Discover Lost Jersey - Part 8

I came across an edition of "Discover Jersey" , a guide book written in 1993 by Terry Palmer - that's 28 years ago. While the basic history remains the same, the tourism sites have seen a massive fall, and I thought it would be interesting to explore this guide - and my memories of those places, if I visited them, over the next weeks. The latter are in italics. How much we've lost!

This is the final posting. Clicking on the Label "Discover Lost Jersey" will get all the other posts in this series.

Butterfly Farm

Head north-east on 0103 to Haute Tombette for the Jersey Butterfly Centre which Arthur Rolland created after seeing the large butterflies of Seychelles. The family glasshouses were the first in Jersey to convert to the growing of carnations for bloom. which are still the main source of income, but after seeking the advice of the older Guernsey Butterfly Farm, the Rollands now have Jersey's first walk-in display of Iepidoptera, the major tourist attraction — unless people come for the tea—room, or the pet tarantula and python. (It‘s not actually a tarantula. a species which originated in Taranto: Italy; it's more a hairy-legged bird-eating spider from the tropics.) Whatever the attraction, visitors come by the coachload, so drive carefully on the narrow lanes.

This was one of the favourite "rest and recuperation" spots for coaches to stop. It had a small cafe serving snacks, nothing major on the gourmet front, and I'm not sure "tea room" fits something rather basic - but nice enough for a stop when out with our children. We never got to see the butterflies, although we did visit the butterfly farm in Guernsey. Sadly both attractions vanished when their owners died.

Jersey Diamond

Would you like to see the Koh-i-Noor Diamond? You can't. as it's in the Crown Jewels — but Jersey Diamond, overlooking Gorey Pier, has copies of many famous stones and is the island's leading gemmologist. It is also involved in the Living Legend.

Jersey Pottery. 

Pottery is much more mundane than diamonds. But the workshops of Jersey Pottery draw large crowds to Gorey Village, across the parish boundary in Grouville. The business began in the early 1950s with 12 people. and now has around 70 on the payroll, producing a range of around 300 items of merchandise including unlikely objects such as picture frames and clock cases, in an equally wide price range.

We used to pop to the Sail Loft Cafe for snacks and cooked food quite often. This was another popular venue for coaches, and the visitor could wander round the grounds watching pots being made, and being painted. There's still something called "Jersey Pottery" but in a gross violation of trade description, it is actually made in the UK for sale in Jersey. 

Happy memories of my youngest son's birthday party when they painted clay ties (to be fired later as a souvenir for each child), and had a birthday tea after - we brought the cake, but the excellent party food was supplied by the venue. Other odd memories involve my first taste of sushi, and dipping it into a plentiful amount of wasabi sauce  (which I didn't realise was very very hot!) before eating it - apparently, according to my son, who still laughs at the memory - my face suddenly went bright red, and I downed two large orange juices in quick succession.

Agricultural and Occupation Museums, Hougue Bie

But there‘s more to the Hougue Bie than just this mound. The Agricultural Museum has a display of farm machinery from the 19th cent onwards. outside which is a cluster of staddle stones, looking like giant mushrooms but used for supporting stocks of com. A stock? Before combine harvesters were invented, an armful of cut com was a sheaf, twelve of which stacked together made stock or shock.

The Geological Museum has rock samples from the island. Starting with shale. at 700,000,000 years. the oldest. The Archaeological Room looks from Palaeolithic man to the brief Roman incursion, and the Occupation Museum specialises in the 9-fi (2.7m) revving boat that Denis When used in his escape from St Aubin's Bay in 1941. Three nights later a British destroyer picked him up on the edge of a minefield near Portland Bill. He was the only islander to escape.

The geology and archaeology museums are still there, but the agricultural implements, plus an old Jersey railway carriage, found a better home at Pallot's Steam Museum where they can still be seen. The Occupation museum is now not so much a historical telling of the occupation as a memorial to the names and stories of those who died under the occupation - slave workers, islanders etc. It is a very powerful experience.

Discover Lost Jersey - Part 7

I came across an edition of "Discover Jersey" , a guide book written in 1993 by Terry Palmer - that's 28 years ago. While the basic history remains the same, the tourism sites have seen a massive fall, and I thought it would be interesting to explore this guide - and my memories of those places, if I visited them, over the next weeks. The latter are in italics. How much we've lost!

