Kersey is a village and
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...
in the
Babergh district in
Suffolk, in the east of England. The main street has a ford across a stream. Its principal claim to fame is that a coarse woollen cloth called
Kersey cloth takes its name from it. The cloth was presumably originally made there, but later in many other places too.
The parish contains the village of Kersey and the hamlets of Kersey Tye, Kersey Upland, Wicker Street Green and William's Green.
Kersey's church is
St Mary's, and the village also contains a
primary school
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...
.
The population of the parish at the 2011 Census was 359.
The village is known for its picturesque main street with medieval timber-framed houses and a
ford
Ford commonly refers to:
* Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford
* Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river
Ford may also refer to:
Ford Motor Company
* Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company
* Ford F ...
of a
tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...
of the
River Brett
The River Brett is a river in Suffolk, England. Its source is in the villages to the north of Lavenham and it flows through Hadleigh to its confluence with the River Stour via Monks Eleigh
Monks Eleigh is a village and a civil parish in B ...
known locally as "The Splash".
The village has been used as a filming location including for
Lovejoy, and the advert launching the
Austin Metro
The Metro is a supermini car, later a city car that was produced by British Leyland (BL) and, later, the Rover Group from 1980 to 1998. It was launched in 1980 as the Austin mini Metro. It was intended to complement and eventually replace the ...
.
Notable residents
*
Robert Gordon-Finlayson
General Sir Robert Gordon-Finlayson (15 April 1881 – 23 May 1956) was a senior British military officer who was appointed Adjutant-General to the Forces in 1939.
Military career
Finlayson entered the British Army from the Suffolk Militia and ...
(1881-1956),
Adjutant-General to the Forces
The Adjutant-General to the Forces, commonly just referred to as the Adjutant-General (AG), was for just over 250 years one of the most senior officers in the British Army. The AG was latterly responsible for developing the Army's personnel polic ...
; he was created a
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as o ...
in 1937,
Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George in 1918, and Companion of the
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, ty ...
in 1915.
*
Lewis Lyne
Major-General Lewis Owen Lyne CB DSO (21 August 1899 – 4 November 1970) was a British Army officer who served before and during the Second World War. He saw distinguished active service in command of the 169th Brigade in action in North Afri ...
, (1899-1970), a
Major-General
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
who served before and during World War II and was created a
Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1945 and Companion of the Distinguished Service Order in 1943.
*
Hammond Innes
Ralph Hammond Innes (15 July 1913 – 10 June 1998) was a British novelist who wrote over 30 novels, as well as works for children and travel books.
Biography
Innes was born in Horsham, Sussex, and educated at Feltonfleet School, Cobham, Surrey ...
(1913–1998), novelist.
*
Peter Vansittart (1920-2008), novelist.
Related pages
*
Kersey (cloth)
Kersey is a kind of coarse woollen cloth that was an important component of the textile trade in Medieval England.
History
It derives its name from kersey yarn and ultimately from the village of Kersey, Suffolk, having presumably originated in t ...
*
Kersey Priory
Kersey Priory was a priory in Kersey, Suffolk, Kersey, Suffolk, England.
It was founded before 1218 as a hospital dedicated St Mary the Blessed Virgin and St Anthony under rule of Austin Canons. It was dissolved in 1443 and the next year transferr ...
*
St Mary's Church, Kersey
Location grid
References
External links
Parish Council websiteKersey in Pictures
Villages in Suffolk
Civil parishes in Suffolk
Babergh District
{{Suffolk-geo-stub