30-648: The River Brain is a tributary of the River Blackwater in Essex , England . It is claimed to have given its name to the town of Braintree , although it seems that the name ‘Braintree’ is older, and that the river name is a back formation from the town name; Braintree lies on a low ridge between the Brain and the River Blackwater. To the north of Braintree it is known as Pods Brook. The brook rises near
60-465: A King George's Field (or Plantation) in memorial to King George V , which is locally, and colloquially, known as ''the Planny'. Francis Waring (1760–1833) was the vicar of Heybridge. He was notorious for the extraordinary way he performed the duties of his office. He would read church lessons at breakneck speed, give a very quick sermon of one or two sentences and then run down the aisle and leap onto
90-431: A horse to gallop off and repeat the performance at two other churches in the area. His domestic arrangements were equally peculiar. Although he wasn't poor, his vicarage was furnished with rough-hewn logs, instead of chairs. His children ate their meals from a trough next to the split-log dining table. He and his wife slept in an enormous wicker cradle suspended from the ceiling. The Waring Room , St Andrew's church hall,
120-685: A small supermarket, chemist, vets and dentist; many are situated around the Bentall's Shopping Complex along the Colchester Road. The town is also home to the popular Heybridge Swifts football club , currently competing in the Isthmian League Division One North . The final stage of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation Canal runs from Beeleigh through Heybridge and terminates at Heybridge Basin. This stage of
150-723: A weir at Beeleigh and along the tidal section of the Chelmer before rejoining the Blackwater at Heybridge Basin. In 1865 HM Government passed the Maldon Harbour Act authorized construction of a wharf on the west side of the southern end of Heybridge Creek on land belonging to the Great Eastern Railway Company, and improving the channels of the rivers Chelmer and Blackwater. Ten thousand pounds were spent on widening, deepening and improving
180-458: Is a large village and civil parish in the Maldon district of Essex , England. It is adjacent to the town of Maldon , near the River Blackwater . The parish had a population of 8,163 in 2021. Heybridge has a number of residential areas, most recognisable is the newer Bovis housing estates to the west of the town, which were built in 1995. Before building commenced, a full archaeological dig
210-548: Is a river in Essex , England. It rises as the River Pant in the northwest of the county, just east of Saffron Walden , and flows in a generally southeast direction to Bocking, near Braintree , via Great Sampford and Great Bardfield . At Bocking, it becomes the River Blackwater, and veers east to flow past Bradwell Juxta Coggeshall and Coggeshall . It then veers south, flowing past Kelvedon and Witham , before reaching Maldon . There, it veers east again and empties into
240-402: Is based at Plantation Hall, a community centre on Colchester Road. Heybridge was an ancient parish . In 1931 it had a population of 2,061. The parish was abolished in 1934, with most of the area, including the village, being absorbed into the neighbouring borough of Maldon ; a more rural part of the old parish was transferred instead to the neighbouring parish of Great Totham . The borough
270-421: Is named after him. Edward Hammond Bentall (1814–1898) was an industrialist who developed the agricultural machinery manufacturing business established by his father William Bentall (1776–1836) and traded under the name E H Bentall & Co . In 1873 he built a large Italianate house called The Towers at the corner of Goldhanger Road and Colchester Road. The house pioneered concrete block construction and
300-672: The Blackwater Estuary , which in turn meets the North Sea at Mersea Island . The River Blackwater has two major tributaries: the River Brain , which meets it just south of Witham, and the River Chelmer , which meets it just east of Maldon. The lower reaches of the Chelmer, from Chelmsford , were canalised in the 1790s, and the navigation diverts water north of the Blackwater through Maldon before emptying into
330-474: The Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation Company was formed by act of Parliament. Over the next four years, the company built a navigation from Chelmsford to meet the tidal estuary of the River Blackwater in Colliers Reach at the place that is today called Heybridge Basin (after the canal basin there). The burgers of the borough of Maldon refused to allow the canal to pass through their borough, so
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#1732791056361360-517: The Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation . Some people believe that the River Blackwater at Heybridge, near where the "high bridge" was later constructed, was the site of the Battle of Maldon in 991 AD. This belief, however, is contentious. The site of the battle cannot be unambiguously determined from the poem The Battle of Maldon itself, and over the years, various people have had different theories about where it happened. The key role of an island in
390-610: The Blackwater Estuary at Heybridge Basin . One of the most famous Viking battles in Britain , the Battle of Maldon , possibly took place at the mouth of the river in 991. The Battle of Maldon , an early-11th-century fragmentary poem which describes the battle, mentions the Panta and describes a tidal causeway which could be the causeway leading to Northey Island . The Saxons were defeated and their leader, Byrhtnoth ,
420-493: The National Trust, is approximately one mile to the west of Osea Island. It is part of an ancient landscape and is connected to the shore by a tidal causeway. It is believed by some to have been the site of the Battle of Maldon in 991 AD and offers birdwatching opportunities. 51°45′13″N 0°39′29″E / 51.75365°N 0.65815°E / 51.75365; 0.65815 Heybridge, Maldon Heybridge
450-607: The Wave bridge. In the early 1970s, a new factory complex was built on the other side of the canal, on land where Bentalls had previously had only offices and a foundry, and the land along Heybridge Street was vacated. Today, the Bentalls shopping centre occupies the later site. There are three tiers of local government covering Heybridge, at civil parish , district and county level: Heybridge Parish Council, Maldon District Council and Essex County Council . Heybridge Parish Council
