149-460: The Bishop's Stortford–Braintree branch line was an 18-mile-long (29 km) railway line connecting existing railways at Bishop's Stortford , Dunmow and Braintree . It was promoted independently by the Bishop’s Stortford, Dunmow and Braintree Railway (BSD&BR) company, but the directors failed to generate subscriptions, or to manage the construction properly. The Great Eastern Railway
298-592: A baroque house situated in an estate of 450 acres (1.8 km ) 15 miles (24 km) northeast of Oxford as a wedding present for his third son, Albert. On 8 December 1870 Thomas Brassey died from a brain haemorrhage in Victoria Hotel, St Leonards and was buried in the churchyard of St Laurence's Church, Catsfield , Sussex where a memorial stone has been erected. His estate was valued at £5,200,000 which consisted of "under £3,200,000 in UK" and "over £2,000,000" in
447-508: A canal through the Isthmus of Darién (now the Isthmus of Panama ) but this idea similarly had no success. In most of Brassey's contracts he worked in partnership with other contractors, in particular with Peto and Betts. The planning of the details of the projects was done by the engineers. Sometimes there would be a consulting engineer and below him another engineer who was in charge of
596-569: A Brassey family that had been living at Manor Farm in Buerton , a small settlement in the parish of Aldford , 6 miles (10 km) south of Chester , from at least 1663. Thomas Brassey was educated at home until the age of 12, when he was sent to The King's School in Chester. Aged 16, he became an articled apprentice to a land surveyor and agent, William Lawton. Lawton was the agent of Francis Richard Price of Overton , Flintshire . During
745-474: A backcloth to the altar inscribed to their parents' memory, and a bust of their father to the north of the altar. The memorial is by Sir Arthur Blomfield and the bust by M. Wagmiller. There is also a bust of Thomas in Chester's Grosvenor Museum and plaques to his memory in Chester station . Streets named after him in Chester are Brassey Street and Thomas Brassey Close (which is off Lightfoot Street). By
894-529: A biographer available today. There is no private correspondence, there are no diaries and none of his personal reminiscences. Judging by his achievements alone, he must have been a remarkable man. He had enormous drive, an ability to remain calm despite enormous pressures, and extreme skill in organisation. He was a man of honour who always kept his word and his promise. He had no interest in public honours and refused invitations to stand for Parliament. Although he accepted honours from France and Austria, he mislaid
1043-478: A contemporary directory. The vibrancy of the local economy - especially the agricultural trade sector - was demonstrated in 1828 when a consortium of local businessmen built the Bishop's Stortford Corn Exchange , which provided trading accommodation for 65 dealers. By this point, the town directory was listing 200 commercial entries, and 350 by the turn of the century. The third major transport innovation to have
1192-402: A contract at an agreed price he would make a suitable sum of money available to the agent to meet the costs. If the agent were able to fulfil the work at a lower cost he could keep the remainder of the money. If unforeseen problems arose and these were reasonable, Brassey would cover these additional costs. He used hundreds of such agents. At the peak of his career, for well over 20 years, Brassey
1341-462: A few days of heavy rain. Brassey rebuilt the viaduct at his own expense, this time using lime of his own choice. The rebuilt viaduct still stands and is in use today. During the time Brassey was building the early French railways, Britain was experiencing what was known as the " railway mania ", when there was massive investment in the railways. Large numbers of lines were being built, but not all of them were built to Brassey's high standards. Brassey
1490-653: A high standard of work from his employees; Cooke states that his "standards of quality were fastidious in the extreme". There can be no doubt about some of his qualities. He was exceptionally hardworking, and had an excellent memory and ability to perform mental arithmetic. He was a good judge of men, which enabled him to select the best people to be his agents. He was scrupulously fair with his subcontractors and kind to his navvies, supporting them financially at their times of need. He would at times undertake contracts of little benefit to himself to provide work for his navvies. The only faults which his eldest son could identify were
1639-643: A large number of contracts, his bids were not always successful. It has been calculated that for every contract awarded, around six others had been unsuccessful. Brassey was given a number of honours to celebrate his achievements, including the French Legion of Honour , the Italian Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus and the Austrian Iron Crown (the first time this had been awarded to a foreigner). In 1831 he married Maria Harrison,
SECTION 10
#17327879555781788-590: A monthly farmers market run by Bishop's Stortford Town Council. The Bishop's Stortford Independent newspaper covers Stortford, along with the neighbouring towns of Sawbridgeworth and Stansted Mountfitchet . The newspaper was founded in October 2017 following the closure of the Stortford office of the Herts and Essex Observer newspaper in 2016. The town is also covered by a number of print magazines including
1937-608: A more accessible place with an information board. In 2019 a blue plaque was installed by Conservation Areas Wirral on the remaining structure of his Canada Works building in Beaufort Road, now part of the Wirral Waters area in Birkenhead. The Thomas Brassey Society ( http://www.thomasbrasseysociety.org ) is planning the design and erection of a statue of Thomas Brassey outside Chester Railway Station. Fundraising
2086-506: A new town centre area and city-type apartments and penthouses on the riverside and elsewhere. Jackson Square (a modern shopping complex) was rebuilt and an extension added. Stortford continued to grow as a commuter town from the second half of the 20th century onwards, spurred by the construction of the M11 motorway and Stansted Airport , as well as rail links to London and Cambridge. This contributed to its rise in population to almost 38,000 at
2235-507: A number of occasions the boundaries of Bishop's Stortford parish have been expanded. Most recently this occurred in 1992 when some neighbouring parts of Essex were moved into the town and in 2018 when homes were moved into Stortford from neighbouring Thorley Parish. In 2020 Bishop's Stortford was the largest town in East Hertfordshire. At the 2011 census, 93.6% of the population of Stortford described themselves as white, which
2384-514: A plaque was placed on Brassey's first bridge at Saughall Massie. In the village of Bulkeley , near Malpas, Cheshire , is a tree called the 'Brassey Oak' on land once owned by the Brassey family. This was planted to celebrate Thomas' 40th birthday in 1845. It was surrounded by four inscribed sandstone pillars tied together by iron rails but due to the growth of the tree these burst and the stones fell. They were recovered and in 2007 were replaced in
2533-514: A public meeting at the town's corn exchange voted to establish a local board , the Bishop's Stortford Local Board. The parish of Bishop's Stortford was declared to be a local government district with effect from 25 December 1866, and the local board held its first meeting at the corn exchange on 23 February 1867. Jones Gifford Nash was chosen as the first chairman of the local board. The Local Board later established offices at 7 North Street. Under
2682-693: A quarry in Storeton , a village near Birkenhead, following which Stephenson advised Brassey to become involved in building railways. Brassey's first venture into railways was to submit a tender for building the Dutton Viaduct on the Grand Junction Railway , but he lost the contract to William Mackenzie , who had submitted a lower bid. In 1835 Brassey submitted a tender for building the Penkridge Viaduct , further south on
