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Isaac Lord, Wherry Quay IP4 1AS
Isaacs on the Quay sits along one of the most important historical features of Ipswich’s past, the now regenerated waterfront. The complex of buildings that make up Isaacs on the Quay has a long history dating back to medieval times.
The site is a collection of Grade I and Grade II* listed buildings, including medieval and Tudor. Some of the oldest sections were constructed between 1430 and 1550. There are many original features throughout the building and many pieces of equipment used during the building’s long and industrious past are still on display, including the carefully restored corn-dressing machine, a rare survival of an 18th century hand-malting concern, in the Machine Room.
Originally, the site was home and the way of life of a wool merchant when Ipswich was one of the most prosperous and important towns in England. The Merchant's House fronting onto Fore Street is dated 1636 on a bressummer beam. The house has been restored and is now used as a guest house.
The complex is now named after Isaac Lord, a local businessman who bought the property from the Cobbold brewing family in 1900. The site continued to be used for trading coal and corn until the 1980s.
The site received a direct hit in Second World War. The Foreman’s Cottage, which was attached to the Crossway, was destroyed, as was part of the Saleroom roof. Thankfully, though, nothing else was damaged.
[Source: Extract from Isaacs on the Quay website.]
Listing text: 'This house and warehouses form the major part of an exceptional group of historic buildings. The group is the last surviving example of a C15-C17 Ipswich Merchant's house with warehouses at the rear opening directly on the dock front, where merchandise was unshipped, stored and distributed wholesale or sold retail in the shop on the street front.'
Isaacs on the Quay is featured in the Ipswich Tourist Guides virtual guided tour video of the town.
Links: Isaacs on the Quay website; Ipswich Society Image Archive; Historic England Listing