ELMHAM (North), a village, a parish, and a sub-district in Mitford district, Norfolk. The village stands on the river Wensum, adjacent to the Dereham and Wells railway, 5 miles N of East Dereham; and has a station on the railway, and a post office under Thetford, both of the name of Elmham. It is supposed to date from the Roman times; and it was the seat of one of the two bishoprics of East Anglia, from 673 to 1075, when the bishopric was removed to Thetford. A fair is held on 6 April. The parish comprises 4, 631 acres. Real property, £7, 202. Pop., 1, 251. Houses, 258. The property is not much divided. The manor continued to belong to the bishops of Norwich, the successors of the bishops of Elmham and Thetford, till the time of Henry VIII.; and it retains some traces of the episcopal castle. Elmham Hall is the seat of Lord Sondes. Upwards of 100 urns, many coins, and other Roman antiquities, were found, in 1711, at Broomclose. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Norwich. Value, £316. Patron, Lord Sondes. The church was rebuilt by Herbert, the first bishop of Norwich; is cruciform; has a lofty tower and slender spire; contains some fine monuments; and is in substantial condition. There is an Independent chapel. Church lands yield £74; an endowed school has £20; and other charities have £16.—The sub-district contains also thirteen other parishes. Acres, 18, 387. Pop., 4, 626. Houses, 1, 002.

(John Marius Wilson, Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales (1870-72))