# Tinker's House nr Walberswick (Suffolk)



## hamishsfriend (May 2, 2011)

The derelict house is situated on the edge of Tinker's Marsh, on the south side of the Blyth estuary, only slightly above sea level in an area that has always been prone to flooding. I have failed to find any history concerning the house and its owners.












The glass in most windows has been smashed in and the porch door stands wide open. Brambles and nettles are thriving in what used to be the front garden.





















The roof tiles appear to have been taken off a long time ago and being open to the elements, the upstairs floors have rotted and collapsed, blocking the doors leading into the downstairs rooms. 






A glimpse through one of the glass-less windows reveals that one of the items left behind when the owners moved on was a grand piano.
















Nettles are growing on the bathroom floor and the remains of a seat block the entrance into the porch.











The only room that is still accessible is the kitchen, complete with gas cooker, stove, sink and cupboards, pots and pans - and lots of rusty food tins.







































































During the storm surge in November 2007, Tinker's Marsh wall was breached in 10 places and the Environmental Agency have since refused repair. Tinker's House appears to have been abandoned several decades ago, perhaps not only because of the problem with flooding but also because of the isolation. Until recently only a grassy track used to lead down here. Walkers who wish to continue on their way down to the River Blyth are taken over the fence by a wooden style. A narrow footpath leads right past the derelict house.


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## oldscrote (May 2, 2011)

Good Lord man that's amazing,that cooker must be pre war Here's a similar one from 1955 but I reckon yours is a lot earlier

http://www.salvo.co.uk/images/userimgs/43310/Cooker1_59139_1.jpg


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## muppet (May 2, 2011)

yet another good find thanks for posting .


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## vogelport (May 2, 2011)

nice find, loved the old cooker too!


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## hamishsfriend (May 2, 2011)

oldscrote said:


> Good Lord man that's amazing,that cooker must be pre war



How interesting, thanks! I'd not seen a similar cooker before and was therefore unable to put a date on it.


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## JOHNSODA (May 2, 2011)

Nice post, I could spend hours spuddling round in there..
thanx


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## Roy S (May 3, 2011)

The Brooke Bond Brazilian Blend Coffee dates from the mid 70s


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## hamishsfriend (May 3, 2011)

Roy S said:


> The Brooke Bond Brazilian Blend Coffee dates from the mid 70s



Thank you! Having read your info, I suppose it is safe to say that the house was inhabited until the mid-70s.


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## Dirus_Strictus (May 4, 2011)

hamishsfriend said:


> How interesting, thanks! I'd not seen a similar cooker before and was therefore unable to put a date on it.



The gas taps fitted to this 'Main' oven are of the same type as those fitted to a 1934 Main oven (coal gas) illustrated in a Wiki article. However, bottled gas (Butane) was not introduced into the UK until the setting up of Calor in 1935, so suggest this is a late 30's model - the blue cylinder indicates it is jetted for butane and propane fueled cookers were only introduced post war. The Calor company expanded into rural areas very quickly, so it is possible that the earliest date could be 1936. The architectural features of the house - round porch window and Critall windows and doors indicated that this house could have been built during the mini rural building boom of the mid 30's.


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## smiler (May 4, 2011)

Amazing find, did the base and top of the paraffin lamp shown in separate pics actually match up? Thanks for sharing.


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## hamishsfriend (May 4, 2011)

Dirus_Strictus said:


> The gas taps fitted to this 'Main' oven are of the same type as those fitted to a 1934 Main oven (coal gas) illustrated in a Wiki article. However, bottled gas (Butane) was not introduced into the UK until the setting up of Calor in 1935, so suggest this is a late 30's model - the blue cylinder indicates it is jetted for butane and propane fueled cookers were only introduced post war. The Calor company expanded into rural areas very quickly, so it is possible that the earliest date could be 1936. The architectural features of the house - round porch window and Critall windows and doors indicated that this house could have been built during the mini rural building boom of the mid 30's.



Thank you very much. So, the house most likely dates from the 1930s and was, in all probability, abandoned in the mid-70s. The fairly short time it was inhabited explains why there is no 'historical' information to be found.


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## oldscrote (May 4, 2011)

Looking at the pictures again I reckon there must be a well near by.The hand pump{looks similar to a ROC sump pump} seems to be feeding upwards probably to a tank in the attic and I guess this isolated property isn't on the mains.Maybe a reason for abandonment was sea water pollution of the supply when the floods came in at some point.


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## hamishsfriend (May 4, 2011)

smiler said:


> Amazing find, did the base and top of the paraffin lamp shown in separate pics actually match up? Thanks for sharing.



