Pictorial Kesgrave 1994 - Part 2
Contents
Keith Beecroft Copyright 2008
Lynch Gate, All Saints Church. Sited at the entrance from the graveyard to the lawn Cemetery. Previously located at the Main Road entrance to the churchyard. Originally the roof was thatched by a local character 'Krongy' who lived in a shepherds hut alongside Spencers Garage at Martlesham.
Kesgrave Baptist Church, Cambridge Road, Originated as a Mission Hall 1927, became a Baptist Church in 1955. Extensions were added in 1959 and 1961 with the new Church opening in 1967.
Farm Cottage. One of the original Grange Farm workers homes, now isolated close to the subway that serves the footpath and cycle track that passes the Grange.
A Grange Farm workers dwelling, west of the Farmhouse, beautifully created from a wartime Nissen Hut by occupiers Arthur and Gwen Brett.
The Grange Farmhouse, a Grade 2 listed building, built in 1545-50 by William Smythe. Named The Grange when owned by the Jolly Family who farmed there from 1924 to 1989 when the land was sold for housing development. The farm had previously been called Crabbs Farm and Hall Farm. 1993 saw the transformation from farmhouse to Public House with restaurant extensions and renamed 'The Farmhouses'. The building is still owned by Patrick Jolly and is leased to the Brewery.
The Parish Council worked hard during the planning stage of the development to avoid the infill of the Ha Ha wall at the rear of the Grange otherwise this feature would have been lost forever.
The prints on this page of 'The Farmhouse' in 1993 can be compared with those on the previous page taken in 1989, to see the effect of the transformation from a farm to an Inn.
These two views were taken a few paces from the main gate to The Grange in 1989, looking east and west along the farm tracks prior to the sale of the land for housing development.
Compare these views taken in 1993, with those taken above from the same position in 1989. Notice the chimney of the Cottage, centre right, in the top print and the remaining trees in the lower print.
A further view of The Grange taken in 1992 following removal of the farm buildings and landscaping in the foreground. The Farmhouse having been renovated following a small internal fire and restored to grade 2 listed building status. All prior to the major transformation carried out a year later.
A Human Sundial, part of the landscaping close to The Grange. Just stand in the middle on a sunny day and tell the time where your shadow falls.
Compare these views of The Farmhouse taken in 1993 following the conversion work, with those of The Grange above.
Further views of The Farmhouse just prior to opening, the tables are set on the patio and the car park is ready.
Kesgrave Hall School, formally known as Kesgrave Hall and St. Edmunds School dates from 1750 but built in its present form in 1812. The site was previously occupied by Cinque Farm, Sink Farm and Robletts Farm. During the war the school was evacuated to Gloucester and the buildings used as a convalescent home by the U.S. Forces. Mrs. Marshall ran the School after the war, after she moved from St. Edmunds Road in Ipswich, hence the name St. Edmunds School.
Lodge Cottages. A pair of cottages situated on the Main Road opposite Dobbs Lane. These cottages were at the head of the main drive leading to Kesgrave Hall, which also served as the road to Bealings and beyond. The owner at the time, was unhappy with the road passing close to the Hall, so he had it moved 100 yards or so to the east, where it is today.
'Railway Carriage Home' in Dobbs Lane, occupied for many years by Mr. and Mrs. Bert Smith. A very smart and cosy home it was, shown here being stripped by a railway enthusiast in 1991, who hopes to remove it to add to his collection.
Dobbs Grave. In 1740 a man named Dobbs, a shepherd, hanged himself at Hall Farm, latterly known as Grange Farm. In those days suicides were not buried in Church Cemeteries therefore Dobbs, as was customary in those days, was buried at a crossroads. The crossroads in this case being the tracks that marked the boundaries between the parishes of Kesg rave, Martlesham, Foxhall and Brightwell.
'Long Strops'. A cart track between Bell Lane and Dobbs Lane. Until the late 1980s this marked the boundary between the parishes of Kesgrave and Foxhall. The boundary Commission decided that the southern boundary should be moved to the Foxhall Road thus bringing into the parish such notable sites as the Smallpox Hospital, the Communication Station and Foxhall Speedway Stadium.
Falcon Caravan Sales, formally the Falcon Caravan Garage and Filling Station and prior to that Craskes Garage. The site was devastated by a plane crash in December 1958, when a Super Sabre fighter of the 79th Tactical Fighter Squadron of the USAF crashed into the Garage, demolishing the bungalow in which the secretary Mrs. Betty Aggis was working. Mrs. Aggis was killed, Mr. Fred Ward Snr. in premises a couple of doors west was badly injured and died from his injuries three days later. The adjacent boarding kennels building was extensively damaged requiring rebuilding, the garage bungalow was never replaced. The pilot baled out and was uninjured.
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