Heybridge is a large village and
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
Maldon
Maldon (, locally ) is a town and civil parish on the Blackwater Estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon District and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It is known for Maldon Sea Salt which is prod ...
district 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. It is adjacent to the town of
Maldon
Maldon (, locally ) is a town and civil parish on the Blackwater Estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon District and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It is known for Maldon Sea Salt which is prod ...
, near the
River Blackwater. The parish had a population of 8,163 in 2021.
[
Heybridge has a number of residential areas, most recognisable is the newer Bovis ]housing estate
A housing estate (or sometimes housing complex, housing development, subdivision (land), subdivision or community) is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to count ...
s to the west of the town, which were built in 1995. Before building commenced, a full archaeological dig was undertaken and the excavations showed the existence of an important Iron Age
The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...
settlement and ritual complex, a large Roman settlement and a succeeding 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 ...
settlement, as well as scattered pre-historic remains. Along the Goldhanger road to the east are situated a number of traditional British holiday campsite
Campsite, campground, and camping pitch are all related terms regarding a place used for camping (an overnight stay in an outdoor area). The usage differs between British English and American English.
In British English, a ''campsite'' is an ...
s, catering for both permanent residents and visitors.
History
Heybridge was originally called ''Tidwalditun''. The name ''Heybridge'' came from the high bridge that was built over the River Blackwater in the Middle Ages, at Heybridge Square (the junction of Heybridge Street, Holloway Road, and the Causeway). This was a 5-arched stone bridge and it was replaced in 1870 by a 2-arched brick one. Much of the water flow down this part of the river had, by then, been diverted into the River Chelmer by diversion work done during construction of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation.
Some people believe that the River Blackwater at Heybridge, near where the "high bridge" was later constructed, was the site of the Battle of Maldon
The Battle of Maldon took place on 10 or 11 August 991 AD near Maldon, Essex, Maldon beside the River Blackwater, Essex, River Blackwater in Essex, England, during the reign of Æthelred the Unready. Earl Byrhtnoth and his thegns led the En ...
in 991 AD. This belief, however, is contentious. The site of the battle cannot be unambiguously determined from the poem ''The Battle of Maldon
"The Battle of Maldon" is the name given to an Old English Old English literature, poem of uncertain date celebrating the real Battle of Maldon of 991, at which an Anglo-Saxon army failed to repulse a Viking raid. Only 325 lines of the poem are ...
'' itself, and over the years, various people have had different theories about where it happened. The key role of an island in the poem would seem to make the traditional site of the battle at Northey Island to the south more likely. The island in question is within shouting distance of the mainland, which would rule out Osea Island
Osea Island (, "Osyth's island"), formerly also Osey, is an inhabited island in the Blackwater Estuary, estuary of the River Blackwater, Essex, East England. It is approximately in size and is connected to the north bank of the river by a caus ...
to the east.
Heybridge was an agricultural village until the 1970s and 80s, when a considerable proportion of the local farm land was given over to house building. The main industry in Heybridge itself, until it ceased trading in 1984, was the agricultural machinery manufacturer E. H. Bentall & Co. William Bentall, some time between 1760 and 1790 invented the Goldhanger plough, which was put on the market in 1797. The company was established in 1805 on the south bank of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation, and grew into a large factory complex that operated for nearly 180 years. Prior to the First World War, Bentalls moved into the new world of the Automobile
A car, or an automobile, is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of cars state that they run primarily on roads, Car seat, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport private transport#Personal transport, peopl ...
, producing their first car, the Bentall 9hp in 1908, with production ending in 1912.[
By 1914 ''Bentalls'' had 600–700 employees. During the ]first world war
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
they took on female workers for the first time, and the workshop was equipped with pneumatic hoists. After the war, though, the fortunes of the company declined – largely due to its involvement in the Agricultural & General Engineers
Agricultural & General Engineers Limited (AGE) was a holding company formed on 4 June 1919 during a postwar economic "boom" to combine five British engineering companies: Aveling & Porter, E H Bentall, Blackstone, Richard Garrett and J & F Howard. ...
association. After A G E went bust in 1933 Bentalls gradually began to recover.
In 1961 E H Bentall and Co was taken over by the Acrow group. Acrows went into receivership in 1984 and Bentalls factory closed down.
Bentalls started life in the large building which still stands on the canal bank near the corner of Hall Road and Heybridge Street. It expanded across the road, eventually occupying all the land between Heybridge Street and the canal, with the exception of the site of the flour mill at Going's wharf, adjacent to the Wave bridge. In the early 1970s, a new factory complex was built on the other side of the canal, on land where Bentalls had previously had only offices and a foundry, and the land along Heybridge Street was vacated. Today, the ''Bentalls shopping centre'' occupies the later site.