Grosnez Castle

North of L‘Etacquerel. Les Landes is an area of windswept heath beyond which are the ruins of Grosnez Castle, now little more than a stone archway and the hint of a moat.

This is one of Jersey‘s enigmas. as nobody knows who built it, why, or when It’s probably early 14th cent. a defence against repeats of a raid in 1294 when the French killed more than 1,000 islanders; and Bertrand du Guecclin probably destroyed it in another raid in 1373 - or did the English Parliamentarians sack it while besieging Sir George Carteret in Elizabeth Castle? It was certainly destroyed before 1524. as a map drawn that year marks it as a ruin. The name means ”big headland‘ and is pronounced gro-nay.

This of course is still here, but it was needed to see the instructions to get to Plémont Candlecraft!

Plémont Candlecraft

The B35 swings east to Portinfer hamlet and Plémont Candlecraft. the island‘s only specialist candlemaker. Candles nowadays are for looking at rather than burning: animal-shaped candles are made by pouring suitably-coloured hot wax into a mould and letting it set. But there‘s more skill in producing carved candles. Take a cold split mould. pour in hot red wax. then pour it out; pour in orange. and tip the spare out: follow with other colours until you have filled the mould. While the wax is still warm. open the mould. slice down the candle‘s ribs with a sharp cold knife. and you reveal the rainbow colours. You can try it for yourself here. any day between 0930 and 1730.

Nearby Portinfer Farm has tea rooms where John Wesley‘s early Methodists used to meet.

The company Plemont Candle Craft Limited was dissolved on 23 February 2000

Plémont Holiday Village

And now head north on 0105 for Plémont Holiday Village, which was originally a Pontins Holiday Camp. built on a 250tt (75m) clifftop. It‘s breezy, but on perfect days there are splendid views to Guernsey. Sark, Herm and even Alderney, as well as miles of the French coast. A path leads steeply down to the often-deserted beach at Greve an Lanchon, or Lancon.

A timeline is given below. It should be noted that the "return to nature" is in fact a "managed nature", with paths kept clear around the site, and an artificial pond added. I have no issues with these, but it is a myth that it is restored to a "natural condition". 

1934: Built in the grounds of the old Plemont Hotel the camp first opened as The Jubilee Holiday Camp.
1946: Following the Occupation, the camp reopens as Parkin's Luxury Holiday Camp.
1961: The camp is sold and remodelled, becoming Pontin's Holiday Village and later Plémont Holiday Village, providing amenities for up to 400 holidaymakers.
2001: The site closes its doors as a tourist resort for good.
2014: The National Trust for Jersey reveals it has reached a deal with the developer to buy the land for £7.15 million.
Summer 2014: The States approve Senator Sir Philip Bailhache's proposition to pay half of the agreed sale price, with the trust paying the rest.
September 2014: Demolition begins at the site.

Discover Lost Jersey - Part 6

I came across an edition of "Discover Jersey" , a guide book written in 1993 by Terry Palmer - that's 28 years ago. While the basic history remains the same, the tourism sites have seen a massive fall, and I thought it would be interesting to explore this guide - and my memories of those places, if I visited them, over the next weeks. The latter are in italics. How much we've lost!

Battle of Flowers Museum

The hamlet of L'Etacq. west of the Shire Horse Farm. has a cluster of places of interest, beginning with the Battle of Flowers Museum on CH4 — but if you come from the south be careful of the very tight hairpin bend. Florence Bechelet made her first decorated float in 1934, and went on to establish her reputation by winning many prizes over the years. 

In 1971 she opened this museum to the Battle of Flowers. and now a dozen of Florence's floats are on permanent display.

Mar- Nov daily 1000-1700,

The Battle of Flowers. 

The first battle was in 1902 on Victoria Avenue - the A2. coast road — to mark Edward VII's coronation. and it was an instant success becoming an annual event except for 1914—18 and 1940-50. Local businessmen revived it in 1951 and the first Miss Battle was elected in 1953. and the event is now the high spot of the tourist season in Jersey, held on an August Thursday amid a week of celebrations.

I never visited this at the time, and much regret that.

