What and Where is Pykenham’s Gatehouse?

On Northgate Street, opposite Ipswich County Library stands a striking timber and brick gateway that is all that remains of a grand residence built for the Archdeacon of Suffolk.

William Pykenham held the office from 1472 to 1497 (the date of his death) and he had the rather grand gatehouse built – hence the name we use today – Pykenham’s Gatehouse. The great convenience of this urban residence was that the Archdeaconry Court was held in the south aisle of the Tower Church (St Mary-Le-Tower, our future Minster) almost next door.

This is one of the earliest secular buildings in Ipswich, standing as it does just inside the earthen rampart. The gatehouse dates to the late 15th century when the street which was ‘Brocstrete’ – the derivation of today’s Brook Street running past from the nearby North Gate into the Middle Saxon town was a dirt track with a brook down the centre. The North Gate was situated next to today’s Halberd public house and part of the foundation of the gate has been identified in the Halberd’s cellar.

The gatehouse stands at the north end of Northgate Street, directly opposite the County Library. You can see the brickwork exterior of the gatehouse from the street with its crow-stepped gable. The Ipswich and Suffolk Club stands on the site of Archdeacon William Pykenham’s house and probably incorporates some timbers from it. A house existed at this location as early as the 13th century. The view from the Ipswich & Suffolk club is noticeably different, the rear elevation of the gatehouse having a timbered and plastered finish, jettied out from the entrance archway westwards, also the ‘office’ is jettied to the south. It is thought that the upper room might have housed Pykenham’s library. Today, a small door to the right enables access to the interior.

The Ipswich Building Preservation Trust (IBPT) carried out a major restoration project in 1982-3, preserving most of the original 15th century timbers. The original staircase (now blocked at the lower level) was discovered during this work. The project involved the connection of services to the building, installation of a toilet and kitchen on the ground floor and the construction of timber stairs to an office and up to a large meeting room. The last of these was a challenge given the steep ascent and the confined space created by the existing timbers of the building.

Pykenham’s Gatehouse will be open to the public this Saturday, August 3rd from 10.30 – 12.30. It is generally opened on the first Saturday morning of the month from May – September, plus Heritage Open Days (September 7th and 8th for the Gatehouse this year) from 10-4. Why not take a look round one of our oldest structures?

Who wrote this about Ipswich?

Caroline Markham

Caroline Markham is a Geologist and a member of the Executive Committee of The Ipswich Society