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FROST’S DRAWINGS OF 
 
 IPSWICH 
 
 AND 
 
 SKETCHES IN SUFFOLK. 
 
 THIS WORK IS PUBLISHED IN THIS FORM ONLY, AND LIMITED TO 105 COPIES, EACH BEING 
 NUMBERED AND SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR. 
 
 No. . SO..... 
 
 A nthor. 
 
CORNHILL AND ROTDNDA, 
 
FROST'S 
 
 DRAWINGS 
 
 OF 
 
 IPSWICH 
 
 SKETCHES 
 
 AND 
 
 IN 
 
 SUFFOLK. 
 
 WITH MEMOIR AND 
 DESCRIPTIVE 
 
 PORTRAIT OF GEORGE FROST, AND SHORT 
 NOTES ON THE PRINCIPAL PLATES. 
 
 FRANK BROWN, 
 
 ARCHITECT. 
 
 The Drawings Reproduced and Letterpress Printed by J. C. DRUMMOND & Co., 
 14, Henrietta Street, Covent Garden, London. 
 
 The “ Liber Studiorum,” Reproduced and Printed by WHITE & LIMMER, Ipswich. 
 
 Published by THE AUTHOR, Ipswich. 
 1895. 
 
DEDICATED 
 
 TO THE MEMORY OF MY FATHER, 
 
 THE LATE MR. W. BROWN, 
 
 AS A TRIBUTE TO HIS LITERARY AND ANTIQUARIAN 
 TASTES AND KNOWLEDGE. 
 
LIST OF SUBSCR 
 
 THE RIGHT HONOURABLE LORD 
 LORD JOHN HERVEY. 
 
 Mr. Brightwen Binyon. 
 
 Mr. W. Booth. 
 
 Mrs. Wm. Brown. 
 
 Miss Browne. 
 
 Mr. E. Jermyn Brown. 
 
 Mr. P. Brown. 
 
 Mr. H. Casley. 
 
 Mr. J. D. Cobbold. 
 
 Mr. Felix Cobbold (2 copies) 
 Mr. F. Corder. 
 
 Mr. J. S. Corder. 
 
 Mr. Fred Crisp. 
 
 Mr. Edgar H. Drummond. 
 
 Mr. Wm. Eade. 
 
 Mr. H. R. Eyre. 
 
 Mr. B. P. Grimsey. 
 
 Ipswich Museum. 
 
 Mr. Henry Jackaman. 
 
 Mr. W. E. Kersey. 
 
 I BERS. 
 
 GWYDYR. 
 
 Mr. John Limmer. 
 
 Mr. G. Calver Mason. 
 
 Mr. Ed. Packard. 
 
 Mr. Ed. Packard, Junr. 
 Mr. Parkington, Junr. 
 Mr. J. D. Piper. 
 
 Miss Matilda Ridley. 
 
 Mrs. Spooner. 
 
 Mr. C. W. Sutton. 
 
 Mr. C. E. Tempest. 
 
 Mr. Walton Turner. 
 Mr. E. R. Turner. 
 
 Mr. Hugh Turner. 
 
 Mr. J. R. Ubsdell. 
 
 Mr. F. Woolnough. 
 
 Mr. Herbert Wright. 
 Mr. John H. Wrinch. 
 
PLATES. 
 
 | No. of 
 Plate. 
 
 Title. 
 
 Owner of the Original. 
 
 Size of 
 Original in 
 Inches. 
 
 I. 
 
 The Cornhill and Rotunda .... 
 
 Mr. Henry Jackaman 
 
 X 17} 
 
 (Frontispiece) 
 
 II. 
 
 Pennington’s Map of Ipswich 
 
 2S| X 25J 
 
 III. 
 
 The Cornhill and Shambles . . . . 
 
 Mr. Ed. Packard 
 
 23^ X 16 
 
 IV. 
 
 The Cornhill and Rotunda .... 
 
 „ ,, 
 
 25 X 16 
 
 V. 
 
 The Cornhill and Corn Exchange 
 
 ,, ,, • • 
 
 23i x 16 
 
 VI. 
 
 The Cornhill and Mote Hall . 
 
 ,, ,, 
 
 25 X 16 
 
 VII. 
 
 Corner of Cornhill. 
 
 Miss Browne 
 
 * 7 ? X 13 
 
 VIII. 
 
 The Rotunda . 
 
 Mr. J. D. Cobbold 
 
 igi X 14J 
 
 IX. 
 
 St. Peter’s Church and Wolsey’s Gate . 
 
 Mr. Walton Turner 
 
 i 5 i X 12-J 
 
 X. 
 
 Scene on Ouay . 
 
 Mr. J. H. Wrinch 
 
 25 X ig£ 
 
 XI. 
 
 Stoke Bridge. 
 
 
 X 
 
 CT> 
 
 XII. 
 
 Stoke Bridge. 
 
 Mr. J. D. Piper . 
 
 25 X ig£ 
 
 XIII. 
 
 Stoke Church. 
 
 Mr. B. P. Grimsey . 
 
 III X g 
 
 XIV. 
 
 Stoke Church . 
 
 „ ,, 
 
 i 5 i X nj- 
 
 XV. 
 
 Holy Wells. 
 
 Mr. J. D. Cobbold . 
 
 i6£ X 12 
 
 XVI. 
 
 The Anchor Yard. 
 
 ,, ,, 
 
 I2| x gf 
 
 XVII. 
 
 The Coach and Horses Inn Yard . . 
 
 
 i8£ x 14^ 
 
 LIBER STUDIORUM. 
 
