Museums, archives and heritage in Suffolk

Suffolk, maritime county in E. of England, bounded N. by Norfolk, from which it is separated by the Waveney and Little Ouse, E. by the North Sea, S. by Essex, from which it is separated by the Stour, and W. by Cambridgeshire, from which it is separated by the Lark; area, 944,060 acres, population 356,893. The coast line (of about 50 miles), broken by the estuaries of the Stour, Orwell, Deben, and Aide, is generally low, and the sea has made great encroachments, particularly in the neighbourhood of Dunwich and Aldeburgh. The surface is generally level, and the soil is very varied – occasional fen, loam on the borders of the rivers, sand on the eastern and western borders, and clay in the centre. This last is fertile, and large crops are grown of wheat, barley, pease, and beans, the barley in particular being in high repute with brewers. Butter is extensively made for the London markets. Sheep are reared in the NW., which is hilly; and the Suffolk cart-horse, esteemed for its power of draught, is raised in considerable numbers. The manufactures – principally agricultural implements and artificial manure – are limited. Fine sea-salt is made on the coast. The trade of the seaports is chiefly in corn and malt. The herring and mackerel fisheries are extensively prosecuted at Lowestoft and other places, and oysters are found in the Orwell and Orford. Most of the towns have river communication, and the county is traversed in all directions by the railways of the Great Eastern system. It comprises 21 hundreds, 517 parishes, with parts of 7 others, the parliamentary and municipal boroughs of Bury St Edmunds and Ipswich, the municipal boroughs of Beccles, Eye, Lowestoft, and Southwold, and part of the municipal borough of Sudbury. It is mostly in the diocese of Norwich.

– John Bartholomew, Gazetteer of the British Isles (1887)

390th Bomb Group Memorial Air Museum & The British Resistance Organisation Museum

Parham Airfield, Parham

Framlingham IP13 9AF

01728 621373

www.parhamairfieldmuseum.co.uk

The 390th Bomb Group Memorial Air Museum is housed in an original wartime Control Tower. Associated Quonset (Nissen) Huts house The British Resistance Organisation Museum, Percy Kindred Library and tea room.

Collections: Exhibits include a unique and rare collection of recovered WWII aircraft engines, parts of allied and German aircraft, uniforms, documents, photographs and memorabilia relevant to the U.S. 8th Air Force, RAF and the German Luftwaffe of WWII.

Abbey Visitor Centre

Samson’s Tower

Bury St Edmunds IP33 1RS

www.stedmundsbury.gov.uk

The extensive remains of the wealthiest and most powerful Benedictine monastery in England, and the shrine of St Edmund. They include the complete 14th century Great Gate and Norman Tower, and the impressive ruins and altered west front of the immense church.

Aldeburgh Museum, The Moot Hall

Aldeburgh

01728 454666

www.aldeburghmuseum.org.uk

16thC town hall which is a listed ancient building with a museum displaying items of local interest such as photographs and artefacts depicting life in Aldeburgh. The emphasis is on the fishing industry and the part played by the lifeboat and its crews.

Beccles & District Museum

Leman House, Ballygate

Beccles NR34 9ND

01502 715722

www.becclesmuseum.org.uk

Leman House was probably built about 1570 and was completely restored and modernised in the 1760s. Originally it was a timber frame structure, much of which disappeared when the brick facades were added.

Bentwaters Cold War Museum

Building 134, Bentwaters Parks

Rendlesham, Woodbridge IP12 2TW

07588 877020

www.bcwm.org.uk

Museum is based in the United States Air Force (USAF) hardened command post on the former Bentwaters airbase which closed after the withdrawal of the USAF in 1993 and is believed to be the only such building open to the public in the UK and Europe. Visitors can experience the Cold War history with guides and talks about the operations of the base with detailed displays of the units stationed at both RAF Bentwaters and nearby RAF Woodbridge since WWII. Aircraft on display include English Electric Lightning, Hawker Hunter, BAC Jaguar, McDonnell Douglas Phantom & Harrier.

Brandon Heritage Centre

George Street

Brandon IP27 0BX

07882 891022

www.brandonheritagecentre.org

The Brandon Heritage Centre is a community-run independent museum with a permanent collection telling the story of Brandon from the Stone Age to the present day.

