FOR decades thousands passed under a stone arch which formed the entrance to Cranfield Brothers, millers offices, at the junction of College Street and Foundry Lane, almost opposite Wolsey's Gate, Ipswich, often without giving it a second look.

David Kindred

FOR decades thousands passed under a stone arch which formed the entrance to Cranfield Brothers, millers offices, at the junction of College Street and Foundry Lane, almost opposite Wolsey's Gate, Ipswich, often without giving it a second look.

Brian Reeder has sent me a photograph he took of the fine stone work when the area was being cleared for redevelopment in 2005/6. The arch stood alone for several weeks after demolition of the rest of the building before being removed from the site.

Brian said: “I understood that the arch was going to be kept as a piece of Ipswich dockland history. I wonder what happened to it?”

Stuart Grimwade, the director of Ipswich Maritime Trust, told me: “The Mill developers plan to reconstruct the archway which was dismantled and held in store by the demolition contractors. The arch will stand in the new Dance East open performance area, and Cranfields' World War I and II bronze plaques will be remounted on it. New stone carvings are planned for the rear of the arch which will be a feature of the new square, near the Maritime Trust's new Window Museum.”