The Museum has a small shop that stocks items that we hope will be of interest to our visitors. We have a number of locally produced books that help tell the story of Beccles and the surrounding area. Some of them are listed below. Proceeds from all sales help support the Museum and it is an important source of income for us. Should you wish to purchase an item but either the museum is closed or you cannot visit in person then please email: shop.becclesmuseum@gmail.com who should be able to help you.

It is the policy of the Museum to support books with a local historical content, and we try to produce and publish at least one new book every two years.

We need to add p&p to the cost of any book we post. The p&p costs will depend on the number of books requested and the charge made by the postal service. We will inform you of the cost when we confirm that we are able to supply your order.

Books that we currently stock are:

The Clockmakers of Beccles by James Woodrow - Price £4.25 (GBP)
This attractive book gives details of the 47 clockmakers known to have operated from Beccles, includes a wealth of clock photographs from some local makers. Many 'Beccles' clocks have ended up across the world in countries such as the USA and Australia from where the museum has received correspondence. The Museum hopes that this book will prompt clock owners to pass details and photographs of their Beccles clocks, by email if possible, for the museums historical records.

Beccles College A short History by Dorothy Smith and James Woodrow - Price £4.00 (GBP)
This book details the life at the college and its history from when it opened in 1818 until it closed in 1936. An academy for 'young gentlemen' it had the capacity to hold up to 110 borders and 15 local day-boys. The book includes photographs of the college, long since demolished, the area and some of the persons involved. It also has extracts from the memoires of two old-boys who went there in the early 20th Century. The book is produced in response to the goodly number of enquiries the Museum receives from all over the world from people who ancestors went to the college. The book is in A5 format with 58 pages. ISBN 1-903045-01-0

The Story of a Beccles Inn by Dorothy Smith - Price £2.00 (GBP)
This is a short study of the Falcon Inn that stood in the New Market in Beccles at least from the sixteenth century until it was demolished in 1963. It was the cockpit at the inn that was the unlikely venue for a visit by Charles Wesley in 1776, and was later to house one of the first printing presses in the town. The A5 paperback consists of 24 pages of text with 11 black and white illustrations and a glossy cover. ISBN: 1 903045 01 0

The Lost Windmills of Beccles by Margaret Knox with contributions by Peter Doman and Russell Garnham - Price £3.50 (GBP)
The book tells the story of the corn windmills that once existed in Beccles. It outlines the history of corn milling in the town from the middle ages to the Twentieth Century and gives detailed descriptions of the five nineteenth century windmills. It also includes details of the Gillingham post mill which stood close to BecclesBridge. The A5 paperback consists of 44 pages of text with 22 black and white illustrations and a sketch map. There is also a glossy cover. ISBN 1903045-00-2

The author is Margaret Knox, formally Honoury Curator of Beccles and District Museum and author of the Shire Guide to Norfolk; assisted by Peter Dolman, Honoury Secretary of the Suffolk Windmills Trust; and Russell Garnham, who spent most of his working life at Castle Mill, Beccles.

Suffolk Cheese by Margaret Knox - Price £1.50 (GBP)
From Tudor times to the 19th Century, Suffolk was an important dairying county and a major supplier of butter and cheese to the burgeoning London market. Whilst Suffolk butter was universally praised the cheese became something of a joke and was even known as Suffolk Bang. It was claimed that it was hard enough to use as cartwheels. The book tells the story, the good and the bad, of the cheese and of the rise and fall of the Suffolk dairy industry. The book is in A5 format with 48 pages. ISBN 1903045-03-7

Time Remembered - Price £9.99 (GBP)
Eugene Ulph was born and lived in Beccles for a 100 years. By middle age, he had been appointed by Beccles Town Council as honoury archivist, and was writing widely for East Anglian Newspapers and Magazines. This selection from his articles provides a mixture of nostalgia and history. They are edited, illustrated and published by his nephew, John Nursey, who has directed all profits from the sales to Beccles and District Museum. Eugene Ulph has a deep love for this corner of East Anglia and his articles have an air of timelessness and an interest, which is somehow enhanced by the passage of time. ISBN 0-9535193-3-3

The Ink Factory - Price £1.50 (GBP)
Research by Anne Deed Frith and Dorothy Smith
This is the history of what is known of the Ink Factory at Barsham, Suffolk, that sat above the River Waveney some two miles from Beccles. The Ink Factory Cottages still stand. There is no written record of the factory on this site, though local excavations refer to it being at that location. This booklet is in A5 format with 16 pages.

