Essex 1927: Roxwell

Roxwell: Young MI

Received 3 February 2012

I found this...  [Visitation of Essex 1634 – which provides family trees of important families]  and after Thomas Yonge it says "Buried there 1593, M.I.". I have no clue what that means and Google doesn't seem to help me. Do you know?

Devon

Replied 4 February 2012

Devon

M.I.?  I am not at all sure but wonder whether this is shorthand for Latin.  ‘Mort’ in mortgage is a Latin word meaning lifetime, and my Latin dictionary says that ‘morior’ means die.  It leads me to think, because of the short family tree, of the word intestate or ‘intestatus’ in Latin.  So my wild guess is that your ancestor died without making a will or died without issue – that is surviving children.

Andrew

Roxwell: Youngs Newl'd

Received 2 February 2012

Hello Andrew,

I stumbled onto your Blackmore blog when I started searching for anything I could find about Roxwell in the 1400's & 1500's. I was wondering if maybe you could help me out a little. See, I live on the other side of the pond in New York and I'm very interested in my genealogy.

So far, I've been able to trace my surname lineage back to a Thomas Young who was born in Youngs Newl'd, Roxwell, Essex, in 1532. I think his father's name is Thomas Yonge, but I'm not quite sure. So I'm quite interested in the place & period, even if I can't trace the Young name further back.

I can find Roxwell on maps from the 1500's at www.essex.ac.uk/history/esah/essexplacenames/simpleSearch.asp ...but I can't find this Youngs Newl'd spot. Makes me wonder what it means, and I can't even remember now where I found that bit of information originally.

Also, do you know if there's any place online with documents or information about land ownership or church records of births and baptisms for Roxwell? I'm afraid I'd have to actually travel to Roxwell and attempt to track down actual paper documents. That wouldn't be so bad, but I probably wouldn't have the money for that trip until years from now.

I can actually trace his wife's lineage back into the 1400's. Her maiden name was Catherine Wiseman, and she was born in 1536 in Great Canfield, Dunmow. Since her father was named Sir John Wiseman, I'm assuming they were somewhat well off. That leads me to assume he wouldn't let his daughter marry nobody's, which leads me to assume my Young tree had some land ownership in Essex.

I've been stuck on this for about 2 years. Anything you might know, or anything you could point me to, would be helpful. I don't expect you to go track down any paper documents for me.

By the way, I love your blog. History has always fascinated me.

Devon

Replied 3 February 2012

Thanks for your e mail.  You have chosen a good website to search for the location: ‘The Essex Place-Names Project, supported by the Essex Society for Archaeology and History.  I wonder if you have considered the location to be Newland Hall, Boyton Cross, Roxwell?  The earliest year for any church registration records is 1538.  Roxwell records begin in 1559.  For more information, go to the ‘Essex Ancestors’ website, run by the Essex Record Office. 

Wiseman is a name which crops up time and again in Essex.  Clearly your Sir John was a man of some importance.

Regards

Andrew

Received 3 February 2012

Oh thank you! I hadn't consider that "Newl'd" might be short for Newland. I Googled for anything about it, and came across an online copy of an old book of the history of Essex

http://books.google.com/books?id=SgQVAAAAQAAJ&lpg=PA182&ots=pMRLb2bubL&dq=Youngs%20Newland%2C%20Boyton%20Cross%2C%20Roxwell&pg=PA182#v=onepage&q=Youngs%20Newland,%20Boyton%20Cross,%20Roxwell&f=false

I've got some reading to do. You're awesome!

Devon

Roxwell: The place-name Radley Green (2)

Received : 5 February 2011

Hello, I am not a subscriber but have seen your reply about the Radley Green farm from last November and am interested in your comments. I have been studying my family name of Radley for many years and have looked at the origins of Radley Green to see how it fits in with the distant Radley's.

Although I dislike contradicting an expert such as P H Reaney, I do beleive he has got the facts wrong about the origins of the name Radley Green. He states Redwellmore 1246 and Redwell 1274 and For-Grene 1316 as early names. My own research has discovered that the earliest Radley (then Radlee) came to the area in 1445 and had a property conveyance at Norton Mandeville/Chivers Hall / Passefeld Chevres which are just a short distance away. The Radley's lasted in the area until 1618 at the places mentioned when the lands/property were all disposed of but at no time have I found Radley's living at Radley Green. Radley Green first appears in documented form in 1681, my assumption is that Radley Green takes its name from a field that was either owned or rented, and during the 1600's took on the localised name.

Reaney's place names I feel are being confused with Redwell Hertfordshire and localised place names in the Takeley area of Essex.

