1998 – 2000: St James South Elmham Village Signs
In common with many communities throughout the UK, the residents of St James wanted to mark the forthcoming Millenium in a lasting and appropriate way. The Minutes of the Parish Meeting tell the story of how the ideas were developed and came to fruition in a particularly interesting way.
The April 1998 Meeting considered ideas that had been put forward, among which were to erect a new village sign, and a working group was formed to look at options for its design and where it should be sited. The possibility of one sign in the middle of the village was looked at, but the conclusion was to have a sign at each end. One illustrating village life and activities, and the other the scallop shell emblem of St James.
At the December 1998 Meeting designs for both were presented along with models of the proposed signs. These were approved and work began to arrange funding, the manufacture of the signs, and their precise siting. By April 1999, funding was being arranged and agreements reached with landowners for their positioning at Cuckoo Farm for the shell, and Western Farm for the village life presentations. Planning and Highway applications for the signs and their placing were in.
By the end of that year funding was settled, and construction well underway. By the April 2000 Meeting, the Western Farm sign was complete and the Cuckoo Farm sign on track for installation in mid-summer.
On 28th July 2000 an unveiling ceremony for both signs was held. The occasion was captured in photos and a detailed article by the Bungay and Beccles Journal. We are lucky to have found a cutting from that time and are glad to acknowledge the use of this material from the Journal.
It’s not unusual nowadays to come across visitors looking for the village sign – there are people who do this as a hobby or as a side activity in visiting interesting places. They are quite excited to find a village that has two different ones!
“There are two village signs in South Elmham St James, unveiled on the 28th July 2000 to commemorate the Millennium The odd-looking sign shows a scallop shell sat on top of a wooden post with the village name shown in the small brick plinth. The shell represents the emblem of St James. It was erected in 2000.
The other sign is surmounted by three scallop shells, the symbol of St James the patron saint of Spain. The badminton racquet and theatre mask relate to the village hall and recreation ground. The cow and pig give an indication of the local farming livestock and dairy farms, while the tractor at the bottom represents the modern arable farming. In the centre is the church and the old school behind a fence; the fence represents the local legend of the cuckoo. The saw and hammer represent all the trades in the parish, past and present.”
Extract by permission from Suffolk Village Signs is gratefully acknowledged: suffolkvillagesigns.co.uk
