Saxham Street in the 1840s.
The following has been compiled from the 1841 census and tithe apportionments together with information from other sources, it is part of ongoing research so please let us know of any erroneous comments – it can be difficult to be sure of the sequence of properties.
Either return to Saxham Street Stories or see our research on the second half of the 19th century…
Finding a map of the full length of Saxham Street is not easy. This one helps locate most of the properties referred to in the 1840 census, only missing off the top is the farm we know as Poplar Farm.
Using road and house names we recognise today :- starting at the bottom left corner is Stowupland Hall with the road off to the left being Rendall Lane and to the right Stonham Road (A1120).
The next marked track leading off to the right is the Drift Way leading to (Earl Stonham ) Town barn. There is a cluster of houses here, including Saxham Cottage, Viesities and Grange Farm Cottage.
Next up are Grange farm, Uplands Farm then Firtree Farm before we reach the right hand turning to Debenham Lane. On the left is labelled Stowupland Town Farm.
The property at the top of the image is Oak Tree Farm
Many of those named below were tenants, though a few were owner/occupiers.
In the 1841 census the northern end of Saxham Street from Doles (off Debenham Lane) leading up to Mendlesham is named Mendlesham Road.
Confusingly on the 1851 census, Saxham Street appears to extend all the way to Thorney Green (nr Park Farm) though in later years it stops at the Stonham Lane junction before Stowupland Hall.
[45a tm] William Sedon or Brame, James (farmer, 25) & Mary (20) & Mary Brame (servant, 15). Known as Doles, along a lane from Debenham Lane.
[51 tm] Mary Clarke (80) and others
[52 & 53 tm] The Hart family – Blacksmiths and wheelwrights
Stebbings, Samuel (40) & Mary (35) ..Christopher (25)r & Sara Bassett (19)
[40tm] Pyman, Thomas (40 ag lab) & Martha (40), William (20), Thomas (15), John (15) & Jonathan (30)
[34 tm] – Davey George ((40, described as ag lab not farmer) & Elisabeth (40) Emma, (15) George (10) and Susannah (8) known as Davy Farm but now Little Meadow
[20 tm] Packard, William (Farmer, 30) & Elizabeth (50) with 4 yr old child Elizabeth, a servant and a border. This is now known as Poplar Farm.
Alexander, George (70) & Elizabeth (70)
[68 tm] Robinson, Edmund and others
Next the section known as Saxham Street, between Stowupland Town Farm and Stowupland Hall
[90 tm] Wilden, Martha (75 Farmer), William Wilden (40 with children James (8), Robert (6), Frederick (4), and Sophia Barrett(?) (servant,20) – ? Town Farm
[89a tm] Meakings, Robert (35, Ag labourer ) & Mary (35), children Abraham (9), Robert (6), James(5), Clarisa (? 2), Mary (6m). Possibly Firtree Farm?
Wells Martin? (30, Ag labourer) & Mary Wells (30) , Sarah (10), Susan (7) and James(5).
[89 tm] Cooper, Elizabeth (65 farmer @ Upland House/farm), Nathaniel Stedman (35 bailiff), Mildred Hart (20 servant), Martha Lockwood (15 servant) plus possibly William Freeman (15. ag labourer) and a girl age 12.
[83 tm]- Stedman, John (70 farmer,) & Rachel (60) George (25), Robert (20), William (20), and Hannah Bloomfield (15 servant).
[157 tm] Law; Charles (45 farmer) & Susannah (45) , Susanna h20), Charles (200, Mary (20) mary dent (15 Ag lab) – Bylls or later Grange Farm.
Cubbitt: James (Gardener, born 1816 so age 25) & Eliza (Mayhew, 27). They married in 1832 and by 1841 had 3 children – Eliza (5), William(4), James (1). By 1861 the family have left Saxham Street for The Ashes where James is working as a groom for John Boby.
[153 tm] Bly, Richard (labourer 30) & Lucy(30) Anne 11), Frederick (10) Robert(5), David(2), Emma (3mths). Now Grange Farm Cottage.
[215 tm] Quinton, John (Carpenter 50), is the first known owner/occupier of Saxham Cottage.
[214 tm] Quinton also owned a property across the road from his house which was used as a carpenter’s shop with an adjacent orchard.
