# Congham

Congham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk.
It is situated some 6 miles (10 km) east of the town of King's Lynn and 34 miles (55 km) west of the city of Norwich.

## History

Congham's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for a farmstead or homestead built upon a mound.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, Congham is recorded as a settlement of 54 households located in the hundred of Freebridge. The village was divided between the estates of William de Warenne and Berner the Bowman.
Congham Oil Mill was built in the village in 1797 and was used to process whale carcasses into oils and other products. The whales were brought to Congham from King's Lynn.
In 1973, remains of a Roman villa were discovered close to Congham. Several artefacts were recovered from the site and are now exhibited in King's Lynn Museum.
Since the 1960s, Congham has hosted an annual snail race.

## Geography

According to the 2021 census, the population of Congham is 236 people which shows a decrease from the 241 people listed in the 2011 census.
The River Cong rises close to the village and joins the River Babingley close to Hillington.
The A148, between King's Lynn and Cromer, and the B1153, between Narborough and Brancaster.

## St. Andrew's Church

Congham's parish church is dedicated to Saint Andrew and dates from the Thirteenth Century. St. Andrew's is located on Saint Andrew's Lane and has been Grade II listed since 1960.
St. Andrew's was heavily restored in the Victorian era and boasts a Thirteenth Century Purbeck Marble font as well as a pulpit produced by the Royal Woodcarving Workshop in nearby Sandringham House.

## Congham Railway Bridge

From the late 19th century, the Congham area was served by the Lynn & Fakenham Railway, later part of the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway. A railway bridge at Congham was designed by the M&GNJR engineer William Marriott, pioneering an innovative system of reinforced concrete components and blockwork. In 2021, National Highways infilled the bridge with hundreds of tonnes of aggregate and concrete, but without planning permission. The railway route had been identified as part of a proposed footpath and cycleway between King’s Lynn and Fakenham, and in January 2023 King's Lynn and West Norfolk Borough Council demanded that National Highways submit a retrospective planning application. National Highways' retrospective planning application received 280 objections.

## Notable Residents

* Sir Henry Spelman- (1562-1641) antiquary, born in Congham.
* Thomas Norris MP- (d.1607) politician, born in Congham.
* Robert Elwes- (1819-1878) painter and traveller, lived in Congham.
* Ysabel Birkbeck- (1859-1934) toymaker and philanthropist, born in Congham.
* Henry, Baron Bellingham- (b.1955) politician and barrister, lives in Congham.

## Governance

Congham is part of the electoral ward of Gayton & Grimston for local elections and is part of the district of King's Lynn and West Norfolk.
The village's national constituency is North West Norfolk which has been represented by the Conservative's James Wild MP since 2010.

## War Memorial

Congham's war memorials are two marble plaques inside St. Andrew's Church. The memorials list the following names for the First World War:
| Rank | Name | Unit | Date of Death | Burial |
| CPO | Richard M. Smith | HMS Vanguard | 9 Jul. 1917 | Chatham Naval Memorial |
| Gnr. | William Goodburn | 76th Bde., Royal Field Artillery | 23 Apr. 1917 | Liévin Cemetery |
| Pte. | Harold Coomber | 6th Bn., Buffs | 3 May 1917 | Arras Memorial |
| Pte. | Edward Smith | 6th Bn., Royal Dublin Fusiliers | 17 Oct. 1918 | Highland Cemetery |
| Pte. | Horace Rallison | 8th Bn., Middlesex Regiment | 1 Apr. 1917 | Agny Cemetery |
| Pte. | Herbert J. Grief | 2nd Bn., Norfolk Regiment | 17 Apr. 1916 | Basra Memorial |
| Pte. | Frederick Smith | 9th Bn., Northumberland Fusiliers | 15 Apr. 1918 | Ploegsteert Memorial |
And, T. A. Harper. And, the following for the Second World War:
| Rank | Name | Unit | Date of Death | Burial |
| Maj. | John H. Elwes | 2nd Bn., Royal Norfolk Regiment | 28 May 1940 | Dunkirk Memorial |
| LS | Stanley R. Mason | HMS Arethusa | 18 Nov. 1942 | Chatham Naval Memorial |
| Pte. | Wilfred Utteridge | 8th Bn., Royal Norfolk Regiment | 14 May 1941 | St. Andrew's Churchyard |