The History of Brandon

The name of Brandon is believed to signify "hill where broom grows", a fact which is still true today. Throughout the long history of the town it has been known by various names including Brantona, Brand, Brandona and several others. The introduction of a ferry service across the Little Ouse river encouraged another change of name for the settlement, with Brandon Ferry then being commonly used. The High Street was also known as Ferry Street and this name, along with the new town name, was kept long after the disappearance of the ferry.

The Little Ouse river which flows alongside the town once formed the boundary between Suffolk and Norfolk, with Brandon being a strictly Suffolk town. Modern boundary definition has seen a part of Brandon "moved" into Norfolk although the majority remains in Suffolk.

The long history of settlement in the area is obvious from the remnants uncovered from the Neolithic, Iron Age, Bronze Age, Roman and Anglo Saxon periods. The Domesday Book records the town and notes its late 11th century population to be 25. Flint mining in the area been carried out since prehistoric days, with gunflint production being a modern twist to this age old Brandon industry. Rabbit fur was another popular Brandon product.

One of the more dramatic points in the town's history is the Great Fire, which devastated parts of Brandon in 1789 when a fire was started by a lightning bolt hitting a building. Unfortunately, the majority of the male population was in Thetford at a local fair and the damage caused by the resulting spread of the flames resulted in extensive damage. The local saddler, one Francis Diggon, reported a loss of over 380 pounds, which represented everything he owned.

Extensive use of the Fenland Waterway system for the transport of goods saw Brandon become an important commercial centre. The building of wharves led to a boom which brought retailers, merchants and wealth to the area.

The Second World War resulted in city evacuees, foreign servicemen, enemy attacks and royal visits to the town while the post war period brought a large number of Polish settlers here. In more modern times recent waves of immigrants from Eastern Europe have helped boost the population and bring a foreign influence to the ancient town.