2831-482: A result, the road from London to Newmarket was diverted to the east of the centre of Stortford, and instead ran through the outlying settlement of Hockerill. The inns of Hockerill become an important overnight location for stop overs for overnight coaches to East Anglia . Further demands for improved roads led to the creation of the Essex and Hertfordshire Turnpike Trust (later Hockerill Turnpike Trust ) in 1744 to repair
2980-602: A series of royal visits in the 17th century, with Charles I visiting the town in 1625, 1629 and 1642. The years following the last of Charles' visits were to prove somewhat turbulent for the town. During the English Civil War Stortford backed the Parliamentarians , with the Manor of Stortford being sequestered from the Bishop of London and sold off for £2,845. It was returned to the Bishop at
3129-524: A service industry, which was higher than East Hertfordshire (81.2%) and England (81.2%). Of particular note is that 7.9% of local workers are employed in Transportation and Storage which is well above the English average of 5.0%. The most significant employer in this industry is Stansted Airport, which was estimated in 2013 to employ at least 1,000 people who live in Stortford. Commuters represent
SECTION 20
#17327879555783278-606: A significant boost to the town was the construction of the Stort Navigation , which canalised the River Stort, and opened in 1769. The improvements to the navigation of the Stort were driven by the inability of the malting industry to use the Stort for river transport, which caused significant damage to the local roads and handed a competitive advantage to neighbouring malting areas like Ware who were linked to London by
3427-542: A significant impact upon Stortford was the arrival of the railway in 1842. The line initially ran from London Liverpool Street to Stortford, but by 1845 the line was linked to Norwich. The new rail link brought an almost immediate end to the coaching industry, and the Stort Navigation entered terminal decline. The town, though boomed. Massive new residential estates grew up in the New Town (to the south and west of
3576-419: A sizeable proportion of the local working age population. The Town Wide Employment Study estimated in 2013 around 3,000 people (round 15% of those in employment) commute from Stortford by rail, with the largest proportion "in all probability" travelling into Central London. This is reflected in Stortford in the 2011 census having a much higher proportion of workers in managerial and professional occupations than
3725-409: A small area of clinker surface at track level. One vehicle in each passenger train was equipped with retractable steps, operated by the guard, for passengers at the two halts to use. At the same time the conductor-guard method of working was introduced: the guard issued the tickets for the halts. All the coaches on the passenger trains had a central corridor throughout so that the guard could pass through
3874-408: A tendency to praise traits and actions of other people he would condemn in his own family, and an inability to refuse a request. No criticism of him could be found from the engineers with whom he worked, his business associates, his agents or his navvies. He paid his men fairly and generously. The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography states "His greatest achievement was to raise the status of
4023-487: A total mileage of 437 miles (703 km), the longest of which was the 294-mile (473 km) Orléans and Bordeaux Railway. Following the French revolution of 1848 there was a financial crisis in the country and investment in the railways almost ceased. This meant that Brassey had to seek foreign contracts elsewhere. In January 1846, during the building of the 58-mile (93 km) long Rouen and Le Havre line, one of
4172-438: A trust fund. The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography describes him as "one of the wealthiest of the self-made Victorians". It is not easy to be objective about the nature of Thomas Brassey's character because the earliest biography by Helps was commissioned by the Brassey family and the latest, rather short, biography was written by his great-great-grandson, Tom Stacey. There is virtually no remaining material of value to
4321-647: A year and a total of 300 were produced in the next eight years. The first locomotive, given its trial in May 1854, was named Lady Elgin , after the wife of the Governor General of Canada of the time, the Earl of Elgin . For the bridge hundreds of thousands of components were required and all were manufactured in Birkenhead or in other English factories to Brassey's specifications. These were all stamped and coded, loaded into ships to be taken to Quebec and then by rail to
4470-552: Is a stop on the West Anglia Main Line and was first opened in 1842. There were 2.00 million passenger entries and exits in 2020/21. The station is served by three routes, all operated by Greater Anglia : Epping tube station on the London Underground Central line is about 10 miles away from Stortford; the line provides a stopping service through Central London to Ealing Broadway in
4619-468: Is identified by waymarks and is shown on Ordnance Survey mapping. The Flitch Way adjoins four named paths: Andy T Wallis, Bishop's Stortford, Braintree, Witham & Maldon Railways Through Time, Amberley Publishing, Stroud, 2013, ISBN 978-1445608563 Bishop%27s Stortford Bishop's Stortford is a historic market town and civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district, in
Bishop's Stortford–Braintree branch line - Misplaced Pages Continue
4768-466: Is named after the town, and not the town after the river. When cartographers visited the town in the 16th century, they reasoned that the town must have been named after the ford in the river and assumed the river was called the Stort. Little is known of Stortford until the Roman era , with the evidence being small archaeological finds. Limited evidence of ancient Mesolithic and Microlithic peoples in
4917-540: Is still in operation today. He also worked with Bazalgette to build the Victoria Embankment on the north bank of the River Thames from Westminster Bridge to Blackfriars Bridge . Brassey gave financial help to Brunel to build his ship Leviathan , which was later called Great Eastern and which in 1854 was six times larger than any other vessel in the world. Brassey was a major shareholder in
5066-719: The Austro-Prussian War which was taking place in the locality. From 1867 Brassey's health was beginning to decline, but he continued to negotiate further contracts, including the Czernowicz and Suczawa Railway in the Austrian Empire. In 1868 he suffered a mild stroke but he continued to work and in April 1869 he embarked on an extensive tour of over 5,000 miles (8,000 km) in Eastern Europe. By
5215-607: The Bishop's Stortford Flyer, CM23 Connection, Axis Magazine, and The BISH . Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC London and ITV London . Television signals are received from either the Crystal Palace or the local relay transmitters. BBC East and ITV Anglia can also be received from the Sandy Heath TV transmitter. Local radio stations are BBC Three Counties Radio and Heart Hertfordshire . Bishop's Stortford railway station
5364-551: The Braintree station continues in use as the terminal of the active branch line from Witham . The town of Dunmow was significant enough to warrant being on a London to York Railway of 1835 proposed by Joseph Gibbs , but that came to nothing. In 1860 the Epping Railway was authorised to extend to Great Dunmow, but the line as constructed never reached further than Chipping Ongar . Bishops Stortford became connected to
5513-795: The Dutch Rhenish Railway of 43 miles (69 km). Meanwhile, he continued to build lines in England, including the Shrewsbury and Hereford Railway of 51 miles (82 km), the Hereford, Ross and Gloucester Railway of 50 miles (80 km), the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway of 50 miles (80 km) and the North Devon Railway from Crediton to Barnstaple of 47 miles (76 km). In 1852 Brassey took out
5662-478: The Great Northern Railway was agreed in 1847, with William Cubitt as engineer-in-chief, although much of the work was done by William's son Joseph, who was the resident engineer. Brassey was the sole contractor for the line of 75.5 miles (122 km). A particular problem was met in the marshy country of The Fens in providing a firm foundation for the railway and associated structures. Brassey