L’Etacq Craft Shops

Several craft shops cluster around the centre of L'Etacq, with a shared car park nearby. The Pottery. Leatherland, and L’Etacq Woodcrafts are workshops that sell their produce at the door; the woodcarvers also have an unusual [me in fashioning knife handles and walking-sticks from cabbage stalks. Not just any cabbage — they use the jersey cabbage, which can grow 6ft (2m) tall in a season. If you want to try it at home. you can buy seeds here

I do remember the Woodcrafts shop very clearly. It was nice for the unusual presents, and the three shops tucked away in this little enclave gave rather a nice feel to the end of St Ouen's Bay. There was also ample parking across the road.

After it closed, the site was re-opened as Treasures of the Earth, and in the process of sorting out some IT matters, I was also given a guided tour. As well as the different gems, they also had fossils of varying sizes, and my girlfriend Annie purchases a particularly large and rather good ammonite.

Goldsmiths and Microworld

You have a choice of route. The B35 leads south to the top of Five Mile Road. where Jersey Goldsmiths has its showroom at the point where the road bends,

Would you care to see what £1,000,000 in gold bullion looks like? Then step inside — free The bullion is on display in a reinforced glass cabinet and looks surprisingly small. no more than would fit into a large holdall. But if it really IS 24 carat gold. you'd never get away with it as its 19.32 times heavier than water — a cubic foot weighs 1,206,51b; a litre, 19.322kg. If you just want to see craftspeople at work on jewellery. that‘s possible as well.

Open year round: Jun-Aug Mon-Fri 1000-2200, Sep-May 1000-1730, plus Sat 1000-1730 all year.

Jersey Goldsmiths later moved to the Lion Park, and now is closed. Jersey Pearl occupies the current site and I've visited a few times as they have a rather nice café area either for a light snack or a meal.  

Around the bend and down the straight. Lewis Tower is immediately on the right, its World War Two bunker holding the Channel Islands Military Museum. Here are militaria and documents from the British and the German forces. on display daily 1000-1700

This is still active and open! As it was mentioned in the guide book alongside the others, I thought I'd give it a plug. Well worth a visit. Apart from the Jersey War Tunnels, most of the older Occupation museums have closed or changed. Hougue Bie is now a memorial with names of those who died here, including the slave workers. Well worth a visit but not a traditional all round Occupation museum which it once was. The St Peter's Bunker Museum is closed, as is the Occupation Museum on the Esplanade in St Helier. 

Microworld

The museum is behind the Chateau de Plaisir, a modern two storey building holding a night-club and restaurant — and Micro World, an incredible exhibition of miniature carvings. Spaniard Manuel Ussa spent years peering through magnifying glasses as he carved his marvellous miniatures. Adam and Eve embrace in a bower — all shaped from the point of a pencil. A minuscule horse balances on the head of a real, but dead. ant. The Sphynx and the Great Pyramid are cut from a single grain of sand. and Tower Bridge balances in the eye of a needle.

Ussa had to stop carving every time his heat beat. as the vibration would ruin his work. which is so detailed that visitors have to look through microscopes.

Open daily. May-Sep, 1000-1730.

I'd never visited until my wife at the time had a relative visit Jersey, and they wanted to see it. It was quite amazing and as you can see, you needed a high resolution magnifier to appreciate the tidy but perfectly formed artefacts. The whole building - which was also open in part as a charity shop for Holidays for Heroes - was closed, demolished, and is now housing.

Discover Lost Jersey - Part 5

I came across an edition of "Discover Jersey" , a guide book written in 1993 by Terry Palmer - that's 28 years ago. While the basic history remains the same, the tourism sites have seen a massive fall, and I thought it would be interesting to explore this guide - and my memories of those places, if I visited them, over the next weeks. The latter are in italics. How much we've lost!

Bouchet Agateware

North-west of the manor. the village of St Ouen holds the first of the tourist attractions. Bouchet Agateware, in Rue dee Marette behind the village hall.

Agate is an impure variety of quartz. named from the river Achates in Sicily where it was discovered in Classical times and Bouchet claiming to be the world's leading producer of agateware. He blends naturally-coloured clays to equal the random bands of hues found in this semi-precious stone. Browse among the selection of small objects. from thimbles and jewellery to delicate handbells.

30 March 2011, BBC news

A potter who ran a tourist attraction in St Ouen in Jersey has retired after 44 years.

Tony Bouchet made agateware in his workshop in St Ouen's village. Agateware, said to be extremely hard to make, is a form of pottery that mixes clays and colours to produce a marbled agate effect.

The workshop is now closed and Mr Bouchet has destroyed all his recipes, records, moulds, clay and special equipment. He said that by doing so would give someone else the chance to discover what he knows for themselves.

