The Museum of East Anglian Life is one of the biggest Museums in Suffolk, occupying over 80 acres of countryside in the heart of Stowmarket.

The land was originally part of the Home Farm for the Abbot’s Hall estate, an outlying medieval manor of St Osyth’s Priory in Essex. It passed through numerous owners until it was purchased by the Longe family in 1903.

Huge changes in the 1950s and ‘60s meant England was in danger of losing long established skills, equipment and buildings if something was not done to rescue them. Individual collectors, local farmer Jack Carter and the Suffolk Local History Council worked to collect, preserve and display objects from rural East Anglia. After several years of temporary exhibitions the Misses Vera and Ena Longe placed 70 acres of farm land, Abbot’s Hall and its gardens, as well as 18/20 Crowe Street, in trust to be used as a Museum.

And so – the Museum of East Anglian Life opened in 1967 and is a modern memorial to this foresight and vision.

The party of Capel Ladies (plus 2 Capel Gents!) began their visit with a delicious lunch at the on-site Osier Cafe, where an ex-member, Joan Molle, joined us for the meal.

Our guide Catherine then took us into the huge tithe barn to tell us the story of how the museum began, and how it has evolved since, with additional buildings being moved from their original locations and re-erected on the museum site. One of these was Alton Water Mill – moved from Tattingstone before Alton Water reservoir was created!

We then walked to Crowe Street Cottages, 2 semi-detached dwellings near the entrance to the museum, which had been built in the early 18^th century as farm-workers cottages, and which had been occupied until the 1960s. Catherine then told us the story of the last family to live there, the Wildings, and what the property had been used for over the years. Much of their furniture and belongings were still to be seen, and in some rooms it was as if the family had just popped out for a minute and were expected back at any time! Mrs Emily Wilding had been the Head Cook at Abbot’s Hall, and her husband was Head Horseman. The cottages had been their family home and then a dairy where Mrs Wilding made butter, and from where she sold the spare milk at the door to people who called with a jug or a bottle.

After this we were free to explore buildings and displays on the rest of the site, and the exhibits we saw included a Victorian schoolroom, some shops laid out like the early ‘50s, and a collection of gypsy caravans. There was so much to see none of us could do it justice in the time remaining, but after this taster we all decided that we would each pay a further visit later in the year. There is lots happening in 2016 – Abbot’s Hall was voted Suffolk’s Museum of the Year 2015, and many exciting events are planned for this year!

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There was a jolly atmosphere at our meal out at The Brook in Washbrook. There were twenty-five of us in our group, plus around twenty other diners, and the staff coped very well. One or two people had problems with their meals but these were sorted out and those who had been affected were given free drinks and replacement servings. We all raised our glasses for a photo taken to celebrate the forthcoming 90^th birthday of the Queen, and which you will see here. Cheers!

Our first outing of the year was an evening visit to the Suffolk Record Office in Ipswich, where our guides Heather Marshall and Bruce Martin took it in turns to tell us something of the work they do. It is their responsibility to maintain and look after original documents from many different sources, including published works like histories, poetry and newspapers, maps and charters, wills and letters, and to get them out on request for visitors to see. Items can even be brought down from the strong room to be placed on stands and cushions on large tables in the map room or the hall of the Record Office for people to examine.

Many of these documents are very old and fragile, and have to be kept in controlled conditions in the strong room, protected by large fire doors where the temperature and humidity levels are constant, so that the records don’t crumble away or go mouldy. We were allowed to enter the strong room where Heather showed us some ancient maps of the area, some of them in huge cylinder-shaped leather boxes. We saw copies of the local Ipswich paper all bound in volumes and going back two or three hundred years. One of the oldest documents was a town charter for Ipswich drawn up in the time of Henry I and copied out by monks on thick manuscript, with a huge seal at the bottom and illuminated letters at the top.

Some records have been photographed and transferred to micro-fiches which can be accessed on screens that can be scrolled through so that you can examine a particular Census or Parish document.

Capel Ladies were made very welcome by Heather and Bruce, who had brought out a number of records, maps and documents to do with Capel, from old maps of the village to the school Log Book, and we spent a most interesting time poring over them all. So much so, in fact, that before we knew it the time was up and we had to leave. I’m sure that some of us will return to the Record Office at some point to carry on where we left off – and to probe further into Suffolk’s fascinating history.

