As previously reported, last Friday, 10th September 2021, was the 147th anniversary of The Great Thorpe Railway Disaster. The special commemorative dinner held at the Rushcutter’s Inn in Thorpe St Andrew, just outside Norwich. Known as The Three Tuns in 1874, this is the very pub where the dead and the dying were laid out in the skittle alley on the night of the accident, to await the inquest. The dinner proved to be an excellent occasion, with the Deputy Mayor and, Rector of Thorpe St Andrew, Pete Goodrum, who wrote the foreword for the book, local historians, writers and a descendent of one of the heroes of the accident, joining me and my husband. At 9pm, we went out to the river bank, where everyone cast white carnations onto the water, while the names of the 28 people who died were read out. This was followed by the Reverend James Stewart offering a prayer for the dead.
It was a very special evening and my thanks go all my guests and to the staff of The Rushcutter’s Inn.
The Great Thorpe Railway Disaster 1874 - Heroes, Victims, Survivors 