Mr Bouchet, who has been doing it for four decades, is known as the "secret potter" because he would not reveal the secret of the technique he had perfected.

I never visited this shop, so no idea what it was like. 

Jersey Shire Horse Farm

The full title adds the word Museum, but this is very much a living display of draught horses and other domestic livestock from goats down to rabbits and ducks. The shire horses had to be imported from England as the final year of the Occupation saw many of the animals killed for meat. after which came the industrial revolution of agriculture.

But forget that: marvel at the Shetland pony that can walk erect beneath the belly of a carthorse. let the children enjoy the donkey. and the tamer who demonstrates the shoeing of horses every Wednesday whether he‘s needed or not. And take a ride in an old Jersey horse-van.

The museum part of the display centres on the collection of horse-powered machinery used on the land for generations. plus a few smaller utensils that relied on manpower. There‘s also a harness room, play area, gift shop and tea room; the museum is at Champ Donne. by the junction of B34 and Cl 15. open Mar-Oct. Sun-Fri. 1000-1730.

When our children were young, this was one of the "places to go" when you want to get out of the house and take them somewhere with something to see. We would walk around the Shire Horse Farm, where there were actually only a few horses to see close, but the odd time, a baby lamb, and lots and lots of bantams of all varieties, and I think rabbits in cages. A season ticket meant there was a place for an outing when you wanted to show the kids some animals close up.

Next to it was the Bird Tree Tea Garden, a cafe doing afternoon tea, and light snacks, with lots of cage birds outside in large cages, and a sign that said "we are free", to emphasis the fact that the discerning tourist wanting to save money might go there instead. It's all gone, all houses now.

The Snow Goose, St Ouen

On our way back, if we didn't go to the Bird Tree Tea Garden, we might stop of at "Wayside Crafts" which was renamed "The Snow Goose" at St.Ouen's Village for some light refreshments. That's gone to housing as well now, and not affordable housing either! Gone by 2013!

A 2013 report noted:

“Snow Goose” This site was in private ownership and the site was for sale, at that time, on the open market. This meant that the value of the land made the proposal for affordable homes unachievable. The site was also small and fairly modest in terms of its surrounding context with regard to mass. Therefore, the desired unit numbers could not be achieved without having a significant impact on the adjoining properties and a detrimental effect on the visual amenity of the main arterial road through the village of St Ouen. For these reasons, together with the fact that the site has since been purchased and developed by others, this piece of land was not subsequently considered.

Discover Lost Jersey - Part 4

I came across an edition of "Discover Jersey" , a guide book written in 1993 by Terry Palmer - that's 28 years ago. While the basic history remains the same, the tourism sites have seen a massive fall, and I thought it would be interesting to explore this guide - and my memories of those places, if I visited them, over the next weeks. The latter are in italics. How much we've lost!

Sunset Nurseries

Sunset Nurseries is aptly named as it faces the setting sun across the middle of St Ouen’s Bay, and on clear evenings you can see the earth's shadow climb the hills behind. As evidence of the exposed site, the business had 18 tons of glass broken by the hurricane which struck south—east England on 16 October 1987.

The postcard from the nurseries shows Miss Battle of Flowers 1977, Diane Le Bot, who came from St Brelade. Many thanks to contributors on Facebook for identifying her.

This is a commercial nursery growing carnations in eight glass houses and alstroemeria in another, with the added attraction of a tropical aviary. trout pools, and a restaurant serving strawberries and cream for as long a season as possible. Open daily 1000—1700 except winter weekends, so you must see the sun go down from outside the gate.

I used to enjoy visits to Sunset Nurseries with my children when they were younger, it was a nice rest break as they had quite a decent little café for snacks. At one time there were also sand sculptures there, and it was also handy to park for a visit to the nearby prehistoric site of Les Trois Rocques.

Alas, it was demolished. The planning application said:

Sunset Nurseries, La Route du Moulin, St. Peter. Demolish existing nursery, glass houses and staff block. Construct 6 bed dwelling with landscaping to Field 28. New access from La Route de la Marette. 

The sun set on the Sunset Nurseries :-(

St Ouen's Bay Defences

The British and German defences along the four-mile (6.5km) stretch of St Ouen's Bay oddly called Five Mile Road. extend into the parishes of St Brelade. St Peter and St Ouen itself. The British built most of the towers.