(The Record Office is open every day except Sundays, Wednesdays and Bank Holidays, from 9.30 – 4.30 p.m., and access is free of charge, although you will have to sign in when you visit and you need proof of identity with you.)

For our Christmas meal out this year we decided to return to the restaurant at Acorn Village, Mistley, where we had such a warm welcome last year.

We weren’t disappointed, either! The food was good, served in the Oak Room which looked very Christmassy with all the decorations up, and the welcome from the friendly staff was just as warm as last time! After the meal there was a chance to buy something from the charity stall selling a variety of seasonal goods in aid of current Acorn Village projects, and then we were escorted by a friendly gnome to a Winter Wonderland!

This took the form of a magical grotto, entered through an avenue of snowy white trees, which was inhabited by all kinds of mystical creatures and things! These included a wishing pool wreathed in mist, a twisted, gnarled tree that spun round to become a twisted, gnarled witch, a dark, mysterious cave, a pure white unicorn appearing from the undergrowth, and scariest of all a giant green dragon which breathed smoke!

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All these weird and wonderful works of art had been created by the Acorn Village Community, using re-cycled and donated items and scraps, and the overall effect was one of wonderment and magic! The Grotto was open to the public on weekdays leading up to Christmas, and several local schoolchildren were also booked in to visit it. There was no charge for admission, but Acorn Village charity boxes were by the entrance doors for voluntary donations.

After our walk through the Grotto we were back down to earth with a bump, out into the damp and the chill of a breezy December evening and thence home to our own familiar surroundings.

If you fancy exploring new horizons why not take a look at our website, or better still, take the plunge and come as a guest to one of our meetings in 2016? You will be very welcome!

A party of 20 Capel Ladies went to see the latest production by the East Bergholt Dramatic Society at the Constable Hall at the end of November. It turned out to be an evening of laughter, shocks and surprises as the sixteen cast members displayed their talents, taking us through an eventful plot which included 2 actual murders and a number of attempted murders! The main victim was the producer of a T.V. soap who was looking to raise the ratings for his show by including a murder which would kill off one of the characters.

He decides to stage the dry run at his home, in the form of a murder mystery night, inviting everyone from the cast and crew to dinner, and then explaining his plan which would swing into action after midnight the same evening. At this point he also announces to the whole assembly that he will be divorcing his wife and eloping with a member of the cast in the near future.

Just as he had foreseen, the feelings of hostility towards him escalate, as each person feels that they could be the cast member axed from the show, and his wife is equally furious with him. Everyone is given a weapon of some kind, and a life-size dummy of their host is placed in the living room as a target. The guests disperse around the house and the action begins.

One by one each person secretly enters the living room and “murders” the dummy using whatever means they have to do so. However, there is a twist in the plot, and their host is murdered for real in the darkness. As they are locked in the house and cannot leave until morning, they each wonder who has really killed their producer, and when one of them stumbles upon the killer she herself is also murdered. Thankfully there is a Private Investigator amongst the guests, and it is he – ably assisted by one of the maids – who solves the crime before the police arrive.

All in all it was a most enjoyable evening out, and a great performance by the players, who kept us on our toes and amused or shocked throughout! I don’t think any of us guessed who the murderer was, either!

Unfortunately for our group of intrepid members, the evening of 15^th October was a rather damp and cloudy one. They were on a visit to the Observatory at Orwell Park School, and so were hoping for a clear dry night!

Nevertheless, the trip went ahead, and they bravely climbed the 100 steps to the top of the tower where the telescope is housed.

The Orwell Park estate on which the observatory stands has been the home of some influential and flamboyant characters from the 18^th and 19^th centuries. The first of these was Admiral Vernon, who built the original mansion in 1725.

The second was Colonel George Tomline. He was educated at Eton and had several scholarly friends; amongst them Gladstone, Disraeli and Peel. He bought the Orwell Park Estate in 1848, adding 20,000 acres of land to it, and rebuilt the mansion in Victorian red brick. He also built the Ipswich to Felixstowe railway, and began work on the site of the present Felixstowe Docks. He was a keen amateur astronomer and commissioned Wilfrid Airy, son of the then astronomer Royal, to design and build the Observatory. The ornate brick tower is topped by a copper dome lined on the inside with mahogany. The building was completed in 1874.

