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Westleton village archives have an extensive collection of photographs, papers, cuttings and leaflets relating to village life from the 19th century to the present day. These have been donated by many people in the village, particularly by the Fisk family, and are now looked after and extended by a small team of archivists. Additional items found when anyone is tidying a house or browsing in a bookshop or on the web, are always very welcome.
The present archives were established in 1986 by another family member, Frances Berry, who built up a valuable record of village life, past and present for 20 years, as well as collecting together the family archive plus contributions of material and memories from numerous people in the village. The archive team has been extended in recent years, and continues to collect items and take photographs of current village activities. The older collections are gradually being copied to disc.
The archives receive financial support from Westleton Parish Council and the Barrel Fair. They are housed in the village and administered by the Village Hall Committee on behalf of the Parish Council.
Requests for information, copies of photographs, or offers of material are always welcome. We can copy items and return the originals to you. Please contact us by email.
The archives are a member of the Suffolk Local History Council and its Local History Recorders Scheme.
Exhibitions and access to the archives
A selection of archive material is made available at the Village Exhibition held every year from the last Friday in July for three days. The archives can be seen at other times on application by email.
The Village Plan
The Report was completed in 2010 and a copy delivered to all occupied houses in Westleton. A follow-up meeting was held on the 13th April 2010 to discuss the contents and solicit feedback & here is a Copy of the plan. Please be patient as the document is large and may take a while to open. From this plan several clubs have been formed including the Gardeners Club & Film Club. The plan's contents have been used & referenced over the years to inform how the village develops.
Scope of collection held in the Archives
The main items collected are: Photographs, newspaper cuttings, posters and other documents - historical and up-to-date, including: Church, Chapel, School, Windmills, War Memorial, Common, Pubs, Village events and festivities, Carnival: 1951 to 1960s, Barrel Fair programmes 1996 to 2022 (The Barrel Fair hold their main archive), Wildflower Festival and Village Exhibition 1966 to date, Village businesses and societies, Village record books, surveys and charities 19th and 20th century, Audio-visual interviews and recordings, St Peter's Churchyard Gravestone inscriptions & the Census 1881, Westleton: photocopy of original and also a typescript.
Useful links
Publications - Books
“A Short History of Westleton and its Parish Church” by Rev. Norman S. Gay, Published by Ancient House Press, Ipswich, 1942. (From Domesday to 1941)
“Westleton: from the 1830s to the 1960s. Survey of a Suffolk Village”. Edited by Alan Ivimey. Produced for the Publication Committee of the Workers Educational Association (Westleton Branch) and printed by Williams Printers Ltd, Framlingham, 1968. (Comprehensive study, using original documents and contemporary accounts)
“A Changed Village: Westleton 1950-2000” by Frances Berry, Claire Daunton and Jean Edwards. Printed by Crowes Complete Print, Norwich, 2000. (To mark the Millennium, a photographic record comparing archive pictures to the present day scene)
“Westleton in the 1840s: a snapshot of village life in rural Suffolk” by Suzanna G. Burney. Suffolk Snapshot Series No 8. Published by Sigma Books, Newbury, Berks, 2004. ISBN 0-9539233-4-7. Also available on CD from Sigma Books. (Maps and complete listings of the Westleton Tithe Map 1842, Census of 1841 and Parish Registers from 1835 to 1841).
“Westleton: Customs and Sayings collected in 1922” by Ruth Anderson, Westleton Womens' Institute. Published by Westleton Womens' Institute 2008, and printed by Leiston Press, Suffolk. ISBN 0978-0-9554725-9-6. (To mark the 90th Anniversary of Westleton WI in 2008.)
Publications - book chapters
“This Suffolk” by Allan Jobson. Published by Heath Cranton Ltd, London, 1948. (Allan Jobson lived in Westleton in the 1940s-50s, and the village also features in some of his other books)
“In a Country Churchyard” by Ronald Fletcher. Published by Batsford Ltd, London, 1978. ISBN 0-7134-1216-X (Including village characters)
“Manors of Suffolk: their History and Devolution. The Hundreds of Blything and Bosmere with Claydon” Vol 2. by WA Copinger. Privately printed by Taylor, Garnet, Evans and Co Ltd, 1908. (There were 8 manors in Westleton.) (Photocopy from the book held in Suffolk County Library).