There was a Radley Green farm although I am not sure if it still exists.

Regards

Chris Radley

Replied: 12 February 2011

Thank you Chris for your e mail. This is just an amateur historian’s blog so you don’t need to be a subscriber. What I do is post any correspondence onto the site so that folks like you can join in any discussion about local history and heritage.

Your query relates to the entry, http://blackmorehistory.blogspot.com/2010/11/roxwell-place-name-radley-green.html.

Your comments add to the debate.

You might be interested to know that a field of research is in progress to record all Essex place-names. The appropriately called ‘Essex Place-Names Project’ will index every place-name in tithe, enclosure awards and other Essex documents. It is a well establish project supported by the Essex Society for Archaeology and History. A group of volunteer researchers has compiled a database of around half of all the parishes in the county. Although Roxwell awaits a volunteer I notice that there are many references to Radley Green on the database even now. For more information, the leaflet says, contact the Essex Record Office, Wharf Road, Chelmsford, Essex. CM2 6YT or telephone 01245 244644. To access the database go to http://www.essex.ac.uk/history/esah/essexplacenames/simpleSearch.asp

Andrew

BLACKMORE HISTORY NEWS - December 2010

Welcome to this month’s round-up of local history and heritage in and around Blackmore, Essex.

Disney Family of Blackmore and Ingatestone

The bicentenary of the birth of Edgar Disney is remembered on the blog this month. Edgar lived at Jericho Priory, but his father John lived at The Hyde in Ingatestone. He gave a large number of sculptures to the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, which I visited recently to see what is still known as the ‘Disney marbles’. The gallery (Room 21), containing items from Roman and Greek times, has recently been refurbished with the story retold. The museum entry is free – though a suggested donation of at least £3 is welcome – and is an interesting way to spend a dull winter day. Another highlight of our afternoon visit – we must go back – was the slipware pottery made in the Harlow area of Essex, presumably around Potter Street.

Blackmore Area Local History

Today marks the third anniversary of this online project, which has grown significantly over the past year thanks to continued research as well as correspondence from its readers. There are now 109 pages on the main website, double that of last year, and over 500 entries on this blog.

Plans for the website for the next year include:
- posting all the correspondence and photographs I have received from former pupils who were at The Gatehouse School and The Hyde during the 1940s and 1950s (the same property as the Disney family a century earlier).
- creating a series of pages called ‘Blackmore. The Library Collection’ which will feature photographs I received from a collector who had a display in the former Blackmore local library back in the 1980s. This is outstanding from the last twelve months
- commemorating those recorded on the Doddinghurst and Stondon Massey War memorials with new pages

The blog will continue to focus on local history news and feedback from readers. I am not planning new online projects for publication next year – although I wrote this twelve months ago and immediately became involved with others on the Blackmore War Memorial project.

‘Offline’ I am researching the life of Rev Edward Henry Lisle Reeve, Rector of Stondon Massey (Essex) from 1893 to 1935. Reeve died unmarried but his half-brother had descendants with a surname Hawkins. Is there anyone out there related to this interesting Anglican clergyman and gentleman? The only way to find out is to post an entry on the blog! There is also May’s William Byrd Festival which I am promoting.

The purpose of ‘Blackmore Area Local History’ is to share knowledge of local heritage. Thanks for visiting the sites. Enjoy, and keep posting comments!

Ongar War Memorial Hospital demolished

Work has now gone ahead to demolish the old Ongar War Memorial Hospital which closed in 2009.

Chelmsford: St John’s Hospital closes

St John’s Hospital, in Chelmsford - where countless local babies were born – closed its doors for the last time on 19 November. For more read: http://www.thisistotalessex.co.uk/news/End-era/article-2906715-detail/article.html

Willingale Churches

Willingale is, of course, unique to Essex in that two churches share the same churchyard. A new item has appeared on the internet thanks to a churchaholic. Read Stepney Robarts blog entry: http://stepneyrobarts.blogspot.com/2010/11/willingale-essex.html

The busy blogger has also been to:
Bobbingworth: http://stepneyrobarts.blogspot.com/2010/11/bobbingworth-essex.html
Fyfield: http://stepneyrobarts.blogspot.com/2010/11/fyfield-essex.html
High Laver: http://stepneyrobarts.blogspot.com/2010/11/high-laver-essex.html
High Ongar: http://stepneyrobarts.blogspot.com/2010/11/high-ongar-essex.html
Roxwell: http://stepneyrobarts.blogspot.com/2010/11/roxwell-essex.html
Shelley: http://stepneyrobarts.blogspot.com/2010/11/shelley-essex.html

If you are interested in Arthur Mee, of ‘King’s England’ fame, there is an interesting biography. http://stepneyrobarts.blogspot.com/2010/10/arthur-mee.html

It’s fair to sum up that the writer does not like Victorian churches or Victorian restorations at all. I enjoyed surfing this site.

