Terrel's Heath

Last updated

Terrel's Heath
Essex UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Terrel's Heath
Location within Essex
OS grid reference TQ6381
Unitary authority
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Police Essex
Fire Essex
Ambulance East of England
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Essex
51°29′N0°22′E / 51.49°N 00.36°E / 51.49; 00.36

Terrel's Heath is, in spite of its name, an area of woodland in Chadwell St Mary named on the 1938 six-inch Ordnance Survey map. [1]

Contents

Location and description

An ancient bank and ditch separates Woodside school (on the left) from Terrel's Heath (on the right). Woodside and Tyrells Heath.jpg
An ancient bank and ditch separates Woodside school (on the left) from Terrel's Heath (on the right).

Terrel's Heath is adjacent to Woodside Primary School in Little Thurrock. Separating Terrel's Heath from Woodside School is an ancient bank and ditch that marks the boundary between the traditional parishes of Chadwell St Mary and Little Thurrock. [2] It can be accessed only from the bridle path [3] which runs from Chadwell St Mary, across nearby Orsett Heath to Hangman's Wood, part of the ancient route from Coalhouse Point in East Tilbury to the bridge or causeway at Aveley. [4] It is deciduous woodland, almost entirely oak with bluebells in the spring, often an indicator of ancient (unplanted) woodland. [5]

Name

The name Terrel's heath dates back to at least the mid 17th century when it was recorded (as Tirells Heath) on an estate map. The place-name element "Terrel's" may relates to either the Tyrrel family of Essex or the Torel family. [6] The element "Heath" may relate either to a time when it was not wooded or to include the surrounding area which was until comparatively recently typical heathland. The Tyrell's family were sponsors of All Saints Church, East Horndon where many family members are buried. It was the family name which was adopted as the original name both the junior and infant schools which later became Woodside Primary School, Grays while the adjacent Secondary School was known as "Torells". The young 19th Century diarist Martha Randall [7] wrote "Tirrels heath" when describing a November walk on the Heath which was close to her home at Heath Place Farm.

History

Terrel's Heath was given to Thurrock Council by the Baker family of Orsett Hall and is now a public open space. It was considerably reduced in size by the construction of the Dock Relief Road which connects the Port of Tilbury with the A13. This road now separates Terrel's Heath from the larger Orsett Heath. Before the road and before the nearby housing estates were there Terrel's Heath would have been part of a large swathe of heathland interspaced with woodland. This included Biggin Heath (heathland belonging to the manor of Biggin), Chadwell Heath (heathland belonging to the manor of Chadwell St Mary, not the place near Romford), Mucking Heath, Orsett Heath, Socketts Heath and Terrel's Heath all of which were on high ground compared to the nearby marsh and had poor sandy soil with underlying gravel and chalk. [8] Heathland is maintained by animal grazing which prevents the growth of trees or large bushes. If the land ceases to be used for grazing, it reverts to woodland. [9] Terrel's Heath was apparently still being grazed in 1840 when Champion Branfill wrote to William Wigfield on the subject of “rights of pasturage on Tyrrells heath”. [10]

Related Research Articles

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

Thurrock is a unitary authority area with borough status in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames immediately east of London and has over 18 miles (29 km) of riverfront including the Port of Tilbury, the principal port for London. Thurrock is within the London commuter belt and is an area of regeneration within the Thames Gateway redevelopment zone. The borough includes the northern ends of the Dartford Crossing.

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

Grays is the largest town in the borough and unitary authority area of Thurrock, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. The town, which is both a former civil parish and one of Thurrock's traditional Church of England parishes, is located on the north bank of the River Thames.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tilbury</span> Port town in Essex, England

Tilbury is a port town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. The present town was established as separate settlement in the late 19th century, on land that was mainly part of Chadwell St Mary. It contains a 16th century fort and an ancient cross-river ferry. Tilbury is part of the Port of London with a major deep-water port which contributes to the local economy. Situated 24 miles (38.5 km) east of central London and 23 miles (37 km) southwest of Southend-on-Sea, it is the southernmost point in Essex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thurrock (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1945 onwards

Thurrock is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Jen Craft of the Labour Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Basildon and East Thurrock (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 2010 onwards

South Basildon and East Thurrock is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by James McMurdock of Reform UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chadwell St Mary</span> Human settlement in England

Chadwell St Mary is an area of the unitary authority of Thurrock in Essex, England. It is one of the traditional parishes in Thurrock and a former civil parish. Grays is 2 miles (3.2 km) to the west and 1 mile (1.6 km) to the south is Tilbury. The area is sometimes referred to simply as Chadwell, particularly before the 19th century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thurrock Urban District</span>

Thurrock was a local government district and civil parish in south Essex, England from 1936 to 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Tilbury</span> Village in England

West Tilbury is a village and former civil parish in the Thurrock district, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It is on the top of and on the sides of a 30 metres (98 ft) tall river terrace overlooking the River Thames. Part of the modern town of Tilbury is within the traditional parish of West Tilbury. In 1931 the parish had a population of 444. On 1 April 1936 the parish was abolished to form Thurrock.

