buxhall village
About the Village
"Buxhall is a village and a civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England. The nearest town is Stowmarket. It is home to a public house, St Mary's Church, Buxhall Windmill, and a village recreation ground with children's play area." — Wikipedia
But that's a bit impersonal, isn't it? How about it being a historic place of great pride to the many people who have lived within its boundaries for hundreds of years? A workplace, a home, a warm fire in the hearth.
On this page I will lay out a little about this village and why it, like so many other villages across the kingdom, is worth knowing about.
Brief Overview
Buxhall is a pretty old village. It was listed as a settlement in the Domesday Book, with variation, as Buckeſhala, (the 'ſ' character being a Long s, as was used in older script). The pronunciation would therefore be similar to our modern pronunciation, Buckes-hala, or Bucks-Hall, hala or halla meaning hall. However, even further back, it is believed that there has been a church on the current site since Saxon times, with a later iteration preceding our current church of St Mary, erected around AD 1310-1320/30. So, pretty old, as I said.
The village does have a small collection of buildings that used to be one thing, and are now another. One of the most obvious is Buxhall Mill, now a disused tower without sails. This large structure still stands proudly, known locally as the 'candlestick'. (I can only assume this is in reference to the nursery rhyme where Jack jumps over the candlestick, as you can perambulate around the village, keeping the mill's tower roughly in the middle. Though, in surrounding villages there are lots of reference to Jack himself, also. No idea if they're related.) There is also a village hall, that used to be the local school, built in the Victorian era and certainly still in use well into the 20th Century. There is a private residence that used to be the village Post Office, a wooden structure—now abandoned—that used to be a shop, another private residence that used to be a Methodist Chapel, and a further one that used to double as a fire station. Used to be a busy place!
I am grateful that these monuments to the past still exist, at least for now, to be able to comment on, look upon and wonder what once was; but if we are to be relatively strict for a moment, I would refer to Buxhall now as a 'farming village', for we are fortunate enough to not only be surrounded by fields, but also to have working farms and their farmers, keeping the crops growing. That is a blessing. Unless you suffer from hayfever.
Footpaths to Freedom
Upon writing this missive, the COVID-19 pandemic is still raging on. Now more than ever, I've been grateful that I can step onto a Public Footpath that leads to another, and go on and on. (Much like this missive.) Trails that lead across fields into the middle of nowhere; up onto a swell of land that looks down upon the village; deep within a furrow to roam the boundaries, treelines and hedgerows. There are so many. They can lead you into neighbouring villages, or skirt the edges of Buxhall, a village far larger than most likely know. Following just one of these routes can take an hour and a half, let alone joining them up. And the views! Highly recommended to anyone who needs a dose of freedom in their day.
Worth Noting
More information may be written up in a more structured way, but to be fair, only people interested in history will read it, and I don't want to bog down these pages with anything too dry. However, there is a Photo Gallery slowly going up, a collection of photos taken over the years to present day, in and around the village. Some have been played with a little for affect, but many have not, and why not show the secret gardens within the green lanes of Buxhall in their best light?
Relevant Links
- Buxhall Parish Council
- Buxhall & Shelland Church Fete
- The Church of England
- The Assassin Princess Novels
"Buxhall is a village and a civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England. The nearest town is Stowmarket. It is home to a public house, St Mary's Church, Buxhall Windmill, and a village recreation ground with children's play area." — Wikipedia
But that's a bit impersonal, isn't it? How about it being a historic place of great pride to the many people who have lived within its boundaries for hundreds of years? A workplace, a home, a warm fire in the hearth.
On this page I will lay out a little about this village and why it, like so many other villages across the kingdom, is worth knowing about.
Brief Overview
Buxhall is a pretty old village. It was listed as a settlement in the Domesday Book, with variation, as Buckeſhala, (the 'ſ' character being a Long s, as was used in older script). The pronunciation would therefore be similar to our modern pronunciation, Buckes-hala, or Bucks-Hall, hala or halla meaning hall. However, even further back, it is believed that there has been a church on the current site since Saxon times, with a later iteration preceding our current church of St Mary, erected around AD 1310-1320/30. So, pretty old, as I said.
The village does have a small collection of buildings that used to be one thing, and are now another. One of the most obvious is Buxhall Mill, now a disused tower without sails. This large structure still stands proudly, known locally as the 'candlestick'. (I can only assume this is in reference to the nursery rhyme where Jack jumps over the candlestick, as you can perambulate around the village, keeping the mill's tower roughly in the middle. Though, in surrounding villages there are lots of reference to Jack himself, also. No idea if they're related.) There is also a village hall, that used to be the local school, built in the Victorian era and certainly still in use well into the 20th Century. There is a private residence that used to be the village Post Office, a wooden structure—now abandoned—that used to be a shop, another private residence that used to be a Methodist Chapel, and a further one that used to double as a fire station. Used to be a busy place!
I am grateful that these monuments to the past still exist, at least for now, to be able to comment on, look upon and wonder what once was; but if we are to be relatively strict for a moment, I would refer to Buxhall now as a 'farming village', for we are fortunate enough to not only be surrounded by fields, but also to have working farms and their farmers, keeping the crops growing. That is a blessing. Unless you suffer from hayfever.
Footpaths to Freedom
Upon writing this missive, the COVID-19 pandemic is still raging on. Now more than ever, I've been grateful that I can step onto a Public Footpath that leads to another, and go on and on. (Much like this missive.) Trails that lead across fields into the middle of nowhere; up onto a swell of land that looks down upon the village; deep within a furrow to roam the boundaries, treelines and hedgerows. There are so many. They can lead you into neighbouring villages, or skirt the edges of Buxhall, a village far larger than most likely know. Following just one of these routes can take an hour and a half, let alone joining them up. And the views! Highly recommended to anyone who needs a dose of freedom in their day.
Worth Noting
More information may be written up in a more structured way, but to be fair, only people interested in history will read it, and I don't want to bog down these pages with anything too dry. However, there is a Photo Gallery slowly going up, a collection of photos taken over the years to present day, in and around the village. Some have been played with a little for affect, but many have not, and why not show the secret gardens within the green lanes of Buxhall in their best light?
Relevant Links
- Buxhall Parish Council
- Buxhall & Shelland Church Fete
- The Church of England
- The Assassin Princess Novels