Tag Archives: St Laurence Church

Upminster Rectory and the Parish Glebe

Posted on 24/11/2022 by hurdler46

Most Upminster folk know that the building west of St Laurence Church, off Gridiron Place, is the former parish rectory, now used as offices, but many are probably unaware that until 1929 Upminster Park to the south of the church … Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster Buildings & Places | Tagged Glebe, Holden family, Hornchurch Urban District Council, Recreation Ground, Rectory, Rev Samuel Bradshaw, St Laurence Church, Tithe Barn, Tithes, Upminster, Upminster Parish Council | Leave a comment

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

Upminster’s Victorian Scandal: Rev P M Holden’s life and times

Posted on 19/01/2016 by hurdler46

On this day, 19th January, in 1873, now 143 years ago, the congregation assembled as usual to worship at Upminster’s St Laurence Church and to hear the sermon of their Rector, the Reverend Philip Melancthon Holden, whose “fire & brimstone” orations were … Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster People & Events | Tagged Bell Inn, Holden family, Rev P M Holden, St Laurence Church, Upminster, Wedlake | 5 Comments

High House and its rich cast of characters

Posted on 22/05/2015 by hurdler46

Have you ever wondered how Byron Parade in Corbets Tey Road came to be named after Lord Byron, one of Britain’s most famous poets? Or wanted to know what the site was before this 1930s shopping parade was built or … Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster Buildings & Places | Tagged architect, Byron Parade, Cedar Tree, Charles Reilly FRIBA d.1928, Childe Harold, Dr William Derham DD, High House, Lord Byron, Major Frederick Howard died 1815, Sir Charles Reilly, St Laurence Church, Upminster | 9 Comments

New Place – lost jewel in Upminster’s crown

Posted on 24/01/2014 by hurdler46

How strange that one of Upminster’s finest houses, Sir James Esdaile’s New Place built around 1775, fell into poor repair and was demolished in 1924, while the adjacent stable block survives to this day? And that after New Place was … Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster Buildings & Places | Tagged Clockhouse, clockmaker, Edsel & Eleanor Ford House, Edward Tutet, Lady or St Mary Chapel, New Place, Sir James Esdaile, St Laurence Church, Upminster, W P Griggs & Co | 9 Comments

Upminster’s amazing Holden dynasty

Posted on 11/01/2014 by hurdler46

In August 2013 I visited William Rose Holden at his home overlooking Hove Park. We had been in email contact for several years but I hadn’t managed to meet him on his occasional visits to Upminster. William is not only … Continue reading →

Posted in Upminster People & Events | Tagged Holden family, St Laurence Church, Upminster | 3 Comments