Brumstead


Brumstead is a village and a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is north-east of Norwich, south-south-east of Cromer and north-east of London. The village lies north of the town of Stalham. The nearest railway station is at North Walsham for the Bittern Line which runs between Cromer and Norwich. The nearest airport is Norwich. The parish had in 2001 census, a population of 84. At the 2011 census the population remained less than 100 and was included in the civil parish of East Ruston. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within the district of North Norfolk. The village is situated on the route of the B1159 that runs between the town of Cromer and the town of Stalham.

Situation

The parish of Brumstead covers an area of approximately. The land is flat and at its highest is only 33 feet above sea level. The land is arable and very open with very few hedges. The parish is bound to the east by the Parish of Ingham and on the north-west by the Parish of East Ruston. The northern boundary is with Happisburgh Common and Witton. In the middle of the parish on the higher ground stand the surviving manorial hall and church.

History

Brumstead has an entry in the Domesday Book of 1085. In the great book Brumstead is recorded by the names Brumestade, and Brunestade. The main landholder was Roger Bigot. The main tenant is said to be Robert from Roger Bigot. The survey also mentions that there were 30 goats, a church and a mill. There was a pannage or woodland for 16 pigs. In the survey the size of the local woodland was given as to the number of swine the woodland could support. The name Brumstead is believed to derive from the "place of broom".
The village has also been known for hundreds of years as Brunstead, as old maps demonstrate. Brunstead is also the name by which the village is known locally, and the name on the village sign.