HENGRAVE

"HENGRAVE, a parish in the hundred of Thingoe, county Suffolk, 4 mile N.W. of Bury St. Edmund's, its post town. The parish, which is of small extent, is intersected by the navigable river Lark, over which is a bridge. The tithes have been commuted for a rent-charge of £241. The living is a rectory annexed to that of Flempton, in the diocese of Ely. The church is a small edifice of considerable antiquity, and has a round tower. It is still kept up as a mausoleum, and contains many monuments, including the tombs of the Kitsons, Gages, Bourchiers, earls of Bath, and several other families who have resided at the hall. It is void of seats and pulpit, and has not been in use as a church for upwards of two hundred years, the inhabitants frequenting the church of Flempton. The charities include Lady Kitson's almshouses, which are divided into four tenements, and endowed with a rent-charge of £30 per annum. Near the ancient church is Hengrave Hall, built by Sir Thomas Kytson in the reign of Henry VIII. It is a noble building in the Tudor style, and is built of brick with stone facings. It has a fine gateway and three-faced bay window with rich tracery, arms, &c. The mansion is situated in an extensive park, and is the seat of Sir Thomas Rokewood Gage, Bart., who is lord of the manor."

Description(s) from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland (1868)
Transcribed by Colin Hinson © 2003