Brandon
The Sign
The sign shows flint knappers at work knapping gun flints from the large black flints which are found in this area of Suffolk. The sign stands in the town centre and was erected in 1973.
The Name and Population
The town had a population of 9,145 at the 2011 census, coming in at the 13th largest. It was called Bromdun in the 10th century, Brandune 1042-1066 and Brandona in the Domesday Book of 1086. The name means "The hill where broom grows" taken from Old English.
Other Points of Interest
Flint knapping has been well established in the area since Neolithic times when deep mines were sunk to find the best flint for knapping. The mines, known as Grimes Graves are open to the public. Flint of course is a well known building material for East Anglia due to it's resilience to weather and the fact that no other good hard stone is available.
The church is dedicated to St Peter.
In 1820 Edward Bliss bought Brandon Park house and grounds using wealth he generated from selling gun flint during the Napoleonic Wars. When the gun flint industry began to decline Bliss had his work force plant over 1 million trees, in the process creating Thetford Forest.