MY INTEREST IN ‘LOST HOUSES’ stems back to the ‘Destruction of the Country House’ exhibition in London's Victoria and Albert Museum in 1974 and the accompanying book of the same name. Looking back over more than thirty years, I think that there were two things that fascinated me when I saw the photographs in that exhibition and in the book.

The first was that so much of the country's heritage had been lost. Of course, I recognised that some of the houses were not architectural gems and many were so large as to be economically unsustainable in the twentieth century. Nevertheless I wondered how anyone could have destroyed some of the houses depicted, houses designed by the great builders and architects of past centuries often with magnificent interiors by master craftsmen. The second was the knowledge that the houses portrayed had, in their hey-day, played an integral part in the life of the communities in which they were situated, employing large numbers of people both in the houses and on the surrounding estates. I wondered what the impact of the destruction of the ‘big house’ had been on the people who owned them and worked in them.

My interest in the subject remained but was rekindled by the publication in 2002 of the late Giles Worsley's book England's Lost Houses and the related exhibition at Sir John Soane's Museum. My wife and I were, at that time, contemplating moving from north-west Essex to Suffolk, and the idea of engaging in some research into Suffolk's lost houses appealed to me. I wrote to Giles Worsley, who responded encouragingly and made the point that it would be particularly worthwhile to seek out information on the reasons why specific houses were demolished. These have proved difficult to ascertain: whether I have in any way succeeded is for others to judge.

Most of the research has been undertaken using local sources particularly archive material in the branches of the Suffolk Record Office at Bury St Edmunds, Ipswich and Lowestoft. I am indebted to the staff of those offices, too many to name individually, for their assistance. Their help in guiding me through the catalogues and suggesting sources of information has been invaluable, and their services (which have included the provision of many of the illustrations) have been offered with unfailing courtesy and forbearance. Without their assistance this book could never have been written.