Heybridge, Maldon

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Heybridge
St Andrews church, Heybridge (geograph 4179589).jpg
St Andrews Church, Heybridge
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Heybridge
Location within Essex
Population8,163 (Parish, 2021) [1]
OS grid reference TL857081
Civil parish
  • Heybridge
District
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town MALDON
Postcode district CM9
Dialling code 01621
Police Essex
Fire Essex
Ambulance East of England
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Essex
51°44′30″N0°41′23″E / 51.7417°N 0.6897°E / 51.7417; 0.6897

Heybridge is a large village and civil parish in the Maldon district of Essex, England. It is adjacent to the town of Maldon, near the River Blackwater. [2] The parish had a population of 8,163 in 2021. [1]

Contents

Heybridge has a number of residential areas, most recognisable is the newer Bovis housing estates 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 settlement and ritual complex, a large Roman settlement and a succeeding Saxon settlement, as well as scattered pre-historic remains. [3] Along the Goldhanger road to the east are situated a number of traditional British holiday campsites, 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. [4] 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 in 991 AD. This belief, however, is contentious. The site of the battle cannot be unambiguously determined from the poem The Battle of Maldon itself, [5] 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 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. [6] Prior to the First World War, Bentalls moved into the new world of the Automobile, producing their first car, the Bentall 9hp in 1908, with production ending in 1912. [6]

By 1914 Bentalls had 600–700 employees. During the first world war 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 association. After A G E went bust in 1933 Bentalls gradually began to recover. [7]

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. [7]

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, district and county level: Heybridge Parish Council, Maldon District Council and Essex County Council. Heybridge Parish Council is based at Plantation Hall, a community centre on Colchester Road. [8]

Heybridge was an ancient parish. 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 of Maldon; a more rural part of the old parish was transferred instead to the neighbouring parish of Great Totham. [9] The borough was in turn abolished in 1974, being replaced by the larger Maldon District. [10] No successor parish was created for the former borough and so it became an unparished area. A new parish of Heybridge was created in 1987 covering the part of the former borough of Maldon north of the River Blackwater. [11] In 2020 a separate parish of Heybridge Basin was created from part of the parish of Heybridge. [12]

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 Chelmer and Blackwater canal at Heybridge Chelmer navigation Heybridge.jpg
The Chelmer and Blackwater canal at Heybridge

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 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 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, 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. [13]

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. [7] In 1873 he built a large Italianate 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. [14] Today the site is occupied by the Towers Estate.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation</span>

The Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation is the canalisation of the Rivers Chelmer and Blackwater in Essex, in the east of England. The navigation runs for 13.75 miles (22.13 km) from Springfield Basin in Chelmsford to the sea lock at Heybridge Basin near Maldon. Initial plans faced spirited opposition from Maldon, which were overcome by avoiding the town and terminating at Heybridge, and the navigation opened in 1797. There were some teething problems, and the engineer John Rennie was called back on two occasions to recommend improvements. The impact of the railways was less severe than on many canals, as there was never a direct line between Chelmsford and Maldon. The sea lock at Heybridge was enlarged after the Second World War, but trade gradually declined and ceased in 1972.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chelmsford</span> City in Essex, England

Chelmsford is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Southend-on-Sea and Colchester. It is located 30 miles north-east of London at Charing Cross and 22 miles south-west of Colchester. The population of the urban area was 125,000 in the 2021 Census, while the wider district has 181,763.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tollesbury</span> A village in Essex, England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maldon</span> Town in Essex, England

Maldon 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 produced in the area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maldon District</span> Non-metropolitan district in England

Maldon District is a local government district in Essex, England. The council is based in the town of Maldon, after which the district is named. The district also includes the town of Burnham-on-Crouch and numerous villages, including Heybridge, Wickham Bishops, Southminster, Tolleshunt D'Arcy and Tollesbury. The district covers the Dengie peninsula in the south, as well as the Thurstable Hundred area to the north of the Blackwater Estuary, a total area of 358.78 km2.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City of Chelmsford</span> Local government district in Essex, England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Blackwater, Essex</span> River in Essex, England