5811-538: The Local Government Act 1894 , the Bishop's Stortford Local Board was replaced by the Bishop's Stortford Urban District Council in 1894. The new council held its first meeting on 5 January 1895. The last chairman of the local board, John Slater, was appointed the first chairman of the urban district council. The council continued to be based at 7 North Street until the First World War . In 1914
5960-636: The London and Birmingham Railway at Rugby to the Grand Junction Railway south of Stafford providing a line from London to Scotland which bypassed Birmingham. The latter line provided a link between London and the ferries sailing from Holyhead to Ireland and included Robert Stephenson's tubular Britannia Bridge over the Menai Strait . Also in 1845 Brassey received contracts for the Caledonian Railway which linked
6109-625: The Lune Valley and then over Shap Fell. Its summit was 916 feet (279 m) high and the line had steep gradients, the maximum being 1 in 75. To the south the line linked by way of the Preston–Lancaster line to the Grand Junction Railway. Two important contracts undertaken in 1845 were the Trent Valley Railway of 50 miles (80 km) and the Chester and Holyhead line of 84 miles (135 km). The former line joined
Bishop's Stortford–Braintree branch line - Misplaced Pages Continue
6258-591: The Norfolk Railway there and form a through route to Norwich . The ECR opened its line to from Bishops Stortford to Brandon on 29 July 1845. Further east the Eastern Counties Railway had opened a line from its London terminal to Colchester , on 7 March 1843, running through Chelmsford and Witham . Communities on these main line railways immediately benefitted from faster transport and reduced transport costs, and places not served by
6407-632: The Oslo to Bergen Railway of 56 miles (90 km) which passes through inhospitable terrain and rises to nearly 6,000 feet (1,829 m). In 1852 he resumed work in France with the Mantes and Caen Railway of 133 miles (214 km) and, in 1854, the Caen and Cherbourg Railway of 94 miles (151 km). The Dutch were relatively slow to start building railways but in 1852 with Locke as engineer, Brassey built
6556-588: The Restoration . The Great Plague of 1666–7 , and its lasting effects, reduced the population to only around 600 by 1700. The effects of the plague were so severe that the town had to appeal to the Hertfordshire magistrates, who levied a rate on every parish in the county for the relief of Bishop's Stortford, Hoddesdon and Cheshunt . Despite the demographic impact of the Great Plague, perhaps
6705-535: The Victoria Docks which had a water area of over 100 acres (40 ha). The contract for this was agreed in 1852 in partnership with Peto and Betts and the docks were opened in 1857. Also included in the contract were warehouses and wine vaults totalling an area of about 25 acres (10 ha). The dockside machinery was worked by hydraulic power supplied by William Armstrong . The dock had links to Brassey's London, Tilbury and Southend Railway and thereby to
6854-543: The West Coast Main Line . On completion of the Grand Junction Railway, Locke moved on to design part of the London and Southampton Railway and encouraged Brassey to submit a tender, which was accepted. Brassey undertook work on the section of the railway between Basingstoke and Winchester , and on other parts of the line. The following year Brassey won contracts to build the Chester and Crewe Railway with Robert Stephenson as engineer and, with Locke as
7003-593: The 13th century. In terms of governance, early medieval Stortford was part of the Braughing Hundred , but acquired burgesses and between 1306 and 1336 was taxed as a borough. No charter survives however, and civil authority passed to two local manor courts at the Castle and the Rectory. Stortford briefly sent two members to parliament in the reigns of Edward II and Edward III , with writs being issued to
7152-524: The 1868 Act. It may suggest the state of the administration of the Company at that time, that Valentine and Wilson’s account for £403 remained unpaid until they repeatedly asked for settlement, and a duplicate account was sent in by them. Still the GER delayed opening the line, which had been substantially completed for 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 years; Brassey's account was unpaid, and at this late stage Col Yolland of
7301-414: The 50 councillors on East Herts Council. For elections to Bishop's Stortford Town Council, the town is split into nine wards: All Saints, Central, Chantry, Parsonage, Silverleys, South, Thorley Manor North, Thorley Manor South and Waterside. For elections to Hertfordshire County Council, out of the 78 electoral divisions in total, three divisions cover Bishop's Stortford: Bishop's Stortford East (comprising
7450-603: The BW&;MR directors sold the unbuilt line to the Eastern Counties Railway a few months after getting Parliamentary authority. The ECR altered the arrangement at Witham, so that both arms of the line ran to the ECR Witham station, in effect forming two branch lines from there. The ECR opened the line in 1848, but failed to improve the harbour facilities at Maldon, on the River Blackwater. In 1859 businesspeople from
7599-490: The Board of Trade had to insist on turntables being provided at Bishops Stortford and Braintree, as well as some signal interlocking alterations. Now at last the GER was hastening the opening of the line and Col Yolland made an inspection for the Board of Trade on 28 January 1869. He found many deficiencies, most of which seem predictable. Interlocking at Dunmow had not been attended to; turntables were not yet ready even though this
SECTION 50
#17327879555787748-471: The Company was far too narrow for the track bed and necessary earthworks, and Brassey himself had to purchase additional strips of land. The construction process continued, and Col Yolland inspected the line for the Board of Trade on 20 November 1866. Yolland found a number of deficiencies and declined to approve opening to passenger traffic. In particular, at Bishops Stortford no arrangements had been made by
7897-446: The English average of 86.2%. Stortford recorded a significantly higher proportion of European Union -born residents than either East Hertfordshire or England. The number of UK-born residents in 2011 was down from the 92.4% recorded in 2001. The number of occupied dwellings in Bishop's Stortford rose from 13,733 in 2001 to 14,920. In Stortford 3.0% of properties were recorded as empty in 2011, compared with 4.3% across England. Overall,
8046-712: The French and the Turks , sent an army of 30,000 to Balaclava , another port in a neighbouring bay of the Black Sea, from which to attack Sevastopol. Sevastopol was besieged in September 1854 by the British and allied forces. It was hoped that the siege would be short but with the coming of winter the conditions were appalling and it was proving difficult to transport clothing, food, medical supplies and weaponry from Balaclava to
8195-497: The GER on 20 February. The line opened for traffic on 21 February 1869. The first train service consisted of three passenger trains each way. By 1897 the service had increased to five passenger trains and two goods trains each way. The majority of the single line route was subject to normal signalling arrangements, but the GER had never set up a system for the short distance from the Braintree station to Braintree Goods Junction,
8344-406: The GER to accommodate the trains from the Braintree line, and the station was considered too small to handle the extra traffic. At Braintree the line to Bishops Stortford diverged some distance from the existing terminus; the intention was to work trains in and out of the old terminus by reversing, an arrangement deprecated by Yolland. The BSD&BR asked Thomas Brassey, the contractor, to make good
8493-514: The GER. This was ratified by the Great Eastern Railway (Bishop's Stortford Railway Purchase) Act of 29 June 1865. Financial difficulties dragged on; the GER was not free of financial problems itself, and the dispute with Thomas Brassey over completion of the construction works and compliance with the specification became protracted. Eventually a difficult agreement was concluded and, with the possibility of arbitration still in place,
