The property occupied by Nicholsons bears a strong ecclesiastical appearance but the premises were built as a shop in 1871 by John Ainger, a coach maker. His wife trained a parrot to call “shop” every time the door opened.

The display windows are worthy of note for their finely carved floral embellishments clustered around the window frames. Note the lion heads cast on the metal posts standing either side of the vehicular entrance leading to the rear of the property.

A ‘LOOPED TRAIL’ TO A COURTYARD OF SHOPS. . .

Appleyard is a relatively new shopping area that has developed since 1994. The Yard was named after the original apple tree that has been carefully preserved in the middle of the site.

Appleyard was finally completed in July 2005 when Norfolk actor and writer Stephen Fry opened the final stage of the development.

A Millennium Commemorative Sign erected in Appleyard by The Holt Society examines the name ‘Holt’ and lists other places sharing the name ‘Holt’ throughout Britain and around the world.

Continuing along the Holt Owl Trail and in the heart of the town is ‘The King’s Head’, originally called ‘The Duke’s Head’. It is one of the last remaining public houses in Holt today. There is an unusual working sash bay window on the facade.

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PLAQUE 22STONE LION

PLAQUE 23APPLEYARD

YOU HAVE NOW COMPLETED THE HOLT OWL TRAIL!

FINE HOUSES FOR THE GENTRY. . .

Three stone steps lead to the front door of the Manor House, a substantial and aesthetically balanced three-storey property with red brick frontage and five matching sash-windows to the first floor with three lead-lined dormer windows above. During the 1939-45 War, The Manor House was used as a Civil Defence Control.

The first Lord of the Manor of Holt was Walter Giffard, a great Norman landowner and cousin of William the Conqueror. He was rewarded for his services at the battle of Hastings with over a hundred manors, including Holt, scattered throughout England. On his death in 1085, his son, also Walter and later Earl of Buckingham, inherited his father’s lands and is thus the Walter referred to in Holt’s entry in the Domesday Book (1086). Holt’s market, dating from these times, remained a feature of community life for 900 years.

THE HOLT OWL TRAIL LOGO.. .

The logo for the Holt Owl Trail was designed and kindly gifted to the project by Robert Gillmor MBE, founding member and past secretary, chairman and president of The Society of Wildlife Artists (SWLA).

The 24 pavement plaques were installed in Holt town centre in December 2017 as a project associated with Holt Town Council, Holt Chamber of Trade and the Holt Society.

The Holt Owl Trail committee wish to record their appreciation to the many businesses, organisations and private individuals who supported the project with grants and private funding.

Follow the trail online at www.holtowltrail.co.uk

Brochure & Website Design © DryDesignPhotographs © Michael J. Hill

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PLAQUE 24THE MANOR

HOUSE

www.holtowltrail.co.uk

HOLT OWL TRAIL