Bungay Museum

Council Offices, Broad Street

Bungay NR35 1EE

01986 892176

www.bungay-suffolk.co.uk/activities/museum.asp

Bungay Museum is situated in two small rooms of the Waveney District Council Office. It was established in 1963, and displays items relating to the heritage, society and businesses of the town.

Christchurch Mansion

, Soane Street

Ipswich IP4 2BE

01473 433554

www.cimuseums.org.uk

This beautiful Tudor mansion is the jewel in the crown of Ipswich’s historic past boasting over 500 years of history. Explore the period rooms from the Tudor kitchen to the sumptuous Georgian saloon and the beautifully detailed Victorian wing and much more. Gaze at the fine collection of art from Suffolk artists including the biggest collection of Thomas Gainsborough and John Constable paintings outside of London.

Clare Ancient House Museum

26 High Street, Clare

Sudbury C010 8NY

01787 277572

www.clare-ancient-house-museum.co.uk

Clare Ancient House is a Grade 1 Listed Building, dating in part to the 14th and, in part, the 15th century. It may have served as a shop, and has certainly been a bakery, a workhouse and a dwelling for the church sexton.

Clifford Road Air Raid Shelter Museum

Clifford Road Primary School, Clifford Road

Ipswich IP4 1PJ

01473 251605

www.cliffordroadshelter.org.uk

Hidden beneath a Suffolk school playground, among quiet residential streets, the shelter provides a vivid picture of life during World War Two. Hundreds of feet of substantial concrete tunnels were sealed up and forgotten in 1945. Thanks to their solid construction, they were in excellent condition when rediscovered over forty years later.

Dunwich Museum

St James’ Street

Dunwich IP17 3EA

01728 648 796

www.dunwichmuseum.org.uk

Dunwich Museum is the perfect history experience for all the family. It tells the amazing story of a city lost to the sea through the narrative of its collection and the knowledge of its welcoming staff.

East Anglia Transport Museum

Chapel Road, Carlton Colville

Lowestoft NR33 8BL

01502 518 459

www.eatm.org.uk

Here you can see a unique project; the creation of a museum of street transport designed to show the development of mechanical transport over the best part of a century. The essence of transport is movement, so we are building a living museum where vehicles of yesteryear can be seen in action, where half-forgotten sounds of the past are brought back to life and where visitors can journey back in time by travelling on a few of the exhibits along the museum’s streets.

East of England Military Museum

Littleheath, Barnham

Thetford IP24 2SY

01842 890600

www.militarymuseumweb.org.uk

The museum is on the area where the very first 75 tank crews trained in World War I. We have a full size replica WWI tank on display.

Felixstowe Museum

Viewpoint, Landguard Point

Felixstowe IP11 7JG

01394 674355

www.felixstowe-museum.co.uk

Felixstowe Museum houses 14 galleries displaying the military and social history of this popular seaside resort. Even the building is of historical interest as it was once a submarine mining establishment. Felixstowe Museum is managed by our team of friendly, dynamic volunteers who are always happy to help.

Framlingham Castle – English Heritage

Framlingham IP13 9BP

01728 724189

goo.gl/aPDZFh

Framlingham is a magnificent example of a late 12th-century castle. Built by Roger Bigod, Earl of Norfolk, the castle, together with Framlingham Mere, was designed both as a stronghold and as a symbol of power and status – as befitted one of the most influential people at the court of the Plantagenet kings.

Gainsborough’s House

46 Gainsborough Street

Sudbury CO10 2EU

01787 372958

www.gainsborough.org

Gainsborough’s House is the birthplace museum of Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788), one of the greatest artists in the history of British art. Gainsborough’s House has the largest collection of his work on display at any one time in Britain. The house itself dates from around 1500 and retains many interesting architectural features.

Halesworth & District Museum

The Railway Station

Halesworth IP19 8BZ

01986 873030

halesworthmuseum.org.uk/wpress

This museum run by volunteers is in the railway station and is packed with displays, useful information about local families and local history and award winning archaeology and geology displays.