8642-477: The Grand Trunk Railway included all the materials required for building the bridge and the railway, including the rolling stock . To manufacture the metallic components, Brassey built a new factory in Birkenhead which he called The Canada Works . A suitable site was found by George Harrison, Brassey's brother-in-law, and the factory was built with a quay alongside to take ocean-going ships. The works
8791-499: The Jackson Square shopping centre. Bishop's Stortford Urban District Council was granted a coat of arms on 20 August 1952. Bishop's Stortford Urban District was abolished under the Local Government Act 1972 , becoming part of East Hertfordshire on 1 April 1974. Bishop's Stortford Town Council was established as a successor parish to the old urban district. The former urban district council's offices at 1 The Causeway were taken over by East Hertfordshire District Council, whilst
8940-435: The London sewerage system, still in operation today, and was a major shareholder in Brunel 's The Great Eastern , the only ship large enough at the time to lay the first transatlantic telegraph cable across the North Atlantic, in 1864. He left a fortune of over £5 million, equivalent to about £600 million in 2020. Thomas Brassey was the eldest son of John Brassey, a prosperous farmer, and his wife Elizabeth, and member of
9089-402: The Principal Town Centre in East Hertfordshire by East Hertfordshire District Council 's District Plan , serving as a destination for visitors from beyond the town. There is both an indoor shopping centre, Jackson Square, and a traditional high street running along the axis of South Street, Potter Street and North Street, as well as the adjoining streets. The town has a twice weekly market and
SECTION 60
#17327879555789238-586: The River Lea. The work on the canal undertaken by George Jackson (later Sir George Duckett ) had the added benefit of alleviating the flooding risk in the town. With the roads and Stort navigation providing easy access to London markets, industrialisation came to Stortford. The advent of the Stort Navigation brought new industries to the town, with bargemen, lock-keepers, wharfingers, coal and timber merchants all appearing. The malting industry also saw output significantly increase, with brown malt production doubling between 1788 and 1811. Together with national trends in
9387-403: The Stortford area was settled only sparsely in prehistoric times, and nearby places like Braughing and Little Hallingbury were of more importance." Stortford was on the line of the Roman road, Stane Street , which ran from St Albans to Colchester via Braughing. Construction started around 50AD on the road. Little evidence from the period survives except for excavations showing a section of
9536-415: The agricultural district served, but intermediate passenger business was slow. A sugar beet processing plant provided a considerable boost for the line. Nevertheless, the decline in passenger carryings led to closure to passengers in 1952. General goods and certain specific traffics continued, but failure of a viaduct severed the route intermediately in 1966 and the line closed completely in 1972, except that
9685-450: The areas covered by the All Saints, Parsonage and Chantry Town Council Wards), Bishop's Stortford Rural (the South, Thorley Manor South Town Council Wards together with the Little Hadham and Much Hadham East Herts District Council Wards) and Bishop's Stortford West (the Central, Silverleys, Thorley Manor North and Waterside Town Council Wards). After 46 years of being twinned with the German town of Friedberg and Villiers-sur-Marne in France,
9834-407: The best place to live in the UK by the Halifax Quality of Life annual survey in 2020. The origins of the town's name are uncertain. One possibility is that the Saxon settlement derives its name from 'Steorta's ford' or 'tail ford', in the sense of a 'tail', or tongue, of land. The town became known as Bishop's Stortford due to the acquisition in 1060 by the Bishop of London . The River Stort
9983-401: The brewing industry, the 40 malthouses in Stortford in early 1800s Stortford also helped to stimulate the local brewing trade. At the turn of the 19th century, there were 18 brewers in town which in turn boosted the inn trade. The boom in the town in turn boosted the metal working and bricklaying trades, and also aided the general retail trade. In 1791 there were 30 principal traders according to
10132-437: The business quickly transferred to road, leaving only outgoing pulp traffic to be transported by rail. This resulted in the beet traffic being discontinued completely from 1 April 1969. A corresponding decline took place on the western section of the line, and from 1 April 1969 only a private siding used for Geest Industries banana traffic was in use, the rest of the route having been closed. The Geest traffic could hardly support
10281-402: The castle started the following year at John's expense, and John stayed the night in the castle in 1216. By the 15th century, the castle had fallen into disrepair, and the Bishop's Court (one of the administrative structures for the area) moved to Hockerill, to the east of the town. At the time of the Domesday Book in 1086 the village had a population of around 120, and grew to around 700 by
10430-407: The civil engineering contractor to the eminence already attained in the mid-nineteenth century by the engineer". Walker regards him as "one of the giants of the nineteenth century". None of his three sons became involved in their father's work and the business was wound up by administrators. The sons created a memorial to their parents in St Erasmus ' Chapel in Chester cathedral . This consists of
10579-468: The coming decades as the railways spurred industrialisation. Population growth averaged 1.12% per annum through to 1911 and the advent of World War I. Inter-war growth averaged 1.54% per annum. Stortford's population exceeded the county town of Hertford in the 1961 census, even though Stortford's average population growth slowed to 1.39% between World War II and 2020. Sources of population growth have been predominantly natural growth and in-migration, but on
10728-471: The council bought a large old house called Wharf House at 4 The Causeway. The house had been built by George Jackson , who had also built the adjoining Stort Navigation . Wharf House was renamed the Council House, and served as the council's offices until October 1972, when the council moved to purpose-built offices at 1 The Causeway. The Council House was demolished shortly afterwards to make way for
10877-406: The county of Hertfordshire , England. It is in the London commuter belt , near the border with Essex , just west of the M11 motorway and Stansted Airport , 22 miles north-east of Central London and 34 minutes away by rail from Liverpool Street station . The town had an estimated population of 41,088 in 2020. The district of East Hertfordshire , where the town centre is located, was ranked as
11026-410: The day-to-day activities. During his career Brassey worked with many engineers, the most illustrious being Robert Stephenson, Joseph Locke and Isambard Kingdom Brunel . The day-to-day work was overseen by agents, who managed and controlled the activities of the subcontractors. The actual work was done by labourers, in those days known as navvies , supervised by gangers (or foremen). In the early days
11175-482: The demise of the line which closed to passengers in 1952 and freight in 1972. The mid-19th century onwards also saw the rapid growth in public utilities, public services and governance in the town. The first gas street lights were installed in the town in the 1830s, in 1855 the New Cemetery was opened, in the 1870s a sewage farm and an isolation hospital were built, while in 1895 the town's first proper hospital
11324-686: The dominant type of housing are detached and semi-detached housing, although the proportion of flats has grown from 13.0% in 2001 to 17.6% in 2011. The proportion of flats is well below the English average of 22.1% Home ownership is high in Bishop's Stortford at 72.3% of households, which is above both the East Hertfordshire and English averages. The proportion of properties available for social rent has risen from 9.8% in 2001 to 10.1% in 2011. Stortford has three tiers of local government at parish (town), district, and county level: Bishop's Stortford Town Council, East Hertfordshire District Council , and Hertfordshire County Council . Historically, Stortford