[216 tm] – Cutting, George (65, Ag labourer) & Sarah (60) owner was John Quinton though later became known as Cobbold Cottages when they were used by Grange Farm workers.
[216a tm] Jarmin, David and others
[216 tm] Cutting – George also owned by John Quinton.
Cutting, William (25 Ag labourer)
[225 tm] Gostling, William not a house but a piece of land known as the Drift Way.
[217 tm] Nunn, John (Ag lab 40) & Rebecca (40), Harriett (22), John (20), James(15) , Mary (15) Eliza(10) , George( (10), Robert (8).
[218 tm] Racce or Race, Thomas (40 Ag lab) & Mary (40) : May (15), Daniel (14) Edward (11), William (8), Susannah (6), Elizabeth (3), ?(1). They have a border – Edward Lockwood (Ag lab 15). Situated on the corner of Saxham Street and the Drift way.
In 1840 this plot was sold as part of the estate of Edmund Halls. It was advertised as in the occupation of Thomas Race having a good piece of garden ground containing 1r 13p being on the east side of the public road and adjoining 2 enclosures of superior arable land of 3r 8p (namely third road piece) and 5 a 1r 11p (namely Fine {sic} Acre Field
[212a tm]: Robinson, John (25) & Elizabeth(25), Robert (5), William (3), Sarah (1).
Whilst it has been possible to locate most of the families named in the census it has not been possible to find a plot of land for them all.
Haddock, James (60 Ag lab) & Anne (55), Richard (20 ag lab)
Cook, Thomas (30 A lab) & Susan (20), Issac (2), William (2 mths)
Sear, or Soar Henry (40 ag lab) & Charlotte (35), James (6mths)..
In 1852 a property occupied by Thomas Cook and Henry Soars was advertised as a ‘Freehold Tenement, divided into two dwellings with rents amounting to £7.00 per annum’, the seller is not named but the sale was by ‘direction of the Mortgagee.’ {Suffolk Chronicle: 17 January 1852}
There was a farm to the north of Stowupland Hall and to the west of Saxham Street. This no longer exists in 1840 was part of the estate of Mr Edmund Halls being occupied by Thomas and Elizabeth Cooper, referred to as Coopers, later Coopers barn.
As part of the land being auctioned by the trustees of Edmund Hall was (Lot 5) a small Farm House that was described as being adjacent to the property of Elizabeth Cooper were:
tm 210a -Buildins and yards of 1r 17p
tm 209 – First Road peice , arable of 1r 12p
tm 208 – Orchard of 2r 20p
tm 211- two aacre meadow, pasture of 2a 0r 7p
tm 207 – Pightle of 2a 2r 2p.
Lot 9 (tm 212) was a Cottage with a garden of 1r 21p in the occupation of Cutting, this was to the west of the public road and adjoined Lot 5.
Lot 10 (tm218), to the east of the public road, a cottage with a garden of 1r 13p in the occupation of Thomas Race.
Lot 11 ( tm217), a cottage o the east of the public road, of 32p in the occupation of John Nunn.
The above lots were all Freehold.
In 1854 the freehold of messuage of 2 tenements occupied by Thomas Cook and Henry Soar (Lot 2) was sold on the death of Elizabeth Cooper, at present we don’t know the new owners: also the home of George Cuttings.(Lot 1)
The home of the Coopers was advertised as being newly built, by 1864 it was described as being 2 tenements.
Lot 4 was for 2 tenements on the Green , occupiers John Chenery and John Honeyball.
From Saxham Street, we either head west to Gipping Road or south down towards where the church will be built in 1843.
Heading south we pass Stowupland Hall and the barn that the Freeman’s had recently converted to cottages.
[237 to 346 tm] Stowupland Hall – Freeman, Charles & Mary, Ellen, Spencer. Also Jemima M (servant, 20) Robert Wilden (20, Samuel Catchpole (15), Spencer Ray, Edward Robinson and Samuel Robinson
Although any maps that do show Saxham Street show its location as we know it today i.e. between the corner near Stowupland Hall and heading out towards Mendlesham in the 19th century its start point was a bit less certain. This can make it tricky when locating properties and tithe apportionments. For instance the Holy Trinity Consecration account described the land as abbuting on “The road or Queens Highway called Saxham Street towards the south”, for obvious reasons this section became known as Church Road.
