The 1921 Auction of Belchamp Walter

The village of Belchamp Walter after WW1 saw the sale of many of the dwellings that we see today.

Rather than the image of Belchamp Walter in the 1920's depicted by Julian Fellows, with Edwardian weddings on the lawn, things were rather different in the village. The wedding at the start of Downton Abbey, a New Era, was set in 1928.

While it is generally assumed that the Raymond family owned most of the village at this time, well, certainly from 1611 until the mordern age where it is recognised that some of the land and buildings have been sold to other farmers and homeowners, this has not always been the case over their tenure. The period between 1741 and 1865 the land and buildings, other than the Hall and some other buidings, were owned by a member of the Ruggles family.

The flint cottages that are located at the cross-roads in Belchamp Walter were probably commissioned by either Ruggles or one of the tenant farmers.

The building that was the New School House that was built in 1871 was not part of this auction nor was the building and land that is the present location of the Mission Hut.

1918-1920 Suffolk & Essex Free Press - January 12th 1921

Lacy Scott are auctioneers in Bury St. Edmunds.

Samuel Philip Raymond (b. 1886) was the owner of Belchamp Estate in 1921.

Farming in Belchamp Walter

In the early part of the twentieth century with the two world wars saw a depletion of farm workers that were called to defend their country. The farming effort was shared between the historical land owners and many of the farms and farm-land was sold to private owners.

My research on this subject has been made by the searching the archives of local newspapers that record these sales and other events in the village. My interest in the village's history has concentrated on the period from the Normal Conquest until the "Wentworth Era". The history of the village after this time, including the influence of the Church and the monarchy, the Civil War and the story of the fates documented in the village church is better known.

The period between the 17th Century and the 20th Century is documented by what you see on the walls of the Church of St. Mary. The "care" of the Church was in the hands of the Victorian, Georgian and Edwardian patrons.

Thorvald "Tommy" Hogsbjerg

Thorvald Hogsbjberg died in 1995 (aged 80) and his wife 1992. They are buried in a joint grave in Belchamp Walter's churchyard.

Below is the description from the YouTube video (link below) on Thorvald "Tommy" Hogsbjerg, the time [in brackets] is the start of the section relating to Belchamp Walter and the management and purchase of farms in the region.

Note the mis-spelling of Hogsbjerg in the You Tube description.