 No. of 
 Plate. 
 
 Title. 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 St. Mary, Harkstead. 
 
 
 
 
 XIX. 
 
 St. Mary, Somersham . 
 
 (.top) 
 
 . St. Stephen, Bramford 
 
 {bottom). 
 
 XX. 
 
 St. Peter, Copdock . 
 
 „ 
 
 St. Mary, Akenham . 
 
 
 XXI. 
 
 Tuddenham Hall 
 
 (top) 
 
 Butley Abbey .... 
 
 {bottom). 
 
 XXII. 
 
 St. Mary, Erwarton 
 
 „ 
 
 Erwarton Hall . 
 
 
 XXIII. 
 
 St. Mary, Trimley. 
 
 
 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 St. Mary, Lidgate . 
 
 (top) 
 
 St. Peter, Stutton 
 
 {bottom). 
 
 XXV. 
 
 St. Mary, Kelsale 
 
 „ 
 
 St. Bartholomew, Alderton 
 
 
 XXVI. 
 
 St. Bartholomew, Orford. 
 
 
 
 
 XXVII. 
 
 Orford Castle .... 
 
 (top) 
 
 . Leiston Abbey .... 
 
 {bottom). 
 
 XXVIII. 
 
 St. Andrew, Covehithe . 
 
 >, 
 
 All Saints, Dunwich. 
 
 
 
 All from Book lent by Mr. 
 
 Fred 
 
 Crisp, of London. (See Letterpress.) 
 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 Lovers of Old Ipswich are exceptionally favoured in the illustrations which exist of the town 
 as it appeared one hundred years ago. Probably no other town in England can boast of two 
 such accurate recorders as Joseph Pennington and George Frost, the first noted for his 
 map of Ipswich, and the second for his inimitable sketches and drawings. By a careful study 
 of this map and Frost’s pictures, and with a little knowledge of the history of Ipswich, we 
 are .able to gain a very accurate idea of the appearance of the town at the end of the last 
 century, and with the knowledge thus gained the old town seems familiar to us, and we 
 should feel a great deal more at home in it a hundred years ago than an inhabitant of that 
 time would do if he could make his appearance in the Ipswich of to-day. 
 
 When we see great and important alterations and additions made in towns during the 
 course of a few years, it is difficult to realize that before this century, a hundred years often 
 wrought little change in the aspect of a town ; but such was the case, therefore there is an 
 additional interest in such illustrations as these, for by them we see Ipswich as it was, not only 
 one hundred years ago, but, to a great extent, as it appeared one and even two centuries before 
 that. By the aid of such sketches we are able to traverse the picturesque old streets and 
 lanes, to linger on the Cornhill, adorned with its lovely Market Cross and Mediaeval 
 Shambles, its quaint old Town Hall and surrounding buildings, the whole place crowded with 
 interesting historic associations, we can wander down to the Quay or pass over the old Stoke 
 Bridge to the Hamlet of Stoke, and then coming back to the Ipswich of to-day, we realize 
 that the old Town has been almost obliterated by the march of time. Were it not for such men 
 as Frost, and him in particular, we should have possessed little or no pictorial records of the old 
 town of Ipswich. To perpetuate some of these memorials of the old town was one of the objects 
 the author had in the preparation of this work, feeling the great importance of securing the 
 permanent reproduction of some of the best and most important, that any accident happening 
 to the originals, the loss would not be so completely irreparable as it otherwise would be; 
 and the other object being to form a memorial to the talent and industry of George Frost. 
 
 All the best of Frost’s pictures are in the possession of a comparative few, and there 
 is little probability of these ever changing hands or being separated from the families in whose 
 possession they are now in, consequently comparatively few have the privilege of seeing these 
 drawings so full of interest to lovers of Ipswich, but through the liberality of the owners, 
 who kindly lent their drawings for the purposes of this work, we, though unable to 
 obtain original drawings by Frost have thus the opportunity of possessing exact reproductions 
 in a reduced monotone form of the most interesting of his works. The great value of these 
 reproductions is that they are the only ones that have been reproduced direct from the 
 originals, the process adopted being the colotype process, the plates for which were prepared 
 
from negatives photographed direct from the coloured and pencil drawings. The frontispiece 
 is a hand-coloured colotype plate. Few of Frost’s drawings have been reproduced, and those 
 that have been have all required to be redrawn for reproduction or else engraved, their value 
 from an art view has been destroyed, and their accuracy from an architectural and archeological 
 view often found wanting. 
 
 A short descriptive account is given to the most important plates, as all the subjects 
 of the Ipswich plates in this work have been historically described at some length in several 
 works, notably Wooderspoon’s and Clarke’s Histories of Ipswich, and Glyde’s “ Illustrations 
 of Old Ipswich,” and to have repeated much of what has already been written seemed 
 unnecessary, and to have enlarged upon these accounts was outside the object of this work. 
 
 In conclusion the author desires to sincerely thank the owners of the pictures reproduced 
 in this work, namely Mr. J. D. Cobbold, Mr. Fred Crisp, Miss Browne, Mr. B. P. Grimsey, 
 Mr. H. Jackaman, Mr. E. Packard, Mr. J. D. Piper, Mr. Walton Turner, and Mr. J. H. 
 Wrinch, for the loan of their pictures, without which liberality it would have been impossible 
 to have produced this work. 1 he author also desires to thank the Rev. E. Rudd, rector of 
 Barrow; the Rev. W. S. McDowall, rector of Ousden ; and Mr. Barrett, for kind assistance 
 and advice received from them. 
 
