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Cromer - Crawes's Mere, lake or pond with crows. The mere was not the sea. In 13th century, it was "Crowemere".
Cromer is not mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, but two other settlements, Shipden-juxta-mere and Shipden-juxta-Felbrigg, are mentioned. It is reasonable to assume that the present site of Cromer, around the parish church of Saints Peter and Paul, is what was then Shipden-juxta-Felbrigg.
The other Shipden is now about a quarter of a mile to the north east of the end of Cromer Pier, under the sea. Its site is marked by Church Rock, now no longer visible, even at a low spring tide. In 1888 a vessel struck the rock, and the rock was then blown up for safety.
Cromer became a resort in the early 19th century, with some of the rich Norwich banking families making it their summer home. Visitors included the future King Edward VII, who played golf here. The resort's facilities included the late-Victorian Cromer Pier, which is home to the Pavilion Theatre.
In 1883 the London journalist Clement Scott went to Cromer and began to write about the area. He named the stretch of coastline, particularly the Overstrand and Sidestrand area, "Poppyland", and the combination of the railway and his writing in the national press brought many visitors. The name "Poppyland" referred to the numerous poppies which grew (and still do) at the roadside and in meadows.
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