Wymondham

After a great day out in Wymondham on 10th June, for those that wish to supplement their learning on Wymondham after our visit, I attach the following link which makes reference to; the market cross, fire of 1615, the abbey and plenty more:  

https://www.heritage.norfolk.gov.uk/record-details?TNF1561-Parish-Summary-Wymondham-(Parish-Summary)#:~:text=It%20is%20known%20that%20Wymondham,with%20some%20very%20intricate%20detailing.

Lyveden New Bield

I visited Lyveden Manor House and the New Bield (New Build) this week.  These were two houses about a mile apart, one a manor house and the other a half built “Secret House”.  Too close to the main house for use as a hunting lodge, keeping a secret house was a custom of the 16th century.  Often within a mile of the main house, the secret house was a place where the head of the household would retire for a few days with a minimum of servants, while the principal house was thoroughly cleaned and, bearing in mind the sanitation of the time, fumigated.  Secret Houses were probably never intended for full-time occupation.  Here are pictures of the manor house (first photo) and the New Field (second photo):

Norwich Public Library

I was talking to Merton on Saturday at a family gathering and he showed me some pictures of the Norwich Public Library that was located on St Andrews Street.  He has memories of collecting and returning library books to this library, maybe you have some memories too.  It was the first non-subscription library – built in 1857. The 1850 Libraries Act allowed larger boroughs to add up to half a penny in the pound to the rates to pay for library facilities and staff. Norwich Council was first to adopt the Act and Norwich was first to construct its own Free Library which opened in 1857 at the corner of St Andrew’s (Broad) Street and Duke Street.  Towards the end of its life, the Free/Public Library was used as a shoe factory and in 1963 it was demolished to give way to the new Central Library in Bethel Street.  

Here are some pictures.  The last picture shows the Norwich Telephone Exchange that has been built on the site of the old Norwich Public Library which of course in medieval times was the site of the Duke of Norfolk’s Palace: 

The Chapel In The Fields

Following on from the heritage walk last Tuesday and especially if you didn’t get a clear view of the maps I was showing, here is an article about Chapelfield and the Chapel In The Fields from the excellent Colonel Unthanks website.  In particular please note the excellent 16th, 18th and 19th century maps that outline the Chapel In The Fields, the water pump house and reservoir that once resided in Chapelfields:

https://colonelunthanksnorwich.com//?s=chapel+in+the+fields+&search=Go

The Captain's Parks

The following is an interesting article from the excellent Colonel Unthanks Norwich website.  It is about Captain Arnold Edward Sandys-Winsch who built five parks throughout Norwich during the 1920s and 1930s.  But what parks did he build and in what architectural style?  He also planted 20,000 trees throughout  Norwich which we all enjoy today and probably take for granted.  What manpower was used to build these parks?  There is also a 1950s cafe menu included in the article which is also worth a look and is very much different to the menus we see today! Please select the following link to find out more:  

https://colonelunthanksnorwich.com/2019/07/05/the-captains-parks/

Christopher Saxton’s Map of Norfolk 1574

I recently attended a Global Archive session at the Heritage Centre and one of the books on display was Saxton’s map of Norfolk.  As part of an initiative to survey and map England and Wales in 1574, financed by Thomas Seckford and authorised by Elizabeth I, Saxton produced the below map of Norfolk.  The end result is a lavish embellishment that has an ornamental value and well as a practical purpose.  

Here is an article about Christopher Saxton:

https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/library/files/special/exhibns/month/june2002.html

Margaret Elizabeth Fountaine

As it is Mother's Day, I have little time for research so here is an article I sent out a few years ago.  Margaret is another person I didn’t know anything about.  She was famous for being a lepidopterist and an adventurer which is a unique mix.  But what is a lepidopterist?  Where did she travel to?  What did she collect and where is her collection held now?  She travelled the world on horse back at great risk to herself but who was her guide and companion for 27 years?  She is also famous for the diary she kept between 1878–1939 and for her carefully drawn sketchbooks of larvae and pupae, many previously un-described, which are held in the Natural History Museum.  To find out more please select the following links, in the second link you will also find a short film about her: 

https://norfolkrecordofficeblog.org/margaret-fountaine/

https://norfolkwomeninhistory.com/1851-1899/margaret-fountaine/

Ebenezer Cobham Brewer

Many thanks to Sylvia for bringing Ebenezer Cobham Brewer to our attention on Tuesday.  He was born in Norwich and famous for writing, A Guide to the Scientific Knowledge of Things Familiar and Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable.  To find out more please select the following link:  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._Cobham_Brewer

