Alburgh is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It lies about four miles (6 km) north-east of Harleston and 16 miles (26 km) south of Norwich.

Alburgh
All Saints Church, Alburgh
Alburgh is located in Norfolk
Alburgh
Alburgh
Location within Norfolk
Area6.42 km2 (2.48 sq mi)
Population410 (2011)[1]
• Density64/km2 (170/sq mi)
OS grid referenceTM267870
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townHARLESTON
Postcode districtIP20
Dialling code01986
PoliceNorfolk
FireNorfolk
AmbulanceEast of England
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Norfolk
52°26′02″N 1°20′01″E / 52.433934°N 1.333545°E / 52.433934; 1.333545

Heritage

edit

The earliest evidence of settlement is from the Mesolithic era. A Bronze Age barrow near the church was excavated in the 19th century, when bones were removed. Little has been found from the Iron Age, or the Roman or Saxon periods, but there are plentiful medieval remains.[2] The name Alburgh means either "old burial-mound/hill" or "Alda's burial-mound/hill".[3]

Some of the Church of All Saints, Alburgh, dates back to the 13th century. The noted church architect Richard Phipson restored it in 1876, adding "pinnacles with little flying buttresses" and reworking the chancel.[4] Today the church holds a service every Sunday as part of the Earsham benefice.[5] Its ring of eight bells is among Norfolk's oldest. The churchyard is a conservation area.[6]

The former Methodist chapel was turned into a dwelling in the 1960s.[7] The local pub, the Kings Head, closed in 1956.[8]

Homersfield Bridge, which crosses the River Waveney between Alburgh and Homersfield, Suffolk, opened in 1870, making it the oldest surviving concrete bridge in Britain. Homersfield railway station, on the Waveney line and in the parish of Alburgh, opened in 1860 and closed in 1953. Apart from the church and the bridge, there are 17 other Grade II listed buildings in Alburgh, mostly residential.[9]

John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales wrote in 1870–72: "ALBURGH, a parish in Depwade district, Norfolk; on an affluent[10] of the river Waveney, near the Bungay railway, 3½ miles NNE of Harleston. It has a post office under Harleston, and a fair on 21 June. Acres, 1,512. Real property, £3,699. Pop., 587. Houses, 130. The [landed] property is much subdivided. The living is a rectory in the Diocese of Norwich. Value, £395.* Patron, St. John's College, Cambridge. The church has a large Norman porch. There are [sic] a national school, and charities £240."[11]

Governance

edit

The civil parish with hamlets of Piccadilly Corner and Alburgh Street has an area of 6.42 sq. km. Its 2001 population of 349 in 149 households rose to 410 at the 2011 Census.[12] Its parish council meets monthly.[13] It lies in the district of South Norfolk.[14]

Amenities and firms

edit

Alburgh is on the route 84 Konectbus service between Norwich and Harleston, which runs in daytime, Monday to Friday.[15][16] Alburgh with Denton CE VC Primary School has about 100 pupils.[17] Among the regular events at the modern Village Hall are monthly film shows.[18] There are sports clubs for tennis, badminton and carpet bowls.[19]

Alburgh has two general stores, a brewery in Tunbeck Road,[20] an ice cream maker,[21] and garment-printers.[22]

War memorial

edit

The Alburgh War Memorial is located in All Saint's Church and holds the names of 19 men who died in the First World War. They are listed as:

Furthermore, the plaque commemorating the Second World War holds the following names:

References

edit
  1. ^ "Civil Parish population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 11 October 2016. Retrieved 27 July 2016.
  2. ^ Norfolk Heritage Explorer Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  3. ^ "Key to English Place-names".
  4. ^ Bill Wilson, 2002, rev. Pevsner's Architectural Guides, Norfolk, Part 2. Yale UP, p. 177. ISBN 978-0-300-09657-6.
  5. ^ Village site Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  6. ^ A Church Near You Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  7. ^ Norfolk Churches Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  8. ^ Norfolk Public Houses Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  9. ^ Listed Buildings Retrieved 3 March 2016.
  10. ^ =tributary.
  11. ^ Vision of Britain Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  12. ^ "Civil Parish population 2011". Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  13. ^ Parish Council Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  14. ^ Office for National Statistics & Norfolk County Council, 2001. Census population and household counts for unparished urban areas and all parishes. Retrieved 2 December 2005.
  15. ^ Bustimes.org Retrieved 30 June 2024
  16. ^ Konectbus Retrieved 30 June 2024
  17. ^ Norfolk CC 2 M Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  18. ^ Alburgh Cinema at the Village Hall Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  19. ^ Clubs and societies Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  20. ^ Visit Norfolk Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  21. ^ Commercial site Retrieved 2 March 2016.
  22. ^ Retro Alley Retrieved 3 March 2016. Archived 6 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine

http://kepn.nottingham.ac.uk/map/place/Norfolk/Alburgh

edit