The Athenaeum

old-git · **Posted:** Thu Mar 09, 2006 3:25 am

This 1880 pic showing a board outside the Athenaeum. The first letter on the board is obscured by a figer, but PECTRAL can be seen. So I guess it reads SPECTRAL.

1880

The Athenaeum was opened on August 16 1854 to unite the town’s literary, artistic and scientific societies under a single roof.

unknown

It didn’t pay and on September 26 1883 the Post Office took over part of the building.

1904

Here are some pages from Hillen about the Athenaeum, click on the page numbers. 634, 635, 636, 637.

unknown

Found not to be big enough it was knocked down in 1936 and the present Post Office on the site opened in1939.

Now

The original looked quite a nice building, I thought.

Mike.H · **Posted:** Thu Mar 09, 2006 3:36 pm

Interesting stuff OG.

I see from page 635 that Robinson Cruso worked at the Athenaeum, :shock:

and I wonder what happend to the medals that were struck to celebrate the opening, mentioned at the foot of page 636. Something to look out for, may be the museum has one.

delbert · **Posted:** Thu Mar 09, 2006 3:44 pm

recon the old museum as it is now looks to have escaped the developers eye, hidden in that corner .
could be that this is quite a fete when ya weigh it up :smt023

hey og that woman giving you tha eye !!!! :shock:

CC · **Posted:** Sat Mar 11, 2006 10:42 pm

Hey MH...did you know that Robinson Cruso was buried is St Nicks churchyard and when Daniel Defoe was in Lynn he wandered into said place and noted the name of RC which he used later in his book? true.
http://www.chapter6.co.uk/literary_plac ... nland.html
is this the same Robinson? Defoe was shipwrecked at Winterton-on-Sea along with many other ships when sailing from King's Lynn.

CC

CC · **Posted:** Sat Mar 11, 2006 10:50 pm

Nice pics Og.....take them yourself?
So! if the Athenium was built 1854ish? when was the (now) Museum built and as what?
I think the word Spectral was use to relate to colours whereas Spectre related to ghosts, sorry! had dictionary pie for lunch!

CC

old-git · **Posted:** Sat Mar 11, 2006 10:58 pm

Oops,, oh well, they may have been showing off coloured light through prisms or sowt then. :wink:

There's only so far you can go with a spiel cheekier. Fat lot of good that degree in english has done me. :-D

I've edited it. :smt024

I'm fairly sure the present museum started of as a Union Chapel, well one of those sects anyway, will have to look it up.

EWW · **Posted:** Sun Mar 12, 2006 10:11 am

Hello O.G. CC. I will be with the manager of the museum on tuesday and and will ask him if they do have one of the medals, if they do I'll try and get a pic.EWW.

EWW · **Posted:** Sun Mar 12, 2006 10:24 am

You would have thought he would have gotten the spelling right, spelt with an 'e' in the church

EWW · **Posted:** Sun Mar 12, 2006 10:32 am

Did you spot my mistake in last post,?its with an 'e' in the story and without in the church.

CC · **Posted:** Sun Mar 12, 2006 11:10 am

eew...what the *@!* are you on about? do you know OG?????

CC

Mike.H · **Posted:** Sun Mar 12, 2006 12:54 pm

CC, Interesting note about how Defoe picked the name for his book, I wouldn't know, not being much of a reader. I think the Crusoe book was written in 1719, from what I can make out. So I don't think it's the same fella, though could be related I suppose. :smt102

EWW, good luck with the chap from the museum, I hope a medal turns up, or something interesting.

On another note, I hope you guys don't publicly flog me when I make a mistake, I have a partner who delights in that already. Just PM me and point out any silly mistakes that can be edited. As for spelling, if we start picking each other up on that we will be here 4ever, so long as the message is gotten across I don't care how it's spelted. :-D

CC · **Posted:** Sun Mar 12, 2006 2:19 pm

well said that chip! er sorry...chap! all in fun MH I hope anyways, certainly is from me anyways. Oddly enough though....would a spell check be helpful on here?

CC

old-git · **Posted:** Mon Mar 13, 2006 1:56 am

Bit more info about the museum.

Union Chapel, built c1859?, cost £4,000 to build according to Hillen, althought later he says £3,000 + £1,500 for a school room added later.
The Corporation payed £1600 for it, plus £400 to kit it out as a museum and art gallery. Opened as the present museum 14 April 1904.

CC · **Posted:** Mon Mar 13, 2006 6:57 pm

OG
and well worth the building costs eh....but why did it fail as a church? St Margarets, St Johns are all in the same area and are obviously older but someone must have seen a need.

CC

delbert · **Posted:** Mon Mar 13, 2006 8:47 pm

any help boys(and gals)

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