and Parishes
all of Suffolk
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Suffolk Towns and Parishes |
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Information related to all of Suffolk |
"SUFFOLK, a maritime county on the E. coast of England, is bounded N. by Norfolk, E. by the German Ocean, S. by Essex, and W. by Cambridge. It lies between 51° 56' and 52° 37' N. lat., 0° 23' and 1° 46' E. long. Its greatest length from Southtown, a suburb of Great Yarmouth, on the N.E., to the south-western border, is 68 miles, and the extreme breadth 52 miles. The area is 1,481 square miles, or 947,681 acres, of which about 820,000 acres are arable land, meadow, and pasture. The population in 1801 was 214,404; in 1851, 337,215; and in 1861, 337,070. In the earliest times of which we have any record, it was inhabited by the Iceni, a British tribe, and subsequently formed part of the Roman province of Flavia Cęsariensis. It was afterwards occupied by the Angles, and formed part of the kingdom of East Anglia. In 654, Penda, king of Mercia, attacked the East Anglians, and in a battle fought near Blytheburgh, slew their king. The Danes early commenced their ravages along this coast, and in 871 defeated and took prisoner Edmund, king of East Anglia, whom they put to death for refusing to renounce Christianity. His body was removed from Hoxne to Bury, which received in consequence the name of Bury St. Edmund's, and a monastery was erected to his honour. In the division of the kingdom under Alfred the county was included within the Danelagh, and at the time of the Norman conquest was held by Gurth, brother of Harold II. The surface of this county is generally flat, or gently undulating, there being no eminence in the whole county worthy of notice. The highest ground lies towards the W., through which, some miles to the W. of Bury, and thence to Thetford, runs a chalk dyke, which crosses this part of England in a north-easterly direction. This ridge separates the watershed of the N. from that of the S. of the county, the streams on the upper side flowing into the Little Ouse and Waveney, while those on the lower side fall into the Stour and Orwell, or directly into the German Ocean. The north western districts bordering on Cambridgeshire partake of its marshy, fenny nature, and in some places the land is secured from overflow of the rivers by large embankments along their course. The coast line, 52 miles in length, is for the most part regular, and convex to the sea. The bays are generally shallow, and the headlands have little prominence. The principal harbours are formed by the estuaries of the Orwell and Stour on the S.E., and of the other rivers which flow into the German Ocean. The shore is in most places low and sandy, and occasionally marshy; but low cliffs, composed of alternations of clay, sand, and gravel, are found on both sides of the estuary of the Deben, and at some other points. These are being slowly undermined by the sea, while at some places the reverse occurs, and accessions of land are being formed by the accumulation of marine deposits. Lowestoft, Southwold, and Felixstow are much resorted to as watering-places. " (There is more of this description).
From The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland (1868)
Transcribed by Colin Hinson ©2003
- Bury St.Edmunds
Suffolk Record Office, 77 Raingate Street, Bury St.Edmunds IP33 2AR
- Ipswich
Suffolk Record Office, Gatacre Road, Ipswich IP1 2LQ
- Lowestoft
Suffolk Record Office, Lowestoft Central Library, Clapham Road South, Lowestoft NR33 1DR
Open Tuesday to Thursday mornings 10 am - 12.45 pmReturn to top of page
Open Tuesday to Friday afternoons 1.15 pm - 4.00 pm
Open Tuesday evenings 7.00 pm - 9.00pm (LDS members only)
Open Wednesday evenings 7.00 pm - 9.00 pm
Pre-booking is required for many of their facilities - please contact the centre before travelling any distance, and please book well in advance.
See also Church History and Maps
Suffolk Historic Churches Trust Suffolk is renowned for the quantity and quality of its historic churches, many built with the profits of the wool trade.
Popular Guide to Suffolk Churches, Volume I: West Suffolk By D.P. Mortlock, Lutterworth Press. ISBN-13: 9780906554104 Written with an eye for detail, this is the first volume of the authoritative guide to Suffolk churches. Includes an encyclopaedic glossary of historical and architectural terms.Tracing the History of a Parish Church A guide to relevant printed and manuscript material held by Suffolk Record Office.
Travel
You may find it worthwhile searching in the GENUKI gazetteer.
Bartholomew Gosnold was born in Suffolk and his family seat was at Otley Hall, Otley, Suffolk. In 1607 he was instrumental in establishing the first English settlement in America at Jamestown, Virginia.
The Foxearth and District Local History Society has prepared a useful history of Essex and Suffolk.
- Suffolk Tithe Name Index Vol 1: Dunwich Deanery (south), S.G. Burnay, Sigma Books
- Suffolk Tithe Name Index Vol 2: Dunwich Deanery (north), S.G. Burnay, Sigma Books
The Parham Airfield Museum is home to the US 390th Bomb Group Memorial Air Museum and the Museum of the British Resistance Organisation - The Auxiliary Units.
Bawdsey Radar Museum - Bawdsey Quay, IP12 3AZ. The museum is based in wartime concrete bunkers including the old Transmitter Block - the first radar station in the world. See website for opening times and admission charges.
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