Corringham is a town and former

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in the unitary authority area of

Thurrock Thurrock () is a unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Essex, England. It lies on the north bank of the River ...

, in the ceremonial county of

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

, England, located directly next to the town of

Stanford-le-Hope Stanford-le-Hope is a town, former civil parish and Church of England parish in the unitary authority area of Thurrock, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. Often known locally simply as Stanford, the town is located 24 miles (38.4&nbs ...

, about east of

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and south of

Basildon Basildon ( ) is a town in Borough of Basildon, the borough of the same name, in the county of Essex, England. It had a recorded population of 115,955 at the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census. In 1931, the town had a population of 1,159. ...

. Corringham lies on a hill overlooking the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...

between

Canvey Island Canvey Island is a town, civil parish and reclaimed island in the Thames Estuary, near Southend-on-Sea, in the Castle Point district, in the county of Essex, England. It has an area of and a population of 38,170.Office for National Statistics. ...

and Tilbury Fort. It is north-east of Grays, the administrative centre of Thurrock. Corringham is also a

Church of England parish The parish with its parish church(es) is the basic territorial unit of the Church of England. The parish has its roots in the Roman Catholic Church and survived the English Reformation largely untouched. Each is within one of 42 dioceses: divide ...

stretching from Horseshoe Bay in the

Thames Estuary The Thames Estuary is where the River Thames meets the waters of the North Sea, in the south-east of Great Britain. Limits An estuary can be defined according to different criteria (e.g. tidal, geographical, navigational or in terms of salinit ...

to Dry Street, south of Langdon Hills. St Mary the Virgin Church is the first of its two parish churches, and originated in the Saxon period from the time of

St Cedd Cedd (; 620 – 26 October 664) was an Anglo-Saxon monk and bishop from the Kingdom of Northumbria. He was an evangelist of the Middle Angles and East Saxons in England and a significant participant in the Synod of Whitby, a meeting which re ...

in the 7th century. Corringham was formerly served by the Corringham Light Railway which connected the

Kynoch Kynoch was a manufacturer of ammunition that was later incorporated into ICI, but remained as a brand name for sporting cartridges. History The firm of Pursall and Phillips operated a 'percussion cap manufactory' at Whittall Street, in Birmin ...

munitions factory with the

London, Tilbury and Southend Railway The London, Tilbury and Southend Railway (LT&SR), was a British railway company, whose network connected Fenchurch Street railway station, Fenchurch Street station, in central London, with destinations in east London and Essex, including , , , T ...

. The small historic heart is one of the seven conservation areas in the borough, which is for local government matters a unitary authority. Today, the town is located close to the A13.

History

Early history of Corringham

In 1970 excavations took place at the site of the old railway terminus, south of

Fobbing Fobbing is a small village and former civil parish in Thurrock, Essex, England, and one of Thurrock's traditional (Church of England) parishes. It is between Basildon and Corringham, and is also close to Stanford-le-Hope. In 1931 the parish ...

Road, revealing the remains of

Mesolithic The Mesolithic (Ancient Greek language, Greek: μέσος, ''mesos'' 'middle' + λίθος, ''lithos'' 'stone') or Middle Stone Age is the Old World archaeological period between the Upper Paleolithic and the Neolithic. The term Epipaleolithic i ...

(Middle Stone Age) tools.

Saxon period

It is likely that where the church stands today, Curra the Tribal Chief of the Saxons came with mercenaries following and replacing Roman soldiers of the 1st and 2nd centuries, who then over the following centuries settled as permanent residents of Corringham. By the 7th century Corringham would have had a Saxon community, and it is thought that

, who established Tilbury Monastery in AD 653, established a church here. The last

Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

Lord of Corringham was known as Sigar in 1066, and is mentioned in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

of 1086 as holding 1 manor, 4 hides and 10 acres.

