Editing Southwold (section)

==Landmarks and features==
===Railway===
[[File:Southwold Lighthouse.jpg|thumb|The lighthouse]]
{{ main|Southwold Railway}}
The narrow-gauge [[Southwold Railway]] connecting the town to [[Halesworth]] ran from 24 September 1879 to 11 April 1929.<ref name="mitchell">{{Cite book |title=Branch Line to Southwold |last1=Mitchell |first1=V. |last2=Smith |first2=K. |year=1984 |publisher=Middleton Press |isbn=0-906520-15-0}}</ref>

In 2007 the Southwold Railway Society submitted plans to build a new line between the parish of [[Easton Bavents]] and Henham Park, to link the town to the nearest mainline service at [[Halesworth railway station|Halesworth]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.southwoldrailway.co.uk/project/index.php |title=The Project to Re-instate the Southwold Railway |publisher=Southwoldrailway.co.uk |date=5 July 2007 |access-date=23 February 2013 |archive-date=3 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120303115727/http://www.southwoldrailway.co.uk/project/index.php |url-status=dead}}</ref> However, these plans were criticised for having no relation to the original route of the railway and for environmental and other reasons. In July 2007 the plans were rejected by [[Waveney District|Waveney]] and by [[Suffolk Coastal]] District Councils.<ref>{{Cite news |date=5 July 2007 |url=http://www.eadt.co.uk/content/eadt/news/story.aspx?brand=EADOnline&category=News&tBrand=EADOnline&tCategory=News&itemid=IPED05%20Jul%202007%2000%3A18%3A11%3A157 |title=Southwold railway – last hopes dashed |publisher=EADT online |access-date=20 July 2006}}</ref> In December 2008 the Society introduced a new proposal for a Railway Park, including railway track and a museum, on a site at present occupied by a car-breaker's yard, next to the local sewage works.<ref>{{Cite news |date=18 December 2008 |url=http://www.advertiser24.co.uk/content/advertiser24/news/story.aspx?brand=WAVOnline&category=News&tBrand=WAVOnline&tCategory=news&itemid=NOED18%20Dec%202008%2009%3A02%3A05%3A483 |title=Tentative Approval for Southwold Railway |publisher=Norwich Advertiser |access-date=2 January 2009 |archive-date=23 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081223193538/http://www.advertiser24.co.uk/content/advertiser24/news/story.aspx?brand=WAVOnline&category=News&tBrand=WAVOnline&tCategory=news&itemid=NOED18%20Dec%202008%2009%3A02%3A05%3A483 |url-status=dead}}</ref> That proposal was superseded by another, in which a short section of railway, together with other attractions and facilities, would be constructed in the village of [[Wenhaston]], a few miles inland from Southwold and once a stop on the Southwold Railway. The plan did not meet with universal approval.<ref>{{Cite news |date=25 May 2012 |url=http://www.lowestoftjournal.co.uk/news/wenhaston_villagers_hope_to_derail_southwold_railway_trust_plan_1_1388986 |title=Wenhaston villagers hope to derail Southwold Railway Trust plans |publisher=Lowestoft Journal |access-date=26 May 2012 |archive-date=30 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150430053140/http://www.lowestoftjournal.co.uk/news/wenhaston_villagers_hope_to_derail_southwold_railway_trust_plan_1_1388986 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In February 2016, the original Railway Park proposal for Blyth Road, Southwold, on the site of the town's former gasholders, was revived, and a new planning application was submitted and approved. Construction of the Railway Park began in 2017.

