It is now one of the most exclusive spots on the Norfolk coast, but as a new history of Wells explains, its origins were far more modest. CHRIS BISHOP spoke to its author

More than a century of change shows no sign of slowing down in a much-loved seaside town.

Retired priest Roger Arguile, fell in love with Wells after he moved to the Norfolk coast from Cambridgeshire in 2007.

Now, the 79-year-old has written his second book about the history of his adopted coastal community, looking back over what he describes as its long last century.

Mr Arguile admits he found his research addictive. He spoke to scores of the town's present-day inhabitants.

He also camped out in the Norfolk Records Office and pored over papers, including old council minutes and school log books dating back to the 1860s as he pieced together the town's past.

"You can only get so much from talking to people," he said.

"The names of 40-plus people are in the front of the book, people I've talked to but they will only ever give you part of the picture.

"What they gave me was irreplaceable but I also needed the systematic records of Wells events."

The book is far more than a timeline. It brings to life a town which saw seismic change.

"In an electronic age where people don't write things down, I wanted to capture the experiences of people who saw Wells change from an agricultural community and industrial town into a tourist town," said Mr Arguile.

The tide also ebbed and flowed for the fishing industry which operated from its bustling quays.

"Fishing came and went," said Mr Arguile. "Whelks were once a huge industry. Wells hasn't in living memory been much of a wet fish place, but in the 1980s crabs became important.

"The Frarys began finding crabs in their whelk pots and from there on out it grew."

The coming of the railways marked a major milestone for every town the growing network came to serve.

Wells was no different but the coming of steam in 1857 soon threatened the town's harbour.

"By its means, the town began falteringly but deliberately to turn its face southwards," writes Mr Arguile.

"For a thousand years it had been easier to travel by sea than by land, to get to Antwerp rather than to Birmingham."

The railway changed all that. As well as a boost to the town's inland trade, it bought a near disaster when a wooden viaduct over the River Stiffkey at Barsham collapsed after heavy rains in 1912.

Tracks led along the quay, where wagons transporting goods to and from ship were pulled by horses.

Little over a century after the first steam engine puffed into town, the railway fell victim to the so-called Beeching axe and its station closed to passengers in 1964.

Chapters explore life in Wells during the first and second world wars, along with the history of its industries, schools and hospitals.

Local families and characters live on through its pages, along with the heroism of generations of its lifeboat crew from the first vessels drawn by horse to their launching site, from where they would be rowed out to sea by oarsmen.

The ups and downs of the port, where today fishing boats rub shoulders with pleasure craft and workboats tending the North Sea energy industry are also dissected in detail.

While he has got to know the town's history intimately in a quest spanning more than five years, Mr Arguile is less certain regarding its future.

The boom in second homes and holiday lets over the last 25 years or so has been another turning point for Wells.

The average house in the town now sells for £557,000, while the average household income is £38,000.

In recent years, the town has attracted the nicknames of 'Prosecco Ghetto' and 'Airbnb-next-the-Sea' , in reference to its community of well-heeled second home owners and holiday let tenants.

"It's in the balance," said Mr Arguile. "There are other issues, like rising sea levels and so on, but unless we get more affordable houses then Wells could die."

Wells next the Sea, The Long Last Century, is published by Jubilee Publications. It will be available from the Post Office in Wells and Wells Maltings, along with bookshops including Jarrolds, and Waterstone’s from Saturday, October 8, priced £19.95.