480-513: The canal required much planning and work at its inception, as a constant running water supply was needed to the two mills nearby, in Langford and Heybridge. This was achieved through the diversion of the river Blackwater and extensive works around the Beeleigh locks. The Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation Canal was originally used to transport coal & wood to the inland town of Chelmsford, as
510-473: The company routed it just outside the borough boundary, which is why it ended up at Colliers Reach, rather than at Maldon. From Chelmsford, the navigation mainly followed the course of the River Chelmer until it reached Beeleigh, near Maldon. Then it followed the course of the River Blackwater to Heybridge , and from there via a canal to the sea lock at Colliers Reach. A weir connected the navigation to
540-484: The direct road via Danbury crests the highest hill in south Essex. The canal was used for this purpose until the late 70s although it had been in steady decline since the Great Eastern Railway opened its lines to Maldon in the 19th century. Today it is mainly used for pleasure boats and fishing. Heybridge has a Non-League football club Heybridge Swifts F.C. who play at Scraley Road. Heybridge has
570-518: The high bridge that was built over the River Blackwater in the Middle Ages, at Heybridge Square (the junction of Heybridge Street, Holloway Road, and the Causeway). This was a 5-arched stone bridge and it was replaced in 1870 by a 2-arched brick one. Much of the water flow down this part of the river had, by then, been diverted into the River Chelmer by diversion work done during construction of
600-716: The new world of the Automobile , producing their first car, the Bentall 9hp in 1908, with production ending in 1912. By 1914 Bentalls had 600–700 employees. During the first world war they took on female workers for the first time, and the workshop was equipped with pneumatic hoists. After the war, though, the fortunes of the company declined – largely due to its involvement in the Agricultural & General Engineers association. After A G E went bust in 1933 Bentalls gradually began to recover. In 1961 E H Bentall and Co
630-477: The north end of the Causeway, at its junction with Heybridge Street and Holloway Road, but the bridge there now is hardly distinguishable as such. The Maldon Crystal Salt Company produces crystalline sea salt by traditional panning techniques from the waters of the Blackwater. Osea Island is a privately owned Island that is situated on the Blackwater Estuary, north of Steeple . Northey Island owned by
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#1732791056361660-506: The poem would seem to make the traditional site of the battle at Northey Island to the south more likely. The island in question is within shouting distance of the mainland, which would rule out Osea Island to the east. Heybridge was an agricultural village until the 1970s and 80s, when a considerable proportion of the local farm land was given over to house building. The main industry in Heybridge itself, until it ceased trading in 1984,
690-464: The river from the Fullbridge to just downriver from Herring's Point, near Heybridge Basin. After this, vessels had to pay a toll of 3 pence a ton if they were under 50 tons register or 6 pence a ton if they were over that. A medieval 5-arched stone bridge over the River Blackwater at Heybridge (from which that village got its name) was replaced in 1870 by a 2-arched brick one. That bridge was at
720-407: The tidal river Blackwater at Heybridge, where it powered a water mill. Heybridge mill was demolished after severe flooding in this area in 1953, but the mill house still stands. The river (known here as Heybridge Creek ) was dammed between Heybridge Hall and Potman marsh in 1954 as part of a programme of flood defence improvements. Most of the water flowing down the River Blackwater nowadays flows over
750-608: The village of Bardfield Saling . Below Braintree the Brain joins the Blackwater in Whet Mead in Witham . In 2001, a "flood park" was planned to reduce the risk of overflow from the river. This Essex location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article related to a river in England is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . River Blackwater, Essex The River Blackwater
780-421: Was in turn abolished in 1974, being replaced by the larger Maldon District. No successor parish was created for the former borough. A new parish of Heybridge was created in 1987 covering the part of the former borough of Maldon north of the River Blackwater . In 2020 a separate parish of Heybridge Basin was created from part of the parish of Heybridge. Heybridge's facilities include a number of takeaways ,
810-467: Was killed. The Blackwater was a source of fish and oysters for the town of Maldon during the Roman occupation. The remains of Saxon fish traps were discovered in the river in the 1990s. During the winter of 1776 the Blackwater froze from Maldon to Osea island, a distance of some four miles. The ice trapped fishing and cargo carrying vessels and blocked any imports of coal, oil, wool to Maldon. In 1793
840-476: Was taken over by the Acrow group. Acrows went into receivership in 1984 and Bentalls factory closed down. Bentalls started life in the large building which still stands on the canal bank near the corner of Hall Road and Heybridge Street. It expanded across the road, eventually occupying all the land between Heybridge Street and the canal, with the exception of the site of the flour mill at Going's wharf, adjacent to
870-534: Was the agricultural machinery manufacturer E. H. Bentall & Co . William Bentall, some time between 1760 and 1790 invented the Goldhanger plough, which was put on the market in 1797. The company was established in 1805 on the south bank of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation , and grew into a large factory complex that operated for nearly 180 years. Prior to the First World War, Bentalls moved into
900-517: Was undertaken and the excavations showed the existence of an important Iron Age settlement and ritual complex, a large Roman settlement and a succeeding Saxon settlement, as well as scattered pre-historic remains. Along the Goldhanger road to the east are situated a number of traditional British holiday campsites , catering for both permanent residents and visitors. Heybridge was originally called Tidwalditun . The name Heybridge came from
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