Origin of the name

The place-name 'Corringham' is first attested in the

of 1086, where it appears as ''Currincham''. It appears as ''Curingeham'' in the

Feet of Fines A foot of fine (plural, feet of fines; Latin: ''pes finis''; plural, ''pedes finium'') is the archival copy of the agreement between two parties in an English lawsuit over land, most commonly the fictitious suit (in reality a conveyance) known a ...

for 1204. The name means 'the village of Curra's people'.

Parish church, St Mary the Virgin

St Mary the Virgin Church is of

origin, exterior herringbone stonework in both the nave and the chancel. can be seen. There are other Saxon features inside the church. The tower is also likely to be Saxon. From the 7th century a wooden structure was erected here where the nave is situated today, this would have been similar in construction to that of Greensted Church near Ongar in Essex, around the 9th century Viking raids on Corringham meant that the church was reinforced by building 3' thick walls around the structure,

Normans, Bishop Odo, and the Baud family

With the Norman invasion of England in 1066, Corringham came under Norman rule, and was owned and administered by Bishop Odo who was bishop of London. The church underwent a building programme around the year 1100, with the west tower being built around this time. Inside St Mary the Virgin Church, at the arched entrance to the west tower, a Norman carving of a Norman complete with moustache can be seen; it is possible this depicts Bishop Odo. The Baud Family originally from Germany came over with

William the Conqueror William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was D ...

in 1066, and became landowners in Corringham, mentioned in 1210, soon after gaining hunting rights.

Mariners and smugglers

Corringham, being situated in close proximity to the marshes and the Thames, has always had a connection to the movement of goods and shipping. One ancient pathway which still exists passes from the coast, through the cemetery and to the side of the Bull Inn, and then continues on to

Hadleigh Castle Hadleigh Castle is a ruined fortification in the English county of Essex, overlooking the Thames Estuary from south of the town of Hadleigh. Built after 1215 during the reign of Henry III by Hubert de Burgh, the castle was surrounded by par ...

and

South Benfleet South Benfleet is a town in the Castle Point district of Essex, England, 30 miles east of London. It is adjacent to the village of North Benfleet. The Benfleet (SS7) post town includes South Benfleet, Thundersley, New Thundersley and Hadleigh, ...

Governance

In terms of electoral wards (areas of boroughs drawn to contain equal-sized electorates), the town is part of Stanford East and Corringham Town. On 1 April 1936 the parish was abolished to form Thurrock; part also went to

Bowers Gifford Bowers Gifford is a small village within the district of Borough of Basildon, Basildon, in Essex, England. It is located to the east of Pitsea and to the west of South Benfleet. Bowers Gifford was formerly a civil parish, however it is now part ...

Demography

In 1931 the parish had a population of 1,897.

Schools

*Ortu Corringham Primary School, Herd Lane *Giffards Primary School, Queen Elizabeth Drive *Graham James Primary School, The Sorrells *

Ortu Gable Hall School Ortu Gable Hall School (formerly Gable Hall School) is an oversubscribed coeducational secondary school academy and sixth form located in Corringham (near Stanford-Le-Hope) in Thurrock, Essex, England. Previously a foundation school administer ...

, Southend Road. A specialist performing arts and applied learning college.

Sport and leisure

Corringham had a

non-League football Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is ...

club, East Thurrock United F.C. who played at Rookery Hill but went into liquidation in 2023

Notable people

Mark-Anthony Turnage Mark-Anthony Turnage (born 10 June 1960) is an English composer of contemporary classical music. Life and career Mark-Anthony Turnage was born in Corringham, Essex on 10 June 1960. Turnage was the eldest of three children. His parents were lov ...

– composer * Michael Stanley – Samoan international rugby player, educated at Gable Hall School * Denise Van Outen – actress, singer and television presenter * Rylan Clark-Neal – television presenter,

reality TV Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 199 ...

star, singer,

LGBT LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The gro ...

advocate, model

References

{{Authority control Towns in Essex Populated places on the River Thames Former civil parishes in Essex Thurrock