Governance
There are three tiers of local government covering Heybridge, at 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 ...
, district
A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...
and county
A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...
level: Heybridge Parish Council, Maldon District Council
Maldon (, locally ) is a town and civil parish on the Blackwater Estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon District and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It is known for Maldon Sea Salt which is produc ...
and Essex County Council
Essex County Council is the county council that governs the non-metropolitan county of Essex in England. The non-metropolitan county is smaller than the ceremonial county; the non-metropolitan county excludes Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock which ...
. Heybridge Parish Council is based at Plantation Hall, a community centre on Colchester Road.
Heybridge was an ancient 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 1931 it had a population of 2,061. The parish was abolished in 1934, with most of the area, including the village, being absorbed into the neighbouring borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
...
of Maldon
Maldon (, locally ) is a town and civil parish on the Blackwater Estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon District and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It is known for Maldon Sea Salt which is prod ...
; a more rural part of the old parish was transferred instead to the neighbouring parish of Great Totham. The borough was in turn abolished in 1974, being replaced by the larger Maldon District. No successor parish was created for the former borough. A new parish of Heybridge was created in 1987 covering the part of the former borough of Maldon north of the River Blackwater. In 2020 a separate parish of Heybridge Basin was created from part of the parish of Heybridge.
Facilities
Heybridge's facilities include a number of takeaways, a small supermarket, chemist, vets and dentist; many are situated around the Bentall's Shopping Complex along the Colchester Road. The town is also home to the popular Heybridge Swifts football club, currently competing in the Isthmian League Division One North.
Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation Canal
The final stage of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation Canal runs from Beeleigh through Heybridge and terminates at Heybridge Basin. This stage of the canal required much planning and work at its inception, as a constant running water supply was needed to the two mills nearby, in Langford and Heybridge. This was achieved through the diversion of the river Blackwater and extensive works around the Beeleigh locks.
The Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation Canal was originally used to transport coal & wood to the inland town of Chelmsford, as the direct road via Danbury crests the highest hill in south Essex. The canal was used for this purpose until the late 70s although it had been in steady decline since the Great Eastern Railway
The Great Eastern Railway (GER) was a pre-grouping British railway company, whose main line linked London Liverpool Street to Norwich and which had other lines through East Anglia. The company was grouped into the London and North Eastern R ...
opened its lines to Maldon in the 19th century. Today it is mainly used for pleasure boats and fishing.
Sports and recreation
Heybridge has 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 Heybridge Swifts F.C. who play at Scraley Road.
Heybridge has a King George's Field (or Plantation) in memorial to King George V
George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936.
George was born during the reign of his pa ...
, which is locally, and colloquially, known as ''the Planny'.
Notable people
Francis Waring (1760–1833) was the vicar of Heybridge. He was notorious for the extraordinary way he performed the duties of his office. He would read church lessons at breakneck speed, give a very quick sermon of one or two sentences and then run down the aisle and leap onto a horse to gallop off and repeat the performance at two other churches in the area.
His domestic arrangements were equally peculiar. Although he wasn't poor, his vicarage was furnished with rough-hewn logs, instead of chairs. His children ate their meals from a trough next to the split-log dining table. He and his wife slept in an enormous wicker cradle suspended from the ceiling.
The ''Waring Room'', St Andrew's church hall, is named after him.
Edward Hammond Bentall (1814–1898) was an industrialist who developed the agricultural machinery manufacturing business established by his father William Bentall (1776–1836) and traded under the name ''E H Bentall & Co''. In 1873 he built a large Italianate
The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style combined its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century It ...
house called ''The Towers'' at the corner of Goldhanger Road and Colchester Road. The house pioneered concrete block construction and was built with ducted air heating and no fireplaces, although some were added later. The house was demolished in the 1950s.[Lacey, Patrick: ''Maldon And Heybridge''. Chalford, 1996] Today the site is occupied by the ''Towers Estate''.
References
External links
Christian Outreach Centre Heybridge and Maldon
meets at the church on Broad Street Green
Heybridge Swifts
The Heybridge Basin
Heybridge Youth Football Club
Heybridge Parish Council
Heybridge Basin
About Heybridge Basin
1st Heybridge Scout Group
The award winning Heybridge Primary School website!
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Villages in Essex
Maldon District
Civil parishes in Essex