 Ipswich, July, 1895. 
 
I "HIS work would be incomplete without a short sketch of the life of George Frost. It must 
 necessarily be short—firstly, because only scanty authentic information is known in reference 
 to it; and secondly, because the little that is known only tends to show that his life was too 
 uneventful for much to be written upon it. The works he left behind are the best recorders of 
 
 his life. To perpetuate these works, and thus to illustrate his life, and Ipswich as it was in his 
 
 time, is the object of this work. 
 
 Whether Frost was born at Barrow, near Bury St. Edmunds, or at the adjoining village 
 of Ousden, does not appear quite clear. In favour of the assertion that he was born at the 
 former village, his baptismal register is to be found in the register at Barrow Church, and is as 
 follows :— 
 
 “ 1744/45. Feb. 21st. George, son of George Frost and Thomasin his wife.” 
 
 Since the year 1725 the name of Frost occurs many times in those registers, and there still 
 exist several families of that name in the parish. Barrow might thus, with undisputed right, claim 
 to have been the birth-place of George Frost but for a memoir which appeared in the Gentleman s 
 Magazine of July, 1821, in which it states that he was born at Ousden. This memoir was 
 
 written, I have good reasons for believing, by my father’s uncle (the Rev. James Ford, a noted 
 
14 
 
 FROSTS DRAWINGS OF IPSWICH AND SKETCHES IN SUFFOLK. 
 
 scholar and antiquarian), who knew Frost intimately, and wrote this account immediately after his 
 death, the widow being alive to give authentic information if required. The name of Frost is 
 very uncommon at Ousden, and only appears twice in the register there—a birth in 1768 and a 
 marriage in 1882. Though Ousden may, on the strength of this memoir, claim to have given birth to 
 George Frost, Barrow has the greatest right to him, as he no doubt spent the early part of his life 
 there. In the same register there are also baptismal entries of two of his sisters, Mary, 1747-48, 
 and Elizabeth, 1749-50, by the same parents. From the time of his birth to the time that 
 
 he took up his residence in Ipswich, nothing authentic is known beyond what is stated in the 
 
 Gentleman s Magazine , that he was brought up to his father’s business, that of a builder, which he 
 relinquished on being appointed to a confidential situation in the Blue Coach Office in Ipswich. 
 Though there is no record of the year in which he came to Ipswich, it is known that he spent 
 the best and greater part of his life here. During his connection with the Blue coach, he 
 lived in Brook Street, near the Coach and Horses Inn, where the Blue coach and horses were 
 kept. As the coach started for London at seven in the morning, Frost had to be an early 
 riser to see that everything was in readiness for starting at the appointed time. His duties 
 were to book all the passengers and parcels, see to the proper care of the horses, buy all hay, 
 
 straw, and oats required for them, pay the men, and generally superintend all the work in 
 
 connection with the management of the coach. In this work he had considerable assistance 
 from his wife, who was a good business woman, without any family to otherwise occupy her 
 time. This position he retained for many years, retiring about the year 1813, “after having 
 acquired a comfortable competence with the greatest credit to himself, and the most perfect 
 satisfaction of the proprietors.” On his retirement he removed his home to a house on the 
 Common Quay, shown in the illustration at the end of this chapter. The fact of the coach 
 starting so early, and by having the help of his wife in the office work, Frost had many opportunities 
 of obtaining leisure time without in any way neglecting his duties or the interests of his masters, 
 and these spare hours he eagerly grasped, in which to indulge in his loved pursuit of the 
 art of drawing. He was a born artist, and at an early age evinced a strong inclination for 
 drawing ; without the aid of instruction by masters, but by the power of his natural talents, and 
 by steady and persevering application, he raised himself to a distinguished position amongst our 
 Suffolk artists. 
 
 Coming to Ipswich not a great many years after Gainsborough had left, he soon 
 became acquainted with the works of that great artist, and these no doubt inspired Frost’s 
 artistic imaginations, and took such a hold upon him that he esteemed it “ distinction enouo-h 
 to catch the slightest of his perfections.” With his love for Gainsborough and his works, he 
 also possessed, what every true artist must possess, a tender love for Nature and her works, 
 and whilst he took the former for his guide he sought from the latter his models. He loved art 
 for art’s sake; he never desired to make it a road either to riches or to fame, but desired 
 only to be a humble disciple of his beloved master, that he might be able to delineate the 
 beauties of Nature, of which he was a tireless lover and observer. 
 
 “ His genius loved his country’s native views, 
 
 Its taper spires, green lawns and sheltered farms, 
 
 He touched each scene with Nature’s genuine hues, 
 
 And gave the Suffolk landscape all its charms.” 
 
FROSTS DRAWINGS OF IPSWICH AND SKETCHES IN SUFFOLK. 
 
 T 5 
 
 The old Ipswich streets, so picturesque with the overhanging and gabled houses, many 
 of them rich in carving, the Cornhill, the Common Quay, the pleasing scenery around the 
 town, the sandy and winding lanes, the lovely banks of the Orwell, all these formed 
 inexhaustible material from which to find subjects for his portfolio, and “ the many beautiful 
 specimens he has left of his successful treatment of such subjects sufficiently show with what 
 diligence he studied in the school of Nature.” 
 
