POST OFFICE DIRECTORY OF ESSEX, HERTS, MIDDLESEX KENT ; CORRECTED TO THE TIME OF PUBLICATION. r LONDON: PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY KELLY AND CO,, OLD BOSWELL COURT, ST. CLEMENT'S, STRAND. W.C. 1862. PREFACE. TIIE Proprietors, in submitting to their Subscribers and the Public the present (being the Fifth) Edition of the Six HOME COUNTIES DIRECTORY, trust that it may • be found to be equal in accuracy to the previous Editions. Several additions have been made to the present volume : lists of Hundreds and Poor Law Unions have been included in the Topography of each County; it is stated under each Parish in what Hundred, Union and County Court District it is situate, as well as the Diocese, Archdeaconry and Rural Deanery; and the College and University of every Beneficed Clergyman have been given. The Post Office Savings Banks have been noticed; the names of the Parish Clerks are given under each Parish ; and lists of Farm Bailiffs of gentlemen farming their own land have been added. / The bulk of the Directory has again increased considerably: the Third Edition consisted of 1,420 pages; the Fourth had increased to 1,752 pages; and the present contains 1,986 pages. The value of the Directory, however, will depend principally on the fact that it has been most carefully corrected, every parish having been personally visited by the Agents during the last six months. The Proprietors have again to return their thanks to the Clergymen, Clerks of the Peace, Magistrates' Clerks, Registrars, and other Gentlemen who have assisted the Agents while collecting the information. 18 TO 22, OLD BORWET-L COURT, ST. CLEMENT'S, STRAND, LONDON, W.C. September, 186*2. •i * EoC ! Qo T±1?i "AV . • , I ESSEX is one of the metropolitan shires, and takes its name highest hills of the London clay are High Beech, near from the commonwealth of the East Saxons (one of the Waltham Abbey, 760 feet high ; Danbury, 700 feet high ; English hordes which settled in South Britain), and of which Tiptree Heath, near Witham, 700 feet high, and Laingdon Middlesex, London, and Hertfordshire afterwards formed hills, 620 feet high. part. After the Euskardians and Celts had been driven out, It appears that, next to the Church of England, the most it was held by the Belg-ic tribe of the Trinobantes until the powerful sects are the Independents, and then the Baptists Roman inroad. Of the Romans it was a great seat, and and Methodists. here was their city of Camulodunum. The Welsh again Essex, of which Chelmsford is the assize town, is in the becoming masters, were driven out by the East Saxons. The Home Circuit, and in the district of the London Court of chief clans concerned in the settlement were the Tilling^ Bankrupty. Part of Becontree hundred, viz., Barking, East Hailing, Denning, Thurring, Benning, Billing, Horning, Hain, West Ham, Little Ilford, Low Levton, Walthamstow, Manning', Totting, Bucking*, and Dunning, being the same Wanstead, St. Mary Woodford, and Cbingford, is within as those engaged in the settlement of East Anglia. In S&3 the bounds of the Central Criminal Court and Metropolitan it came under the sway of the West Saxons under Egbert, Police, being suburbs of the metropolis. It is in two divi- though more than once given up to the Danes. In the great sions, each returning two members to Parliament—North, Civil War Essex sided with the Parliament, and formed a Essex, with a population of 189,435, of which Braintrec is powerful federation. the seat of election, and South Essex, with a population of The shire is of an irregular shape, being In its greatest 179,883, of which Chelmsford is the seat of election. The length, from north-east to south-west, 63 miles. It contains shire forms nineteen hundreds and one liberty. Each division 1,533 square miles, or 1,000,549 acres, being the tenth Eng- contains the following hundreds :—The Northern Division— lish shire for size. In 1851 its population was 369,318, being Clavering, Dunmow, Fresh well, Hinckford, Lexden, Tend- an increase of 24,339 over 1841. The number of houses in ing, Thurstable, Uttlesford, Winstree, and Witham ; and 1851 was 77,480 ; of males, 185,399 ; of females, 183,919. the Southern Division—Barstable, Beacontree, Chafford, On the east nnd south-east it is bounded by the North Sea j Chelmsford, Dengie, Harlow, Ongar, Rochford, and Wal- on the south by the Thames, which lies between it and Kent; tham ; and of the Liberty of Havering; and four boroughs on the west by the Lea against Middlesex, and by the IS tort —Colchester, Maldon, Harwich, and Saffron Walden; the against Hertfordshire ; on the north by the Cambridgeshire first three are parliamentary, and return two members each. border ; and on the north-east by the Stour against Suffolk, There are seventeen Unions—Billericay, Braintree, Chelms- Thus there is a navigable belt from Sudbury round by sea, ford, Colchester, Dunmow, Epping, Halstead, West Ham, and so to Bishop Stortford. On the east the shore is