Little Dunham

Little Dunham
Little Dunham Village Sign
Little Dunham Location within Norfolk
Area	2.89 sq mi (7.5 km2)
Population	314 (2021 census)
•  Density	109/sq mi (42/km2)
OS grid reference	TF867127
District	Breckland
Shire county	Norfolk
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	KING'S LYNN
Postcode district	PE32
Dialling code	01760
Police	Norfolk
Fire	Norfolk
Ambulance	East of England
UK Parliament	South West Norfolk
List of places UK England Norfolk 52°40′48″N0°45′35″E / 52.679954°N 0.759774°E / 52.679954; 0.759774

Little Dunham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk.

The village is located 3.8 miles (6.1 km) north-east of Swaffham and 23 miles (37 km) west of Norwich, located 315 feet (96 m) above sea-level, Little Dunham is one of Norfolk's highest parishes. ^[1]

History

Little Dunham's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for the smaller hill settlement. ^[2]

In the Domesday Book, Little and Great Dunham are listed together as a settlement of 76 households in the hundred of Laundich. In 1086, the village was divided between the East Anglian estates of King William I, Ralph de Tosny and Edmund, son of Payne. ^[3]

From the Fifteenth Century until the Seventeenth Century, Curd's Hall stood in the parish. ^[4] In 1814, an obelisk commemorating the end of the Napoleonic Wars and Lord Admiral Horatio Nelson was built in the grounds of the hall by John and Mary Drostier, the latter being an aunt of Lord Nelson. ^[5] The obelisk is depicted on the village sign.

Geography

According to the 2021 census, Little Dunham has a population of 314 people which shows an increase from the 297 people recorded in the 2011 census. ^[6]

St. Margaret's Church

Little Dunham's parish church is dedicated to Saint Margaret and dates from the Fourteenth Century. The church is located on Sporle Road and has been Grade I listed since 1960. ^[7] The church is no longer open for Sunday services and is part of the Benefice of Launditch & Upper Nar. ^[8]

St. Margaret's features stained-glass windows designed by the workshops of Michael O'Connor. ^[9]

Notable Residents

• Thomas Pell Platt (1798-1852), orientalist, went to school in Little Dunham.

Governance

Little Dunham is part of the electoral ward of Launditch for local elections and is part of the district of Breckland.

The village's national constituency is South West Norfolk which has been represented by Labour's Terry Jermy MP since 2024.

War Memorial

Little Dunham's war memorial is a set of brass plaques in St. Margaret's Church which lists the following names for the First World War: ^[10]

Rank	Name	Unit	Date of Death	Burial/Commemoration
Pte.	Ernest Steggles	6th Bn., Durham Light Infantry	5 Nov. 1916	Thiepval Memorial
Pte.	William C. Gage	6th (Inniskillings) Dragoons	8 Aug. 1918	Vis-en-Artois Memorial
Pte.	William Pearce	1st Bn., Norfolk Regiment	30 Oct. 1917	Hooge Crater Cemetery
Pte.	Ernest T. Pearson	2nd Bn., Norfolk Regt.	26 Jul. 1915	Basra Memorial
Pte.	Alfred C. Steggles	5th Bn., Norfolk Regt.	19 Apr. 1917	Jerusalem Memorial
Pte.	George Howell	7th Bn., Norfolk Regt.	21 Sep. 1917	Monchy British Cemetery
Pte.	Herbert Horney	2nd Bn., Royal Scots Fusiliers	23 Oct. 1915	Kensal Green Cemetery
OSig.	William Fox	HMS Vanguard	9 Jul. 1917	Chatham Naval Memorial

The following names were added after the Second World War:

Rank	Name	Unit	Date of Death	Burial/Commemoration
PO	Edward G. Poole	Royal Air Force	15 Nov. 1941	Runnymede Memorial
Sgt.	Frederick F. Clarke	No. 166 (Lancaster) Squadron RAF	16 Dec. 1943	Hanover War Cemetery
AS	Charles M. Carter	HMS Cleopatra	11 Feb. 1942	Capuccini Naval Cemetery
A2C	Thomas W. Walker	Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve	5 Jul. 1941	Runnymede Memorial
Pte.	Alfred E. Wright	2nd Bn., Royal Norfolk Regiment	18 May 1944	Kohima War Cemetery

References

1. "Parish-Summary-Little-Dunham-(Parish-Summary) - Norfolk Heritage Explorer". www.heritage.norfolk.gov.uk. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
2. "Key to English Place-names". kepn.nottingham.ac.uk. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
3. "[Great and Little] Dunham | Domesday Book". opendomesday.org. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
4. "mnf4203 - Norfolk Heritage Explorer". www.heritage.norfolk.gov.uk. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
5. "mnf4208 - Norfolk Heritage Explorer". www.heritage.norfolk.gov.uk. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
6. "Little Dunham (Parish, United Kingdom) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location". www.citypopulation.de. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
7. "CHURCH OF ST MARAGRET, Little Dunham - 1342499 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
8. "St Margaret's Little Dunham". www.achurchnearyou.com. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
9. "The Norfolk Churches Site". www.norfolkchurches.co.uk. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
10. "Geograph:: Lakenham to Lyng :: War Memorials in Norfolk". www.geograph.org.uk. Retrieved 5 October 2025.