Wymondham

Wymondham entered in history books in 1549 when a local man, Robert Kett, led dissatisfied farmers to Norwich to protest about the loss of common lands. His trip ended in disaster for him as he was hanged from walls of Norwich Castle.

A fire ravaged Wymondham in 1615 and barely any of the buildings were spared. The Green Dragon in Church Street did survive and is now one of the oldest inns in the country, dating from the 1300s.

The Wymondham Heritage Museum is to be found in the Bridewell building, which was formerly a prison. The prison was built in 1785 and incorporated some ideas of the famous prison reformer, John Howard: it was the first gaol in the country to have single cells for each prisoner. The museum not only documents the building’s history as a police station, courthouse and prison but also has a range of exhibits detailing life in Wymondham through the years.