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Welcome to Norwich Rowing Club

Press HERE for a modern history of Norwich Rowing Club

A brief history of rowing in Norwich

Our roots stretch back to competitive rowing in Norwich in the early 19th Century. Races were for prize money between company owners with their professional watermen taking place with spectator crowds of up to 20,000 people. In 1813 the Carrow Cup was raced for the first time. Outside the Dogget’s Coat and Badge Races for London Watermen, it is believed to be the oldest rowing trophy in this country. Norwich Rowing Club still holds the Carrow Cup race each year just before Christmas.

In 1892 Norwich Amateur Rowing Association (NARA) was set up at a club house at the Steam Packet public house. Later they moved to a larger boathouse at Pulls Ferry where they resided until 1938. Norwich Head of the River was first raced in embryonic form in 1932 and continues to attract novice to elite crews in large numbers. The country's first long distance sculling race, the Norfolk Long Distance Sculling Championship, was created in 1948 (from Surlingham Ferry to Whitlingham) and has attracted many international athletes from all over the country to Norfolk.

NARA moved club house further down the river in 1949. Members of Yare Club and NARA agreed in 1972 to set up Norwich Rowing Club on the current site. In 2014 NRC with Norwich School and Norwich High School rowing clubs , UEA Boat Club and Norwich Canoe Club, moved into the large new club house costing £1.4 million. The new club house has excellent facilities including state-of-the-art training gym, café, social and meeting rooms. All situated by the beautiful, sheltered river Yare.

Source & further information: The History of Rowing in Norwich 1803-2014 by Alan Wells