Orsett Rural District was a local government district centred on Orsett in the south Essex part of the Thames Estuary in England. It was a rural district from 1894 to 1936, initially made up of seventeen civil parishes and the successor to the Orsett Rural Sanitary District. Parts of the district were split off to form Tilbury in 1912, Purfleet in 1929 and Billericay in 1934. Thurrock Urban District was the main successor district in 1936. Today it corresponds to the Thurrock unitary authority area with parts in Basildon, Essex and Havering, Greater London.

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

Orsett is a village, former civil parish and ecclesiastical parish located within Thurrock unitary district in Essex, England, it is north-east of Grays. In 2011 the ward had a population of 6,115.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Tilbury</span> Village in Essex, England

East Tilbury is a village and former civil parish in the unitary authority of Thurrock borough, Essex, England, and one of the traditional Church of England parishes in Thurrock. In 2011 the ward had a population of 6,363.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hangman's Wood and Deneholes</span>

Hangman's Wood and Deneholes is a 3-hectare (7.4-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Little Thurrock in Essex. The deneholes, which were created by medieval chalk mining, are a Scheduled Monument.

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

Little Thurrock is an area, ward, former civil parish and Church of England parish in the town of Grays, in the unitary authority of Thurrock, Essex. In 1931 the parish had a population of 4428.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Gateway Academy</span> Academy in Grays, Essex, England

The Gateway Academy, formerly The Gateway Community College, is a coeducational academy secondary school in Grays, Essex, England. It became an academy in 2006 under the sponsorship of the Ormiston Trust after Thurrock Council was unable to find the resources to provide a new building. It was previously a successful fresh start school which was created from two failing secondary schools; Torells School in Grays and St Chad's School in Tilbury. It is currently a part of The Gateway Learning Community (GLC) but has retained its Ormiston sponsorship.

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

Orsett Heath is a location and recently built hamlet in the unitary authority area of Thurrock, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It is located about twenty miles away from London. Nearby settlements include the towns of Tilbury and Grays and the villages of Orsett and Chadwell St Mary. For transport there is the A13 road, the A1089 road and the A1013 road nearby. The nearest railway station is Tilbury Town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Biggin, Essex</span> Human settlement in England

Biggin is a hamlet and manor in Chadwell St Mary, part of the borough of Thurrock, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It is about 2 miles (3.2 km) north of the town of Tilbury and a similar distance east of Grays.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orsett Heath Academy</span> Free school in Grays, Essex, England

The Orsett Heath Academy is a coeducational secondary free school academy in Grays, Essex, England. It is the newest member of the South West Essex Community Education Trust and was built under the leadership of nearby William Edwards School. Plans to build the new school were approved in April 2017 and it opened in September 2020. Simon Bell of William Edwards is the executive headteacher and the head of school is Sian Rawson. The school models William Edwards' curriculum and specialism in sports. It also originally had an additional specialism in the arts.

References

  1. Old Maps Archived 2008-11-21 at the Wayback Machine
  2. Matthews, John, 2007, The Chadwell Parish Boundary (in Panorama, The Journal of the Thurrock Local History Society, Number 45, page 57)
  3. Thurrock Council, 2007, Thurrock Rights of Way, Thurrock Council
  4. Benton, Tony (1991). Boldly from the marshes. Thurrock Council. pp. 86–87.
  5. Woodland Trust
  6. In The Place-names of Essex, PH Reaney says that nearby Terrells Hall (in Little Thurrock) is related to the family of William Torel
  7. Bingley, Randall (2000). The nightingales were singing: the diary of Martha Randall of Orsett, 1858-61. Thurrock Museum.
  8. South Essex: landscape and memory
  9. Rackham, Oliver (1997). The History of the Countryside. Phoenix. p. 282.
  10. Benton, Tony (1991). Boldly from the marshes. Thurrock Council. p. 9.