Willingham St Mary
village in Suffolk, England, UK
Willingham St Mary, also known simply as Willingham, is a village and civil parish in the English county of Suffolk located about 3.5 miles (6 km) south of Beccles in the East Suffolk district. Sections of the Sotterley estate are included within Willingham's western section. At the 2011 United Kingdom census, it had a population of 152.
Overview
The largest population resides in the area where Willingham adjoins Shadingfield and where the A145 road cuts through the parish. Due to the small size of the village, children attend primary school in Brampton and high school in Beccles. The Fox public house on the A145 is within the parish boundary, although it is more commonly associated with Shadingfield. The two parishes also share a village hall and playing field, both located on the parish border. A joint parish council covers the parishes of Ellough, Shadingfield, Sotterley and Willingham St Mary. Willingham also borders the parish of Weston.
History
At the Domesday Book survey of 1086, the village of "Willingaham" formed part of the estates of Hugh de Montfort.
The public source identifies “Willingham St Mary” as village in Suffolk, England, UK. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Willingham, Mary and village.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Willingham St Mary”, the useful work is to connect “village in Suffolk, England, UK” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 19, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q8021983. Authority coordinates are 52.401, 1.591. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2011 and 1086.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Willingham St Mary”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Willingham St Mary primary sources, Willingham St Mary archive and Willingham research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Willingham St Mary”?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Willingham St Mary” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.