 Though he made several oil paintings of great merit, his best and most numerous works 
 were done in water-colour, pencil, or chalk, and whilst these clearly and often strongly exhibit 
 the influence of Gainsborough, they nevertheless possessed marked character of their own. 
 Powerful and accurate in drawing, rich and charming in colour, the subjects are well chosen, 
 and the grouping and arrangement show knowledge and taste. Though it is evident that 
 many of his water-colour sketches were made out of doors, he very often empjoyed pencil or 
 chalk when sketching from nature, with notes occasionally written on of the principal colours 
 he wished to remember, and these sketches he put into a book on his return home. The 
 most important of his finished water-colour drawings were views in Ipswich—-notably, four views 
 of the Cornhill. 
 
 That he possessed a valuable collection of paintings and drawings by Gainsborough 
 there can be no doubt, the fact being mentioned in the Gentleman s Magazine , and also in an 
 article on Gainsborough, written by Thos. Green, Esq., in Reveley’s “ Notices illustrative of 
 the Drawings and Sketches of some of the most distinguished Masters in all the principal Schools 
 of Design,” published in 1820, in which he says, “ Mr. George Frost, of Ipswich, has also a 
 pleasing collection of valuable specimens, executed in different ways, but principally with black 
 chalk and lead pencil, in the best style of his (Gainsborough’s) earlier manner, an inestimable 
 treasure to one who, in his own admirable sketches from Nature, decisively evinces with what 
 a congenial ardour and how keen a relish he has imbibed the genius and spirit of his adopted 
 master.” 
 
 One of the last works which Frost executed was an excellent copy of Gainsborough’s 
 laro-e view of ladies walking in the Mall in St. James’s Park, which picture he owned. This 
 work Frost did in the seventy-seventh year of his age, and is a fine picture, now in the possession 
 of the author, in whose family it has been since it was sold after Mrs. Frost’s death. 
 
 In referring to Frost’s end and character, the author feels he cannot do better than quote 
 from the memoir in the Gentleman s Magazine :—“ During the last few months of this worthy 
 man’s career he suffered the most excruciating torments, which he bore with the greatest fortitude. 
 Throughout a long life his conduct was virtuous, exemplary and irreproachable, his religious 
 sentiments pure, and his morality perfect, the possession, therefore, of these virtues left him 
 nothing to reflect upon that could tend in the least degree to embitter his declining hours. 
 To strangers his manner appeared shy and reserved, but to those who were intimately acquainted 
 with him, thev assumed a very different aspect-. Possessed of true independence (a quality, 
 alas! but rarely found, even amongst those who might presume to call themselves his 
 betters), he scorned to solicit the approbation of others by mean compliance or servile adulation. 
 He had read much and had profited by his reading; for the information which he thus collected 
 was applied to the promotion of his favourite, his beloved pursuit.’ 
 
16 FROST’S DRAWINGS OF IPSWICH AND SKETCHES IN SUFFOLK. 
 
 By Frost’s natural superiority, intelligence, and self-acquired knowledge, his society was 
 sought and appreciated by many in Ipswich who were prominent in literature and art. Amongst 
 his art friends he numbered the world-famed John Constable, with whom he was on intimate 
 terms of friendship. 
 
 His life closed on Thursday, June 28th, 1821, and he was buried in St. Matthew’s 
 Churchyard; he left a widow to whom he had been united for the space of forty-five years, but 
 by whom he had no issue. Mrs. Frost lived to a great age, and died Thursday, April 25th, 
 1839, in her eighty-fifth year, and was buried in her husband’s grave. A simple head-stone 
 marks the grave with the following inscription upon it :— 
 
 IN MEMORY OF 
 
 GEORGE FROST, 
 
 WHO DIED JUNE 28, 1821, 
 
 AGED 77 YEARS. * 
 
 ALSO OF 
 
 MARY 
 
 RELICT OF 
 
 GEORGE FROST, 
 
 WHO DIED APRIL 25, 1839, 
 
 AGED 84 YEARS. 
 
 The announcement of their deaths appeared in the Suffolk Chronicle as follows. 
 
 Saturday, June 30th, 1821—“On Thursday last, very highly respected, after a severe affliction, 
 Mr. George Frost, of Ipswich, in his 78th year.” 
 
 Suffolk Chronicle , April 27th, 1839—“On Thursday last, greatly respected, in her 85th 
 year, Mrs. Frost, widow of the late Mr. George Frost, artist, of this town.’’ 
 
 The announcement of Mr. Frost’s death also appeared in the Ipswich Journal of the 
 same date, and in almost the same words as in the Suffolk Chronicle. A memoir, before 
 
 referred to, appeared in the Gentleman s Magazine , July, 1821, vol. xci.. part ii., p. 89 ; also a 
 short notice in the Monthly Magazine. 
 
 Besides these notices, his life appeared in the series of “Suffolk Worthies,’’ by Silverpen 
 (Mr. J. Glyde), which were published some years ago in the Suffolk Chrotticle. Mr. Clyde 
 also wrote a short account of Frost in the catalogue of Exhibition of Deceased Suffolk 
 
 Artists Works, in the Art Gallery in 1887, where a collection of his works were to be seen 
 evoking the admiration of the celebrated artist, Mr. W. B. Richmond, who opened the Exhibition, 
 and his surprise at not having heard of before the artist who could do work of such high 
 standard. 
 
 Frost is also referred to in the Suffolk Garland , by the Rev. James Ford, in Clarke’s 
 History of Ipswich, and Page’s History of Suffolk. His name also appears’ in Bryan’s 
 
 “ Dictionar y °f Painters and Engravers,” Redgrave’s “ Dictionary of Artists,” and in the 
 
 “ Dictionary of National Biography.” 
 