In the early 19th cent. anticipating an invasion by the French. with Tower No 2 being the work of Sir James Kempt, master-general of ordnance. from whom it was named in 1834, The Kempt Tower is open May-Sep Tues-Sun 1400-1700, and Apr & Oct Thur and Sun only. free, mounting a static exhibition showing how the Island protected itself against invasion.

The tower is still there, but it is now a Jersey Heritage holiday let rather than a visitor attraction.

I only visited this once, and remember distinctly how damp parts of it were. Let's hope they solved that problem for the self-catering tourists!

Shell House.

When you drive out of St Aubin on the steep A13, you cannot fail to see Shell House. in truth a bungalow, whose owner has spent more than 30 years braiding shell covered terraces in his garden If you manage to park you are invited to leave a donation for charity.

I used to see this every day on my way home from work, and then after the owner died, they left it to the National Trust who decided that it had no heritage value whatsoever, and flogged it off to a developer, who has yet to develop anything on the site. But meanwhile, all the painstaking work over 30 years was consigned to the rubbish bin of history. This is the same National Trust who saw no reason in preserving a lovely cottage in Trinity because it had modern dormer windows in one side. 

Discover Lost Jersey - Part 3

I came across an edition of "Discover Jersey" , a guide book written in 1993 by Terry Palmer - that's 28 years ago. While the basic history remains the same, the tourism sites have seen a massive fall, and I thought it would be interesting to explore this guide - and my memories of those places, if I visited them, over the next weeks. The latter are in italics. How much we've lost!

Living Legend

Half a cross-country mile east of the village centre. at La Rue du Pent Aleval, the Living Legend opened in 1992 with the claim to be Jersey’s most exciting visitor attraction. To whet the appetite further. this £8,000,000 investment has a sign warning: if you are half-hearted or of a nervous disposition, do not venture beyond the entrance.

As you are bound to be more intrigued than nervous, you find yourself taking an active part in tracing the island's history. as well as some of its legends. by walking the deck of a Victorian paddle steamer. seeing Lord Hambye slay his dragon, reliving the Battle of Jersey -. there’s so much to do. and quite a range of buildings in which to do it. all of them opening from a large T-shaped courtyard.

The Norman Conquest. Charles II’s exile on the island, the German Occupation. Lillie Langtry. and smuggling and privateering are among the subjects brought to life, your experience among the living 
legend culminating in a 20-minute show.

The financing company Diamond Jersey called in the creators of the Jorvik Centre in York, the Last Labyrinth at Land‘s End. and designers of sets for the Bond films to create the desired effect, and has also built a typical Jersey manor house on this 9-acre (4 hectare) site in the open countryside.

Open daily 0930-1530. with provisions for, children and wheelchair visitors. Fee around £3.50.

I saw the Living Legend experience when it first came out, and later a revamped version. It was very clever and the way the projectors worked on the sculpted historical figures made it appear as if they really were talking.

The cafe wasn't bad, and there was a Punch and Judy in the summer months, as well as one of the best crazy golf courses (actually two courses cleverly intertwined!) in Jersey, and later on electric go-karts which my children enjoyed. Sometime there would be special events on as well.

The trouble with the Living Legend experience was that once you had seen that part of the venue, you probably wouldn't go back again. They did revamp it, and I saw that as well, but by then it was in decline. The Jersey museum in contrast has a ground floor small exhibition, a film relating to Jersey, and  a large exhibition space - all of which change from year to year, so there is something new to see.

In the gardens of The Living Legend were some small models of old Jersey buildings, like Jersey coastal round towers, and these were a legacy of its predecessor, The Strawberry Farm. From  humble beginnings that expanded to include a cafe (where you could have strawberries and cream as well as other food), glass blowers from Venice, leather workers from Spain, and a gift shop. Unfortunately it ran foul of the Island planning laws, was not permitted  retrospective planning permission, so the owner decided to sell up.

Fantastic Tropical Gardens

The Fantastic Gardens snuggle into a shallow depression in the vingtaine of Augurez, at the head of St Peter’s Valley, and you get your passport at the entrance.

