Projects

We have just launched a significant and timely new community project, which will include volunteers undertaking surveys of surviving WW2 archaeology in the local area.

This initiative was made possible through the support and generosity of Suffolk County Council’s Culture Project Fund.

John Nunn, Chair, Long Melford Heritage Trust said: “We are deeply grateful for Suffolk County Council’s continuing support for our work. This award will enable us to proceed with a significant and timely new community project, which will include volunteers undertaking surveys of surviving WW2 archaeology in the local area”.

A key focus of the new project – Silent Witness: War and Landscape in Long Melford and the Stour Valley – will be the network of pillboxes in this area. These formed part of one of the most important ‘Stop Lines’ in the eastern region – the ‘Corps Line’ – which passed though Great Cornard, Sudbury and Long Melford. Four major river crossings of the Stour marked this area out as important in strategic terms.

Built hastily during the summer of 1940, as the Battle of Britain raged in the skies, pillboxes reflect a time of immense national vulnerability following Dunkirk, the fall of France and the imminent threat of a German invasion. A physical manifestation of the “back home” war effort, they endure as quiet reminders of a past crisis.

These surveys will provide valuable insights into a critical period of 20th-century history and military engineering in the Long Melford area.

Elaine Symonds, Project Lead and Trustee, Long Melford Heritage Trust said:
 “Our year long project will raise awareness of the area’s forgotten wartime history. It has been over three decades since these heritage assets were last formally evaluated, with the most recent assessment occurring during the Defence of Britain Database project. This undertaking is relevant and timely to prevent further deterioration or potential loss of these buildings.

“This initiative will take place over the coming year during which time we will hold a series of events and a major exhibition, at Long Melford Old School, scheduled for 19 – 20 September 2026.

“A crucial component of the exhibition will be the contribution of Suffolk based photographer, Michael Cant. His haunting photographic essays will accompany the historical interpretation. Cant’s evocative images provide a powerful contemporary perspective, capturing the poignant drama of these concrete structures resisting the ravages of time.”