Letters to the editor

Back to the High Street from Tony Cheney

With reference to John Norman's note in the January newsletter "The Demise of the High Street", I thought that this little cartoon might make a suitable comment. It is from "Private Eye", no. 1335, 8-21 March 2013 (p.12). With regret, the editor is well aware that Private Eye never gives permission for cartoons to be reproduced. However, think of an elderly cove leaning on his stick surveying open fields and trees: "I remember this when it was all just shops".

Ransomes at M.E.A.L. from David H. Powell

Reading the Chairman's Remarks in the April 2013 Newsletter regarding the Ransomes companies' artefacts held by the Ipswich Transport Museum has prompted me to wonder if members of the Society appreciate the large numbers of very interesting artefacts, particularly from Ransome Sims & Jefferies, that may be viewed at the Museum of East Anglian Life at Stowmarket. The Bone Building, constructed through the generosity of the Bone family, houses The Ransome Collection. This includes such items as the Hindustani Plough, a Clover Harvester, Horse Plough (1852-1869), Threshing Machine and an 1881 Traction Engine. Also on display such items as a Strong Room Door and a printing press. A wide selection of other RS&J items may also be seen around the site which houses the largest collection of Ransome Ploughs in East Anglia.

The Society's raison d'etre from Chris Wiltshire

I am proffering for publication this quote from James Lees-Milne's autobiography Another self (pub. John Murray): I think it sums up so well the crucial reason for the Society to exist and continue to give voice to concerns about the built environment. "..of all the arts architecture is the only one which cannot be ignored either by the philistine or the indifferent. It is there. It cannot be avoided and has to be seen. It must shape the minds and thoughts of all men [sic] whether they dislike it or like it. We cannot turn our backs on it as we can painting, sculpture, and music, and pretend it does not concern or influence us-- that we do not notice it. I also realized the terrible fragility of architecture. It is vulnerable to every insult, whether direct mutilation or indirect neglect, ignorant improvement, or environmental change."

St Peter's Church from Beryl Jary

In May 2008, St Peter's by the Waterfront officially opened as a community based arts and heritage centre, being the home of our Ipswich Hospital Band. On Saturday 4 May 2013, to conclude an open weekend, they gave a Fifth Anniversary Concert which clearly demonstrated what rapid strides have been made in the intervening period. Their programme included participation by St Peter's Band, the training band, not to mention a specific Brass Ensemble and a Wind Ensemble each with their own conductor. Congratulations on the achievements! St Peter's is also the base for the Ipswich Youth Steel Band and Suffolk School of Samba. [Readers will recall the many years during which all three dockland churches were largely inaccessible; the first Ip-art festival in 2003 was my first chance to go into them and I recall the rickety wooden block flooring of St Peter's and the unpromising condition of the interior. Today it is a fine venue for music and other activities (such as recent Ipswich Society AGM). -Ed.]