Whatfield is a village and civil parish in Suffolk, England. Located around 2 miles (3.2 km) north of Hadleigh, it is part of Babergh district.

Whatfield
Village sign
Whatfield is located in Suffolk
Whatfield
Whatfield
Location within Suffolk
Population335 (2011)[1]
OS grid referenceTM025464
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townIpswich
Postcode districtIP7
PoliceSuffolk
FireSuffolk
AmbulanceEast of England
List of places
UK
England
Suffolk
52°04′44″N 0°57′14″E / 52.079°N 0.954°E / 52.079; 0.954

Origin of name

edit

Skeat, in his 1913 The Place-Names of Suffolk, says this:

Spelt Whatefield, Ipm.; Quaterfield, H.R (with qu for wh); Gawatfelda, D.B. p.23. A.S. form Hwaete-feld; meaning "wheat field." Though A.S. has not this precise compound on record, we find hwaeteland, "wheat-land" and feld as a suffix. Whatfield was sometimes called Wheatfield (see The Beauties of England). "This Town is chiefly remarkable for growing the most excellent Seed-Wheat"; Kirby. [2]

Geography

edit

The Calves Wood, a County Wildlife Site (CWS) in the north of the parish, is classed as ancient woodland, whilst the parish's south-western border is delineated by the River Brett. The parish council holds two meadows and a piece of rough woodland in trust for the villagers. The woodland is on the left-hand side of a pleasant walk down to the river.

The first meadow, known as Buckle's Meadow, or Buckledees Meadow by some older parishioners, was purchased in the 1960s with money raised in the village and a grant. Access to the site, which is a county wildlife site, is by public footpath from Rectory Road.

The second meadow, also accessible by public footpath, is Hunty's Vale and was the kind gift to the village by the sisters Edith and Francis Vale who were parishioners. A programme of conservation is on-going to maintain and improve the area for plants, animals and birds as well as being a pleasant place to walk.

The village was awarded the title Suffolk Village of the Year 2014 in a competition organised by the Suffolk Association of Local Councils, Radio Suffolk, East Anglian Daily Times and Network Power, to acknowledge the community spirit amongst the residents of this small village and how Whatfield CEVCP School integrates with the village.

St Margaret's Church

edit
 
St Margaret's Church

The parish church of St Margaret is a small church dating from the 13th and 14th century that has been modified and improved several times over the centuries. The church has been a Grade I listed building since 23 January 1958.[3]

The south wall has a commemorative plaque to George Arthur Falconer (1894–1981), who was H. M. Ambassador to Nepal and High Sheriff of Suffolk. There is also a large marble memorial plaque, inscribed in Latin, to William Vesey who died on 21 June 1699 aged 50 and his wife Elizabeth. At the rear of the church is a large coat of arms for Vesey. There is also a large marble plaque to George Clubbe, Rector of Whatfield, and father of John Clubbe.

The benches are mostly Victorian, but one at least dates from 1589 and is engraved with the name "John Wilson".

Whatfield Hall

edit

Whatfield Hall is a timber-framed and plastered two-story building, possibly of the 16th or 17th century. Since 10 July 2008 it has been a Grade II listed building.[4]

Other amenities

edit

References

edit
  1. ^ "Parish population 2011". Retrieved 13 September 2015.
  2. ^ Skeat, Walter (1913). The Place-Names of Suffolk. Cambridge: Cambridge Antiquarian Society. p. 30.
  3. ^ "Church of St Margaret - Whatfield - Suffolk - England - British Listed Buildings". britishlistedbuildings.co.uk. Retrieved 14 September 2016.
  4. ^ "Whatfield Hall - Whatfield - Suffolk - England - British Listed Buildings". britishlistedbuildings.co.uk. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
  5. ^ "Churches". whatfield.onesuffolk.net. Retrieved 16 September 2016.
edit

  Media related to Whatfield at Wikimedia Commons