Maharaja Duleep Singh

There is a statue of Maharaja Duleep Singh on Butten Island in Thetford.  So who is he?  Why is there a Sikh statue in Thetford?  He was the last Sikh ruler, removed by the British and exiled to Britain in 1854.  Where did he live on the Norfolk/Suffolk border?  Which member of the royal family was he a firm favourite of?  The following article talks about his life and the 2022 exhibition at the Norwich Archive centre.  To find out more please select the following link:  

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-63225177

Thomas Fowell Buxton

For those that enjoyed last week's talk from Alison Dow and would like to learn a little more about Thomas, here is a related article.  The article is more related to his life in London but hopefully you will find it of interest.  I need to make a note to look out for his grave the next time I am in Overstrand:  

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/blue-plaques/thomas-fowell-buxton/

Taverham Mill

I walked over to the Taverham Mill nature reserve the other day and enjoyed some pleasant tea and cake in their cafe.  On the wall was the below picture and some history of Taverham Mill, it must have a been a real hive of activity at it’s peak which is in contrast to the lovely peaceful surroundings of today’s nature reserve.  I thought that a related article would be of interest.  

https://www.norfolkmills.co.uk/Watermills/taverham.html

Wanderings of a Fallible Flaneur

Colin has made a recent post to his blog “Wanderings of a Fallible Flaneur” describing his visit to St Margaret’s Stratton Strawless.  Please select the following link to find out more.  You may also wish to explore his blog:  

https://thefallibleflaneur.blogspot.com/2025/02/stratton-strawless-st-margaret-always.html

Augustine Briggs

One of the tokens that Adrian Marsden showed us on Tuesday was issued by Augustine Briggs, a grocer, a Royalist who became Mayor.  Here is an article about Augustine with some contributions from Adrian:  

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-norfolk-67772625

Photos From Guildhall Tour

I attended a tour of the above on Friday and here are some photos that I took.  The first is of some medieval graffiti which are love hearts carved into the crypt where Kett and other prisoners were kept.  These may well have been messages to loved ones in the prisoners' final days.  

Here is some graffiti of a boat from the same crypt.  It doesn’t seem certain whether the boats represented a vocation or whether they were a vessel of travel (e.g. escape or means of travel through purgatory), we will probably never know.  

The final photo is a picture of the wall around Norwich.  We are all aware that the wall didn’t extend to the area behind the cathedral and Bishop’s Bridge but I wasn’t aware that the gap in the wall was so large at St Martin’s Gate (top left in the photo) which in my view would make the city vulnerable to attack.  Obviously the river was the defensive barrier in these areas but as we know from Kett’s rebellion, a committed force could get over the river.  Anyway the other main purpose of the wall was for the collection of tolls and this along with the river performed an excellent perimeter for this purpose.  

 

Watts Naval School

I had a Ramblers walk at North Elmham a couple of weeks ago and I came across the remains of the Watts Naval School.  The County School station on the Mid Norfolk Heritage Railway also takes the name from this school.  It started off as a Naval College and then was taken over by Barnardo’s, one of its famous pupils was Sir John Mills, the actor who was born there.  Here is a link to learn more:  

http://www.pwsts.org.uk/watts.htm

Undercrofts of Norwich

We enjoyed an excellent film on the undercrofts today.  I didn't realise that there are at least 60 in Norwich.  To supplement the film, if you would like to learn more about the undercrofts of Norwich here is a website called Norwich Underground:

http://www.norwichunderground.xyz/undercrofts/

Lazar House

We had a talk about leprosy in Norwich by Peter Balcombe a few weeks ago so I thought an article about Lazar House would be of interest.  It dates back to late 11th and early 12th century but what was its original purpose?  Magdalen House was built beside Lazar House but who did it house?  What happened to Lazar House under the dissolution of the monasteries and what was it known as?  And what is it used for now?  To find out the answers to these questions and more related information please select the following link:

http://www.sprowstonheritage.org.uk/Lazar_House