Country Myths and Superstitions - Price £1.50 (GBP)
Compiled by David Broom
A fascinating little booklet of sayings, that are in danger of being lost in the mists of time. This A5 booklet contains 15 pages including black and white sketches.

 

The Village Paupers - Price £1.30 (GBP)
Poem by GW Fulcher 1840’s. Edited by EA Goodwyn
An anti poor law poem. This is a vivid description of the hardships faced by peasants and their families during the mid 1800’s. Fulcher shared Crabbe’s abhorrence of inhumanity of the poor in a Christian country.
This booklet is in A5 format with 30 pages.

Beccles Fen - Price £5.00 (GBP)
Drawn up in 1807, this is an account of the Corporation of Beccles in the County of Suffolk with a translation of their Charter, and copies of various other documents relating to the said Corporation.
This booklet is in A5 format with 82 pages.

The Regal Cinema 1931-1989 - Price £3.50 (GBP)
Written and researched by Dorothy Smith
A really interesting account of the life and times of Regal cinema in Beccles, Suffolk. Containing many illustrations
This is a glossy coated A5 format paperback containing 59 pages and 21 photographs. ISBN 1-903045-04-5

Beccles Ablaze 1586. - Price £5.00 (GBP)
Edited by Anne Frith, Dorothy Smith and Anne Bauers. Illustrations by Nony Ollerenshaw
The book contains the two ballads written after the Great Fire of Beccles. These are held to be the earliest ballads to have been written on the subject of the fire. It also contains the subsequent history of the town.
This A5 booklet contains 48 pages and 24 illustrations. ISBN 978-09515985-6-6

The Great Clock of Beccles and Other Public Timepieces. Price £4.00 (GBP)
By: Anne Frith and Dorothy Smith.
A History of the Clocks with the town of Beccles and particularly the clock which once resided in the Church Tower. ISBN 0-9515985-2-X.

Gillinghams Many Churches. Price £1.50 (GBP)
By David Broom.
A short history of Gillingham and its five churches

East Anglian Literature. Price £1.00 (GBP)
By: E A Goodwyn.
A Survey from Crabbe to Adrian Bell. ISBN 0-9500107-2-3.

The Stray Pound in Beccles. Price £1.50. (GBP)
By: David Broom.
A short history of the Pounds in Beccles and the local area.

The Crowfoots of Beccles. Price £1.50 (GBP).
By: Pupils of the Sir John Leman High School
The family of Crowfoot has been in Beccles since the mid 17th century. This book, produced as a project by the pupils of the local Sir John Leman School, tells the story of the family.

RAF Beccles at War 1943-45. Price £4.95 (GBP)
By: Malcolm R Holmes
The story of the local airfield during World War II. ISBN 978-0-9523443-2-2.

Clowes Talking Words Price £1.50 (GBP)
By: David Broom
Anecdotes and Memories of the local Printing Company

Tales of Hoar-Lea. Price £2.50 (GBP)
By: B E Cornish.
A collection of stories about a Suffolk village

A Small Town Jubilee Beccles in 1897. Price £1.50 (GBP)
By: E A Goodwyn
This is a detailed portrait of a small Suffolk community at the end of the nineteenth century, depicted through the story of the celebrations to mark Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee in 1897. ISBN 0-85115-053-5.

Education in Beccles. Price £0.50p (GBP).
By: Dorothy Smith
A brief history of education in Beccles by the Workers Education Association in their centenary year.

Textile Treasures in the Museum Collection. Price £2.00 (GBP)
By: Margaret Knox
An overview of the many textiles held in the Beccles and District Museum

Princess Caroline Murat Ringsfield. Price £1.50p (GBP)
By: Verity Montagu.
The story of the great niece of Napoleon Bonapart

Discover the River Waveney. Price £2.00 (GBP)
By: The Waveney River Trust
Five walks along the River Waveney

Beccles My Destiny. Price £2.00 (GBP)
By: Vic Mayes
The Ken Cracknell Story as told to Vic Mayes.

Beccles Revealed. Price £3.00 (GBP)
This useful little booklet describes the various historic buildings that can be around the centre of Beccles.

Ringsfield Historical Notes and Reminiscences. Price £5.00 (GBP)
Produced by members of the Ringsfield Community this booklet describes the history of the village and its pretty church.