Ballingdon
| Ballingdon | |
| Essex | |
|---|---|
 Ballingdon Street, Ballingdon | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TL8640 |
| Location: | 52°1’59"N, 0°42’58"E |
| Data | |
| Post town: | Sudbury |
| Postcode: | CO10 |
| Dialling code: | 01787 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Babergh |
Ballingdon is a village in Essex that forms a suburb of the town of Sudbury (otherwise in Suffolk). Together with Brundon it forms the ancient parish of Ballingdon-cum-Brundon in the Hinckford Hundred of Essex. It is the only part of the town of Sudbury on the Essex side of the River Stour.
The village developed on the important ancient highway from Braintree and Halstead in Essex to Sudbury and Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk. It grew adjacent to a bridge (today known as Ballingdon Bridge) over the River Stour. It dates back to at least the 13th century. It remains the only crossing of the river for several miles in each direction.
In 1972 the owners of Ballingdon Hall, responding to a housing development on adjacent land,[1] had it moved half a mile up Ballingdon Hill on the back of a large transporter; the event was watched by 10,000 people.[2] There is a large photograph of this move in the March 2016 issue of the English Heritage Members' Magazine.
Ballingdon was home to two brickworks, long since vanished, but location maps of them can be found online.[3] The Allen family operation, (on Middleton Road) was the most advanced, and barges made their way up an especially constructed cut from the River Stour, which passed the brickworks and even continued under Middleton Road. The clay was sourced locally and brick makers were expected to meet a target of 1,000 bricks per day. The hand making of bricks has long since been over-shadowed by machines, but can still be seen at Bulmer Brick and Tile,[4] who offer tours to schools and adults.
Today Ballingdon Street is a conservation area and contains numerous listed buildings. King's Marsh Stadium, home of A.F.C. Sudbury, is located in the area.
References
- ↑ Ballingdon Hall Estate Sudbury Museum Trust
- ↑ Ballingdon Hall Sudbury Museum Trust
- ↑ [1] The Sudbury Suffolk Website
- ↑ [2] Bulmer Brick and Tile Website
Outside links
 |
("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Ballingdon) |
- Several photos of Ballingdon past Sudbury Museum Trust
- Ballingdon in the Domesday Book