===Lighthouse===
{{ main|Southwold lighthouse}}
[[Southwold lighthouse]] was commissioned in 1890 and automated and electrified in 1938.<ref name="thsouthwold">[http://www.trinityhouse.co.uk/lighthouses/lighthouse_list/southwold.html Southwold] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121008023411/http://www.trinityhouse.co.uk/lighthouses/lighthouse_list/southwold.html |date=8 October 2012}}, ''Trinity House''. Retrieved 29 October 2012.</ref> It stands as a prominent landmark in the centre of the town and is a Grade II [[listed building]].<ref name="britlistlight">[http://www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/en-484878-the-lighthouse-southwold-suffolk The Lighthouse, Southwold], ''British Listed Building''. Retrieved 29 October 2012.</ref> It is {{convert|31|m|ft}} metres tall, standing {{convert|37|m|ft}} metres above sea level. It is built of brick and painted white and has 113 steps around a spiral staircase.<ref name="thleaflet">[http://www.trinityhouse.co.uk/lighthouses/vc_generic_leaflet.pdf See inside a lighthouse] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120604151503/http://www.trinityhouse.co.uk/lighthouses/vc_generic_leaflet.pdf |date=4 June 2012}}, ''Trinity House''. Retrieved 29 October 2012.</ref>

The lighthouse replaced three local lighthouses that were under serious threat from [[coastal erosion]]. It suffered a fire in its original oil fired lamp just six days after commissioning but survived and today operates a rotating 150-watt lamp with a range of {{convert|24|nmi|km mi}}.<ref name="thsouthwold"/><ref name=pelangi>[http://www.pelangi.co.uk/appnotes/32064-Southwold%20PRL400.pdf Application note 32064 – Southwold Conversion] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221215857/http://www.pelangi.co.uk/appnotes/32064-Southwold%20PRL400.pdf |date=21 February 2014}}, Pelangi. Retrieved 4 January 2013.</ref><ref name="bbcsouthwold">[http://www.bbc.co.uk/suffolk/content/articles/2005/07/04/coast05walks_peter_austin_feature.shtml Discovering Southwold], ''BBC Suffolk''. Retrieved 29 October 2012.</ref><ref name="museumlight">[http://www.southwoldmuseum.org/thesea_lighthouse.htm The sea – Southwold's lighthouse], ''Southwold museum''. Retrieved 29 October 2012.</ref> From 2023, Trinity House has arranged that tours of the lighthouse are offered by the Adnams brewery, which stands close by, and may be booked with that company.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Southwold Lighthouse visitor centre {{!}} Trinity House |url=https://trinityhouse.co.uk/lighthouse-visitor-centres/southwold-lighthouse-visitors-centre |access-date=6 April 2023 |website=Southwold Lighthouse visitor centre {{!}} Trinity House}}</ref>

===Brewery===
{{main|Adnams}}
[[Adnams|Adnams brewery]] was established in the town by George and Ernest Adnams in 1872 with the purchase of the Sole Bay Brewery, which had been founded in 1818.<ref name=bbc12nov10>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-11741473 Suffolk brewer Adnams starts distillery], BBC news website, 12 November 2010. Retrieved 2013-01-02.</ref><ref name=adnamsbbc>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/suffolk/content/articles/2005/07/03/coast05walks_stage7.shtml Point 7 – The Brewery], BBC Suffolk. Retrieved 2 January 2013.</ref><ref name=adnamshistory>[http://adnams.co.uk/about/some-history/ Our history], Adnams. Retrieved 2 January 2013.</ref> In 1890 the brewery was re-built on its current site in the centre of the town. The brewery is the town's largest employer<ref name=adnamsbbc/> and has been modernised and expanded in recent years, with development of an energy efficient brewery, a distribution centre in the nearby village of Reydon, and a distillery.<ref name=bbc12nov10/><ref name=adnamsbbc /><ref name=adnamshistory/> In 2011 it received the [[Good Pub Guide]] Brewery of the Year Award.<ref name=edp7oct10>[http://www.edp24.co.uk/business/adnams_claims_national_title_1_674856 Adnams claims national title] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150501094154/http://www.edp24.co.uk/business/adnams_claims_national_title_1_674856 |date=1 May 2015 }}, ''Eastern Daily Press'', 7 October 2010. Retrieved 2013-01-02.</ref>

===Pier===
[[File:SouthwoldPier.JPG|thumb|right|Southwold Pier in the summer sunshine]]
{{main|Southwold Pier}}
[[Southwold Pier]] was built in 1900. At {{convert|247|m|ft}} it was long enough to accommodate the Belle steamers that carried trippers along the coast at that time. In World War II, it was weakened by two breaches, and in 1955 a large section was destroyed by a gale. The pier was entirely rebuilt and restored in 2001 and is now about {{convert|190|m|ft}} long. While many English seaside piers are in decline, Southwold Pier is enjoying renewed popularity, helped by a collection of modern coin-operated novelty machines made by [[Tim Hunkin]] and the occasional berth of paddle steamers such as [[PS Waverley]] and the [[MV Balmoral (1949)|MV Balmoral]].