The River Blackwater is a river in Essex, England. It rises as the River Pant in the northwest of the county, just east of Saffron Walden, and flows in a generally southeast direction to Bocking, near Braintree, via Great Sampford and Great Bardfield. At Bocking, it becomes the River Blackwater, and veers east to flow past Bradwell Juxta Coggeshall and Coggeshall. It then veers south, flowing past Kelvedon and Witham, before reaching Maldon. There, it veers east again and empties into the Blackwater Estuary, which in turn meets the North Sea at Mersea Island.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heybridge Swifts F.C.</span> Association football club in England

Heybridge Swifts Football Club is a football club based in Heybridge, near Maldon, Essex, England. They are currently members of the Isthmian League North Division and play at Scraley Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maldon (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom 1801-1983 & 2010 onwards

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Museum of Power</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tolleshunt D'Arcy</span> Village in Essex, England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Chelmer</span> River in Essex, England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maldon East and Heybridge railway station</span> Former railway station in England

Maldon East and Heybridge railway station served the town of Maldon and village of Heybridge in Essex, England. It was opened in 1848 by the Maldon, Witham & Braintree Railway (MWBR) on a branch line from Witham to Maldon. It was originally named Maldon but was renamed Maldon East in 1889 and then Maldon East and Heybridge in 1907.

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Edward Hammond Bentall was an English designer of ploughs and agricultural equipment and a Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1868 to 1874.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heybridge Basin</span> Human settlement in England

Heybridge Basin is a village and civil parish about 1 mile from Maldon, in the Maldon district, in the county of Essex, England. In 2018 the built up area had an estimated population of 732. The parish was formerly part of Heybridge parish, on 1 April 2020 it became a separate parish.

E. H. Bentall & Co.Ltd. was a British company, that primarily made agricultural equipment in Heybridge, Essex before moving for a short period into automobile production. The company's cars were manufactured between 1906 until production stopped in 1912, with a total of 100 cars made. The company would later become part of the ill-fated Agricultural & General Engineers group, before being saved from the administrators by the Bentall family. It would later become part of the Acrow group who merged it with Simplex to create Bentall Simplex. In 1984 Acrow went into administration, the new owners TB Group closed the Heybridge factory.

References

  1. 1 2 "Heybridge Parish". City Population. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  2. ↑ Office for National Statistics : Census 2001 : Parish headcounts : Maldon Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 19 August 2010
  3. ↑ Atkinson, Mark; Preston, Stephen J. (2015). "Heybridge: A late Iron Age and Roman settlement. Excavations at Elms Farm 1993-5. Volume 2". Internet Archaeology (40). doi: 10.11141/ia.40.1 .
  4. ↑ Fitch, Edward Arthur: Maldon and the River Blackwater. Gowers, 1894.
  5. ↑ "The Battle of Maldon". Lightspill. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  6. 1 2 Michael Worthington Williams (August 1987). "The Bentall Car made in Heybridge". The Automobile.
  7. 1 2 3 "It's about Maldon – EH Bentall & Co, Heybridge" . Retrieved 15 May 2009.
  8. ↑ "Heybridge Parish Council". Maldon District Council. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  9. ↑ "Heybridge Ancient Parish / Civil Parish". A Vision of Britain through Time. GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  10. ↑ "The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972", legislation.gov.uk , The National Archives, SI 1972/2039, retrieved 19 May 2023
  11. ↑ "The Maldon (Parishes) Order 1986" (PDF). Local Government Boundary Commission for England. The National Archives. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  12. ↑ "The Maldon District Council (Reorganisation of Community Governance) (Heybridge Parish - Basin Ward) Order 2019" (PDF). Local Government Boundary Commission for England. The National Archives. Retrieved 15 September 2023.
  13. ↑ "A brief history of "our" Waring Rooms..." Archived from the original on 15 May 2008. Retrieved 14 May 2009.
  14. ↑ Lacey, Patrick: Maldon And Heybridge. Chalford, 1996
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