Sudbourne: the history of a village & its people

10/09/2026

I recently posted about the free online talk I’ve recorded about the school log books I was lucky enough to have a second talk accepted for The Society of Genealogists’ ‘All About That Place’ event which is relevant to Sudbourne (& surrounding villages). I’ve been researching Dr John Cordy Keer, a Wickham Market-based GP who was Medical Officer of Health for the Plomesgate District and was in practice for over 65 years. As Medical Officer of Health he investigated outbreaks of disease and tried to pinpoint the cause. He wrote several special reports into diphtheria outbreaks in Sudbourne. He was affectionately referred to as ‘The grand old man of Wickham Market’.
The talk will go live at 8am on Thursday 8 October. I’ll post a link here when I have one.
Don’t forget to tune in for the Sudbourne school log books talk at midday on Friday 16 October.
All About That Place is a free online event in which ten short (8-12 minutes) talks are released every day for ten days.
You can read about the event & have a look at the itinerary here 👉🏻 https://sog.org.uk/welcome-to-all-about-that-place/all-about-that-place-itinerary/

02/09/2026

02/09/2026

Having researched the Medical Officer of Health for the district covering for the Society of Genealogists All About That Place event (my ancestor John Cordy Keer) I’m now collecting the annual MOH reports for comparison. I was fascinated to find these 3 special reports in The National Archives he’d done into diphtheria in Sudbourne

29/08/2026

Very excited that my talk about the school log books has been accepted for The Society of Genealogists’ ‘All About That Place’ event. My Sudbourne talk will go live at 12 midday on Friday 16 October. I’ll post a link here when I have one.
I’m also doing another talk for All About That Place which is relevant to Sudbourne (& surrounding villages), I’ll post details of that soon.
All About That Place is a free online event in which ten short (8-12 minutes) talks are released every day for ten days.
You can read about the event & have a look at the itinerary here 👉🏻 https://sog.org.uk/welcome-to-all-about-that-place/all-about-that-place-itinerary/

27/08/2026

Please vote for the Benhall & Sternfield History group!

Please share this with your friends and help us and vote for The Benhall and Sternfield History group .You can vote multiple times right now, so long as you close your browser each time https://www.findmypast.co.uk/c/everyday-history-heroes-east?fbclid=IwY2xjawT9AjhwZG9mAWV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkEDIyMjAzOTE3ODgyMDA4OTIAAR5XmYtR4PNUr--xnSlSs3aMe1PHmGhWSZGYn9UocNCAzlWXeOfhwZhDDbilsg_aem_ni3wnJJQMtGMTB_6rI6-eA
We are looking to win the competition to gain find my past subscriptions to start a new project researching the everyday people who lived and worked in the shops & homes in our villages: A Street Through Time.

Please help the only group in Suffolk to be shortlisted! Voting closes midnight 31st August. Thank you. Benhall & Sternfield History Group

01/08/2026

The National Landscape is devastated to see the destruction caused by the wildfire at beloved Dunwich Heath, one of our most precious landscapes.

Our thoughts are with the wildlife, habitats and people impacted by the wildfire, and huge thanks go to everyone who has shown heroic bravery in tackling the fire.

The National Trust has launched an appeal to help support the recovery of Dunwich Heath.

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/support-us/appeals/dunwich-heath

📸 Gill Moon, 2025

18/07/2026

Children’s meals at the Plomesgate Union Workhouse in 1882. The workhouse was in Wickham Market, but would have served too.

27/06/2026

🗺️ I’ve long been wanting to create an interactive map showing the owners/occupiers & descriptions of properties from the 1910 Valuation Act field books. Each red number you see on the map relates to an assessment of the property (for tax purposes) which includes who owned the property, who lived there, how much rent they paid, how much the property was worth etc. I find the description of the properties really interesting, they detail the number/type of rooms, and sometimes the state of repair.
I finally got around to giving it a try. Lots more to add, & I’ll probably create a couple of separate maps for the areas where there are several properties close together, but I’m happy with the result - & it was free!

30/05/2026