Passport? Certainly. for the gardens are divided into six countries. beginning with Spain and going on to include Japan. China. Morocco. India. Thailand, Mexico and Zaire — that's more than six, but the destinations change. The theme is horticulture. but the plot really is sheer fantasy. with side excursions to see Thai dancers. the Parrot Show featuring Birdjerac and Lillie Langtry. the singing caballero in Mexico, the African Queen that’s nearly as good as the original in the Florida Keys. a seven-foot Buddha. and the Stanley Falls in Zaire. And then there’s the Boot Hill Ghoul! Club.

For something that’s certainly different. come and sample a taste of fantasy. daily Apr-Oct from 0900 until the fun ceases sometime in the evening. Ample parking.

I never went there which I do regret. My friends who went tell me it was great fun.

Discover Lost Jersey - Part 2

I came across an edition of "Discover Jersey" , a guide book written in 1993 by Terry Palmer - that's 28 years ago. While the basic history remains the same, the tourism sites have seen a massive fall, and I thought it would be interesting to explore this guide - and my memories of those places, if I visited them, over the next weeks. The latter are in italics. How much we've lost!

Discover Lost Jersey - Part 1

Retreat Farm Carnations

Retreat Farm Carnations. also trading as the Jersey Flower Centre in the north-west corner of the parish. claims to be the largest grower of carnations in the British Isles and the largest mail-order florist in the world. its biggest glasshouse. open to visitors' inspection. covers 5 acres (20,500 sq m) and holds almost 300,000 plants — and there are two smaller glasshouses.

Come here for flower-arranging demonstrations. to learn how to create a semi-arid garden. or to check up on many aspects of wildlife in the flamingo lake. the Wildfowl sanctuary. or the koi carp reserve.

Open daily Apr-Oct 0930-1730; ample free parking.

Nearby attractions: Living Legend and Fantastic Gardens in St Peter. Jersey Butterflies in St Mary.

If my memory serves me correctly this later became the venue for Jersey Goldsmiths with the Lion Park, and then even more recently Tamba Park with its animatronic dinosaurs. I went up when it was Jersey Goldsmiths, and they actually had the car that Jim Bergerac used to drive in the TV series. You could also pan for gold, there was a model boat lake, and quite extensive walks. Alas, the age of the dinosaurs passed me by: I meant to visit, but never did.

St Peter’s Bunker and Jersey Motor Museum

Two tourist attractions stand almost wall-to-wall in the centre of the village. a little to the north of the runway. St Peter‘s Bunker changed its name from the Occupation Museum to avoid confusion with other such locations. and the Jersey Motor Museum is also known as the Car Museum

The bunker, built in 1942 to command this major crossroads and guard the airport approach, housed 33 men in seven small rooms. All of which now hold what is claimed to be the largest collection of Occupation relics in Jersey. The part-underground bunker has been used in location shots for numerous films. and its Enigma decoding machine. one of the few surviving. has featured in other films.

As a museum of the Occupation. it gives graphic details of island life between 1 July 1940 and 10 May 1945. including many manufactured necessities of life that the people had to replace for themselves. From shoes and radios to saucepans.

The Motor Museum displays cars — Jaguars. Rolls-Royces. an early Talbot, and many more — but that’s only a part of it. Many of the vehicles have historical connections, such as the Phantom III that General Bernard Montgomery used while planning the Normandy landings. and cars that the Germans abandoned at the war's end. There's also a carriage saved from the Jersey Railway Company.

Both displays are open Mar-Sep daily 1000-1700 and share a car park.

This was at the back of what is now The George Carteret but back then was St Peter's Bars. My father's business was just up the road, and we would occasionally go there for lunch. This was the 1970s and it was a holiday job, accounts preparation from records, typing up minutes, and annual return form for companies on pre-printed paper. It was the days when technology consisted of an electric typewriter and tippex, carbon paper if typing up accounts or letters, and a mechanical crank handled adding machine!

I remember enjoying egg, chip and beans - I suspect the menu has moved a bit upmarket since those days. A friend of mine's father, Peter Hallam, had been at the British Airways booking office near the tunnel, but when that closed, he got a seasonal job at the Motor Museum, so we could go in for free.

Discover Lost Jersey - Part 1

I came across an edition of "Discover Jersey" , a guide book written in 1993 by Terry Palmer - that's 28 years ago. While the basic history remains the same, the tourism sites have seen a massive fall, and I thought it would be interesting to explore this guide - and my memories of those places, if I visited them, over the next weeks. The latter are in italics. How much we've lost!