Haverhill & District Local History Centre

Town Hall Arts Centre, High Street

Haverhill CB9 8AR

01440 7149962

goo.gl/HtLa4d

Haverhill Local History Centre is a resource and study centre for Haverhill and surrounding villages. Haverhill has a long history; it is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, and there have been archaelogical finds in the area dating from the Stone and Bronze ages. The town prospered during Victorian times with steam powered looms at the Gurteen factory and the coming of the railway.

Ickworth – National Trust

The Rotunda, Horringer

Bury St Edmunds IP29 5QE

01284 735270

www.nationaltrust.org.uk/ickworth

Explore acres of space, woodland, wildlife, and a stunning architectural oddity, all with a story to match. See how one eccentric man’s passion for art, Italy and for having a party led to the creation of this remarkable house and its renowned collection of paintings, portraits, furniture and other treasures. Through our Ickworth Lives project, learn about the servants and workers who kept this country estate running and share their memories.

Ipswich Museum

High Street

Ipswich IP1 3QH

01473 433550

www.cimuseums.org.uk

This fascinating and unique museum gives you the opportunity to meet the famous woolly mammoth, the elegant towering giraffe and other wonderful curiosities from the natural world.

Ipswich Transport Museum

Old Trolleybus Depot, Cobham Road

Ipswich IP3 9JD

01473 715666

www.ipswichtransportmuseum.co.uk

The Ipswich Transport Museum has the largest collection of transport items in Britain devoted to just one town. Everything was either made or used in and around Ipswich, the county town of Suffolk.

Kentwell Hall

Long Melford

Sudbury CO10 9BA

01787 310207

www.kentwell.co.uk

Kentwell Hall is a beautiful redbrick moated Tudor Manor House close to the historic village of Long Melford. Whilst not a stately home, this ‘little great house’ remains a lived-in and much-loved family home.

Lanman Museum

Framlingham Castle

Framlingham, Woodbridge IP13 9BP

01728 724189

www.thelanmanmuseum.onesuffolk.net/Lanman-Museum

Housed within Framlingham Castle, the collection is based round that of the late Harold Lanman. It includes artefacts relating to all aspects of daily life in the town over many centuries.

Lavenham Guildhall – National Trust

Market Place

Lavenham CO10 9QZ

01787 247646

www.nationaltrust.org.uk/lavenham-guildhall

Lavenham was once one of the wealthiest places in the country. Its famous blue cloth was exported across Europe and beyond. The village today is famed for its wealth of surviving timber-framed buildings, which make it one of the best-preserved medieval villages in England.

Laxfield & District Museum

The Guildhall, High Street, Laxfield

Woodbridge IP13 8DU

01986 798026

www.laxfieldmuseum.onesuffolk.net

The museum’s collection includes early 20th century shop interiors together with window displays, artefacts, costumes; information on domestic life of the same period and the Mid Suffolk Light Railway, which terminated in Laxfield; farming and rural life in Suffolk; local ‘field finds’, including fossils; special exhibitions changed annually and displayed in the Marchant Room.

Little Hall Lavenham

Little Hall, Market Place

Lavenham CO10 9QZ

01787 247 179

www.littlehall.org.uk

Step inside Little Hall, one of the oldest timberframed buildings in the best preserved of the Suffolk wool towns. Its history mirrors the changing fortunes of Lavenham. Built in the 1390s for the Causton family of clothiers, enlarged and improved in 1425-50, it was then ‘modernised’ in Tudor times by the addition of a fireplace and upper floor in the hall.

Long Shop Museum

Main Street

Lieston IP16 4ES

01728 832189

www.longshopmuseum.co.uk

In the museum you will find a staggering collection of objects, ranging from full-size steam engines (the Richard Garrett & Sons engineering business made many hundreds of steam engines here) to touching mementoes of the lives of the working people of the town. The Long Shop itself – at the heart of the museum – is a Grade II* listed engineering workshop, thought to be one of the earliest purpose-built production lines in existence (made long before Henry Ford had the same idea.), and it’s chock-full of fascinating exhibits.

