Wortham, Suffolk

Wortham is a village and parish in Suffolk, England, close to the border with Norfolk. Its church, St Mary the Virgin, lies about a mile north of the present-day village. It is one of 38 existing round-tower churches in Suffolk and the one with the greatest diameter in England.

History
In the time of Edward the Confessor Wortham consisted of two parishes, each with its own church and parsonage. They had 40 acre of glebe between them and a combined value of seven shillings. After the Norman Conquest there were still two parishes, corresponding to the two Norman manors: Southmoor, held by the Abbots of Bury, and Eastgate (Wortham Hall) held by the Barons of Rye.

In 1769 the parishes were combined under William Evans, Rector of Eastgate. The Saxon church in Southmoor disappeared and was never rebuilt, although the Rectory remained until 1785. A faculty was granted by the Bishop of Norwich to Rowland Holt (Patron) and Henry Patterson (Rector) for "taking down and excusing the rebuilding of one of the parsonages belonging to the Rectory of Wortham Edward w. Jervis annexed." This parsonage was stated to be above a mile from the church and built of stud and clay work and covered with a thatch.

Wortham was the family seat of the Betts family.

The village was home to the author Richard Cobbold between 1825 and 1877. In addition to a famous story of Margaret Catchpole, he published in 1860 The Biography Of A Victorian Village - Wortham, which contains a series of drawings and character details of various members of the community during the mid-Victorian period. This is a useful source for genealogists. The novelist and agricultural writer Doreen Wallace moved to Wortham in 1922 for her married life.

The local public house is The Manor House.

Public transport
Diss (4 miles/6.4 km) has the nearest railway station. The village is served by infrequent daytime, Monday-to-Saturday bus services to Bury St Edmunds and Diss.