Ipswich Historic Lettering: Chantry Park

Mike O'Donovan, our parks correspondent, has sent in images of Chantry Park gates taken in spring 2011. (The area of interest for us is the pilaster nearest the lodge and its plaque.)
Ipswich Historic Lettering: Chantry Park 1

Ipswich Historic Lettering: Chantry Park 2

'They show the Hadleigh Road entrance to Chantry Park. Sadly the plate is extremely weather worn. The inscription reads as follows...'

'CHANTRY PARK
PRESENTED TO THE
BOROUGH OF IPSWICH
------BY-----
SIR ARTHUR CHURCHMAN BART., M.P. J.P.
AND OPENED TO THE PUBLIC ON THE 20TH OCTOBER 1928, BY
H.R.H. PRINCESS MARY VISCOUNTESS LASCELLES'

In 1927 the land where Chantry Park is now situated had been sold for housing development and was then purchased by Sir Arthur Churchman (later Lord Woodbridge) who gave it to Ipswich Corporation to be held in permanent trust for the people of Ipswich. Baron Woodbridge, of Ipswich in the County of Suffolk, was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 17 June 1932 for Sir Arthur Churchman, Conservative Member of Parliament for Woodbridge from 1920 to 1929. The title became extinct on his death on 3 February 1949. Sir William Churchman, 1st Baronet, was the elder brother of Lord Woodbridge. Incidentally, his philanthropic deeds did not stop at Chantry Park. Sir Arthur Churchman bought Orford Castle in 1928, and in 1930 gave the property to the Orford Town Trust; an appeal for money to maintain and restore it began shortly afterwards. Colonel Sir William Alfred Churchman, 1st Baronet VD (1863 – 25 November 1947) was an English tobacco manufacturer and public servant. Churchman was born in Ipswich, Suffolk. He went into partnership with his brother, Arthur, in the family tobacco firm which had been founded by their great-grandfather in 1790. This was renamed W. A. & A. C. Churchman. It was later absorbed by the tobacco combines and Churchman became a director of the Imperial Tobacco Company. Some may recall the Churchman's factory in Portman Road and their product: Churchman's No. 1 cigarettes. 1950s advertisements showed, variously, glamourous women and (disturbingly) a horse and a poodle smoking the product.

The following is from the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest.
"The Ipswich Chantry was founded in 1509 by Edmund Daundy, a prominent and respected Ipswich merchant. After the Ipswich priories were suppressed in 1536, the Cutler family were said to be in occupation of a house at the Chantry and by 1668 the land was in the ownership of Sir Peyton Ventris. Sir Peyton was succeeded in 1691 by his son Edmund who built a house in about 1700 which is believed to be the foundation of the present house (Pevsner and Radcliffe 1975). Edmund died in 1740 and the estate was sold to Sir John Barker who made substantial improvements to the house. The Chantry changed hands again in 1772, being purchased by Metcalf Russell who added a further storey and passed the land on to his elected heir Michael Collinson. From 1795 onwards Michael's son Charles enlarged the estate to 500 acres (about 208 hectares) and it is he who was responsible for developing the character of much of the registered park which survives today (1998). He planted the South Avenue (1807) and made further modifications resulting in it being described as having woodland groves, a lake covering several acres and studded with little islands (dated 1828), and gardens of rare and exotic plants laid out with meticulous care (Kelly 1844).

In 1836 the estate was purchased by Charles Lillingston who married the daughter of the Rev Fonnereau of Christchurch Mansion and on the occasion of their daughter's fifteenth birthday the local paper carried a lengthy description of the park where the celebrations were held. Lillingston was attributed by White's Directory of 1844 as having made many improvements to the house and grounds. His son and heir however was killed in action, resulting in another sale in 1852 when Sir Fitzroy Kelly, a distinguished barrister and MP for Ipswich, became the new owner. Kelly is also said to have applied great energy to his new property, making many alterations to the house in the Italian style (White 1844). He commissioned the new gates and lodge at the north entrance and called in Mr Nesfield (assumed to be W A Nesfield (1793-1881)) to provide a scheme for the flower gardens on the south front (Inspector's report). His stay was also short though, and he sold the site to Charles Binney Skinner in 1867. By 1897 the house and park had been sold again to Sir Henry Cecil Domville. The Domvilles lived lavishly in the Edwardian style but Sir Cecil died suddenly in 1902 and his widow went to live abroad. When the Jump family arrived in 1906 the grounds had become very neglected but Mrs Jump was a keen gardener and with the help of Mr Nottcutt of Woodbridge improved the gardens and added new features. In 1927 when the Chantry again came up for sale it was purchased by George Gooday with the intention of developing a housing estate. Sir Arthur Churchman, a JP and member of the Council intervened, however, purchasing the house and park and presenting them to the borough as a public amenity which was opened by Princess Mary in 1928. Since that time the house has been leased as a nursing home and the walled kitchen gardens are currently (1998) used as a nursery by the Borough Parks Department."

[UPDATE 3.1.2012: From Ronald Turner. "I was evaculated to (i think) Chantry hse in 1940 and i remember servants calling the owner Lord Woodbridge .It had a large lake and horses running in the fields.
I have been to suffolk several times to try and identify where it is but to no avail.
Could it possibly be Chantry Hse. ??
Yours sincerely RG.Turner"
Well, we know that Lord Woodbridge purchased the house and park in 1927 and gave it to the borough as a public amenity in the following year. It is possible that the house was used for evacuees during the 2nd World War - or another house in the estate. Can anyone help?]

More park lettering: Bourne Park (and Bourne Bridge) and Christchurch Park (and Mansion).

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