Attleborough
These
days most of us thunder by Attleborough on our way up and down the busy A11
- but this little town is well worth a look around
Where is Attleborough?
Off the A11 between Wymondham and Thetford.
Map of Attleborough
About Attleborough
Modern
travellers tend to whisk past Attleborough on the A11 bypass,
but they are missing out on a town with lots to please.
The market has been there since the 13th century,
and throughout its history Attleborough has been an important
staging post on the way into the county.
The town sign depicts cider-making flanked by
two splendid black turkeys. In 1896, the Gaymers cider-making
plant was built in Attleborough and soon became the largest
employer in the town.
Turkey sales made the town a thriving centre
in the 1930s, but the two on the town sign are said to recall
the days when Attleborough turkeys had their feet dipped in
tar to withstand the journey along roads to the London markets.
The nearby town pump was built to mark the
Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria and was given a fresh look
for the present Queen’s Golden Jubilee.
St Mary’s Church has Saxon foundations but is built in Norman and early
English style.
Its squat tower was once at the centre of a
much larger building and boasted a spire, said by some to
have come crashing to earth about 300 years ago.
Inside
is the rood screen (pictured below) for which the church is chiefly noted.
Dating from about 1500, the oak screen is 52ft long and is the only one in
Norfolk to extend across the nave and both side aisles.
The town has one of the best Christmas lights
display in East Anglia.
Attleborough is well-placed as a base for visiting the tourist havens of
the area – Banham Zoo, Bressingham Steam Museum and the green acres
of Thetford forest.
Map of Attleborough
View
larger map of Attleborough on Google