Hastings Old Town

File:East Hill Cliff Railway 1.jpg and the Net Shops]]

The Net Shops are tall black wooden sheds that were built to provide a weather-proof store for the fishing gear made from natural materials to prevent them from rotting in wet weather. The sheds were originally built on posts to allow the sea to go underneath, however, more shingle has built up and the sea no longer reaches the huts. The beach area on which the Sheds stand built up after groynes were erected in 1834, however, the limited space meant the sheds had to grow upwards, even though some sheds do have cellars.

Local historian and author Steve Peak says about the net shops:

:The old town's Net Shops - approximately 50 black wooden sheds standing in neat rows on a shingle beach are unique. They were built to provide weather-proof stores for fishing gear made of natural materials that rotted if wet for a long time. Today's materials are artificial and can be left in the open. Most net shops stand on a piece of beach that appeared suddenly after the first of the town's groynes were erected in 1834. The new beach area was small and close to the sea, so each shop could only have about eight or nine feet square to build on. But all boats had more nets than could be stored in such limited space, so the sheds had to grow upwards. Some have cellars. Many originally stood on posts to let the sea go underneath. Fishermen keep spare gear in the shops. One is a museum.

Two medieval Anglican churches—All Saints and St Clement's—and the former Ebenezer Particular Baptist Chapel of 1817 (now a house) are in the Old Town.{{cite book|last=Nairn|first=Ian|authorlink=Ian Nairn|author2=Pevsner, Nikolaus |authorlink2=Nikolaus Pevsner |title=The Buildings of England: Sussex|publisher=Penguin Books|location=Harmondsworth|year=1965|isbn=0-14-071028-0|pages=519, 524}} St Clement's was used as a filming location for the 2002 TV series Foyle's War.{{cite web|title=IMDb|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0310455/locations|work=filming locations for Foyle's War|accessdate=12 May 2011}} The former St Nicholas' Church, an unparished mission chapel built in 1854 to serve the fishermen, was converted into the Hastings Fishermen's Museum in 1956.{{cite book|last=Nairn|first=Ian|authorlink=Ian Nairn|author2=Pevsner, Nikolaus |authorlink2=Nikolaus Pevsner |title=The Buildings of England: Sussex|publisher=Penguin Books|location=Harmondsworth|year=1965|isbn=0-14-071028-0|page=520}} Also, in the old town is the Grade II listed St Mary Star of the Sea Church.

Image:Hastings lifeboat meeting tractor.jpg

Hastings RNLI lifeboat station,{{Cite web|url= http://www.rnli.org.uk/rnli_near_you/east/stations/HastingsEastSussex/|title= Lifeboat Station : Hastings|year= 2011|publisher= Royal National Lifeboat Institution|accessdate= 2 April 2011|url-status= dead|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20101223035610/http://rnli.org.uk/rnli_near_you/east/stations/HastingsEastSussex|archivedate= 23 December 2010}} based in the Old Town, was established in 1858.{{Cite web|url= http://www.hastingslifeboat.org.uk/history.htm|title= History|year= 2007|publisher= Hastings Life Boat|accessdate= 2 April 2011|url-status= dead|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20111003035508/http://www.hastingslifeboat.org.uk/history.htm|archivedate= 3 October 2011}} It currently operates a state-of-the art waterjet drive Shannon Class all-weather lifeboat, as well as a D class inshore rescue boat.{{Cite web |url= http://www.rnli.org.uk/rnli_near_you/east/stations/HastingsEastSussex/fleet%20?station?%20Fleet|title= Hastings Fleet|year= 2011|publisher= RNLI|accessdate=2 April 2011}}{{Citation|title=Shannon-class lifeboat|date=2020-08-20|url=https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Shannon-class_lifeboat&oldid=973985946|work=Wikipedia|language=en|access-date=2020-09-01}} Both boats are beach launched from either side of the harbour arm. The all-weather lifeboat is launched from a 22-metre-long Supercat 'Shannon Launch and Recovery System' (SLARS) - a hydraulically powered mobile slipway / turntable which is driven into the sea. Upon recovery, the boat is beached at speed and winched back up the beach and onto the slipway. The slipway is connected to and hauled by a caterpillar-tracked semi submersible tractor unit, marinised so that it can operate in up to 2.4 m of water. If needed the rig can be sealed by the operator and abandoned, surviving in up to 10 m of water until it can be recovered.{{Cite web|title=NavynutsRNLIHome|url=https://www.lifeboatsonline.com/RNLISupercat.html|access-date=2020-09-01|website=lifeboatsonline.com}} The D class inshore lifeboat is launched from a wheeled carriage towed or pushed by a tracked 'Bobcat' launch vehicle into the surf. The carriage can also be launched and recovered on a towline if beach conditions require it. Hastings Lifeboat Station also operate a CAT D4C Bulldozer for beach maintenance and to assist in the event of the breakdown or immobilisation of a primary launch vehicle.{{Cite web|title=Lifeboat funded by Ferraris officially named at Hastings RNLI {{!}} RNLI|url=https://rnli.org/news-and-media/2019/april/27/lifeboat-funded-by-ferraris-officially-named-at-hastings-rnli|access-date=2020-09-01|website=rnli.org|language=en}}

File:Former Ebenezer Particular Baptist Chapel, Old Town, Hastings (IoE Code 293813).JPG|The former Ebenezer Particular Baptist Chapel

File:Net and tackle stores on Hastings beach.JPG|Three of the Net Shops

File:Hastings beach.jpg|The Stade

File:121 All Saints Street Hastings.jpg|121 All Saints Street Hastings

{{reflist}}

• [http://www.hastingsfish.co.uk/museum.htm Fishermen's Protection Society]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20100315150846/http://www.ohps.org.uk/fishermens_museum/ Fishermen's Museum]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20071129215710/http://www.hmag.org.uk/home/default.aspx Hastings Museums & Arts]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20071215135128/http://www.nautical-heritage.org.uk/aboutus.html Nautical Heritage Association]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20080118072731/http://www.rnli.org.uk/rnli_near_you/east/stations/hastingseastsussex/station Royal National Lifeboat Institution]
• [http://www.hastingslifeboat.org.uk/ Hastings Lifeboat]

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Old Town