 After Mrs. Frost’s death all her effects were sold by auction, on June 7th, 1839, by 
 Mr. R. Garrod. In the advertisement his drawings are referred to as “ a collection of paintings 
 and water colour drawings of the late George Frost, of Ipswich, consisting of views in Ipswich, 
 
FROSTS DRAWINGS OF IPSWICH AND SKETCHES IN SUFFOLK. 
 
 17 
 
 on the Orwell, and in the neighbourhood. Landscapes after Gainsborough, etc., four drawings 
 of Ipswich Market Cross and the Shambles, Rotunda, New Corn Exchange, etc.” 
 
 The portrait at the beginning of this memoir is taken from an oil painting in the 
 possession of Mr. J. D. Piper—by whom it was painted there is no authentic information. 
 
 FROST’S HOUSE ON COMMON QUAY. 
 
i8 
 
 FROSTS DRA WINGS OF IPSWICH AND SKETCHES IN SUFFOLK. 
 
 PLATE II. 
 
 PENNINGTON'S MAP OF IPSWICH, 1778. 
 
 This plate is a reduced reproduction of Joseph Pennington’s map of Ipswich, noted for 
 its extreme accuracy, and is included in this work as a valuable key to Frost’s drawings, dating 
 almost concurrently with them. However accurate Frost’s sketches may be, it would be 
 impossible to exactly locate some of the buildings shown in them without the help of this map, 
 such as the Market Cross, the exact position of which could not be ascertained with accuracy 
 from the sketches. The map forms a valuable record of the town, showing Ipswich as it was, 
 not only at the end of the last century, but as it was to a large extent a hundred or more 
 years before that. The following is a list of the street names on the map:— 
 
 Bolton Lane 
 Bridge Street 
 
 Burstall or Goal Lane ( Black Horse Lane) 
 Boat Lane ( Friars Street) 
 
 Butter Market 
 
 Brook Street, Upper and Lower 
 Church Lane (2) 
 
 Clay Lane ( Crown Street) 
 
 Cook Row ( Dial Lane) 
 
 Curriers Lane 
 College Street 
 Cocks Lane ( Cox Lane) 
 
 Carr Street 
 
 Cold Dunghills 
 
 Dairy Lane 
 
 Dog’s Head Lane 
 
 Duck Street (Duke Street) 
 
 Elms Street 
 Falcon Street 
 
 Fruit Market (St. Lawrence Lane) 
 
 George Lane (St. George's Street) 
 
 Green Yard Lane (Turret Lane) 
 
 Grey Friars’ Road 
 
 Key Street 
 
 King Street 
 
 Lady Lane 
 
 Little King Street 
 
 London Road 
 
 Long Lane 
 
 Major’s Corner 
 
 Mill Lane (Mill Street) 
 
 New Street 
 
 Norwich or Bury Road 
 
 Northgate Street 
 
 Old Goat Lane (Market Lane) 
 
 Portman’s Walk 
 Rose Lane 
 Rosemary Lane 
 
 Rotten Row (St. Margarets Street) 
 
 Rope Walk 
 
 Road to Woodb ridge 
 
 Road to Handford Bridge 
 
 Short Street 
 
 Silent Street 
 
 Soane Street 
 
 St. Clement’s Fore Street 
 St. Clement’s Back Street 
 St. Helen’s Street 
 St. Matthew’s Street 
 
 St. Margaret’s Ditches (Old Foundry Road) 
 
 St. Nicholas Street 
 
 St. Peter’s Street 
 
 St. Stephen’s Street 
 
 Star Lane 
 
 Tanners Lane 
 
 Tavern Street 
 
 Tacket Street 
 
 Tower Lane 
 
 Tower Ditches 
 
 Thursby Lane 
 
 Westgate Street 
 
 Wykes Ufford Hamlet (Back Hamlet) 
 Wykes Bishop Hamlet (Fore Hamlet) 
 
 STOKE SIDE. 
 
 Dock Lane 
 Stoke Lane 
 St. Austin Street 
 Great Whip Street 
 Little Whip Street 
 
 (The names in brackets are the present names of the streets.) 
 
FROSTS DRAWINGS OF IPSWICH AND SKETCHES IN SUFFOLK. 
 
 19 
 
 PLATES III. TO VIII., and FRONTISPIECE. 
 
 THE CORNHILL. 
 
 It seems only right and natural that the plates in such a work as this should commence 
 with the Cornhill. For generations it has been the central point of interest in the history and 
 life of 'Ipswich. It has been for centuries the stage upon which so many important scenes in 
 the municipal, the political, the commercial, and the religious life of the town have been 
 enacted ; here the Friars at the Preaching Cross attracted crowds by their eloquent and 
 earnest appeals to all men to live holy lives, and here martyrs, who renounced the Friars’ 
 doctrines though they obeyed their precepts, died for their faith ; here law-breakers suffered 
 for their crimes at the pillory or the stocks; here fairs were held, drawing crowds bent on 
 business or on pleasure ; here the opposing forces of political parties met, where great political 
 questions were discussed, though banter and horse-play were often more in evidence than 
 serious politics. But all these events give a deep historic interest to that locality where they 
 were enacted, lending poetry to the picturesqueness of the scene, which could not and did not 
 fail to attract Frost’s affection for the Cornhill, for he seemed to have a special love for those 
 parts of Ipswich which possessed the most historic interest in connection with the public life 
 of the town. We find the most important and numerous drawings he made were of the 
 Cornhill, the Common Quay, and Stoke Bridge, and of these the best drawings are two sets of 
 the Cornhill containing four views in each set. The most interesting and best of these two 
 sets is in the possession of Mr. Edward Packard, of which Plates III., IV., V. and VI. are 
 reproductions, and of the other set, three are in Mr. J. D. Cobbold’s collection at Holy 
 Wells, and the fourth view, which I believe originally belonged to the Holy Wells collection, is 
 now in the possession of Mr. Henry Jackaman, and is a beautiful specimen of Frost’s work, a 
 reproduction of which forms the frontispiece to this work. The four views belonging to Mr. 
 Packard were purchased by him at the late Mr. Powell Hunt’s sale, and were originally in Mrs. 
 Frost’s possession up to the time of her death, when they were sold by auction. 
 
