Benacre, Suffolk
Coordinates: 52°24′N 1°42′E / 52.4°N 1.7°E
Benacre is a village and civil parish in the Waveney district of the English county of Suffolk. The village is located about 5.75 miles (9 km) south of Lowestoft and 1.5 miles (2 km) north-east of Wrentham, between the main A12 road and the North Sea coast. Neighbouring villages include Kessingland and Covehithe with the town of Southwold 5 miles (8 km) to the south.
The village is dispersed around Benacre Hall, the estate of the Gooch family. It had a population of around 70 in mid-2008,[1] measured at 111 in the 2011 Census.[2] The population declined dramatically during the 20th century from 216 at the 1901 census.[3] The village has few basic services. The former parish church of St Michael is now privately owned by the Gooch family.[4] It is medieval in origin and a Grade II* listed building, although extensively rebuilt following a fire in the 18th century.[4] The church of St Andrew in Covehithe now acts as the parish church for Benacre.[5]
At the Domesday survey the village's name is given as Benagra within the Hundred of Blythling.[6] It formed part of the holdings of the Abbey of Bury St Edmunds, as it had before the conquest, with one freeman recorded as living in the manor.[7]
References
- ↑ A profile of Waveney, Waveney District Council, February 2011. Retrieved 2011-04-10.
- ↑ "Civil Parish population 2011". Retrieved 21 September 2011.
- ↑ Benacre CP: Historical statistics – population, Vision of Britain. Retrieved 2011-05-07.
- 1 2 Church of St Michael, Benacre, British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 2011-05-07.
- ↑ Covehithe with Benacre, St Andrew, Covehithe with Benacre, Church of England. Retrieved 2011-05-10.
- ↑ Benacre, The Domesday Book online. Retrieved 2011-05-07.
- ↑ Benacre, Domesday Map. Retrieved 2011-05-07.