Waldringfield

Waldringfield is a village and civil parish in the East Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England. It is situated on the bank of the River Deben within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, 4 miles (6.4 km) south of the town of Woodbridge and 8 miles (12.9 km) east of the county town of Ipswich.

Waldringfield
Waldringfield Boat Yard on the River Deben
Waldringfield Location within Suffolk
Population	464 (2011)[1]
OS grid reference	TM282446
District	East Suffolk
Shire county	Suffolk
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Woodbridge
Postcode district	IP12
Police	Suffolk
Fire	Suffolk
Ambulance	East of England
UK Parliament	Suffolk Coastal
Website	www.onesuffolk.co.uk /WaldringfieldPC

The Maybush Inn and the Deben in Waldringfield in July 2019

All Saints church dates from the 14th century. Restored in the 19th century, it is a grade II* listed building.[2]

Waldringfield Heath, between the village and Martlesham on the edge of Ipswich, is the site of Waldringfield Golf Club.[3]

It also has a Yacht Club called Waldringfield Yacht Club.

History

The name Waldringfield is derived from the Old English words meaning 'open land of the family or followers of a man called Waldhere'.[4] The length of human habitation at Waldringfield is unknown but Iron Age finds such as pottery shards from the 1st century BC have been found locally.[5] Record of the settlement is found in the Domesday Book of 1086 under the name 'Waldingafelda' [6] along with the name 'Minima Waldringafelda' (Lesser Waldringfield).[7]

The village had an industrial heyday from about 1860 to 1907. First, until about 1895, coprolite was dug up locally, washed and sifted on the beach and shipped by barge to be processed in factories in Ipswich, as part of the early fertiliser industry. Then, at the end of the nineteenth century, a cement making industry used mud from the river mixed with chalk brought in by barge from the Medway. Served by one hundred barges a month and employing twelve 'bottleneck' kilns, the industry survived until 1907. The kilns were demolished in 1912.[8]

References

1. "Civil Parish Population 2011". Retrieved 15 September 2015.
2. Historic England. "CHURCH OF ALL SAINTS (1198720)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
3. "Waldringfield Parish Plan" (PDF). Waldringfield Parish Council. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
4. "Waldringfield A Dictionary of British Place-Names". encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
5. "Iron Age & Celtic Photo Gallery". www.sheshen-eceni.co.uk. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
6. "Image details - Place name: Waldringfield, Suffolk". The National Archives. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
7. "Image details - Place name: Lesser Waldringfield, Suffolk". The National Archives. Retrieved 4 April 2010.
8. http://www.waldringfield.onesuffolk.net