The draining of the Minsmere Levels - the saga of a community and a project.

2015 marked the bicentenary of the completion of the work to drain the Minsmere Levels in 1815. First planned in 1805 at the height of the Napoleonic blockade of England, when the increased agricultural prices encouraged the improvement of even the most marginal land, the project soon became dogged by controversy and conflict within the community with many engineering and financial problems.

The chance discovery of a cache of correspondence and minutes, now held in Ipswich Record Office, has enabled MLSG to relive the whole saga and record it in this account. The draining of the Levels delivered us the landscape as we know it today.

More recently, during 2011 and 2012, the sluice has been completely refurbished with new sluice gates allowing larger volumes of water to drain from the Levels helping to further preserve the environment of the Levels following higher levels of rainfall in the catchment area.

Buy the book

Illustrated with photos and maps, copies of the book, just published at the bargain price of £5 (plus £2 for postage) are available fromThe Eels Foot, The Theberton Lion, The Wesleton White Horse, The Middleton Bell and Reckford Roost Farm Shop at Middleton, or contact us directly at john.reaprice@btinternet.com or paul.f.collins1@gmail.com