Winston, Suffolk

Winston is a village and civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district of Suffolk in eastern England. Located around east of Stowmarket, the 2011 Census showed that the population of the parish of Winston is 159. The parish also contains the settlements of Winston Green and Fenn Street. There is a church and an old school room, and every year there is a Winston Village Fete. A lot of the village of Winston is based around 14th Century Church, with multiple 16th Century cottages and farmhouses along church lane, showing the villages agricultural past, the area of Winston is still agricultural based with farms and fields all over the parish. Winston and the surrounding area is approximately 45m-50m above sea level making the area unlikely to flood, unless in exceptional circumstances. In the 1870s Winston was described as:Winston, a parish, with a village, in Bosmere district, Suffolk; 1 mile SSE of Debenham, and 7 NE of Needham r. station.HistoryThe parish of Winston first appears in the Domesday Book, written in 1066, stating that the population was "43.5 households (very large)". However the Domesday Book representation of the population is misleading, as the figure is based on heads of families so it may be up to 5 times more than the figure stated. The records show that from the first Census conducted in 1801 the population of Winston was 261. The population declined after the 1851 census, with almost everyone in the village at the time working on the land, it may be possible that due to the Industrial Revolution, Winston saw many of the residents move to local large towns like Ipswich. The population in Ipswich boomed during this period as many workers came from the rural area to the industrial area in search of more money and a better life. The parish of Winston contains 5 listed buildings, all of which are listed as grade II by English Heritage, mainly dating from the 16th and 17th Century.