 Plate III. is a view of the Cornhill, looking towards the east, showing the Shambles, the 
 Market Cross, and Tavern Street. The Shambles, which occupied the south-east corner of the 
 Cornhill, was the earliest building standing on this site of which there is any distinct record. This 
 building appears to have been either erected or an older building considerably altered in 
 about the middle of the sixteenth century ; that an earlier one existed before the sixteenth 
 century there can be no doubt, for the Butchery or Flesh Market is mentioned in the Corporation 
 records of the fourteenth century. The Shambles formed two sides of a square, the north and 
 west sides, with an open space at the rear, and a detached building in the south-east corner. 
 It was a wood constructed building, the lower part forming an open colonnade, similar to the 
 old Custom House on the Quay, and the upper part forming a large assembly room or grand stand, 
 to which admission was granted by the Bailiffs, from which the admitted could obtain a good view 
 of spectacles of interest occurring more frequently on the Cornhill in olden days than in the 
 
20 
 
 FROST’S DRA WINGS OF IPSWICH AND SKETCHES IN SUFFOLK. 
 
 present. There were rooms behind the colonnade and grand stand which were let for various 
 market or trade purposes. 
 
 Plate IV. and the Frontispiece are views of the Cornhill taken from the same position 
 as Plate III., but in this plate the Shambles have disappeared, and the building which succeeded, 
 called the Rotunda, has taken its place. In January, 1794, a Mr. George Gooding laid a plan 
 before the Burgesses to pull down the Shambles and erect a new building, circular in form 
 with domed roof, shops or stalls ranged all round the outer circle, and residential rooms being 
 provided behind and on the first floor, the centre space under the dome being left free as a 
 market house. This plan meeting with approval by the Burgesses, a lease of the site was 
 granted to Mr. Gooding for sixty years at an annual rental of .£20, he agreeing to pull down 
 the Shambles and erect the Rotunda at his own expense. Though the design possessed 
 considerable merit, and was picturesque in appearance, it was not well built, and was devoid of 
 all proper sanitation and ventilation, which led to it being condemned only sixteen years after its 
 erection, and on July 20th, 1810, the bailiffs were ordered to treat with Mr. Gooding for the 
 purchase of the Rotunda at the price of ,£1,200, to be paid at the rate of ,£100 per annum, 
 with interest, until the whole was paid off. The site was next occupied by the first Corn 
 Exchange, a view of which is shown in the next plate (V.); the foundation stone was laid by 
 Mr. E. Bacon in 1810. This building, roofed in, and with a portico added in later years, 
 remained until 1880, when it was pulled down, and the present Post Office was built in 
 its place. 
 
 In each of these plates we see the Market Cross still surviving, though its days were 
 numbered. This cross was preceded by a preaching cross, erected in 1510 by one Edmund 
 Dandy, a bailiff of the town, and just one hundred years later, Benjamin Osbourne bequeathed 
 ,£50 for the erection of a new cross, but it was not till the year 1628 that the Corporation 
 obtained the gift from the executors, which amounted to £44 instead of .£50. The gift was 
 commemorated by being carved on the shield in a spandrel of one of the arches of the cross ; 
 this relic of the cross is in the Ipswich Museum. It is interesting to note a curious and 
 su ggestive correction has been made in the carving : where the amount 44 occurs the face of the 
 shield has been cut away, and 44 carved on a lower surface, which suggests, unless a mistake 
 was made, that 50 was first carved in anticipation of receiving the full amount bequeathed, and 
 afterwards altered to the actual amount received. The exact position of the cross on the 
 Cornhill can easily be ascertained by referring to Pennington’s map. It was octagonal in form, 
 twenty-eight feet in diameter, and consisted of eight stone columns with caps and bases of classic 
 character, supporting four centred arches of carved oak and carved brackets, with projecting cornice 
 and embattled and moulded parapet. The roof was the form of a dome, constructed in wood and 
 covered with lead, and surmounted with an elaborate finial in four stages, the bottom one 
 consisting of a group of figures supporting a ball on which a large cross stood, and on 
 this was placed in 1723 a figure of Justice, which Francis Negus, Esq., presented to the 
 town. This figure was afterwards upon the first Corn Exchange, and is now in the 
 Ipswich Museum. To the grief of many, in the year 1812, the authorities in their 
 wisdom condemned the cross, and it was demolished, and every vestige of it has disappeared, 
 excepting one or two small portions which are now in the Museum. The cross thus stood 
 
FROSTS DRAWINGS OF IPSWICH AND SKETCHES IN SUFFOLK. 21 
 
 nearly two hundred years, and saw the destruction of the Shambles, the erection and demolition 
 
 of the Rotunda, and the building of the first Corn Exchange. The removal of the cross 
 
 inspired the local poets to write in praise of it, and in ridicule of its destroyers. 
 