Lowestoft Maritime Museum

Whapload Road

Lowestoft NR32 1XG

01502 561963

www.lowestoftmaritimemuseum.org.uk

Lowestoft Maritime Museum is housed in a pretty flint cottage that sits between the North Sea and Lowestoft’s Sparrow’s Nest Park. The museum offers visitors an extensive series of displays, with many hands-on activities including lots for children and a small cinema where you can see wonderful archive film footage. If you haven’t visited for a while, you’ll be surprised to see how much there is.

Lowestoft Museum

Broad House, Nicholas Everitt Park, Oulton Broad

Lowestoft NR33 9JR

01502 511457

www.lowestoftmuseum.org

Lowestoft Museum houses a collection of objects relating to the history of the area and its people, inside a grade 2 listed building situated within the grounds of Nicholas Everitt Park.

Mechanical Music Museum & Bygones

Blacksmith Road, Cotton

Nr Stowmarket IP14 1QN

01449 613876

goo.gl/4bvvzF

Come visit a magical world where music was made not with computers or digital information but by mechanical movement. Our collection is literally an ‘Aladdin’s Cave’ of musical items and memorabilia.

Melford Hall – National Trust

Long Melford

Sudbury CO10 9AA

01787 379228

www.nationaltrust.org.uk/melford-hall

Set in the unspoilt village of Long Melford, the house has changed little externally since 1578 when Queen Elizabeth I was entertained here, and retains its original panelled banqueting hall. It has been the home of the Hyde Parker family since 1786. There are a Regency library, Victorian bedrooms, good collections of furniture and porcelain and a small display of items connected with Beatrix Potter, who was related to the family.

Mid-Suffolk Light Railway Museum

Wetheringsett IP14 5PW

01449 766899

www.mslr.org.uk

Railway museum with demonstration running line, restored Middy buildings (corrugated iron cladding), appropriate rolling stock (all carriages are Victorian), extensive archive of photographs with some documents and artefacts. Event days usually themed around aspect of the railway’s life and history.

Mildenhall & District Museum

6 King Street, Mildenhall

Bury St Edmonds IP28 7ES

01638 716970

www.mildenhallmuseum.co.uk

Perhaps our building looks just a little austere and foreboding, but it holds a wealth of antiquities and other riches from Mildenhall and surrounding areas. In pride of place is the 4th century Roman hoard known as the Mildenhall Treasure. The museum provides excellent resources for the study of history, both recent and ancient, for the schools in our area.

Moyse’s Hall Museum

Cornhill

Bury St Edmunds IP33 1DX

01284 757160

www.moyseshall.org

Collections of local and social history alongside horology fine art and costumes housed in a rare example of 12th century Norman domestic architecture. Includes objects associated with the notorious Red Barn Murder. Also houses the Suffolk Regiment Gallery.

Museum of East Anglian Life

Iliffe Way

Stowmarket IP14 1DL

01449 612229

www.eastanglianlife.org.uk

The museum of East Anglian Life sits in over 70 acres of beautiful Suffolk countryside. The museum features historic buildings, farm animals, a nature walk and over 40,000 objects in its collection.

Norfolk & Suffolk Aviation Museum

Buckaroo Way, The Street, Flixton

Bungay NR35 1NZ

01986 896644

www.aviationmuseum.net

East Anglia’s Aviation Heritage Centre, incorporating the museums of 446th Bombardment Group, RAF Bomber Command, Royal Observer Corps, No. 6 Group, Air Sea Rescue & Coastal Command.

Orford Castle – English Heritage

Orford

Woodbridge IP12 2ND

01394 450472

goo.gl/QD8a1y

The unique polygonal towerkeep of Orford Castle stands beside the pretty town and former port which Henry II also developed here in the 1160s. His aim was to counterbalance the power of turbulent East Anglian barons like Hugh Bigod of Framlingham, and to guard the coast against foreign mercenaries called to their aid. An 18-sided drum with three square turrets, and a forebuilding reinforcing its entrance, the keep was built to a highly innovative design.

Orford Museum

Orford Castle

Orford IP12 2ND

www.orfordmuseum.org.uk

Situated within Orford Castle, the museum includes some of the Orford Borough Regalia as well as archaeological finds from the surrounding area. These include rare coins, brooches and pottery dating from Roman and Anglo-Saxon times.

