Things to do in Woodbridge
Woodbridge, the navigable head of the Deben estuary. The town’s
ancient centre has retained all its Old World charm and has some great
restaurants and superb antique shops and galleries. The Tourist Information
Centre (close to the railway station with good services to London)
has loads of information on the town and the area.
First recorded in 970, the town’s name is believed to derive
from ‘Woden’s (or Oden’s) town‘. With its close
proximity to Sutton Hoo, the burial ground of Saxon kings, such an
explanation is quite feasible.
 At the head of the Deben Estuary, Woodbridge was once a busy shipbuilding
centre and both Edward III, in the 14th century, and Drake, in
the 16th , sailed in Woodbridge ships. Nothing was wasted and the beams
and boards from old Woodbridge ships are in evidence in a number
of
the historic houses in the centre of this charming market town.
There is still plenty of activity on and by the river with sailing,
canoeing and rowing popular throughout the year (look out for
summer courses in sailing and canoeing). Old barges and houseboats
are
moored at the quay, swans swim majestically beside the riverside
path and
a huge variety of wildfowl and waders search for food on the
salt flats at low tide.
The fine white weather-boarded Tide Mill, now fully restored
and in working order, sits majestically on the quayside. Built in
the 18th
century and powered by the rising tide The Tide Mill was in
commercial use until 1957. The original mill pond has become a marina,
but
a new
pond has been created, as part of this meticulous restoration,
which feeds the water wheel which still turns at high tide.
From the river are views of St Mary’s Church with its fine flint
work tower, and attractive north aisle - one of the legacies of the
town’s greatest benefactor, Thomas Seckford. Evidence of his
generosity includes the rebuilt abbey, now the junior department of
Woodbridge School, the almshouses in Seckford Street and the Shire
Hall on Market Hill.
Built in 1575 The Shire Hall has been beautifully restored in the
past year. The first floor houses The Suffolk Horse Museum, a fascinating
exhibition celebrating the history of the Suffolk Punch,
the oldest
breed of heavy working horse in the world. While now very
rare Suffolk Punches are still bred and a few of the these beautiful
horses graze
the water meadows just outside Lower Ufford and the marshes
at Shingle Street.
Across the road is Woodbridge Museum, a treasure trove of
information on the history of the town and its more notable residents
including
the painter Thomas Churchyard, the map-maker Isaac Johnson
and the poet Edward Fitzgerald, translator of the Omar Kayam, and
something of an eccentric. Although often thought of a recluse Edward
Fitzgerald
met regularly with his friends, Bernard Barton and Churchyard
, known locally as the Woodbridge Wits.
From Market Hill it is just a five minute walk to Buttrum’s Mill,
named after the last miller, is a six storey tower mill making it the
tallest surviving mill in Suffolk. A climb up to the top is more than
worthwhile not only to learn something of the history of milling but
to enjoy the lovely views across the rooftops of Woodbridge to the
Deben Estuary below.. | 