11473-473: The dragging out of a decision on carrying out completion works meant that Thomas Brassey's obligation to maintain the railway for the first year was becoming unreasonable. It had long been plain that the BSD&;BR company was incapable of bringing the construction to a conclusion, and all its financial outgoings were being made by the Great Eastern Railway. It was decided that the Company should be purchased by
11622-570: The education of their three sons. In time the family established a more-or-less permanent base in Lowndes Square, Belgravia , London. They had three surviving sons, who all gained distinction in their own right: In 1870 Brassey was told that he had cancer but he continued to visit his working sites. One of his last visits was to the Wolverhampton and Walsall Railway , only a few miles from his first railway contract at Penkridge. In
11771-624: The engineer, the Glasgow, Paisley and Greenock Railway and the Sheffield and Manchester Railway . Following the success of the early railways in Britain, the French were encouraged to develop a railway network, in the first place to link with the railway system in Britain. To this end the Paris and Rouen Railway Company was established, and Locke was appointed as its engineer. He considered that
11920-602: The entire British rail system. In 1861 Brassey built part of the London sewerage system for Joseph Bazalgette . This was a stretch of the Metropolitan Mid Level Sewer of 12 miles (19 km) which started at Kensal Green , passed under Bayswater Road , Oxford Street and Clerkenwell to the River Lea . It was one of the earliest ventures to use steam cranes. The undertaking was considered to have been one of Brassey's most difficult. The sewer
12069-513: The evidence becoming much stronger after the Norman Conquest . In 1060 when William, Bishop of London , bought Stortford manor and estate for £8, leading to the town's modern name. By 1086, the motte-and-bailey Waytemore Castle had been built as a local strongpoint for the area. It acted as a centre for defence and civil administration for roughly 125 years before it was dismantled but not destroyed by King John in 1211. Rebuilding of
12218-486: The few major structural disasters of Brassey's career occurred, the collapse of the Barentin Viaduct . The viaduct was built of brick at a cost of about £50,000 and was 100 feet (30 m) high. The reason for the collapse was never established, but a possible cause was the nature of the lime used to make the mortar . The contract stipulated that this had to be obtained locally, and the collapse occurred after
12367-637: The form of flakes, cores and an axe have been found on the Meads and Silverleys respectively. Most Bronze Age evidence is from the neighbouring parish of Thorley to the south as opposed to Stortford proper, but a 3,000 year old socketed spearhead has been found at Haymeads Lane within the town. Evidence of settlement has been found on Dunmow Road dating from the Middle Bronze Age through to Romano-British times. In Bishop's Stortford: A History , Jacqueline Cooper concludes "existing evidence suggests that
12516-400: The front. When news of the problem arrived in Britain, Brassey joined with Peto and Betts in offering to build a railway at cost to transport these necessary supplies. They shipped out the equipment and materials for building the railway, which had been intended for other undertakings, together with an army of navvies to carry out the work. Within seven weeks, in severe winter conditions,
12665-606: The general area projected a railway through the town, linking Bishops Stortford and Braintree. They sought advice from the Eastern Counties Railway, testing whether their line would be welcome. At the time the ECR Board were fearing a possible incursion into the territory they considered to be their own. A London and Bury St Edmunds Railway was being proposed, and such a line would bisect the ECR area of control. At this period in railway history, dominance in any particular geographical area
12814-542: The historic core) and Hockerill (across the river to the east of the historic core) in the decades following the building of the railway. A Bishop's Stortford–Braintree branch line was built to Braintree to bring goods into Stortford from the surrounding more rural areas, with the first section to Great Dunmow opening in 1864. The single track line struggled to gain traction, and by 1922 had only seven eastbound and six westbound trains per day. The bus service which started between Stortford and Dunmow in 1920 contributed to
12963-638: The importance of "quality of life" as an important economic asset. In addition to East Hertfordshire topping the Halifax Quality of Life survey in 2020, Stortford has been highlighted as a popular commuter town in articles in The Times , The Evening Standard , and the Metro newspaper London . Like the UK as a whole, Stortford has a highly service-based economy. In the 2011 census, 84.5% of Stortford residents in employment stated that they worked in
13112-435: The inexorable progress of road transport made a huge impact on the line, as passengers transferred to bus services. This led eventually to a decision to close the passenger service on the line; it ceased to operate on 3 March 1952. The previous use of the line may be judged from Paye's remark that "the withdrawal of the passenger service brought little change to the branch, as freight services continued." The Braintree station
13261-643: The largest contract of his career, which was to build the Grand Trunk Railway of Canada. This line passed from Quebec , along the valley of the Saint Lawrence River , and then to the north of Lake Ontario to Toronto . The line totalled 539 miles (867 km) in length. The consulting engineer for the project was Robert Stephenson and the company's engineer for the whole undertaking was Alexander Ross. Brassey worked in partnership with Peto, Betts and Sir William Jackson. The line crossed
13410-595: The late summer of 1870 he took to his bed at his home in St Leonards-on-Sea. There he was visited by members of his work force, not only his engineers and agents, but also his navvies, many of whom had walked for days to come and pay their respects. When Brassey's business friend, Edward Betts , became insolvent in 1867, Brassey bought Betts' estate at Preston Hall, Aylesford in Kent on behalf of his second son, Henry. In 1870 Brassey purchased Heythrop Park ,
13559-473: The line on its own, and from 17 February 1972 the line was closed completely, when the banana traffic transferred to road. The Flitch Way is a 15 mile (km) long-distance walking route that follows the track-bed of the former Bishop’s Stortford to Braintree branch railway. The route of the path is from Start Hill (51°52'13"N 0°12'18"E) near Bishop’s Stortford to Braintree railway station (51°52'32"N 0°33'24"E). The track-bed west of Start Hill to Bishop’s Stortford
13708-420: The line were very slow to come, but the GER had already determined that its interests lay in keeping interlopers out of the district, so it was ready to pay for the construction. However it was left to Thomas Brassey , the contractor, to deal with the situation, and there is a constant stream of requests from Brassey for money for work carried out, and for facilities that the owners should provide. Land acquired by
13857-425: The maltings and the town's market supported a large number of inns and public houses by the middle of the 16th century pointing to its prosperity. Over the following hundred years, Stortford grew markedly. The population of Stortford reached 1,500 by 1660 as a result of a positive net birth rate and migration to the town. This was despite a series of a dozen plagues between the 1560s and 1660s. The town also enjoyed
14006-417: The matter was ratified by the Bishop’s Stortford, Dunmow and Braintree Railway Act of 31 July 1868, which confirmed the absorption of the railway by the Great Eastern Railway. It was calculated that the cost of constructing the line had been £188,779. The firm of Valentine and Wilson had been commissioned by the GER as valuers to examine the state of the railway as constructed, prior to the agreement leading to
