Bacton
The Sign
On top of the sign is a heavy horse, maybe a Suffolk Punch! The main frame has the church of St Mary at the back surrounded by trees. In the foreground are two cows, representing dairy farming, surrounded by representations of nature, including various types of flora, such as primrose and blackberry and fauna represented by two mice a wren and a butterfly. Wheat is also present representing agriculture.
The Name and Population
The village was called Bachetuna in 1086. The name means "Bacca's farm or settlement", a personal name, taken from Old English. The population was around 1200 in 2021.
Other Points of Interest (from village website)
At the time of the Conquest it was under the overlordship of the Saxon noble Leofwine, who had lands in many parts of Suffolk and Essex, and pigs were the main livestock kept. Twenty years later when the Domesday Book was compiled, Walter the Deacon was the overlord and sheep now greatly outnumbered the pigs. Today animal husbandry is still important in Bacton.
From 1236 to 1536 Bacton was under the rule of the Bishops of Norwich. The controversial Richard Nykke, last Roman Catholic bishop before the English Reformation, built a palace in Bacton which was eventually demolished and the bricks used to build cottages. His coat of arms can be seen in the South aisle window of the Parish Church of St. Mary's which dates from the 1300's and stands in the middle of Bacton village.
Within the Parish there are 41 'Grade II', and 2 'Grade II*' listed buildings (National Heritage List for England 2018) one of which is Bacton Manor which was built by a member of an eminent local family, George Pretyman, some time between 1720 and 1730.