Tomline engaged the services of a full-time professional astronomer named Isaac Plummer in February 1874, and his observations and publication of results gained the observatory a worldwide reputation for astronomical study at that time.

The telescope has a 10 inch object glass made by Mertz of Germany, and sits on a 55 foot supporting pillar, 8 feet in diameter. It is thought that the local firm of Ransomes was employed in installing this equipment, a complex task of precision engineering. The original clockwork mechanism for turning the telescope still works, although today it is powered by electricity. When the tower was first built there was a four-stage water-powered lift for easy access, but this had to be dismantled in later years due to its deteriorated state.

Our gallant group of ladies, having made it up the 100 steps of the spiral staircase, listened to a very informative talk by Paul Wilding, the Visitors’ co-ordinator, and then took turns to look at the images that could be seen on what was a rather cloudy night. As the sky was not visible the telescope was turned on the surrounding area and it was possible to pick out the River Orwell, Pin Mill and the Butt & Oyster inn. Shame about the weather, but still a very interesting and informative evening.

The telescope is now used regularly by the pupils at Orwell Park School, and by the Ipswich Astronomical Society, who keep both it and the dome in good working order.

Claire Mucklestone, Manager of Bourne Bridge Garden Centre in Ipswich, made us very welcome on our visit there in September.

As a schoolgirl Claire had dreams of joining the RAF, but with so many family links to horticulture over three generations, and after doing a regular weekend job at Notcutts, she decided that horticulture was definitely in her blood!

Having achieved her Craftsman’s Certificate, she then worked in a nursery in Bagshot, Surrey, where they supplied plants for London landscaping projects.

When a commercial site – opposite Fox’s Marina and next to Bourne Park – came up for sale in 1997, she bought it and established a garden centre there.

Claire enjoys doing creative things, choosing colour schemes and picking out plants that look good together. With the current autumn season upon us, she chose examples of variously coloured flowers and foliage that would look good in a large pot, or in an autumn-themed hanging basket. She also recommended plants for particular aspects and positions in a garden, some suitable for dry soil, some for shade, others for sunny spots. One of our members mentioned that she had used lemonade regularly to give her hanging baskets a boost, which tickled Claire who said she’d never heard THAT one before! However, she did suggest we used a slow-release plant food in the compost to keep the plants at their best.

We had a few laughs during our visit and at the same time got some useful ideas how to brighten up our own gardens. Thanks very much, Claire!

Thirteen brave ladies left Capel Co-op en route to Stutton Church to go for a stroll on a cool summer’s evening in mid-July. The rain held off – and so did the midges – and we all enjoyed a gentle walk down to the river and along the embankment at Holbrook Creek.

On the way some of us spotted redshank and other waders probing the mud for their supper, plus several strange, funnel-shaped webs amongst the long grass. These webs actually belonged to the Labyrinth spiders, which as we later discovered, are shy little creatures who are completely harmless to humans and who build their funnel-shaped webs simply to protect their eggs!

Further on our intrepid bunch navigated 2 stiles and we made our way back to the cars. We adjourned to the King’s Head at Stutton to quench our thirst, and at the same time almost got involved in their pub quiz – which we have promised to enter at a future date! Another enjoyable evening with Capel Ladies!

Our Summer Outing this year was to the Norfolk Lavender Farm at Heacham, near Hunstanton. Our coach full of members and guests left Capel at 8.30am on a warm, sunny day, and drove us along roads and lanes lined with embankments of cornflowers, poppies and ox-eye daisies, stopping at Sheringham Park for a coffee break. Here, several people went on a short stroll to see the Rhododendrons and Azaleas for which the Park is famous, and some even climbed one of the viewing platforms to see a bird’s eye view of the Park and the coastline. Continue reading →

After a couple of days of wet and unsettled weather we were very lucky to see the sunshine again on our afternoon visit to the Suffolk Punch Trust at Sink Farm, Hollesley, near Woodbridge. Continue reading →