The Castle Hotel

In 1910, one of the worst fires occurred here in
Downham Market. Two of the adjacent
buildings to the Castle namely the clothing
factory which housed an enormous amount of
ex army supplies was burnt to the ground. It
was a huge shock to Mr. Richards who had
only recently purchased the Castle Hotel. He
woke his guests by shouting to wake them up,
they were staying at the Castle over the
Christmas holiday, they joined in with most of
the townsfolk of Downham where they
desperately tried to put out the fire.

They also led the horses out of the stables (now the car park) and dragged the
carriages and straw away from the vicinity.The fire was intense and although two
fire appliances were on the scene water was very scarce (nothing ever changes).
Buckets and buckets of water were carried out of the Castle and the houses
nearby, but this act in itself was not much help. The Castle stables suffered
extensive damage in fact the glass roof that covered the stable yard was
cracked. (a photo of the old stable yard and indeed the glass roof cover can still
be seen today in the bar on the ceiling where else?) The way in which fire was
broadcast to the townsfolk was by the ringing of the church bells, thank goodness
times have changed.

During the Second World War Downham was identical to every other town within
the United Kingdom, especially when the closeness of the town and the RAF
Airfield brought the two together everyday, the Castle was the preferred hostelry
of the younger air crews.