14155-413: The medals and had to request duplicates to please his wife. His great-great-grandson considers that he was successful because he inspired people rather than drove them. Walker, in his 1969 biography, tried to make an accurate assessment of Brassey using Helps and other sources. He found it difficult to discover anyone who had a bad word to say about him, either during his life or since. Brassey expected
14304-402: The national average, as shown in the table below. Stortford itself has a strong internal economy, with an estimated 16,985 people employed within the town boundaries. There are 329 businesses established in the town centre (as of 2018) represented by the Bishop's Stortford Business Improvement District (BID). There is also a Bishop's Stortford Chamber of Commerce. Stortford is considered
14453-496: The navvies were mainly English and many of them had formerly worked on building the canals. They were later joined by men from Scotland, Wales and Ireland. The number of Irish workers particularly increased following the Great Famine . Brassey paid his navvies and gangers a wage and provided food, clothing, shelter and, in some projects, a lending library. On overseas contracts local labour would be used if it were available, but
14602-597: The new railways suffered correspondingly. For some, branch lines seemed to be the solution, and in 1846 the Braintree, Witham and Maldon Railway (BW&MR) was authorised. Joining Braintree to a small harbour on the River Blackwater at Maldon , the line was to make a direct crossing of the Eastern Counties main line at Witham. Part of the authorisation included improvement to the Maldon harbour. In fact
14751-752: The new town council was based at the former offices of the Braughing Rural District Council at 2 Hockerill Street. The town council moved to the Old Monastery on Windhill in 1994. East Hertfordshire District Council vacated 1 The Causeway in 2013, having consolidated most of its functions at its main offices in Hertford . The district council set up a smaller Bishop's Stortford office in Charringtons House, adjoining 1 The Causeway. The vacated office at 1 The Causeway
14900-567: The packing of their possessions and the removal. The Harrison children had been taught to speak French, while Thomas himself was unable to do so. Therefore, when the opportunity arose to apply for the French contracts, Maria was willing to act as interpreter and encouraged Thomas to bid for them. This resulted in moves to Vernon in Normandy, then to Rouen, on to Paris and back again to Rouen. Thomas refused to learn French and Maria acted as interpreter for all his French undertakings. Maria organised
15049-588: The period and the scheme was abandoned. The demonstration vehicles were scrapped at Stratford Works. The viaduct at Dunmow had given concern, and in 1966 the matter came to a head, when it was found that £120,000 would be needed to make it safe for continuing use. The decision was taken to close it from 18 April 1966. From that date the branch was divided into two sections, Bishop's Stortford to Dunmow, and Braintree to Felsted for sugar beet traffic only. The forwarding of sugar beet from Hertford line stations to Felsted factory suddenly became very lengthy and roundabout, and
15198-548: The point of divergence to the old station for the Witham line, now serving as the goods station. It was worked by pilotman, whose wages amounted to £132 annually. In 1922 the GER decided to install the Electric Tablet system. Bus competition was being felt in reducing passenger business on the line, and in reaction the GER opened two new halts, at Stane Street and Bannister Green on 18 December 1922. Both halts consisted of
15347-456: The port which was developing in the town. Many of the bricks needed for the growing city of Liverpool were supplied by the brickworks and Brassey devised new methods of transporting his materials, including a system similar to the modern method of palletting , and using a gravity train to take materials from the quarry to the port. When Lawton died, Brassey became sole manager of the company and sole agent and representative for Francis Price. It
15496-590: The railway at Carlisle with Glasgow and Edinburgh , covering a total distance of 125 miles (201 km) and passing over Beattock Summit . His engineer on this project was George Heald . That same year he also began contracts for other railways in Scotland, and in 1846 he started building parts of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway between Hull and Liverpool , across the Pennines . A contract for
15645-601: The railway from Balaclava to the troops besieging Sevastopol was completed. It then became possible to move supplies easily to the front and Sevastopol was finally taken in September 1855. In addition to building more railways in Britain and in other European countries, Brassey undertook contracts in other continents. In South America his railways totalled 250 miles (402 km), in Australia 132 miles (212 km), and in India and Nepal 506 miles (814 km). In 1866 there
15794-539: The railway network on 16 May 1842 when the Northern and Eastern Railway (N&ER) reached the town. The N&ER was planning to advance on York, but its lack of financial resources made that impossible. On the first day of 1844 the company agreed to lease its line for 999 years to the Eastern Counties Railway (ECR). The ECR obtained authority to extend to Cambridge and Brandon , in order to meet
15943-466: The raising of the necessary finance and at one stage Brassey travelled to Canada to appeal personally for assistance. Other difficulties arose from the severity of the Canadian winter, the waterways being frozen for around six months each year, and resistance from Canadian businessmen. The line was an engineering success but a financial failure, with the contractors losing £1 million. The contract for
16092-516: The river at Montreal by the Victoria Bridge . This was a tubular bridge designed by Robert Stephenson and was the longest bridge in the world at the time, measuring some 1.75 miles (3 km). The bridge opened in 1859 and the formal opening ceremony was carried out the following year by the Prince of Wales . The construction of the line caused considerable problems. The main problem was
16241-543: The road between Harlow Bush Common and Stump Cross in Great Chesterford . Later Acts of Parliament extended the term of the Trust and allowed new road construction. From March 1785 the mail coaches ran from London to Norwich via Stortford. Thus, the improved highways marked the first of the phases of Stortford's growth driven by emergent transport technology. The second major transport development to provide
16390-524: The road, evidence of a cremation facility and a burial site. None of the excavations has shown evidence of the Roman fort which likely existed in Stortford. The settlement was probably abandoned in the 5th century after the break-up of the Roman Empire. Following the end of the Roman era, a new Anglo-Saxon settlement grew up on the site. However, little is known about Stortford until the 1060s with
16539-432: The same railway, between Stafford and Wolverhampton , together with 10 miles (16 km) of track. The tender was accepted, the work was successfully completed, and the viaduct opened in 1837. Initially the engineer for the line was George Stephenson , but he was replaced by Joseph Locke , Stephenson's pupil and assistant. During this time Brassey moved to Stafford . Penkridge Viaduct still stands and carries trains on
16688-409: The same time the GER solicitor reminded the Board that the BSD&BR company had no ordinary shareholders, and had already exceeded its permitted debenture borrowings. As the GER wanted the line completed, for the tactical reasons already described, then it would have to find the money. In addition, the period allowed by Parliament for completion of the construction phase had already been exceeded, and