 Plate VI. In this plate, which is the last of the before mentioned series of four of the 
 Cornhill, the view is taken from the opposite side to the former three, and shows the south-west 
 corner of the Cornhill, giving a view of the old Town Hall, or Mote Hall, adjoining houses and 
 shops, and the Market Cross. The old Mote Hall was a portion of the desecrated Church of 
 St. Mildred, which has been altered and adapted for secular and municipal purposes. In 
 the year 1812 the town authorities were impressed with the desire to demolish the old 
 
 historic buildings on the Cornhill. Not satisfied with denuding the place of the Market 
 Cross, the old Town Hall suffered a like fate, though there were no funds in hand to 
 replace it, and the site lay vacant till the year 1818, when on June 4th of that year 
 
 the foundation stone of a new Town Hall was laid. In pulling down the old building, a 
 portion of St. Mildred’s Church was discovered, and again when this Town Hall was 
 taken down in 1866, and in digging the foundations for the present Town Hall, another 
 small portion of the old church was' brought to light in the shape of a small Gothic 
 stone arched doorway, which the author distinctly remembers being taken when a boy by his 
 father to see. 
 
 The two houses on the right side of the old Town Hall (left side looking at the plate), 
 remained standing until the present Town Hall was built. To all who take an interest in the 
 history of Ipswich, these four illustrations of the Cornhill are invaluable, for no written 
 description could ever have conveyed any clear idea of the appearance of the Cornhill as it 
 appeared one hundred years ago, and of which there is now hardly a trace of resemblance 
 left. 
 
 Plates VII. and VIII. are drawings of part of the Rotunda, the corner shop on the left of 
 the plates being now where Messrs. Boby and Janning’s shop stands. These plates are 
 interesting as character sketches of the every-day life of Old Ipswich. 
 
 PLATE IX. 
 
 ST. PETER’S CHURCH AND WOLSEY’S GATE. 
 
 The subject of this plate having been so often illustrated, the author hesitated before 
 including it in this work, but he decided to waive the objection on account of the merit of the 
 drawing and because it is the only good illustration of this familiar subject of so early a date, all 
 the best known illustrations of it being of a much later time. The original of this plate, 
 belonging to Mr. Walton Turner, was bought by Mr. Edward Packard at Mr. Powell Hunts 
 sale. 
 
 The Gateway, by tradition the entrance to Cardinal Wolsey’s College, is built entirely of 
 brick with the exception of the stone panel over the arch, on which are carved the arms of 
 Henry VIII. How much of the College really existed it is impossible to say. Clarke, in his 
 “ History of Ipswich,” infers that it was a large building, but he also states that Wolsey obtained 
 
22 
 
 FROSTS DRAWINGS OF IPSWICH AND SKETCHES IN SUFFOLK. 
 
 the patent for his College only three years before his disgrace, which would hardly give, in those 
 days, sufficient time for large Collegiate buildings to have been erected, completed, and occupied. 
 
 An interesting discovery was made in March, 1823. Whilst workmen were sinking a drain 
 across the garden of the premises to which this gate communicates, they discovered considerable 
 foundations as well as what appeared to be either a crypt or a passage from the Priory (suppressed 
 by Henry VIII.) cemetery to that of the Church of St. Peter. It was situated eight feet below 
 the present surface of the garden, and was in width about five feet six inches. At the same 
 time a great number of human bones were displaced. (From Ford’s MSS.). Another interesting 
 find was made on September 7th, 1881, when a very fine stone coffin was dug up in the same 
 garden, and presented to the Ipswich Museum by Messrs. E. R. and F. Turner. 
 
 PLATE X. 
 
 The original of this is a good and undoubted drawing by Frost, but the author hesitates 
 to assert that it is a view on the Common Quay at Ipswich—there are many points of resemblance, 
 but there are also portions in the drawing which are difficult to connect with the Ipswich Quay, 
 as known by other undoubted sketches of that locality, but as this work is not intended as a work 
 on Ipswich exclusively, it is included as an interesting and characteristic example of this artist’s 
 work. 
 
 PLATES XI. and XII. 
 
 Are two views of the old Stoke Bridge, the first looking at the bridge from the east 
 
 side, and showing Stoke Hills in the distance, is a somewhat familiar picture, the second, 
 
 taken from the west side, and showing the old Militia Barracks, now Mr. Edward Fison’s 
 Makings, on the other side of the bridge ; this is probably the only drawing, and certainly the 
 best of Stoke Bridge from the west side. The original sketch for this drawing is in the 
 
 book belonging to Mr. Crisp, from which the pencil sketches at the end of this work 
 
 were taken. There is no doubt that for many centuries some kind of bridge has existed 
 
 over the river at this point to connect Ipswich with Stoke, but there are no records to 
 show clearly at what date the bridge which is the subject of these drawings was built, 
 though by its style it was not a very ancient structure. If its erection was not considered 
 of sufficient importance to record, its destruction was remarkable. A heavy and incessant 
 ram fell during the afternoon and evening of April nth, 1818, causing a flood the bridge 
 was unable to stand against, and on the morning of April 12th, whilst three men were 
 
 standing on it watching this remarkable flood, the bridge suddenly collapsed, carrying the 
 men with it, two of whom were rescued, and the third was carried away with the flood, 
 and drowned. A temporary floating bridge was at once constructed, under the superintendence 
 of Mr. Wm. Cubitt, who also designed the permanent iron bridge which now stands. 
 
 PLATES XIII. and XIV. 
 
 STOKE CHURCH. 
 
 The church dedicated to St. Mary, in the parish (formerly the hamlet), of Stoke, 
 having undergone considerable alterations in recent years, these two plates are interesting and 
 
FROST’S DRAWINGS OF IPSWICH AND SKETCHES IN SUFFOLK. 
 
