Thurgarton is a village

Village

A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...

 in the North Norfolk

North Norfolk

North Norfolk is a local government district in Norfolk, United Kingdom. Its council is based in Cromer. The council headquarters can be found approximately out of the town of Cromer on the Holt Road.-History:...

 district of the English county of Norfolk

Norfolk

Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...

. It lies 6+1/2 mi north of Aylsham

Aylsham

Aylsham is a historic market town and civil parish on the River Bure in north Norfolk, England, about north of Norwich. The river rises near Melton Constable, upstream from Aylsham and continues to Great Yarmouth and the North Sea, although it was only made navigable after 1779, allowing grain,...

 and 5+1/2 mi south-west of Cromer

Cromer

Cromer is a coastal town and civil parish in north Norfolk, England. The local government authority is North Norfolk District Council, whose headquarters is in Holt Road in the town. The town is situated 23 miles north of the county town, Norwich, and is 4 miles east of Sheringham...

, and was in the Erpingham

Erpingham

Erpingham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk.It covers an area of and had a population of 541 in 210 households as of the 2001 census.For the purposes of local government, it falls within the district of North Norfolk....

 Hundred. It forms part of the civil parish

Civil parish

In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...

 of Aldborough

Aldborough, Norfolk

Aldborough is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It is situated about eight miles south of Cromer.The civil parish has an area of 7.15 square kilometres and in 2001 had a population of 567 in 259 households. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within...

.

The church of All Saints

All Saints Church, Thurgarton

All Saints Church, Thurgarton, is a redundant Anglican church in the village of Thurgarton, Norfolk, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building, and is under the care of the Churches Conservation Trust...

, has a thatched

Thatching

Thatching is the craft of building a roof with dry vegetation such as straw, water reed, sedge , rushes, or heather, layering the vegetation so as to shed water away from the inner roof. It is a very old roofing method and has been used in both tropical and temperate climates...

 roof but no tower - the tower having collapsed in the 1880s. It is closed to the public but in a good state of repair.

Thurgarton House (sometimes called Thurgarton Old Hall) is the seat of the Spurrell

Spurrell

Spurrell is a surname found in a number of parts of England and Wales, as well as other parts of the world.- The Spurrells of Norfolk, England :...

 family, who have lived at Thurgarton for almost 500 years; it was rebuilt in conservative style in 1733. Formerly Thurgarton had a windmill

Windmill

A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...

, reached from Church Lane.

In 1969, poet

Poet

A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...

 George Barker

George Barker (poet)

George Granville Barker was an English poet and author.-Life and work:Barker was born in Loughton, near Epping Forest in Essex, England, elder brother of Kit Barker [painter] George Barker was raised by his Irish mother and English father in Battersea, London. He was educated at an L.C.C. school...

, who lived at nearby Itteringham

Itteringham

Itteringham is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk, some northwest of the market town of AylshamIt covers an area of and had a population of 136 in 60 households as of the 2001 census....

, published a poem called At Thurgarton Church.