Discover Lost Jersey - Part 1

Tourism Office

The smart building on the north-west side of Liberation Square holds the Tourist Office but it was originally the station for the Jersey Railway Company which in 1870 started laying a track from here along the coast to St Aubin, perhaps the easiest place in all the Channel Islands to put a railway line. 

In 1884 the owners did the seemingly impossible by pushing the line over the 200 ft contour on its way west. ending first at La Moye and. with a last thrust, reaching La Corbiére in 1899; much of the course of this section of line survives as a pleasant walking route. But even before this final stretch was laid. the several changes in ownership indicated that this was not a highly profitable venture; at one time the line's proprietor was the man who also ran the Guernsey Railway Company. which was doing no better.

The last train from St Helier into St Aubin in the 1936 season arrived on 30 September. It was also the last train the JRC was ever to run as. 18 days later. St Aubin station and much of the rolling stock was destroyed by fire.

I remember when it was there. Since then it moved to a custom building, rather off the beaten track, around the corner, then to the Jersey Museum, and now finally to within Liberation Station, which I think is a good move as when it was in Liberation Square, the bus station was just over the road in plane sight. Incidentally, does anyone remember when the square was first created, the French consul of the day decided to park where they always did, close to the tourism office - and on the newly paved pedestrian area. It caused quite a stir!

Fort Regent

Drive east from Liberation Square and within a minute you’re in the tunnel carved under Mount Bingham, upon which sits Fort Regent. To visit this bastion built to keep Napoleon at bay. you need to drive south and come up Fort Regent Road to the car park, unless it‘s already full. On foot. your best approach is from Snow Hill in the north where elevators offer an alternative to the steep ramp. as the cable car is not operating.

Today this old bastion is the Fort Regent Leisure Centre, capped by a dome 190ft (58m) in diameter. There was considerable local opposition to the conversion, some people referring to it as the Jersey white elephant, but at a cost of around £4,000,000 the project went ahead, giving the island its largest concentration of family entertainment. Throughout the summer season there are live daytime activities, except on Monday; evening entertainment targeted at the entire family; top name performers in the 2,000-seat Gloucester Hall which can double as a sports arena: and a wide range of other attractions. which make the centre a miniature version of an American theme park.

The schedule is subject to change. but you should have a selection which includes The Lillie Langtry Story, The German Bunker. The World of the Sea with its own sharks. Humfrey’s Playland which recalls the forts architect John Hambly Humfrey, a fairground, and much more. The season is Easter to early October.

By this time, the cable cars had stopped. And now it is a bare ghost of its former self. I remember going to various events in the Gloucester Hall - the Jersey Symphony Orchestra summer proms, a song and dance group doing ABBA songs, and even further back, Mike Yarwood at the height of his fame. I also still have an electronic Westminister chimes clock from the Ideal Homes exhibitions which used to take place there. The last time I went to the Fort, of course, was for a vaccination.

Royal Square - Library

Public Library. The library, founded in 1736, is at the western end of Royal Place in a building dating from 1886. The benefactor. the Rev Philip Falle. included a number of 16th-cem books in his bequest,

The new library is actually far better, more accessible and with more books and facilities. Living in St Brelade, I made use of the Les Quennevais Library and never went to the town one, but my ex-wife actually worked there. During the move to the new library, it was discovered that one of the chief librarians had been secretly selling off reserve books (out of print) and I believe may have gone to prison as a result. It only came to light because the checking of reserve stock involved in the move.

Esplanade - Occupation Museum. 

St Helier's Occupation Museum is at 9, the Esplanade; there are other mementos of those grim war years at St Peter's Bunker, the Underground Hospital. Lewis Tower and Kempt Tower on St Ouen‘s Bay, the Strawberry Farm. Elizabeth Castle and the Hougue Bie. but don’t let that deter you from seeing the one in town. Here the theme appeals directly to the visitor from Britain with the question: what might have happened had Hitler invaded the mainland? “It was a near thing!" the museum adds. In addition to the expected displays of small arms, there are remnants of equipment buried for years in tunnels at t Peter. and reminders of how the islanders lived. not knowing at the outset whether liberation would come in their lifetime Original letters and documents add colour to this grim story. but the main exhibit is a video. compiled by Channel Television, of people reliving their experiences under the Nazi jackboot.

Still there in 1998, it had gone by 2018, replaced by One Specs and Flavour Cafe. I remember visiting it with my children when  they were very young.