16837-550: The second daughter of Joseph Harrison, a forwarding and shipping agent with whom he had come into contact during his early days in Birkenhead. Maria gave Thomas considerable support and encouragement throughout his career. She encouraged him to bid for the contract for Dutton Viaduct and, when that was unsuccessful, to apply for the next available contract. Thomas' work led to frequent moves of home in their early years; from Birkenhead to Stafford , Kingston upon Thames , Winchester and then Fareham . On each occasion Maria supervised
16986-610: The ship and after Brunel's death, he, together with Gooch and Barber, bought the ship for the purpose of laying the first Transatlantic telegraph cable across the North Atlantic in 1864. Brassey had other ideas which were ahead of his time. He tried to interest the governments of the United Kingdom and Europe in the idea of a tunnel under the English Channel but this came to nothing. He also wanted to build
17135-459: The shortcomings, but Brassey was already nettled at the failure of the company to pay his certified accounts, and he declined to carry out the remedial works until he was paid. The BSD&BR had no money and the GER noted that they had already contributed 75% more than had been expected towards the construction. A hiatus followed in which a rift between the Great Eastern Railway and Brassey became particularly marked, as Brassey waited for his money. At
17284-520: The site of the bridge for assembly. The central tube of the bridge contained over 10,000 pieces of iron, perforated by holes for half a million rivets , and when it was assembled every piece and hole was true. Brassey played a part in helping the British forces to success in the Crimean War . The Black Sea port of Sevastopol was held by the Russians. The British government, in alliance with
17433-544: The tenders submitted by French contractors were too expensive, and suggested that British contractors should be invited to tender. In the event only two British contractors took the offer seriously, Brassey and William Mackenzie. Instead of trying to outbid each other they tendered jointly, and their tender was accepted in 1841. This set a pattern for Brassey, who from then on worked in partnership with other contractors in most of his ventures. Between 1841 and 1844 Brassey and Mackenzie won contracts to build four French railways, with
17582-474: The time Brassey was an apprentice he helped to survey the new Shrewsbury to Holyhead road (this is now the A5 ), assisting the surveyor of the road. While he was engaged in this work he met the engineer for the road, Thomas Telford . When his apprenticeship ended at the age of 21, Brassey was taken into partnership by Lawton, forming the firm of "Lawton and Brassey". Brassey moved to Birkenhead where their business
17731-469: The time of his death he had built one mile in every twenty miles of railway in the world. Brassey's works were not limited to railways and associated structures. In addition to his factories in Birkenhead, he built an engineering works in France to supply materials for his contracts there. He built a number of drainage systems, and a waterworks at Calcutta . Brassey built docks at Greenock , Birkenhead , Barrow-in-Furness and London. His London docks were
17880-516: The time of the 2011 census. Of the seven suburbs of Thorley , Town, Havers, Stortford Fields, Bishop's Park, St Michael's Mead and Snowley the last is a separate ecclesiastical parish east of the River Stort, centred around the old coaching inns, All Saints in Stansted Road and Snowley Parade, bordering Birchanger Woods and Essex. Postwar development has enlarged the town's area further. The earliest reliable population figure for Stortford
18029-494: The time this was thought to be the solution to the last-mile problem, of getting to and from industrial premises that were not located adjacent to a railway. The goods yard at Takeley was adapted with the necessary changeover equipment to enable the Road-Railer to transfer from road to rail haulage travelling mode, and vice versa. After extensive trials the Road-Railer proved unsuitable for the freight transport requirements of
18178-653: The town council ended links in 2011. Stortford is a prosperous town. The key drivers of its growth according to the Town Wide Employment Study for Bishop's Stortford are "Stansted Airport, an excellent rail service into central London and good road links via the M11 to London, the M25 northern sub-region and Cambridge. Stortford is well positioned in relation to the UK's most dynamic economies." This study also highlights Stortford's skilled population, as well as
18327-477: The town in the 1311–1315, 1318, 1320, 1322 and 1340. At the start of the early modern period in the mid 15th century, Stortford was a primarily agricultural community, but had also acquired a tanning industry. By the 16th century, Stortford had become an important centre of the malting industry. Not only were the local soils well suited for grains, but the fact that the town was just 35 miles to London provided an impetus to its development. The economic draw of
18476-731: The train for ticket issuing purposes. The geopolitical events of two world wars had little lasting effect on the line, although Sunday trains were introduced “to help the war effort” in October 1914. The railway reorganisations of grouping and nationalisation seemed to lead only to changes of names of the owning company -- to the London and North Eastern Railway in 1923 and to British Railways in 1948. However British Railways operated an enhanced service of seven passenger trains each way Monday to Friday, six on Saturdays, nearly all running through to Witham. There were four goods trains each way. The enhanced passenger service continued in subsequent years, but
18625-542: The turning point in Stortford's fortunes was the creation of the 'Hockerill by-pass' in 1670. King Charles II had in the 1660s been increasingly travelling from London to Newmarket for the races and disliked the noise and congestion of Stortford, with its odorous market, maltings and tanneries. Moreover, the route was not always passable as noted by diarist Samuel Pepys who in made the following entry in his diary on 23 May 1668: ‘and so to Bishop's Stafford [sic]. The ways mighty full of water so as hardly to be passed’. As
18774-511: The waterworks in Boughton, Chester. There are three street names in a row off the main road which spell 'Lord' 'Brassey' of 'Bulkeley'. In November 2005, Penkridge celebrated the bicentenary of Brassey's birth and a special commemorative train was run from Chester to Holyhead. In January 2007, children from Overchurch Junior School in Upton, Wirral celebrated the life of Brassey. In April 2007
18923-424: The west. Thomas Brassey Thomas Brassey (7 November 1805 – 8 December 1870 ) was an English civil engineering contractor and manufacturer of building materials who was responsible for building much of the world's railways in the 19th century. By 1847, he had built about one-third of the railways in Britain, and by time of his death in 1870 he had built one in every twenty miles of railway in
19072-412: The work was often done or supplemented by British workers. The agent on the site had overall responsibility for a project. He had to be a man of great capability, working for a fee plus a percentage of the profits, with penalties for late finishing and inducements to complete the work early. Brassey had considerable skill in choosing good men to work in this way and in delegating the work. Having taken on
19221-538: The world. This included three-quarters of the lines in France, major lines in many other European countries and in Canada, Australia, South America and India. He also built the structures associated with those railways, including docks, bridges, viaducts, stations, tunnels and drainage works. As well as railway engineering, Brassey was active in the development of steamships, mines, locomotive factories, marine telegraphy, and water supply and sewage systems. He built part of
19370-573: Was 120 at the publication of the Domesday Book in 1086. Over the successive centuries the population waxed and waned as a result of economic growth and plagues, and generally only rough population estimates exist. By the time of the first nationwide census in 1801 Stortford's population had reached 2,305 spurred by the town's position on the Hockerill Turnpike and the canalisation of the River Stort. Steady growth continued over
