Now the home to the National Centre for Writing, numbers 111 –123 King Street were once ‘tiny houses, with only one small bedroom and living room’ (Jack Creed). Number 111 was where the remarkable sweet shop owner, Emma Lark, lived.
Inspired by the autobiography of past resident, the late Jack Creed, Jean Muir brings King Street back to life in the decades before the tenement housing slum clearance of the 1930s. Jean captures some of the minute details of life in the early 20th century through her careful research and has produced a vivid picture of life in the area. This is only the tip of the iceberg, however, and we hope readers will be prompted to find out more about what life was like on King Street through the sources and books Jean cites.
Jean located a copy of Jack’s autobiography From King Street to King’s Army in the Norfolk Heritage Centre, and the Creed family has since gifted NCW a copy. Our thanks to them for their generosity.
Image: Norwich, view to the rear of 111-113 King Street in 1935. Courtesy of Norfolk County Council Library and Information Service at www.picture.norfolk.gov.uk.
Through exploration of memoir and oral history interviews a rich social history has emerged of life in and around 113 -123 King Street – now Dragon Hall – in the early twentieth century. Through times of great economic hardship, there were gestures of kindness and humanity.
My starting point has been Jack Creed’s memoir From King Street to King’s Army which he ‘dedicated to his family and to all who lived and struggled there during the years of the 1930s’. Born in 1924, his formative years were spent in 113 King Street, along with his mother, Lily, older brothers Reg and Ron and younger sister, Pearl. He recalled how hard his mother worked, determined to keep the family together. In their accommodation comprising two tiny bedrooms, lighting was by gas and cooking on an old iron gas stove. His mother took in laundry from local shops, such as Haydons, the bakers. This would take her all day into the evening. Laundry was boiled in the coal-fired wash house at the back of the property and pressed with an old iron heated in the coal fire. Women in the surrounding yards would let her use their washing lines – a significant gesture given the amounts she had to get through, for which she was paid 2s 6d a pile. Working at Mrs Haydon’s bakery at No. 125 often till midnight, Mrs Creed scraped caked flour off the floor and rolled dough by hand, earning 3d an hour. Her hard work was reciprocated by being allowed to have groceries on credit, to be paid for at the end of the working week.
The 1930s witnessed the Great Depression. Also growing up in King Street at that time, Agnes Davey recalled the indignity of those having to grovel for parish relief at the Board of Guardians. Mrs Creed was faced with stark choices as maintenance from her husband was spasmodic. If families defaulted on their rent, they faced summary eviction. Mrs Creed’s determination and hard-working nature resonated with her neighbour, Mrs Emma Lark, who ran the shop at 111 King Street. Jack recalled many kindnesses from ‘Granny Lark’. Recognising the family’s hardship, she would bring them food. When her daughter served in the shop, Jack warmly recalled her giving away more sweets than she sold.
Mrs Lark had a long-standing connection with 111 King Street. Born in 1850, the Larks appear in Kelly’s Directory of Norwich businesses from 1883. In the 1911 Census, completed and signed by their daughter, Kate, William is nominated Head of Household but it is her mother Emma who is designated ‘Confectioner & General Dealer’. William Lark had been seriously ill for a year prior to his death in 1912, explaining why Mrs Lark took on running the business.
Exploring these stories has led me to reflect on the multi-layered history of Dragon Hall and its surrounds, of the many people who have come and gone, their values and strengths.
Emma Lark faced other challenges in her life. Despite a leg amputation, she still continued to run her shop, and was a well-known figure in the local community. Her grand-daughter, Ada Kathleen Butcher (born 1903), recalled her own childhood, visiting the shop on King Street. Mrs Lark would sit behind the counter and serve, continuing to maintain all her domestic routines. The shop traded as a greengrocery as well as confectioners, sourcing produce from a wholesaler on Ber Street. When old enough, Ada and her cousin would help out transferring produce for sale, being rewarded with an apple or orange. Even during the interlude of WWI when many would have been absent, Mrs Butcher recalled good trade and great friendliness.
Neighbourhood shops as social spaces would not have been unique. The Haydons, also recalled by Mrs Butcher, had traded as a bakery at No. 125A for many years. Families had limited cooking space. For about a penny, Mr Haydon would cook their Sunday and Christmas dinners in his oven.
Jack Creed credited his mother with bringing him through frequent childhood ailments. Many families could not afford doctors’ fees and resorted to home remedies. Both Jack and Agnes Davey recalled Mr Watson, whose chemist’s shop was at the juncture between Rose Lane and King Street. Many sought his advice for all sorts of issues, treating infections, extracting teeth, women’s issues. While people were charged, it was likely to be minimal.
The ministry at the Julian Church is interlinked with both Emma Lark and Jack Creed and his family. Ada Butcher described her grandmother’s deep religious conviction. Sunday church attendance was an intrinsic part of life for Jack and his family. He recalled one church outing to the seaside when his brother Reg fell over, sustaining injury. Father Frank Burnett carried Reg for several miles on his back to the nearest hospital at Great Yarmouth.
Mrs Creed was to reciprocate Mrs Lark’s kindness by helping her in later years. As part of Norwich City Council’s slum clearance programme, Jack and his family were re-housed in 1937. The values that Jack acquired in those formative years were to stay with him all his life.
Emma Lark was similarly re-housed and lived into her nineties. Exploring these stories has led me to reflect on the multi-layered history of Dragon Hall and its surrounds, of the many people who have come and gone, their values and strengths. I have paused to look at the Eternal Window in St. Julian’s Church, with its dedication to Father Paul Raybould (1884 – 1952) and Father Frank Burnett, Priest from 1931 – 1939, always remembered for his humanity by the Creed family, and who lost his life on HMS Barham in WWII.
References
Jack Creed 12-04-86 [Interview], Ada Kathleen Butcher, (Mary) Agnes Davey, Norfolk Record Office Oral History Recordings
From King Street to King’s Army – The Memoirs of Jack Creed of Norwich, Creed, Jack
Hard up street: growing up in King Street, Norwich 1919-1947, Davey, Mary Agnes, 1997
Norfolk Family History Society nfhs.org.uk
Norfolk Heritage Centre at Norfolk & Norwich Millennium Library.
Kelly’s Directories, UEA Library
About Jean Muir
My name is Jean. Four factors drew me to volunteer for the Story Makers project: my ongoing interest in the history of Norwich which I studied as a mature student at degree level; to give something back to Norwich which has become my home over many years; fascination with Dragon Hall, King Street and its multi-layered history; and the anticipation of new discoveries.
A Tapestry of Tales
Who lived at Dragon Hall? What have these old walls witnessed? Whose story hasn’t yet been told? These are the questions that formed the foundation of a project undertaken by the Story Makers, a group of a participants that generously gave their time and skills to discover, share and celebrate Dragon Hall’s heritage.
Combining historical research and creative practice, the Story Makers spent ten sessions engaging with Dragon Hall and the surrounding King Street area in a variety of ways, before using their creative skills to produce personal interpretations of the history they uncovered.
From poems to pamphlets, videos to pop-up books, we invite you to explore their work in our digital collection.