broken Lexden and Winstree, Maldon, Ongar, Orsett, Rochford, by the deep friths and creeks of the Stour, Colne, Black- Romford, Saffron Walden, Tend ring, and Witham, besides water, Croucb, and Thames. The Thames flows from Lon- townships under other shires. There are about 500 town- don to the North Sea, having several quays, but no great ships, of which 400 are parishes. The shire is ecclesiastically haven on the Essex shore. The Lea, and its head, the Stort, under the Bishop of Rochester, in the two archdeaconries of are navigable, passing through Bishop Stortford, Harlow, Colchester and Essex, with the exception of ten metro- and Waltham Abbey. The Boding rises in East on park, politan parishes, which are under the Bishop of London, and and runs for about 36 miles past Ongar, to liford, where Ballingdon, a suburb Sudbury, in Suffolk, which is in it becomes navigable, and, passing Barking, joins the the diocese of Ely, There are several good towns, as Col- Thames* The Bourne brook, 12 miles long, falls into the chester, Chelmsford, Braintree, Harwich, Maldon, Barking, Thames at Dagenham. The Ingerbourne rises in South Saffron Walden, Witham, Halstead, Romford, Brentwood, Weald, and falls in near Rainham ; the Marditch, 12 miles and Southend, besides market and small towns. There are long, forms a creek at Purfleet. The Crouch, 25 miles long, no cathedrals or great endowments, waters south-east Essex, and is navigable from Hull bridge The following is a list of the parishes in the Northern to the North Sea ; Bimiham is its port; and the Broomhill Division of the county, arranged according to the is a creek 10 miles long, and navigable tor 7 miles to near hundreds > Rochford. The Clielmer, 46 miles long, rising near Debden, Hundred of Clavering:—Berden, Clavering, Farnham, passes Dunmow and Chelmsford, where it is made navigable, Hen ham (part of), Lang-ley, Manuden, Started Mount- and flows to Maldon, its port, receiving the Ter, 13 miles fitchet (part of), and Uglev. long, the Wid and Cann, 14 miles long, and the Sand on Hundred of DunmowA thorp Roothing, Barnston, brook, 10 miles long. Near Mahlon it joins the Blackwater, Berners Roothing, Broxted, Chickney, Good Easter, Great which has for its feeder the Podsbroolc. The Colne, 35 miles Canfield, Great Dunmow, Great Easton, High Easter, High long, rises near Bird brook, becomes navigable at Colchester, Roothing, Leaden Roothing, Little Canfield, Little Dun- and, receiving the Iioman river, flows into the North Sea. mow, Little Easton, Margaret Roothing, Maslibury, The Holland creek fails into the North Sea at Little Plesliey, Shallow Bowells, Thaxted, Tilty, White Rooth- Holland. The Stour is about 50 miles long, becomes ing with the liamlet of Morrell Roothing, Willingale Doe, navigable at Sudbury, and passes the ports ofManningtree and Willingale Spain. and Harwich to the North Sea. In the north-west the Cam Hundred of Freshwell:—Ash don, Bard field, Saling, Great and Slade brooks pass into Cambridgeshire. Bard field, Great Sanipford, Hempstead, Little Bardfield, The shire has much rich meadow grounds on the shores Little Sampford, and Radwinter. t of the brooks, and marsh lands on the friths and creeks. Hundred of Hiuckford*Bocking, Braintrce, Castle On the shore are many marsh islands, like those of Holland ; Hedinghain, Felstead, lunchingfield, Gosfield, Great Canvey, Foulness, Wallasea, Mersea, Horsea, Haven gore, Muplestead, Great Suling, Great Yeldham, Halstead, Little and Potten, are the greatest. Much of the shore is shel- Maplestead, Little Yeidham, Panfield, Pebmarsh, Rayne, tered against the tides and storms by dikes and sea-walls, Ridgwell, Shaltbrd, Sible Hedingham, Stambourne, Stub- as it lies low. The inland is billy and well timbered. The bing, Stisted, Tilbury, Toppesfteld, and Wethersfield. [ESSEX.] 2 POST OFFICE Hundred of Lexden :—Aid ham (Withani division), Birch Eastwood, F)ulness, Great Stambridge, Great Wakering? (Colchester division), Boxted, Chapel or Pontisbright Hadleigh, Hawkwell, Hockley, Leigh, Little Stainbridge, {Witham division), Copford, Dedham (Colchester division), Little Wakering, North Shoebury, Paglesliam? Prittlewell, Earls Colne, East Donvland, Easthorpe, Erigaine Colne, Bawreth, Rayleigh, Rochf'ord, Shopland, Southchurch, (Witham division), Peering (Witham division), Ford ham South Fambridge, South Shoebury, Sutton, and Thundersley (Colchester division), Great Cosru;eshall (Withani division), (part of). Great Horksley, Great Tey, (Witham division), Inwortli, Hundred of Waltham:—Cliingford, Epping, Nazeing, (Witham division), Lang-liam, (Colchester division), Little Rovdon (part of), and Waltham Abbey or Waltham Holy Horkesley, (Colchester division), Little Tey, (Withani Cross. division)/ Marks Tey, (Witham division), Markshall The Liberty of Havering-atte-Bower includes Horn- (Witham division), Messing, Mount Bures (Colchester cliurch and Ro in ford. division), Pattiswick (Witham division), Stanway (Col- BILLERICAY UNION.