Good question. No, I did not try if they'd fit together, I thought the base to be too small to match the top.


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## hamishsfriend (May 4, 2011)

oldscrote said:


> Looking at the pictures again I reckon there must be a well near by.The hand pump{looks similar to a ROC sump pump} seems to be feeding upwards probably to a tank in the attic and I guess this isolated property isn't on the mains.Maybe a reason for abandonment was sea water pollution of the supply when the floods came in at some point.



There are ditches (draining into the Blyth estuary) at the lower end of the house and I am guessing that they took the water from there. Sea water pollution is very possible, considering the location, which was obviously not a good choice to begin with.


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## Dirus_Strictus (May 4, 2011)

hamishsfriend said:


> Thank you very much. So, the house most likely dates from the 1930s and was, in all probability, abandoned in the mid-70s. The fairly short time it was inhabited explains why there is no 'historical' information to be found.



I think you are correct in this supposition. A point about the early Calor set up which you may find interesting - pre war all their distribution to rural areas was by the rail network, even when they opened distribution centers. post war there was a rapid switch to local road haulage and in house transport. This pattern of delivery method was only following the post war switch from nationalised rail to nationalised road transport seen all over the UK during this period.


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## rectory-rat (May 4, 2011)

Many thanks for sharing this place. It looks fantastic!
You really do find some great places, and give a superb write up to go with them. 

-RR


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## hamishsfriend (May 4, 2011)

Dirus_Strictus said:


> I think you are correct in this supposition. A point about the early Calor set up which you may find interesting - pre war all their distribution to rural areas was by the rail network, even when they opened distribution centers. post war there was a rapid switch to local road haulage and in house transport. This pattern of delivery method was only following the post war switch from nationalised rail to nationalised road transport seen all over the UK during this period.



Yes, I did find interesting, thank you, again!


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## hamishsfriend (May 4, 2011)

rectory-rat said:


> Many thanks for sharing this place. It looks fantastic!
> You really do find some great places, and give a superb write up to go with them.
> 
> -RR



Thank you for your nice comment.  

Some are well hidden but this place is right next to a public footpath (where you can see my dog waiting patiently - pic taken through the round window in the porch). It takes a bit of walking to reach it, though.


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## manof2worlds (May 5, 2011)

Another great post Evelyn - you beat me to it with this one - I'm heading here next week


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## hamishsfriend (May 5, 2011)

manof2worlds said:


> Another great post Evelyn - you beat me to it with this one - I'm heading here next week



Ooooh, thanks - you are not easy to beat!


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## silicosis (May 5, 2011)

Lovely place.


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## Em_Ux (May 5, 2011)

A nice place!

Love the shot of your dog aww!


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## hamishsfriend (May 5, 2011)

Em_Ux said:


> A nice place!
> 
> Love the shot of your dog aww!



Thanks.


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## gingrove (May 5, 2011)

Fantastic place - Love the pump on the kitchen wall! Thanks for posting


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## wagg20 (May 6, 2011)

A splendid find.


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## Roger (Aug 21, 2021)

Robert James an eccentric and mentally ill man live here .A lady in Walberswick used to put out sandwiches for him, twice a week. When his cottage burnt down she was summoned to comfort him. I believe that he went into a care home after that. There is a memoriam to him in the July 2012 issue of Village news.
He did some strange things wandering around wearing only a plastic mac. The remains of his piano remains in the cottage, the story is that at one time he was a concert pianist.


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## coldplayfan (Oct 23, 2022)

hamishsfriend said:


> The derelict house is situated on the edge of Tinker's Marsh, on the south side of the Blyth estuary, only slightly above sea level in an area that has always been prone to flooding. I have failed to find any history concerning the house and its owners.
> 
> View attachment 100061
> 
> ...


iv been doing family research on the burley family from this area. gooding burley born 1822 lived anchor inn, high street, land as occupier. he was a farmer. his son william born 1848-1920 lived in tinkers marsh on the electrol register. I wondered if he ever lived in that particular house. He was a farmer like his dad was. I have never been to that area as in from the north uk. Does anybody know how many properties might have been in tinkers marshes in that period? I am sorta hoping he did live at this place at some time, and might be worth heading there to take a look.


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## Dormousezzzz (Oct 24, 2022)

hamishsfriend said:


> The derelict house is situated on the edge of Tinker's Marsh, on the south side of the Blyth estuary, only slightly above sea level in an area that has always been prone to flooding. I have failed to find any history concerning the house and its owners.
> 
> View attachment 100061
> 
> ...


Love the one with piano, great shot.


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