Ridgewell Airfield Commemorative Museum

c/o White Wings, Ashen Road, Ovington

Sudbury CO10 8JX

01787 277310

www.381st.com

We are a small, private collection of World War II memorabilia displayed in and around the old hospital buildings behind the U.S. 381st Bomb Group memorial. The site is dedicated to the brave men of the USAAF.

Rougham Tower Association

The Control Tower, Rougham Industrial Estate

Bury St Edmunds IP30 9XA

01359 271471

www.rougham.org

Rougham Airfield is situated a couple of miles east of Bury St Edmunds, UK and was home to the USAAF 322nd and 94th Bomb Groups during the Second World War. This airfield is one of the few wartime bases to retain its control tower into current times.

Royal Naval Patrol Service Museum

RNPS Association, Sparrow’s Nest Gardens, Whapload Road

Lowestoft NR32 1XG

01502 586250

www.rnps.lowestoft.org.uk/museum.html

Thirty years after the end of World War 2 a handful of ex-members of the Royal Naval Patrol Service got together to form an Association to link not only those who had passed through HMS Europa, the stone frigate based at Sparrow’s Nest Gardens, Lowestoft during the WW2 but also the widows of those who made the supreme sacrifice. The National Office and Museum are situated in Sparrow’s Nest and a most attractive display of relics and memorablilia has been gathered together by members of the association who devote a great deal of their spare time in making this a unique and brightly-decorated meeting place.

Saxtead Green Post Mill – English Heritage

The Mill House, Saxtead Green, Saxtead

Woodbridge IP13 9QQ

01728 685789

goo.gl/UeMgqs

Saxtead Green Post Mill is perfect for those looking for a day out with a difference. Though milling ceased in 1947, it is still in working order. Climb the stairs to various floors, which are full of fascinating mill machinery.

Somerleyton Hall & Gardens

Somerleyton Hall

Lowestoft NR32 5QQ

01502 734901

www.somerleyton.co.uk

The grounds of Somerleyton Hall have been home to high status buildings since the post conquest Norman era. In 1240 the existing manorial Hall was rebuilt by Sir Peter Fitzosbert as a magnificent country house on the site of the original medieval Hall. Four centuries later the house was further enlarged and restyled by John Wentworth and transformed into an archetypal East Anglian Tudor-Jacobean mansion. The Hall’s final and most drastic alteration took place in 1843 under new ownership of a wealthy Victorian entrepreneur Samuel Morton Peto who hired John Thomas, Prince Albert’s favourite architect, to carry out extensive rebuilding.

Southwold Museum

9-11 Victoria Street

Southwold IP18 6HZ

01502 722 437

www.southwoldmuseum.org

Southwold’s unique cottage museum is dedicated to the local and natural history of this corner of Suffolk. Owned and managed by the Southwold Historical Society, this tiny building houses an astonishing collection of objects, paintings, photographs, models and wildlife exhibits.

St Edmundsbury Cathedral

Abbey House, Angel Hill

Bury St Edmunds IP33 1LS

01284 748720

www.stedscathedral.co.uk

Welcome to St Edmundsbury Cathedral, the Mother Church of the Anglican Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich. For over 1,000 years the site of Suffolk ‘s Cathedral has been one of worship and pilgrimage. Established as a Benedictine foundation in 1020 by King Canute, the Abbey at Bury St Edmunds housed the body of Edmund, King of the East Angles, who was martyred in 869.

St Peter’s by the Waterfront

St Peter’s Church, College Street

Ipswich IP1 1XF

01473 225269

www.stpetersbythewaterfront.com

St Peter’s by the Waterfront is a heritage centre in one of the former mariner churches on the historic waterfront of Ipswich. The church is important in the history of Ipswich, and was once the chapel to the short lived Cardinal College set up by Cardinal Thomas Wolsey in the 16th century with major renovations taking place at this time and in the Victorian era. All that remains of the college is St Peter’s and the ‘Wolsey Gate”, a water gate situated on the South perimeter wall of the church. The centre hosts historic artefacts from the Church’s history and the locally commissioned Ipswich Charter hangings.

