Early evidence - Suffolk 

The earliest documentary evidence uncovered for the name Sugg(e) is from Suffolk. During the 15th and 16th centuries there appears to have been a number of Sugge families living in the vicinity of the village of Kersey, not far from Hadleigh.The will of Thomas Sugge who lived in Corton was proved at the Norwich Consistory Court^[i] in 1438. It was written in Latin and a translation has not yet been obtained. Annabel Sugge, widow of Semon (Simon) Sugge of Edwardstone, wrote her will in 1444 and it was proved in the same year at the Archdeaconry of Sudbury. It too was composed in Latin but a translation of significant sections is available and is reproduced below.

ANNABEL, widow of Semon Sugge of EDWARDSTONE, 11 April 1444 To be buried in the churchyard of St Gregory, Sudbury to the high altar of that church for tithes forgotten 12d; to the high altar of Edwardstone church 12d. To Richard Sugge, servant to John Folour of Sudbury 12d and an old hood of ‘ray’; to Isabel, the wife of John Wode, 4 yards of woollen cloth, that is, out of the 8 yards remaining at Roger Wode’s. All my lands and woods in Edwardstone to be sold by my feoffees of them, and the money from them to be disposed by the discretion of my execs, together with the residue of my goods.

Execs: Sir Gregory, rector of Somerton church, and John Wode (‘Vode’) of Sudbury ^[ii].

Several other wills of members of Sugg(e) families in this immediate area and from the same period have also been found. Most of them are in Latin but those for which transcripts have been produced indicate comparative prosperity – probably a necessary condition for writing a will in the first place. Many of the people about whom we have the most information appear to have been involved in the wool trade, either as weavers or merchants.

Further information about the kind of lives some Sugg(e)s led can be gleaned from muster rolls^[iii] and church wardens’ accounts^[iv] from the parish of Boxford in the 16th century. Thomas Sugge was a cloth maker and obviously a leading light in the community. In 1522 he was assessed at £1 6s 8d for the land he owned in Boxford, £2 13s 4d for land he owned elsewhere and £2 for his belongings. He was a wealthy man and would have been required to make a substantial contribution towards the funding of Henry VIII’s military adventures. In 1530, as a church warden, he was partly responsible for the organisation of a Boxford church ‘ale^’[v]. These were social gatherings which, mainly by the sale of drink, provided a major source of income for the church and which were soon to be one of the many activities banned by Thomas Cranmer.

Thomas Sugge died in 1532 and in his will he left one house to his wife Margaret and another to his son Thomas. In 1537 his widow is recorded as making a contribution towards the repair of the church steeple. She made a further gift in 1547. The same accounts record a payment to a different Thomas Sugge working as a labourer on the repair of the school house. His tax assessment in 1524 had been £1, based on his earnings. He was not in the same financial league as his namesake.

The Suffolk Hearth Tax Return^[vi] of 1674 records that the home of John Sugg of Hitcham possessed four hearths and that of William Sugg of Kettlebaston had three. Both villages are in the same area and the returns suggest comparatively large and affluent households. Parish records show a considerable number of Sugg(e) baptisms, marriages and burials recorded in this area during the 16th and 17th centuries. To date however, no references have been found for events^[vii] in the 18th century. It has not been possible to trace the development of any particular family for any extended duration.

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