Bower House Tye: a tiny Suffolk hamlet of listed farmhouses and old lanes

Bower House Tye is a small hamlet in the parish of Polstead, in Babergh district, Suffolk. Its identity is closely linked to scattered farmsteads, historic houses and the agricultural landscape of south Suffolk. Heritage records show that the area around Bower House formed part of an older farmstead landscape and that parish boundaries changed over time, with land once attached to Boxford later included in Polstead.
Distance: about 3 miles south-west of Hadleigh and around 10 miles north of Colchester.
Traditions and culture: it belongs to the historic rural culture of Polstead and the Brett valley area, shaped by farming and hamlet settlement.
Highlights: Bower House, Brewery Farmhouse, Holly Cottage, Holmwood Cottages and other listed buildings, together with the quiet countryside near Polstead Heath and Groton Wood.