Suffolk Family History Society

2 Flash Corner, Theberton

Leiston IP16 4RW

www.suffolkfhs.org.uk

Founded at Lowestoft in 1975, we are a group of keen amateur genealogists whose objectives are to promote and encourage the study of family history, genealogy, heraldry and local history with particular reference to Suffolk; and to promote the preservation, security and accessibility of archive material.

Suffolk Punch Heavy Horse Museum

The Market Hill

Woodbridge IP12 4LU

01394 380643

www.suffolkhorsesociety.org.uk

The Suffolk Punch Heavy Horse Museum is an exhibition devoted to the Suffolk Horse, more usually known as the Suffolk Punch breed of heavy working horse. The museum displays the history of the breed and its Society, the work of the blacksmith and the harness maker, the world of shows and showing, the work the horses did and the life of the horsemen.

Suffolk Record Office

www.suffolk.gov.uk/sro Bury St Edmunds:Suffolk Record Office, 77 Raingate Street

Bury St Edmunds IP33 2AR

01284 741212

Ipswich:Suffolk Record Office, Gatacre Road

Ipswich IP1 2LQ

01473 263909

Lowestoft:Suffolk Record Office, Clapham Road

Lowestoft NR32 1DR

01502 674680

Based in Bury St Edmunds, Ipswich and Lowestoft, the Suffolk Record Office holds an amazing range of information about the history of Suffolk and its people.

Suffolk Regiment Museum, The

The Keep, Gibraltar Barracks, Newmarket Road

Bury St Edmunds IP33 3RN

01284 752394

www.suffolkregiment.org/museum.html

The Suffolk Regiment Museum was established, in the Officers Mess, for the 250th Anniversary of the regiment in 1935. The first acquisitions were items which belonged to even older collections of badges, medals and uniform items which had been displayed in the Mess since before The Great War.

Sutton Hoo – National Trust

Tranmer House

Sutton Hoo IP12 3DJ

01394 389700

www.nationaltrust.org.uk/sutton-hoo

This hauntingly beautiful 255 acre estate, with far-reaching views over the river Deben, is home to one of the greatest archaeological discoveries of all time. Walk around the ancient burial mounds and discover the incredible story of the ship burial of an Anglo-Saxon king and his treasured possessions. Come face to face with your ancestors and explore our award-winning exhibition, the full-size reconstruction of the burial chamber, stunning replica treasures and original finds from one of the mounds, including a prince’s sword. Look inside the Edwardian house or enjoy the beautiful seasonal colours on our estate walks.

Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds – National Trust

6 Westgate street

Bury St Edmunds IP33 1QR

01284 769505

www.nationaltrust.org.uk/theatre-royal

The Theatre Royal is the last working Regency playhouse in Britain. Owned by Greene King brewery, it has been in the care of the National Trust since 1975 and is run by an independent theatre company.

Unseen Archive: 50 Years of Suffolk Life in Photographs, The

c/o The Unseen Archive, Press House, 30 Lower Brook Street

Ipswich IP4 1AN

01473 324874

services.eadt.co.uk/suffolk/content/unseenarchive

A photographic resource covering the last 50 years of Suffolk life. The Unseen Archive aims to be a valuable and accessible educational and heritage resource for all.

West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village

Icklingham Road

West Stow, Bury St Edmunds IP28 6HG

01284 728718

www.weststow.org

West Stow is the site of an Anglo-Saxon settlement occupied 420 – 650AD. Today there is a unique reconstructed Anglo-Saxon Village built on the original settlement site, giving visitors the opportunity to touch and experience Anglo-Saxon houses as we imagine them to have been.

Woodbridge Museum

5A, Market Hill

Woodbridge IP12 4LP

01394 380502

goo.gl/07tNE3

There is a permanent exhibit complementing the Anglo-Saxon site at Sutton Hoo and another for Burrow Hill. Displays reflect the history and life of Woodbridge and its townspeople – including the Elizabethan lawyer and benefactor Thomas Seckford, the painter Thomas Churchyard and the translator Edward FitzGerald.

Woolpit & District Museum

The Institute, The Street

Woolpit IP30 9RF

01359 240822

www.woolpit.org/museum

The museum first opened in 1985 and is run by volunteers. Woolpit Museum is said to be the smallest in Suffolk.