{"id":18390,"date":"2022-02-09T18:27:50","date_gmt":"2022-02-09T18:27:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/marthamnorfolk.co.uk\/?page_id=18390"},"modified":"2026-07-13T11:58:06","modified_gmt":"2026-07-13T10:58:06","slug":"clowes-store-the-green","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/marthamnorfolk.co.uk\/?page_id=18390","title":{"rendered":"Clowes’ Store, The Green, Martham"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Clowes’ Store, The Green<\/strong>, Martham<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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c1914<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Over the last decade the shop that was once known as Clowes’ Store has been split in two and run as a Flower Gallery and Pet Supplies. The history of the building, however, goes back much further than that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is not clear exactly when the building, that many local people still refer to as Clowes’, was built but early records show that buildings existed on the site as early as 1842<\/a><\/em>. In that year the Martham Tithe Award<\/a><\/em> listed Robert Moore (1790-1874) as the owner and occupier of plot 687 which covered the same area where Clowes’ Store later stood. Below is a copy of the Tithe Award <\/a><\/em>map showing the plot outlined in green.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Plot 687. Martham Tithe Award Map 1942<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

It is doubtful that the present building existed in 1842<\/a><\/em>. It was probably built later, on much the same footprint as those owned by Robert although interestingly, he was listed in local business directories as being a grocer and draper between 1836 and 1868 when Harrod\u2019s Directory had him (or possibly his son of the same name) as being a grocer, tea dealer, provisions merchant, linen and woolen draper, dress and shawl provider at The Green<\/a><\/em>. Robert Moore Jnr, (1825-1885) was similarly listed in trade directories in 1869, 1877 and & 1879. So, a building had been in use on the site as a grocers and drapers long before the Clowes family took it on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clowes Family<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Edward Norris Clowes (1774-1853) was an ironmonger in Great Yarmouth as early as 1841. In the same year his son John Clowes (1809-1882) had a small grocers and was living above the shop with his wife Sarah at North Quay at Great Yarmouth. It must have been a modest business at that stage because even by 1851 he only employed one member of staff. The business grew and by 1861 he employed three men and an apprentice. John & Sarah had a son in 1851 called John Edward Clowes (1851-1911) and he took the business forward. The business grew and in 1876 John made an astute move when he married Emma Louise Palmer whose brothers were then running the well-established Palmer Brother drapers store in the Market Place. The businesses never merged but by this time the Clowes’ store had expanded into the shop next door and covered 14\/15 North Quay.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Clowes’ Store, Hall Quay, Great Yarmouth<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
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Clowes’ was next to Row 55 on North Quay standing at what is now Britannia House with Charles Stenner Associates Accountancy, Taxation and Computing Services. The store had an ornate Victorian gable and was situated at the town side of Haven Bridge. Aldred’s Estate Agent’s is now housed in what was formerly the east side of the store but inexplicably the frontage has been replaced by a dreadful 1960\u2019s fa\u00e7ade that astonishingly once won an award despite it’s completely out of place design. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The marriage between John & Emma saw them mixing with the highest level of Great Yarmouth society and they lived at what was then the best addresses in town at Albert Square and Marine Parade.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Clowes’ Store in the background c1905<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

It was during this generation that the Clowes business expanded with a grocery and provisions branch at the bottom of White Lion Steps in Gorleston and in 1904 Kelly\u2019s Directory<\/a><\/em> first mentioned their store at The Green <\/a><\/em>in Martham. The three-storey building stands out from its neighbours so it is possible that it was purpose bult on the footprint of the earlier buildings owner by Robert Moore, but we cannot be sure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

John Edward Clowes died in 1911 and his son Cecil Palmer Clowes (1881-1966) headed the business at North Quay until at least 1941. We know that none of the Clowes family ever actually lived in Martham but they appointed Benjamin George Harwood as manager and post master when the branch opened which was around 1902\/04. Benjamin had worked for the Clowes family previously and had lived with his wife Agnes at Gorleston. The new Martham store must have been a busy place, as well as having the branch Post Office<\/a><\/em> the shop sold shoes, linen, teas and general provisions as well as shotguns and ammunition judging by this advert from the period:<\/p>\n\n\n

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The Harwoods lived above the shop which had large rooms with ornate coving, a lovely ceiling rose in the living room and a beautiful cast iron fireplace. Above that were rooms in the attic with sloping ceilings. Benjamin & Agnes retired to Leicester in 1945 having spent around 42 years managing the shop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1938 – cars queue through village on the way to see the Horsey floods. Clowes’ in the background.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Martham shop must have been reasonably successful because it continued trading after the Clowes\u2019 North Quay store closed in 1941.  Alfred George Ribbands (1891-1966), known as Joe, became the manager at Martham in 1945. Joe was married to Maud, nee Amies, and they managed the store until retiring to Hemsby in 1958\/9.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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After closing as Clowes’ the shop continued in use under several different owners who have traded in a variety of similar goods. At one time Betty Kirby<\/a><\/em> had the shop fitted out with fridges and freezers as shown on the left. The top two floors were converted into flats and access has always been retained for both this building and neighbours via the shared covered passageway on the south side of the building. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Back to Buildings<\/span><\/a>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Clowes’ Store, The Green, Martham Over the last decade the shop that was once known as Clowes’ Store has been split in two and run as a Flower Gallery and Pet Supplies. The history of the building, however, goes back much further than that. It is not clear exactly when the building, that many local … Continue reading “Clowes’ Store, The Green, Martham”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"elementor_header_footer","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-18390","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t