19519-461: Was a definite requirement by the BoT (for tender engine operation); drains were blocked by leaf fall during the period of operational dormancy; and fencing was incomplete. Yolland refused permission to open the line. Yolland made a further inspection visit on 18 February 1869, and while not everything was perfectly complete, Yolland felt able to give the necessary consent, and this was received formally by
19668-551: Was a great economic slump, caused by the collapse of the bank of Overend, Gurney and Company , and many of Brassey's colleagues and competitors became insolvent. However, despite setbacks, Brassey survived the crisis and drove ahead with the projects he already had in hand. These included the Lemberg (now Lviv ) and Czernowicz (now Chernivtsi ) Railway in Galicia (part of Austrian Empire ) which continued to be constructed despite
19817-447: Was administered by its parish vestry , in the same way as most small towns and rural areas; no borough corporation was established for the town, despite some limited moves in that direction in the fourteenth century. Bishop's Stortford was included in the hundred of Braughing . The Bishop's Stortford Poor Law Union was established in 1835, covering the town and surrounding parishes in both Hertfordshire and Essex. On 25 October 1866
19966-406: Was also used by trains on the branch line from Witham, and the station and the short length of the line to Braintree Goods Junction remained in use for trains to and from Witham. Braintree has accelerated as a commuter dormitory and the line was electrified on 31 October 1977. In July 1960 the branch was used for demonstrating the new road-railer container vehicles developed by British Railways. At
20115-553: Was assisted in solving the problem by one of his agents, Stephen Ballard. Rafts or platforms were made of layers of faggot-wood and peat sods . As these sank, they dispersed the water and so a firm foundation was made. This line is still in use and forms part of the East Coast Main Line . Also in 1847 Brassey began to build the North Staffordshire Railway. By this time the "railway mania"
20264-484: Was coming to an end and contracts in Britain were becoming increasingly more difficult to find. By the end of the "railway mania", Brassey had built one-third of all the railways in Britain. Following the end of the "railway mania" and the drying up of contracts in France, Brassey could have retired as a rich man. Instead he decided to expand his interests, initially in other European countries. His first venture in Spain
20413-467: Was considered to be key to commercial success. After commissioning a survey of the route in 1860, the ECR declared that they would support the line. The proposal went to Parliament, and the Bishops Stortford, Dunmow and Braintree Railway was authorised on 22 July 1861. Share capital was to be £120,000. The London and Bury St Edmunds Railway proposal was abandoned. Subscriptions for shares in
20562-635: Was demolished in 2017. Bishop's Stortford is the largest town within the Hertford and Stortford County Constituency for elections to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom . The constituency covers Stortford, Hertford, Ware, Sawbridgeworth and the surrounding rural areas. For elections to East Herts District Council, Bishop's Stortford has been divided into six wards since the May 2023 local elections wards: All Saints, Central, North, Parsonage, South and Thorley Manor. Bishop's Stortford residents elect 14 of
20711-694: Was during these years that he gained the basic experience for his future career. Brassey's first experiences of civil engineering were the construction of 4 miles (6 km) of the New Chester Road at Bromborough , and the building of a bridge at Saughall Massie , on the Wirral . During that time he met George Stephenson , who needed stone to build the Sankey Viaduct on the Liverpool and Manchester Railway . Stephenson and Brassey visited
20860-491: Was employing on average some 80,000 people in many countries in four continents. Despite this he had neither an office nor office staff, dealing with all the correspondence himself. Much of the detail of his works were held in his memory. He travelled with a personal valet and later had a cashier. But all his letters were written by him; it is recorded that on one occasion after the rest of his party had gone to bed, 31 letters had been written by Brassey overnight. Although he won
21009-416: Was established. Birkenhead at that time was a very small place; in 1818 it consisted of only four houses. The business flourished and grew, extending into areas beyond land surveying. At the Birkenhead site a brickworks and lime kilns were built. The business either owned or managed sand and stone quarries in Wirral . Amongst other ventures, the firm supplied the bricks for building the custom house for
21158-430: Was immune from bombings, with 20 bombs recorded as having been dropped in 1940. Targets included Hockerill Training College where three students were killed on 10 October 1940. The railway station was hit twice during the war and a rocket landed near Farnham Road in the town in 1945. In the post-war era the town centre underwent changes with the demolition of a multi-storey car park and surrounding area to make way for
21307-519: Was involved in this expansion but was careful to choose his contracts and investors so that he could maintain his standards. During the one year of 1845 he agreed to no less than nine contracts in England, Scotland and Wales, with a mileage totalling over 340 miles (547 km). In 1844 Brassey and Locke began building the Lancaster and Carlisle Railway of 70 miles (113 km), which was considered to be one of their greatest lines. It passed through
21456-403: Was lower than the 96.2% recorded in the 2001 census. The number of people describing themselves as having a white background in 2011 was significantly higher than the England aggregate of 85.4%, but slightly lower than the overall East Hertfordshire figure. The proportion of Bishop's Stortford residents reporting having been born in the United Kingdom was 87.8%, and was only slightly higher than
21605-440: Was managed by George Harrison with a Mr. Alexander and William Heap as assistants. The machine shop was 900 feet (274 m) in length and included a blacksmiths ' shop with 40 furnaces , anvils and steam hammers , a coppersmiths ' shop, and fabrication, woodwork and pattern shops. There was also a well-stocked library and a reading room for all the workforce. The fitting shop was designed to manufacture 40 locomotives
21754-517: Was opened. By 1911, the Encyclopædia Britannica referred to the town as having strong educational pedigree: "The high school, formerly the grammar school, was founded in the time of Elizabeth.... There are a Nonconformist grammar school, a diocesan training college for mistresses, and other educational establishments." During World War II , Stortford was a reception area for evacuees. This did not, however, mean that Stortford
21903-648: Was severed in 1975 when the M11 motorway was built. In 1980 Essex County Council bought the land as a route for an upgraded A120. However, the Council decided to turn the land into a linear country park; the Flitch Way Country Park was opened in 1994. The route is useable for walkers and cyclists throughout its length, and is suitable for horses part of the way. The route is part of the National Cycle Network Route 16. The path
22052-825: Was the Barcelona and Mataró Railway of 18 miles (29 km) in 1848. In 1850 he undertook his first contract in the Italian States, a short railway of 10 miles (16 km), the Prato and Pistoia Railway. This was to lead to bigger contracts in Italy, the next being the Turin–Novara line of 60 miles (97 km) in 1853, followed by the Central Italian Railway of 52 miles (84 km). In Norway, with Sir Morton Peto and Edward Betts , Brassey built
22201-441: Was the dominant railway company in the area, and saw the line as a blocker, to prevent the incursion of a rival line, so they felt obliged to support it. However they themselves had other pressing priorities, both managerial and financial, at the time, and for some time the construction was in abeyance. The line opened in 1869, and the BSD&BR company was absorbed into the Great Eastern Railway. Goods traffic developed healthily in
#577422