Stanford Rivers Parish Register

Kathryn Lake commemorates ‘Church Record Sunday’ (I never knew it existed) with an item about parish registers and about Stanford Rivers specifically. Read on http://www.looking4ancestors.com/2010/11/church-record-sunday-peeking-at-parish.html

William Byrd Festival

The ‘William Byrd Festival’ will be held at St Peter & St Paul Church, Stondon Massey, on 7, 8, 14 & 15 May 2011. For the latest information visit http://www.williambyrdfestival.blogspot.com/.

A Folk Song A Day

Don’t forget the marvellous site http://www.afolksongaday.com/

Links

For an extensive list of links to other sites go to: http://www.blackmorehistory.co.uk/externallinks.html

Roxwell: The place-name Radley Green

Received
14 October 2010

I have been tracing my family tree and a distant relative has tonight suggested that we may have associations with a Radley farm in the area. Radley Green clearly suggests some link with our family. Have you any information about why Radley Green was so named and if there is any advice you can give regarding further research. We may well be requesting a special rate at The Cuckoo should we need to visit!

Replied
6 November 2010

Whilst waiting for some documents to arrive from the store at the Essex Record Office I took a look at P H Reaney’s ‘The Place Names of Essex’ (Cambridge, 1935).

The entry reads:

Radley Green, Roxwell.

“Radley Green is Redwellmore 1246 Takeley. Radwell(e) 1274 RH (p) 1297. For, (-grene, ende) 1316 Takeley Radley Green 1768 M. This looks like ‘the red spring or stream’ (v. wielle) but there is nothing red, as we understand it, about the site”.

M is Morant, Hist of Essex 2 vols 1768.
RH is Rotuli Hundredorum 2 vols 1812-18.

I could add that Blackmore’s water supply was once said to “come off of iron” so perhaps we are talking about a rust colour?

My visit to The Cuckoo is overdue!!

Andrew

Roxwell: The Bridges Family of Cooksmill Green (1)

Maureen-Garnham Lopez is the daughter of Frederick Wilfred Garnham who was born in 1914 at Radley Green. In this story she recalls family life in nearby Cooksmill Green where her father grew up living with his own mother and grandparents.

She writes:

I always loved going to Cooksey, when the weather was nice. Mum would put the youngest children in a pram and we would all walk from Chelmsford. When it was spring time, we would stop and pick primroses along the way. Our trip started by walking down Melbourne Road, Chignal Road, to Roxwell Road and then taking the back roads to Grandma's.

Dad [Frederick Wilfred Garnham] loved his childhood home. You could tell by his mannerism that Cooksey had his heart. My mother was not so keen on ever moving out to the country but she knew that the time was coming.

Grandad [Percy Bridges, who married by grandmother following Fred Garnham's death in WW1] had given dad some land next to Uncle Ron [Bridges] and we knew that a house would be built there one day. At that time there was an old wooden house on the property. I believe that it was empty, as kids we never went to look or even ask about it.

[Percy Bridges was born in this house in 1895 and lived there until he died in 1974.]

I always thought Cooksey had it own smells. There were many flowers, roses (my dad's favourite plant), grass, baking and even the outhouse. The outhouse was out back, the path ran alongside the chicken coop, its seat was made of wooden boards with a hole in the middle. There was a smell to it, a very pleasant clean smell.

You could always hear the chickens, especially the roosters early in the mornings letting us know a new day has started. Grandma would collect the eggs in a basket and my sister Muriel [Garnham] said that she got served many an egg when she stayed there.

The large gardens were kept immaculately. There was a large green apple tree in the middle of the two houses. Grandma would make apple sauce with them. Grandad Bridges was always pondering around the garden dressed in or they looked like to me, woollen army beige colour pants with suspenders, a long sleeve shirt rolled up and boots. He was a very big man with full lips, but not much hair.

Outside the back door of grandma's house was a silver colour metal thing. I thought it was so neat, it was used to clean the mud or dirt off your boots, shoes, or whatever you were wearing. When you entered through the back door - it was the only one we used - there was a very small room, much like a closet only it was square shaped. Inside this was a sink and a draining board. You would turn left, go through the dining, living room into the so-called kitchen. A table sat in front of the window, when Grandad came in for tea or a meal, he always sat on the right side. I remember him smacking those big lips as he was enjoying whatever he was drinking or eating.