 23 
 
 valuable records of the appearance of the church prior to the modern additions and alterations. 
 
 Plate XIII. is a view of the east end of the church from a short way down Stoke Street, and 
 
 showing the entrance to Stoke Hall Grounds before Burrell Road was made, also the steps 
 up to the extreme north-east corner which then existed and shown on Pennington’s map, with 
 the pathway across the churchyard. This entrance was afterwards altered to about the 
 centre of the east wall of the churchyard, where it also necessitated a flight of steps, and 
 in the year 1870 a faculty was granted to do away with this entrance altogether, and it 
 was then closed and bricked up. The entrance to Stoke Hall shown on this sketch must 
 
 have been constructed after the year 1789, and before this sketch was made, for on 
 
 referring to the map it will be seen that it did not exist then, only the entrance from 
 
 Belstead Road being shown. When Burrell Road was made, which leads from this 
 
 corner to the Great Eastern Railway Station Yard, the entrance to Stoke Hall shown on 
 sketch was set further to the west, a few yards along the then newly-formed road. 
 
 The Church, in Frost’s time, consisted of nave, chancel, tower, and south porch. The 
 first additions and alterations were made in the years 1863 and 1864, when a transept was 
 
 built on the north side, the old porch seen on Plate XIV. was taken down and a new one built, and 
 
 the whole Church put into a thorough state of repair, mainly at the cost of the present Lord 
 Gwydyr, the rector, the Rev. Stephen Croft, and the late Charles Foote Gower, Esq. The next 
 and last most important alteration and addition was made in 1870 and 1871, when a handsome 
 new nave and chancel were built on the south side of the old nave and chancel, from designs by 
 the noted church architect, Wm. Butterfield, Esq., at a cost of ,£2,094. This alteration 
 completely changed the south side of the Church, though the fine old porch shown in Frost’s 
 drawing had already gone. This porch was of Tudor date, built almost entirely of brick, and was 
 very similar in character and design to the porch that existed at St. Mary-le-Tower before that 
 Church was rebuilt. 
 
 PLATE XV. 
 
 The original of this picture is a charming water-colour drawing, a landscape worthy of 
 Constable ; it is not only valuable as a work of art but it possesses local historic interest. Through 
 the kindness of the Cobbold family, who have for many years frequently thrown their grounds 
 open to the public, Holy Wells is familiar to most Ipswich people, but none would recognize 
 Holy Wells as it now is with Holy Wells a hundred years ago, and as seen in this plate, which 
 illustrates the appearance of the place when first purchased by Mr. John Cobbold at the beginning 
 of the century. Part of the building shown in the sketch still exists, incorporated into the present 
 mansion. 
 
 PLATE XVI. 
 
 The Anchor Yard. This is a sketch of the Yard belonging to the Anchor Inn, Duke 
 Street, beside the old river; and included as a good example of Frost’s work of a different style 
 of subject to the preceding plates. 
 
>4 
 
 FROSTS DRAWINGS OF IPSWICH AND SKETCHES IN. SUFFOLK. 
 
 PLATE XVII. 
 
 In landscape and architectural subjects Frost achieved his greatest success, figures and 
 animals were not his forte ; but whilst the anatomy of his figures was often rather peculiar, the 
 grouping and arrangement were often clever, and his figures possess a great deal of character. 
 His animals also were bold in drawing but wanting in anatomy, a subject he shows no evidence 
 of having studied, and his drawings of such generally exhibit his natural power of drawing but 
 want of knowledge of the subject. This plate is a good example of his cleverness in the 
 treatment of such subjects, and is also interesting as a view of the Coach and Horses Yard, the 
 place which was connected for so many years with the business side of his life. 
 
 LIBER STUDIORUM. 
 
 Plates XVIII. to XXVIII. are reproductions from pencil sketches by Frost, and are all taken 
 from a valuable and interesting book containing two hundred and forty-two of similar sketches 
 of churches, houses, landscapes, and other subjects in Suffolk (with only two or three exceptions). 
 This book originally belonged to the Rev. James Ford, and after his death was sold and came 
 into the possession of Mr. Wooderspoon ; Mr. Powell Hunt was the next owner, after whose death 
 it passed into the hands of a London bookseller, of whom Mr. Fred Crisp, the present owner, 
 bought it. By the sketches in this book it appears that Frost was most familiar with the east 
 coast of Suffolk and places between Ipswich, Felixstowe, and Lowestoft, as a large number 
 of the sketches are of places in and adjoining this portion of Suffolk, including Lowestoft, 
 Pakefield, Southwold, Dunwich, Orford, and Bawdsey. This may be accounted for by the fact 
 that he often stayed in the summer at Pakefield, where the author believes he or his wife had 
 relatives living. Many of the sketches in the book are interesting and valuable, being 
 probably the only records of buildings which either no longer exist or have been extensively 
 altered. 
 
CORNHILL AND CORN EXCHANGE, 
 
CORNER OF CORNHILL, 
 
ROTUNDA, 
 
SCENE ON QUAY, 
 
STOKE BRIDGE, 
 
STOKE CHURCH. 
 
HOLY WELLS, 
 
/ \ 
 

LIBER STUDIORUM. 
 
PLATE XIX. 
 
 ST. 
 
 STEPHEN, BRAMFORD. 
 
ST. BARTHOLOMEW, ORFORD. 
 
ST. ANDREW, COVEHITHE. 
 
 PLATE XXVIII. 
 
 ALL SAINTS, DUNWICH. 
 

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