IPublic · listed 1952Old Grammar School Well HouseOn the list as Old Grammar School and Well HousePhoto: Paul Shreeve · CC BY-SA 2.0
Photo: Colin Park · CC BY-SA 2.0–Not graded
History of Dedham · Historic England
68 listed buildings, 4 of them Grade I
Historic England counts them inside Dedham’s built-up area, 837 for every 10,000 residents. Of the listed buildings in Dedham, 50 are Grade II. 31% of its homes were built before 1919. We have photos of 17 of its listed buildings.
Listed buildings
68
837 per 10,000 residents
Grade I
4
exceptional interest
Grade II*
14
more than special interest
Scheduled monuments
0
nationally important sites
Homes built before 1919
31%
typical UK town 15%
In pictures
Dedham in 17 photos
Nearly every Grade I and II* building, photographed. Tap a photo to step through them full screen.
Old Grammar School and Well HouseGrade I listed
Southfields the Flemish CottagesGrade I listed
Parish Church of St MaryGrade I listed
ShermansGrade I listed
1, High StreetGrade II* listed+12See all photosPhotos from Wikimedia Commons and Geograph, copied to our own server, each credited to its photographer with its licence; names open the building’s page or its official list entry.
The map
Where Dedham’s history is
Every Grade I and II* building, monument and historic park.
Grade IGrade II*400 m from Old Grammar School Well House
4 of 4Grade I buildings stand within 400 m of Old Grammar School Well House, a five-minute walk. So do 61 of the 68 listed buildings.
Hover a dot for its name; tap one with a photo to open it.
68 listed buildings by grade
4 Grade I14 Grade II*50 Grade II
Historic England lists buildings in three grades: Grade I for buildings of exceptional interest (about 2.5% of all listed buildings), Grade II* for particularly important buildings of more than special interest (about 5.8%), and Grade II for buildings of special interest (about 91.7%). Listing protects the whole building, inside and out.
Every entry on the National Heritage List for England whose point lies inside the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary. One list entry can cover a terrace or a group of buildings.
Grade I
The 4 Grade I listed buildings in Dedham
Buildings of exceptional interest, about 2.5% of all listed buildings; 4 of these stand within 400 m of Old Grammar School Well House. Every one is photographed. Each opens its own page, with the official list entry.
IChurch · listed 1965Parish Church of St MaryPhoto: Andrew Hill · CC BY-SA 2.0
IHouse · listed 1952ShermansPhoto: Andrew Hill · CC BY-SA 2.0
IHouse · listed 1952Southfields the Flemish CottagesPhoto: Robert Edwards · CC BY-SA 2.0
Grade II*
The 14 Grade II* listed buildings in Dedham
Particularly important buildings of more than special interest. 13 are photographed.
II*Public · listed 1952House And Shop Occupied By Fr Spearing Next To ShermansOn the list as Brannam CourtPhoto: Sandy Gerrard · CC BY-SA 2.0
II*House · listed 1952Brook HousePhoto: Peter Broster · CC BY-SA 4.0
II*House · listed 1952Dale BrookPhoto: Peter Broster · CC BY-SA 4.0
II*House · listed 1952Essex Rose CafePhoto: Peter Broster · CC BY-SA 4.0
II*House · listed 1952Gould HousePhoto: Robert Edwards · CC BY-SA 2.0
II*House · listed 1981Great House, High StreetOn the list as Great House, High Street, DedhamPhoto: Peter Broster · CC BY-SA 4.0
II*House · listed 1952Ivy HousePhoto: Ivyhouse891 · CC BY-SA 4.0
II*Inns & shops · listed 1952Loom House Marlborough Head InnOn the list as Marlborough Head Inn and Loom HousePhoto: Robert Edwards · CC BY-SA 2.0
II*House · listed 1952Shakespeare HousePhoto: Stephen Nunney · CC BY-SA 2.0
II*Inns & shops · listed 1952The Sun InnOn the list as The Sun Public HousePhoto: JThomas · CC BY-SA 2.0
II*House · listed 1965Vale BakeryPhoto: Peter Broster · CC BY-SA 4.0
II*House · listed 19521, High StreetPhoto: Peter Broster · CC BY-SA 4.0
Show the other 2
II*House · listed 19655 and 6, High StreetPhoto: Sandy Gerrard · CC BY-SA 2.0
House · listed 1952Knights Manor
What’s protected
Most of Dedham’s listed buildings are homes
Every listed building sorted by what its list name says it is.
Houses, terraces & villas43
Public & civic buildings12
Walls, gates & bridges5
Inns, shops & warehouses4
Churches, chapels & priories2
Memorials, crosses & tombs1
Street furniture1
43 entries (63%) are houses, terraces and villas. 2 are churches, chapels and priories, including 1 of the 4 Grade I buildings.
Buildings are sorted by words in each entry’s name (church, gate, inn, memorial…): the list’s open data has no building type. An entry named only by its address counts as a house.
Grade II
50 Grade II listed buildings
Most listed buildings are in this grade, which covers buildings of special interest. Open any building to read its official list entry.