Grandma was always walking back and forth, back and forth to the sink from the kitchen. The floor was wooden with linoleum on top but the boards were loose, you could always hear her footsteps. The walls and ceiling had beautiful wooden beams running down and across them. There was a fireplace to warm you on a cold day. Upstairs in one of the bedrooms, the floor was slanted, so Grandma had placed wooden blocks behind the feet of the bed so it wouldn't move.

Uncle Ron [Bridges] lived next door with his wife Betty and baby daughter Sandra. I would go during the summer holidays and spend time with them. I would help my aunt sweep and clean her house. We would set the table at night for my uncle's breakfast in the morning. Beside the table, in the wall was an aquarium you could see the fish from the living and dining room.

I would take my cousin [Sandra] for a ride in her pram. I would take a left at the end of the lane and go towards the road to Ongar, never making it to the end. We'd passed the red post box, the little old store that sold everything, but I remember the sweets most. There was a farm that had huge pigs, sometimes I would go the other way past the farm that had ducks. Several times I would stop to watch the mama duck cross the road with all her family, following single file behind her to go for a swim in the pond. At the end of the road was a cottage facing the road where it veered off to the left to Roxwell, right "back roads" as my dad said to Chelmsford. Granddad Bridges Grandfather lived with his family there at one time.

In the bedroom that I slept in, the window was low to the floor, maybe six inches above it. Aunt Betty would always make homemade muffins, were they good, the smell would fill the air, wow!

Just a few years ago, I visited Uncle Ron with [my husband] Adolfo, camera in hand and asked if we could film him while I asked questions about the family, especially about my mum and dad. I wanted to know if he knew how they met, he obliged with our wishes and it was great, we got new information.

Uncle Ron was living in Grandma's Bridge’s (his mother's) house at the time. Colin, my youngest brother and I went over to his house. Uncle Ron offered to show us around the house. Colin was so pleased as he had not been inside the house in years. He did not remember how it looked. He was too young to remember. I took a few photos of the inside and I am glad I have them to share them with my family.

Colin and I have been working on the family tree with our brother Dennis and my daughter Amanda for a number of years now. Dennis also lives in Cooksey. All our family was at Dennis' for a B.B.Q. as I was visiting from the States. I went over to Uncle Ron's. He was sitting outside with his second wife. I asked him if he had any pictures of grandma when she was younger. I had only one of her by herself, middle aged, standing by the pond, it was taken in their yard. Uncle Ron told me he had taken the picture himself. Uncle Ron's wife left the table and went inside, when she returned she had something that was worth a million dollars to me. In her hand was a picture of Fred Garnham and wife Rosa, I had never seen are heard anything about this picture. The family had known of only one other picture of him. I was so excited, overjoyed, how could this be, before my dad died, did he know this photo existed? I didn't think so. She also had other picture of grandma. I asked if I could take them to show to my brothers and sister, she said yes. They were overjoyed. I returned them back to her and asked if she could get copies of the photos. She did and now all my family now have copies of their own.

Last year, 2008, we met some people on the Internet that were family. It was a couple of days before we were due to leave to England. My daughter Amanda was trying to teach me how to get on the Internet to find somebody. She said pick a name, it is so easy, I said Percy Bridges. The next morning, we had six hits. Of these we made contact with a Dennis Bridges.

We arranged to meet at Cooksey later on. Uncle Ron was no longer living but his wife was so gracious enough to have us all meet there. It was a grand meeting with all kinds of information and photos exchanged between each other. We learnt a lot more about the Bridges family.

My uncle's wife has given me copies of other documents and photos and I am forever grateful. She told me once "only you would ask". That is true.

Roxwell: Remembering Fred Garnham of Radley Green

As part of the commemoration of the Great War, 'Blackmore Area Local History' remembered Fred Garnham who died in the retreat from Mons in 1914. I was delighted when family members made contact, kindly giving more information and feel priviliged to be able to publish a copy of the '1914 Star' (or 'Mons Star') given posthumously to his widow, Rosa, in 1917. Fred Garnham was baptised at Stondon Massey, he later moved to Radley Green. He is commorated on the memorials at Highwood and Roxwell. For more pictures visit http://www.blackmorehistory.co.uk/garnham_family.html

Roxwell: The Hare

The Hare, formerly the Hare and Hounds, on the A1060 at Roxwell is a vastly extended pub serving a range of food. A visit to its unspoilt public bar with old photographs of the pub is a delight.

‘Essex pubs’ lists the former licensees of the pub: http://londonpublichouse.com/essexpubs/Roxwell/harehand.shtml

Beer In The Evening reviews: http://www.beerintheevening.com/pubs/s/22/22018/Hare/Roxwell