Barber Farm, Little Whittingham Green

Chepenhall

Church of SS Peter & Paul

Whittingham Hall

Fox and Goose Public House

Description of Fressingfield (extract from White's Directory, 1844)

A large and well-built village, on a pleasant acclivity, three and a half miles NE of Stradbroke, four a half miles S of Harleston, and nine miles W of Halesworth. It has in its parish 1456 people, 4564 acres of fertile land, the hamlets of Chepehnall Green and Ufford Green, from one to two miles SE of the village, and many scattered farm-houses, several of which are large ancient mansions, formerly the seats of the owners of the four manors, of which the following are the names and lords; viz., Chepehnall, Sir R. S. Aird; Ufford Hall, Lord Henniker, Whittingham Hall, Henry Newton Heale, Esq., and Vales Hall, Rev. Augustus Cooper. J. H. Frere, Esq., Rev. J. Arnold, G. Rant, Esq., Mrs. Scrivener, W. S. Holmes, Esq., and several smaller owners have estates in the parish, which anciently belonged partly to the De la Pole family, and partly to Bury Abbey and Eye Priory, by gift of persons named Swartingstone and Thirketel.

That excellent prelate, Dr. William Sancroft (see below, this page), Archbishop of Canterbury, was born at Ufford Hall, in this parish, where he resided after he had sacrified to conscientious scruples the high dignity which he enjoyed. He was interred in the church yard, under a hansome monument, and perpetuated his name in his native parish, by several benefactions.

The Church (SS Peter and Paul) is a large antique structure, with a tower and eight bells. The benefice is a vicarage, valued in 1835 at 597 pounds, with the rectory of Withersdale annexed to it. The Master and Fellows of Emanuel College, Cambridge, are patrons; and the Rev. Thos. Allsopp is the incumbent, and has here a good residence. Here is a neat Baptist Chapel, erected in 1835, and having seat-room for 700 hearers.

The present annual value of the parish is 7133 pounds. The Feoffment Estate comprises three tenements, given by Edward Bohun, in the 13th year of Henry VII, and occupied rent-free by poor families; and the GuiIdhall, and eight acres of land given by William Sancroft, Esq., in 1704, for the benefit of the parishioners. The upper room of the Guildhall is used as a schoolroom and the lower part of the building is a public house (the Fox and Goose), and is let with the land for 25 pounds per annum, which is applied in the service of the Church. In 1685, Dr. William Sancroft, Archbishop of Canterbury, settled upon the Vicar of Fressingfield certain fee-farm rents, amounting to over 52 pounds per annum, for increasing his maintenance, but subject to the yearly payment of 10 pounds to the master of the school in the Guildhall, for teaching five poor boys to read, write and cast accounts; and six pounds to the parish clerk, for whose residence the same donor also gave a house, on the west side of the churchyard. In compliance with the desire of the Archbishop, Sancroft in 1703, gave a yearly rentcharge of over 3 pounds, out of the manor of Ufford Hall, for distribution among the poor of the parish. In 1722, the Rev. John Shepheard left 20 pounds and directed the yearly interest to be given in bibles and prayer books, on Good Friday, to such boys as can give the best account of the catechism, responses, etc.

Guildhall (reverse of Fox & Goose)