All 50 Grade II listed buildings, A to Z
Barfields AlmshousesBaytree CottageBlock to South East of Weavershed HouseBrook CottagesChurch Gate House and Chemist's ShopCoach House to South of Lower ParkCrofter's and Evans and SonsDairy HouseDedham HallDedham HouseDedham Post OfficeDuchy HouseDunton's AlmshousesGarden Wall to Castle House on North and WestGarden Wall to East of Dedham HouseGarden Wall to Front of Dedham HouseGarden Wall, South of Coach House at South of Lower ParkHammond BuildersHewitt Memorial HallHolly Tree HouseHouse and Shop West of Old ExchangeK6 Telephone Kiosk Outside Old Grammar SchoolLittle Garth CottagesLondon HouseLower ParkMeadows CottageMemorial CrossMill HouseMuniment HouseOctagon HouseOld School HouseOuthouse at Rear, South East of Dedham HousePennypot Cottage and RamplinsPrince Lane CottagesShead of DinesShop West of VicarageSouth CottageThe Castle HouseThe CompassesThe HaywainThe Limes Guest HouseThe Little HouseThe Manse, West of Congregational ChapelThe Old ExchangeThe VicarageVillage Pump and Railed EnclosureWeavershed HouseWestgate HouseWheelwright's12, Cooper's Lane
Conservation areas
1 conservation area covers 46% of Dedham
Areas the council protects as a whole: demolition and changes to how buildings look need consent, and trees are protected.
Dedham 196826 ha
26 hain conservation areas, of 57 ha inside the built-up area.
64 of the 68 listed buildings stand in one.
Historic England’s conservation areas layer, supplied by councils (incomplete in places, so a page fact, never graded). Hectares are the part of each area inside the built-up area.
How the list grew
21 of Dedham’s 68 listed buildings were added in 1952
The year each building now on the list was first listed.
1952 · 211982 · 191965 · 14
19501960197019801990200020102020
The first 21 entries were listed in 1952, 3 of the 4 Grade I buildings among them. Only 0 have been added in the last 15 years.
Homes by age
31% of Dedham’s homes were built before 1919
Every home by when it was built, from council tax records, against England & Wales (the dark tick).
27%
Before 1900
3.9%
1900–18
5.2%
1919–29
5.2%
1930s
6.5%
1945–54
11%
1955–64
6.5%
1965–72
14%
1973–82
10%
1983–92
2.6%
1993–99
2.6%
2000–08
2.6%
2009–15
2.6%
2016–25
DedhamEngland & Wales
27% of homes are Victorian or older, against 16% across England and Wales. The busiest period since was 1973–82, which added 14% of today’s homes.
Valuation Office Agency, council tax stock of properties by build period, 31 March 2025, for the neighbourhoods (LSOAs) that make up the town, split by where their residents live. Homes with no recorded build period (5 here) are left out; 1939–44 is not a period in the data.
Born here
5 notable people born in Dedham before 1900
Their lives on one timeline, earliest first.
Philip Sherman
Joseph Gibbs
Major Downes
William Haggar
Alice Lee
16001650170017501800185019001950
Alice Lee1858–1939 · British mathematician
JG
Joseph Gibbs1698–1788 · English composer
WH
William Haggar1851–1925 · Film director (1851-1925)
PS
Philip Sherman1611–1687 · American colonial settler
MD
Major Downes1834–1923 · British Army officer (1834-1923)
Everyone born in Dedham → Birthplaces from Wikidata; portraits from Wikimedia Commons.
Neighbours
Listed buildings in the places around Dedham
| Town | People | Listed | Grade I | History |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dedham | 812 | 68 | 4 | — |
| East Bergholt | 2,211 | 72 | 1 | A |
| Ardleigh | 1,042 | 18 | 0 | B+ |
| Lawford | 4,488 | 5 | 0 | D |
| Brantham | 2,081 | 6 | 0 | C |
| Manningtree | 1,676 | 87 | 0 | A+ |
| Capel St Mary | 2,992 | 12 | 0 | C |
| Mistley | 1,827 | 33 | 2 | A− |
In brief
Dedham in brief
Old houses are part of Dedham’s character: 31% of its homes were built before 1919, against 15% in the typical UK town. In all there are 68 listed buildings, 4 of them Grade I. Old Grammar School Well House sits at the heart of it all, with 4 of the town’s Grade I buildings within 400 m.
A conservation area has protected part of it since 1968. Of the whole list, 63% are houses, terraces and villas. Of the 5 people born here before 1900, the best known include Alice Lee (1858), Joseph Gibbs (1698) and William Haggar (1851).
Questions about Dedham’s history
How many listed buildings are there in Dedham?
Historic England lists 68 buildings inside Dedham’s built-up area: 4 Grade I, 14 Grade II* and 50 Grade II.
What are the Grade I listed buildings in Dedham?
4, including Old Grammar School and Well House, Parish Church of St Mary, Shermans and Southfields the Flemish Cottages.
How many conservation areas are there in Dedham?
1, covering about 26 hectares of the town. The largest is Dedham.
When were Dedham’s buildings listed?
The first in 1952; the most, 21, in 1952.
Who was born in Dedham?
Among people born before 1900: Alice Lee (1858), Joseph Gibbs (1698), William Haggar (1851), Philip Sherman (1611) and Major Downes (1834).
How old are the homes in Dedham?
31% of homes were built before 1919 and 42% before 1940, from the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax records (March 2025).
Dedham has no History Grade.
© Historic England 2026. Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. The National Heritage List for England is the official, up-to-date register of all nationally protected historic buildings and sites in England; check an entry on Historic England’s website before relying on it.
Sources: Historic England, National Heritage List for England (listed buildings, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, battlefields, World Heritage Sites), October 2026, inside the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary · Valuation Office Agency, Council Tax: stock of properties by build period (31 March 2025) · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only · Historic England conservation areas (supplied by local planning authorities; October 2026). All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.