Walberswick   page loading

An idyllic coastal village meandering downhill to the village green and foreshore of the river Blyth. Formerly a port of some importance, but today only tiny fishing boats and pleasure craft frequent the river. The magnificent St Andrews church helps to testify to former prosperity. Decline began in the 16th cent. with a series of severe fires and flooding. Today the area is mainly appreciated for the beach and large areas of marshland and heath. A footbridge over the Blyth links the village to Southwold harbour. An annual crab competition is very popular.

Putative smugglers' tunnels were discovered in the 1920s, when the original Anchor pub was being demolished. The ruins of a small tower mill used for pumping, stand in the marshes east of East Hill. It dates from 1978 or earlier. It worked until 1940 and was used for target practice; evidently the gunners weren't too accurate, as enough of it survived to be renovated in 1955. Unfortunately it was burned out in 1960. Another mill stood in the village (near Millfield Road) but was apparently blown down in 1924. A Deserted Mediaeval Village is thought to have stood to the south of the current settlement.

Walberswick Station was on the Southwold Railway, which ran from Halesworth to Southwold. The line opened in 1879 and closed in 1929.

See www.walberswick.ws and the Parish Council website.