The first Lord of the Manor was Walter Giffard;[3] it passed to Hugh, Earl of Chester, who then left it to the De Vaux family.

The church was also badly damaged with its thatched chancel destroyed, the lead melted from the windows and the flames spreading up the steeple.

[3] Contemporary reports stated that the fire spread so swiftly that the butchers did not have time to rescue their meat from their stalls on the market.

[5] The Methodist Church, on Obelisk Plain, was built between 1862 and 1863 to a design by Thomas Jeckyll,[6] on a site donated by William Cozens-Hardy of Letheringsett Hall, who also paid most of the building costs.

The most recent religious building is the Chapel of Gresham's School, designed by Maxwell Ayrton and built in knapped flint and limestone between 1912 and 1916, with two angle turrets and an embattled parapet.

The hall, which stands in an 86-acre (35 ha) estate made up of ancient woodlands, lawns, lakes and gardens, was built in the 1840s and extended in the 1860s.

A Grade II listed building, it was subsequently owned by Norfolk County Council, who used it as an outdoor education centre.

[10][11] In August 2024, despite objections from Historic England and The Victorian Society, the school was granted planning permission to demolish the north, services wing of the house and add a modern extension.

[citation needed] The premises traded as a hardware shop or ironmonger's for over 100 years under the ownership of the Byford family.

The light was powered by the town's gas supply, which at the time was sporadic and unreliable, hence the nickname "Blind Sam".

The pineapple-topped obelisk at Holt is one of a pair of gateposts from Melton Constable Park, the other having been given to the town of Dereham in 1757.

At the start of the Second World War, to avoid assisting the enemy in the event of invasion, the townspeople of Dereham dumped their obelisk down a deep well, where it remains to this day.

[citation needed] The people of Holt whitewashed their obelisk at the start of the Second World War and it remains in good condition.

Chapel Yard, the first major retail development in Holt in modern times, was developed in 1983 within the conservation zone by architect Eric Goodman and Richard Webster, with removal of 1950s warehouses and adaptation of derelict flint workers' cottages, a chapel, the old fire station, and the reservists' drill hall.

During renovations, Goodman discovered that the cottages at 3, 4, 5 and 6 Chapel Yard dated to the mid-16th century; they are the oldest known buildings in the conservation area and have since been given Grade II listed status.

Goodman added two new buildings with doors and windows inset behind a covered walkway and with pan tile roofs supported by oak buttresses, derived from a traditional 'Norfolk cart shed'.

Goodman was also consulted on the design of a new supermarket in Holt, built in 1986 and also based on a Norfolk cart shed.

In addition, Historic England gave the buildings at 12 and 8 Albert Street Grade II listed status to protect the newly built environment; Goodman may be the only known design architect to receive such an accolade for a new development in North Norfolk.

[citation needed] A brick-built windmill was erected in the late 18th century: when put up for sale in summer 1792 it was described as "newly built".

Recent work has concentrated on clearing a large part of the mixed valley mire, an area of sphagnum bog that supports plants like sundews and several species of dragonfly, including one, the keeled skimmer, found nowhere else in East Anglia.

[18] These consist of 14 acres (57,000 m2) of green space, which provided the town of Holt with all of its water needs, enabling it to grow and flourish.

[19][20][21][22] The nearest railway station to Holt is in the town of Sheringham, where access to the National Rail network is provided by the Bittern Line to Norwich.

Most of this network was closed by British Railways in 1959, but the short section from Melton Constable via Holt to Sheringham (services continuing on to Cromer and Norwich) escaped closure for a few more years.

It succumbed finally in 1964 when the branch was cut back to Sheringham, which is now the nearest national railway station.

Initially, it operated between Sheringham and Weybourne; later, it was extended to the eastern edge of Holt at a new station site.

[27] The town is served by the local newspapers, The Holt Chronicle,[28] North Norfolk News [29] and Eastern Daily Press.

Organised by Planet Skaro, a local sci-fi store that has subsequently closed, the highlight of the day was a Dalek parade through the town centre.

In 1967 the club was able to purchase 9 acres (3.6 ha) of land on the eastern side of Bridge Road in nearby High Kelling.

Holt United Football Club[33] was formed in 1894 and was a founder member of the North Norfolk and Norwich League, which began in 1895.