Big Hastings anniversaries happening in 2023

He writes: The year, 2023, has some interesting local anniversaries.

In 1753, 270 years ago, a road was constructed that enabled Hastings to start a new life as a seaside resort. The laying out of the Flimwell-Hastings turnpike road turned a rough muddy track into a usable through-route for traffic between London and Hastings. To use this new road, travellers had to pay at several toll-gates along the way, with the first at Mount Road.

2023 is the 200th anniversary of the creation of an important part of Hastings town centre: the Claremont/Trinity Street area. Until 1823 this area had been the side of a hill, but was bought by the town’s leading merchants, the Breeds family. They cut the hill back and levelled the new ground, which they initially used as their main trading centre. It was later covered in many different buildings, including Hastings Library. Another Claremont building, No.12, was the birthplace, 150 years ago, in 1873, of a redesigned and greatly improved Hastings Observer. The newspaper and its publishing company were so successful they first built a new printworks at 14 Claremont, in 1878, then in 1923 completed construction of big new offices and printworks on the corner of Cambridge Road and Prospect Place, currently being restored.

In early 1973 (half a century ago) a campaign was launched by shopkeepers to pedestrianise George Street. A trial closure took place in the summer of 1975, but it was not pedestrianised until 1986.

A 1973 anniversary many prefer to forget is the controversial demolition of the famous Albert Memorial clocktower. The 65-feet town centre tower was built in 1862/3 in memory of Queen Victoria’s husband Prince Albert. The tower, which soon became known as just ‘The Memorial’, stood right at the heart of Hastings, where eight roads came together. By the 1960s the much-loved Memorial had become unpopular in the town hall because of the traffic-flow problems it caused. Over the years, various experiments were carried out with traffic lights and pedestrian crossings, but with little effect. Then in April and June 1973 there were two small fires in the tower, which gave Hastings Council the excuse they needed to demolish it, in November 1973, despite widespread opposition, as damage was minimal.

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