This view shows the old rugged road over the White Rock and the houses in front of the Rope Walk., the after-site of Carlisle Parade and Robertson Terrace. Beyond them, to the left of the Hastings Castle are Wellington Square and Blucher Buildings, whilst to the right are Pelham Place and the unfinished crescent. Breeds Place not erected.
Having referred to, and given the dates of, numerous sand-getting accidents in bygone years at White Rock, it may not be out of place to narrate a few other occurrences at that once picturesque but somewhat dangerous spot. On Friday, Nov. 20th, 1778, a soldier of the Queen's Royals, whilst traveling(sic) from Eastbourne to Hastings fell over the White rock road,a depth of about thirty feet, on to the beach, where the poor fellow lay until his moans attracted someone to his assistance. But on being removed his injuries were found to be so severe that his life was despaired of. It was the same soldier, I believe, whose remains were interred at Hastings with military honours on the 4th of February following.
On the 23rd of January, 1790, four lads, while in the act of digging sand, were buried beneath a fallen mass, and one of them was got out dead.
In 1794 the Admiralty decided to construct a gun-battery on the White Rock, but the work was not carried out until three years later, when after the battle off Cape St. Vincent, Commodore (afterward Lord) Nelson, under Admiral Sir John Jervis capture the San Josef, a three decker, and a triplet of her guns being brought home were placed on the projecting portion of the White Rock, between which and the cliff at a still higher elevation, the road leading from Hastings to Bopeep formed a sort of saddle.
Accidents and Fatalities - White Rock Guns
In the absence of such a view as is here presented, to those who are not old enough to have seen it, it would be almost impossible to realise the general contour of that locality, howsoever minutely it might be described. The imagination, however, may be assisted by a glance at the cliff, caverns and sand banks in the eastern part of Hastings as they still present their bold, outlines and other interesting features to the curious gaze of strangers. If it be objected — as I happen to know it has been — that the comparatively thin crust of earth upon the solid rock at Cuckoo (St. Michael's) Hill does not favour the supposition of its having served as a place of sepulchre, the same objection might be urged against other parts of the cliff, such as those in the rear of Verulam place, Eversfield place and Norman road, at all of which spots large numbers of human bones have been found when the debris was being cleared for the foundation of houses. Religious edifices (including those of St. Margarets and St. Leonards) are known to have anciently existed and perished at these places, and there is no good ground for believing that the church of St. Michael was less provided with an attached burial-place than were those of other parishes. It is sometimes said that history repeats itself, insomuch as that which has happened may happen again; and applying this aphorism or truism to the present as it relates to the future, one has only to look at the burial-ground on the hill contiguous to the St. Leonards church, and the great mass of fallen earth in front of it, to imagine where the contents of the graves may be found a few centuries hence. Although so comparatively modern as is that small cemetery only 50 years having elapsed since its formation - its preservation even to the present time has been due to sundry and costly contrivances which it has been found necessary to adopt. I see in the newspaper reports of the finding of human bones at White-rock place, an alternative suggestion that the bodies of smugglers may have been buried at that spot in the days when deadly conflicts were rife between contrabandists and Government employés. Judging from the records in my possession of such conflicts - records more numerous, perhaps, than those possessed by any other person—I am emboldened to say the latter suggestion is hardly likely to be Horne out by facts. Of greater likehood, I trow, were occasional fatalities in the getting of white sand — a practice already alluded to — a mass of rock, it may be, on some few occasions fell upon and buried those whose undermining process had rendered it insecure. I do not know that I have any record of such fatalities in which the bodies were irrecoverable, but the readers of the Gazette who may have filed their copies will find that The Postman, when describing "The Sand Rocks" at Gloucester Place, in the number for Sept. 23rd, 1582, incidentally referred to several fatal accidents from such cause at the White Rock and other cliffs. The several dates of these unfortunate occurrences were there given as Dec. 1th, 1809; March 26th, 1806; April 4th, 1813; Aug. 10th, 1822; Dec. 2nd, 1823; and May 4th, 1824, I have dwelt longer on this incident than I intended, but the reminiscent associations are sometimes so numerous or so ramified that when I begin to digress, I can hardly tell where I am likely to stop at.
