Aldringham


Aldringham is a village in Suffolk, England. The village is located 1 mile south of Leiston and 3 miles northwest of Aldeburgh close to the North Sea coast. The parish includes the coastal village of Thorpeness. The mid-2005 population estimate for Aldringham cum Thorpe parish was 730.

History

Aldringham is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as 'Alrincham'. Its placename derivation is uncertain but Ekwall indicates that it probably means 'the home of Ealdhere' and any similarity to Aldeburgh is coincidental.
Aldringham was formerly a market town. The oldest building in the village is The Parrot and Punchbowl pub, which contains many references to its heavy involvement in smuggling in the two centuries after its opening in the sixteenth century.
Aldringham Windmill was dismantled in 1922 and re-erected in 1923 at Thorpeness.
Aldringham was the home of the poet, artist and architect Cecil Lay, and most of his architectural work is found in or near the village, including Raidsend, some houses on North Warren, and the Providence Baptist Chapel on Aldringham Heath.

Community

The village is dispersed and close to both Leiston and Aldeburgh so has few basic services and community facilities. The village expanded with the construction of a small housing estate in the early 2000s.

Notable residents