Author Archives: hurdler46

God’s Acre – St Laurence Churchyard

Posted on 03/04/2022 by hurdler46

By tradition known as “God’s Acre”, the parish churchyard is the place where generations of parishioners found their final resting place. The churchyard of St Laurence is no exception, with some gravestones and tombs dating back over three hundred years … Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster Buildings & Places | Tagged Branfill, Burial Laws, Churchyard vaults, James Knapton, Momento mori, Rev P M Holden, Rev Samuel Bradshaw, Rowe Family, St Laurence Church, T L Wilson, Upminster, Wooden grave boards | 1 Comment

Upminster: St Laurence, Parish Church

Posted on 20/01/2022 by hurdler46

“Among all the impressive objects that happy England can show, none are more interesting and elevating than her village churches”, wrote Upminster’s historian Thomas Lewis Wilson in 1856. Those comments certainly apply to Upminster’s St Laurence Church which, although much … Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster Buildings & Places | Tagged Battiscombe v Eve 1862, Bell tower, Brass rubbings, carved oak screen, Hamlet Clarke, John Kebyll bells, Manor of Gaynes, Ralph Latham, Richard Holdfield bell, Robert "Mouseman" Thompson, Robert Mot bell, Roger Deyncourt, Sir Charles Nicholson, Sir James Esdaile, Sir John Engayne, St Cedd, St Laurence Church, St Mary's Chapel, stained glass, Upminster, William Gibbs Bartleet | 1 Comment

Picturing the Branfill family

Posted on 11/12/2021 by hurdler46

The Branfill family of Upminster Hall were prominent landowners in Upminster for over two hundred years from 1685 but we have had no images to show us what they looked like. Upminster’s historian Thomas Lewis Wilson recorded a long list … Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster Buildings & Places, Upminster People & Events | Tagged Branfill, Braund family, Portraits, Portraits Photo Album Upminster Hall, T L Wilson, Upminster Hall | Leave a comment

Upminster: The Story of a Garden Suburb – 25 years on

Posted on 14/11/2021 by hurdler46

It hardly seems possible that it is now 25 years since Upminster: the Story of Garden Suburb was launched with a book signing in the Roomes Store on Station Road, Upminster on Saturday 9th November 1996.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Bell Inn, Garden Suburb, Gates Parish, Upminster | Leave a comment

Upminster Hall: manor and estate

Posted on 30/01/2021 by hurdler46

This is the third and final article about Upminster Hall, its owners, and the manor and estate.
Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster Buildings & Places | Tagged Copyhold tenure, Enclosures from waste, Great Tomkyns, Upminster Golf Club, Upminster Hall Manor | 12 Comments

Seven Years!

Posted on 21/12/2020 by hurdler46

It was seven years ago today, on 21 December 2013, that I launched this Upminster website and here we are 35 lengthy blog posts, around 100,000 words and around 70,000 website hits later we’re still going strong. When I started, … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Upminster Hall: owners and buildings

Posted on 25/10/2020 by hurdler46

Upminster Hall and its estate have a history that can be traced back almost a thousand years to before the Norman Conquest of 1066. Unlike Upminster’s other main manor, Gaynes, which frequently changed hands before it was split up and … Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster Buildings & Places | Tagged 49 Wing HQ RFC, Branfill, George Wiseman, Goldsmiths, Ralph Latham, Timber framed building, Upminster Estates, Upminster Golf Club, Upminster Hall Manor, Upminster Tithe Barn, Waltham Abbey, William Garbutt Key | 3 Comments

The Branfills at Upminster Hall

Posted on 04/08/2020 by hurdler46

The aftermath of the recent Black Lives Matters protests has thrown a spotlight on historic figures who had links with the slave trade. Upminster has not escaped this scrutiny which has brought to light unpleasant local connections with the Branfills … Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster People & Events | Tagged Andrew Branfill, Benjamin Branfill artist, Branfill, Braund family, Champion Branfill, Champion slave ship, Guinea man, John Harrison EIC, Rev James Bearblock, Robert James East India Company, Royal African Company, Upminster Hall, Upminster Hall Manor | 6 Comments

South Upminster: gravel pits and ancient bits

Posted on 30/04/2020 by hurdler46

The part of Upminster which stretches south from Corbets Tey, bordered on the west by Rainham, by North Ockendon to the east and Aveley to the south and south-west, has few inhabitants and a landscape scarred by past and present … Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster Buildings & Places | Tagged archaeological investigations, Bramble Farm, Bush Farm, Chafford Heath, Cockhide Farm, gravel pits, Heath Farm, Hunts Hill Farm, John Lowen DD, market gardening, Snows & Elders Farm, Thomas Barrett Lennard, Upminster, Whitehall Woods | 1 Comment

Big houses and farms around Corbets Tey

Posted on 27/03/2020 by hurdler46

The two previous items about Corbets Tey have looked at the village and the area around Hacton. This third piece looks at four large houses and farms around the village centre, three of which still survive, and shines a light … Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster Buildings & Places | Tagged #Ditched enclosure, #Frith family, #Great or New Sunnings, #Harwood Hall, #Iron Age settlement, #Isaac Matthews Gay, #Little Sunnings, #London's, #P Z Cox, #Philip Macham's Charity, #Potash Making, #Sullens, Sir James Esdaile | 1 Comment