Stories of local people as revealed in their memories and collections.
The image shows just one of the many autographs that Margaret Catchpole and her sister Ivy collected from their friends and family. They were drawn and written between the 1910’s and 1930’s so reflect different sensitivities.
This image was chosen to remind us of the importance of remembering those who are no longer with us. Whether we knew them or not, their lives have had an impact on life today
Our Archives are built from the memories and stories of those who are no longer here, find out more about some people who lived in Stowupland. Sometimes it is a short note, a single photo or press cutting. In other cases it is a larger collection of material collected through a lifetime and donated to us by their relatives. We are grateful for it all. Our largest collections come from:-
Margaret Catchpole’s family lived in Stowupland for over 150 years, her collection donated by her family included an autograph book from the early 20th century and several diaries (see images)
{MCA} after an item means it was donated to the SLHG archive by her family
Ena Marie Carter (ne Harrison, 1911 – 1986). Illustrating her contribution to recording Suffolk’s past. (see images)
{ECA} after an item means it was donated to the SLHG archive by her family
Mary Elizabeth Bloom (ne Allard, 1928-2021). Mary was born in Walnut Tree Farm, or Allards. She served as a parish Councillor for 47 years.
{MBA} after an item means it was donated to the SLHG archive by her family.
For other local people SLHG may not hold a collection of documents they have amassed during their lives but we are thankful to their families for sharing their memories.
We are very grateful to Pip Wright, son of Mr R.A. Wright, Stowupland’s C.P school Head master in the mid 20th century, for sharing his family’s memories and photos with us. Pip has given many interesting and amusing Local history talks to our group.
The Freeman family owned Stowupland Hall for much of the 19th century. Charles and his father kept a written record of much of the work that they did on their land and detailed many aspects of their family’s life. The diaries themselves are held at the Record Office but we are fortunate that Ena Carter made some interesting notes that are very useful
In 2024, we were loaned a copy of “As I Remember It” by The Reverend Leslie Alfred Brame M.A. (Hons) Cantab. 500 pages of the personal memories of the Rev Brame divided into two books :
Book 1 his early life, ‘Growing Up in Suffolk 1914-1940′. This gives valuable insights into local life in the first half of the 20th century and sections will be included in the website where relevant.
Book 2 continues his story, China, A Wartime Story 1940 to 1945. This describes his time as a missionary in China during World War Two.
The manuscripts will be held by the local Congregational Church.
It is not possible to list every person who has ever lived in Stowupland. Some individuals are listed on our war memorials, some families have played important roles, others have lived here for several generations. Some surnames crop up frequently and often similar sounding names have different spellings. Sometimes family trees are known but more often than not it is unknown whether families are connected.
Whilst death comes to us all, some passings seem more untimely.
In 1914 Stowupland had a population of 1409, of which 200 were of elementary school age.
In 1901 the average life expectancy for men was just 45, for women 49 but this was 5 years longer then their parents generation!
To see other memories of life in Stowupland
Or read Supernatural Stowupland for some ghostly tales and belief in witches.
‘Lest we Forget’ Memorials can be seen in various locations around the village. These symbolic structures remind us of residents who are no longer with us or celebrate past events. Most notable are the war memorials, but there are also benches and trees.
Not all memorials are physical structures, in the 1930s a poem was written by a local doctor to honour the Royal Flying Corp. Other memories only live on through the retelling of the stories.
Miss Stowupland – most towns and villages chose a young lady to represent their local people. We only have a few names and very little detail.
