A Family Tradition, lives on
A brief history of The Anchor Inn, Morston
The Anchor Inn was originally owned by the brewery Bullards, and there are many bits of memorabilia from those early days in the pub today. The bond with the Bullards was strong, with the original Mr Jerry Bullard stating that the Temple family could stay as tenants as long as they wished. The pub changed hands amongst different breweries, but the Temple family remained. The pub was then put on the market, with Doris an elderly aunt, remaining a sitting tenant. It was at this time that Jim and Jane Temple took the plunge and bought the pub, primarily as a booking office for the boat trips. They ran it with Doris very much present and had quite an experience learning about pub life as it was in the 1980’s – one beer, Flowers, one lager, Heinekin, with a request for a gin and tonic positively frowned upon. With the passing of Doris they were able to take on the reins properly and trade in the pub steadily grew. Jim and Jane very much learnt the job as they
went along and were finally able to be in a position to knock down the flat roofed 60’s extension that leaked like a sieve and add the extension as it is today. North Norfolk became busier, they were already running the seal trips, and a young family arrived to add more chaos to the mix, so they finally decided to lease the Anchor out as a way of keeping the pub in the family but coping with the extra workload. Leasing was interesting to say the least. There has been a chequered mix of tenents to enjoy, all of
whom have loved the pub and the quirky village of Morston. We have had a fire (terrible time, but we proudly rebuilt her), covid, and most recently a failed attempt at turning The Anchor into a fish and chip bar.
With the Anchor being closed for many months it was an obvious move for Jane and Jim to try and get the doors open themselves and bring their cherished pub back to life. It has been one of the most challenging things Jane has taken on, and there were many elements to running a
pub today that were unheard of in previous times, but with the incredible help from Harry Williams (head chef) the pub has come alive. Jane runs Temple Seal Trips, which keeps her busy, so needed a team that would provide the welcome she was unable to provide herself. The Anchor Inn is back on track in the safe hands of Adam, Sharon, and Gaia working out front, and a team in the kitchen under the leadership of Harry. Its looking good, and the general feeling is how happy the customers are as they walk in the door, so pleased that their pub is back, offering a huge welcome,
great beer and fabulous food.
A Family Tradition Lives On
The Anchor pub has been in the Temple family for well over 100 years. Records show Henry Temple as holding the licence in 1899. He was also the local blacksmith, which used to adjoin the pub. His wife Ann then took over, followed by their daughter Ann-Mary, and then daughter Doris, who many will remember to this day. The Temple family have ledgers and various old documents from those days, a fascinating insight to life in the early 1900’s, with the blacksmith’s record of work done in the area. Henry and Ann’s son William Temple followed his father and became the next blacksmith, and
also a highly regarded boat builder. William, with the help from his brother James (Jim senior), started the boat business which today is Temple Seal Trips, originally a ferry service to Blakeney Point and back. They sold tickets for the boat trips at the pub, with the original telephone number being Cley 64 – long before the six digit numbers of today.
