What we did.........
Between the Wars....The Great War caused considerable disruption to Scouting in Wroxham with many leaders away on war service. However, after the war, the Group resumed normal activities with new leaders and a new location. The new HQ was in Caen Meadow on land owned by Wroxham Council. It was an excellent location next to the River Bure with a slipway for launching boats. The Group leased this land on a yearly basis and the rent was £1.A key member of the Group in this period was Eric Stevenson, a well known local blacksmith. He eventually became Scout Master and his excellent photograph albums are now in the Group archive showing an active Group with lots of camps and boating activities. The old HQ in Caen Meadow (hand coloured photograph) Here are a few events from that period: 1922. H. Lane was SM with 13 Scouts and Mrs Gilbert was CSM with 18 Cubs 1924. The Group camped in the grounds of Harrow School as part of the Wembley Jamboree 1926. North East Norfolk District was formed. Joan Astley was now CSM 1928. 1st Wroxham registered as group number 7390. P Hemingway is now SM and A.E. Hemingway becomes Rover Leader. The Chief Scout awarded the Silver Cross to P.L. Jack Howes for gallantry in attempting to rescue a man from drowning in the River Bure. 1930. Troop attended the City Jamboree and won a Certificate of Merit 1932. Miss D Brooks now CSM 1933. GSM is now Mr S.A. (Rajah) Brooks and SM is J.H. (Tadpole) Braybrooks 1934. Eric Stevenson becomes ASM. Group inspected by BP aboard HMS Implacable (Portsmouth) 1935. Capt H.J. Cator becomes GSM BP inspecting the 1st Wroxham on HMS Implaccable. August 1934 Uncharted Waters.....The Second World War was another difficult period for Scouting. The 1st Wroxham records show that the Group continued to operate throughout the war but with reduced numbers. The 1st Wroxham supplied people to the Army, Navy, Merchant Navy and Royal Air Force during this period. However, the Group survived and was still operating up to 1948.For reasons that are not very clear to us now, the 1st Wroxham Group closed down in 1948 and the HQ in Caen meadow was sold. The Group was re-formed in 1966 by Shirley Ebdell who became Akela and subsequently her husband John Ebdell became Assistant Scout Leader with Graham Noble as SL. The Group adopted the new name of 1st Hoveton and Wroxham which reflected the twin nature of the village. A committee was formed which had a small amount of money available which had come from the sale of the old HQ building in Caen Meadow. From this beginning, a prefabricated building was purchased and placed in the Grounds of Hoveton Village Hall. It was small and not ideal, but it did allow the Group to get going again and soon very good progress was made in all areas of Scouting. Inside the old HQ in Hoveton
If you would like to read more about our history, we have a much more comprehensive history book available in our Downloads Section. This history was written by Nigel Pope. If you have any comments on it, or you have stories of photographs about your Scouting days with the 1st Hoveton and Wroxham, we would like to hear from you. Our contact details are on our Home Page. |