I have already described the property between 35 and 21 White-rock place inclusive as consisting, in 1847, of fourteen houses, thus showing that eight had been added to the number since 1836. Some of these earlier houses were reconstructions of those which at the bidding of the Woods and Forests Commissioners had taken their, and all of them were specimens of architecture devoid of uniformity, and with but little pretension to stateliness or elegance.
It will be seen that in tracing the White-rock houses from east to west, I have only got from 35 to 21; and here for the present, I must stop, as the other block of twenty houses were in course of erection in 1847, and consequently, were not fully and properly in existence up to that date. Albeit, before quitting the older half of White-rock place, I will repeat a statement which I believe I have previously made, that there existed, in my younger days, a recess in the rock at about half way up the road, from which flowed a copious spring, useful alike to man and beast. It was from this spring that a considerable number of the nicknamed “Americans” (denizens of the Priory or Holy Trinity) obtained their drinkable water, it being conveyed to them in budges and doled out at a halfpenny per pailful. This spring (from which I have many times quenched my thirst in summer, and from which, in hard winters, I have seen pendant and stalectitic(sic) icicles in beautiful clusters) was a source of trouble at first to those who wanted to build, but was afterwards utilised instead of being diverted. The receptacle prepared for it was, I believe, behind what is now 24 or 25 White-rock place; and although it at one time contained several thousand gallons, it is now reported to be dry. It is therefore probable that the town is still getting the water through some other channel.
Having referred to, and given the dates of, numerous sand-getting accidents in bygone years at White Rock, it may not be out of place to narrate a few other occurrences at that once picturesque but somewhat dangerous spot. On Friday, Nov. 20th, 1778, a soldier of the Queen's Royals, whilst traveling(sic) from Eastbourne to Hastings fell over the White-rock road,a depth of about thirty feet, on to the beach, where the poor fellow Jay until his moans attracted someone to his assistance. But on being removed his injuries were found to be so severe that his life was despaired of. It was the same soldier, I believe, whose remains were interred at Hastings with military honours on the 4th of February following.
On the 23rd of January, 1790, four lads, while in the act of digging sand, were buried beneath a fallen mass, and one of them was got out dead.
In 1794 the Admiralty decided to construct a gun-battery on the White Rock, but the work was not carried out until three years later, when after the battle off Cape St. Vincents, Commodore (afterwards Lord) Nelson, under Admiral Sir John Jervis, captured the San Josef, a three-decker, and a triplet of her guns being brought home, were placed on the projecting portion of the White Rock, between which and the cliff at a still higher elevation, the road leading from Hastings to Bopeep formed a sort of saddle.
On the 13th of October, 1804, a man named Roffe, while driving a waggon over that steep and narrow road, was knocked down by a passing cart and killed by the wheels passing over his body. The All Saints’ register shows that a Thomas Roffe was buried on Oct. 16 — three days after the accident here described.
On Feb. 19th, 1808, a terrific hurricane besides committing much other havoc, blew down a mill on the White-rock, owned by Mr. Cassell [Carswell], the miller escaping as by a miracle unharmed This was the second mill similarly destroyed in that locality, the previous one, standing on Cuckoo Hill (as shown in the Corporation map, of 1746) having been also blown down by a fierce gale.
In the month of October, 1812, a gentleman’s coachman and horses were nearly drowned at the White Rock, in consequence of a high tide flooding the road.
On the 6th of January, 1815, Mr. Thatcher and the Revenue officers, with a party of dragoons cased the smugglers of a large quantity of spirits which they were attempting to ”run” at White Rock. The ”Fair-traders” seeing that resistance would be useless, made discretion the better part of valour.
In 1819 the entire foreshore was inundated by un extraordinary tide, and the damage done to the White Rock and the road, (mainly composed of faggots and shingle) between that and the old Woman’s Tap (now the Victoria Hotel) had to be repaired at the expense of the four or five ratepayers then inhabiting the parish of St. Mary Magdalen The cost of labour was £3 6s. to William Dabney -