A model boat pond adjacent to the pier is used for the Southwold Model Yacht regattas that have been held since the late Victorian period.<ref name="modelyachts">[http://southwoldmodelyachtregattas.co.uk/handbook/index.php The SMYR Handbook], ''Southwold Model Yacht Regattas''. Retrieved 30 October 2012.</ref> Some of the boats entered are up to 80 years old and include replicas of [[yawl|beach yawls]]. Regattas are usually held in the spring and summer with the largest, the annual regatta, held at the end of the summer season.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.southwoldmodelyachtregattas.co.uk/ |title=Southwold Model Yacht Regattas – Racing model yachts since 1894 |website=www.southwoldmodelyachtregattas.co.uk |language=en-GB |access-date=2018-02-04}}</ref>

===Water towers===
The Old Water Tower, in the middle of Southwold Common, was built in 1890. The tank held 40,000 gallons of water and was powered by huge sails. On St Valentine's Day 1899, George Neller, a respected local man, died when his coat got caught in its machinery. In 1937 a new 150,000 gallon capacity [[Art Deco]] water tower was built next door. The then Southwold Borough Council bought the Old Water Tower before it came into the hands of successive water companies. It was returned to the Town Council for a nominal fee of £100 in 1987. The Old Water Tower has since been used as the Lifeboat Museum and was later used by [[Adnams]] for a number of years.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.sosouthwold.co.uk/about-us/our-office |title=The So Southwold Office at the Old Water Tower |website=www.sosouthwold.co.uk |access-date=2016-09-28}}</ref>

===Electric Picture Palace===
The Electric Picture Palace cinema was opened in 2002, as a [[pastiche]] of the original 1912 cinema that stood nearby in York Road.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.southwoldcinema.co.uk/about-us/ |title=About Us - The Electric Picture Palace, Southwold |language=en-US |access-date=2016-09-28}}</ref>

===Museum===
Southwold Museum holds a number of exhibits focused on the local and natural history of the town. The museum is owned and managed by the Southwold Museum & Historical Society. It is part of the Maritime Heritage East programme which unites more than 30 maritime museums on the East Coast.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Welcome to Maritime Heritage East |url=http://www.maritimeheritageeast.org.uk/ |website=www.maritimeheritageeast.org.uk}}</ref>

===Sailors' Reading Room===
[[File:Southwold Sailours' Reading Room Interior.jpg|thumb|Southwold Sailors' Reading Room interior]]
The [[Southwold Sailors' Reading Room]] is a Grade II listed building on the seafront at Southwold. It was built in 1864 as a place for fishermen and mariners to read, as an alternative to drinking in pubs, and also to encourage the pursuit of Christian ideals. The room has a number of historic displays of model boats and other maritime objects in glass cabinets.<ref>[http://www.southwoldsailorsreadingroom.co.uk/index.php Official Website of the Southwold Sailors' Reading Room] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180928121149/http://www.southwoldsailorsreadingroom.co.uk/index.php |date=28 September 2018}} Retrieved 16 July 2018</ref>

===Golf club===
Southwold Golf Club was founded on 4 January 1884 as a Golf and Quoit Club. At the time there were only three other golf clubs in East Anglia – Cambridge University, Yarmouth and Felixstowe. The first game on the nine-hole course was played on 28 August 1884. Originally membership was not accepted from shopkeepers or manual workers, but in 1925 Mr J. B. Denny successfully persuaded the committee to form an Artisans' Section, which was originally restricted to 30 members.{{citation needed|date=January 2018}}