A HISTORY OF ESSEX 



the practice to record only the appointment of officers 

 and the balances remaining in officers' hands at the end 

 of each year.*? Moreover the minutes were never 

 signed.'" Houblon exercised an immediate influence 

 on the parish records. He scarcely ever missed a vestry 

 meeting and he wrote the minutes himself. At Easter 

 1693 he began a separate account book containing 

 detailed overseers' accounts, which were always duly 

 audited and were signed by the parishioners who passed 

 them. Thomas Velley, who succeeded Houblon as 

 rector in 1740 also attended vestry meetings regularly 

 and during his incumbency the parish records were 

 kept, though rather less methodically, on the lines that 

 Houblon had laid down. J. Lipyeatt who succeeded 

 Velley in 1751 appears, however, to have taken practi- 

 cally no part in conducting parish business. He did not 

 sign any minutes after December 175 1. In the next 

 four years his curate, J. Wells, usually signed the 

 minutes but afterwards neither incumbent nor curate 

 appears to have attended vestry meetings until 1782. 

 The complete absence of officers' accounts in the parish 

 books between Easter 1755 and 1758 may reflect the 

 initial apathy aroused by the incumbent's lack of 

 interest. In April 1782 the curate, then J. Lipyeatt 

 the younger, did sign the vestry minutes and his signa- 

 ture appeared twice more in the next seven years. 

 During the period 1759-89 the churchwarden was 

 almost invariably the first to sign the minutes and this 

 practice continued into the second quarter of the 19th 

 century. The rector rarely attended a meeting in the 

 early 19th century. 



The number of parishioners who attended vestry 

 meetings varied between I and 8 but was usually be- 

 tween 2 and 4. In the century after 1666 members of 

 the Poole family, lords of the manor of Bobbingworth 

 until 1708, took an active and leading part in parish 

 government. John Poole, lord of the manor from 1674 

 until about 1701, and his son and heir John, frequently 

 held parish office. Each of them held the office of over- 

 seer for several years. They nearly always attended 

 vestry meetings and signed immediately after the rector. 

 The younger John continued to take an equally pro- 

 minent part in parish affairs after he had sold Bobbing- 

 worth manor in 1708. From 1708 until 1720 he never 

 missed an Easter vestry. From 1721 until 1740 William 

 Poole was equally active and prominent. The Houblons, 

 owners of the manor of Bobbingworth from 1708, were 

 not resident in the parish and took no personal part in 

 its government. In the period down to 1789 the 

 owners of Blake Hall scarcely ever attended a vestry 

 meeting but Robert Crabb, who occupied the manor 

 farm in 1735, frequently held some parish office be- 

 tween 1726 and 1781. 



The work of the vestry consisted mainly in nominat- 

 ing parish officers, granting rates, agreeing on the 

 recipients of weekly collections, and approving officers' 

 accounts. One of the rare occasions in the i8th century 

 when other business was recorded was in April 1708 

 when it was resolved that in future the church clerk 

 should be paid 20s. a year out of the churchwarden's or 

 overseer's rate 'in lieu of what he has hitherto received 

 yearly by the house as a former custom it being a great 

 hindrance to him in the loss of time to go about to 

 receive the same'.'" 



There were two churchwardens each year from 

 1666 until 1682. s' During this period these officers 

 usually served for 2-4 years consecutively.s^ From 



« E.R.O., D/P 127/8. « Ibid. 



1 68 1 until about 1793 there was only one office of 

 churchwarden. From 1690 until 1771 it was the 

 practice to spend many consecutive years in this office. 

 Thomas Nicholls served as churchwarden from 1700 

 until 1724, William Poole from 1724 until 1740, 

 Samuel Corney from 1741 until 1753, and Robert 

 Crabb from 1759, if not before, until 1771. For a 

 time after 1771 the number of consecutive years spent 

 in the office tended to lessen and from about 1793 it 

 again became the practice to have two churchwardens. 

 There was usually one overseer. Until 17 17 it was 

 usual for the overseer to serve for 2 or 3 years con- 

 secutively. George Read served for 4 years from 17 17 

 until 1 72 1. After his appointment for a fourth year 

 in April 1720 it was agreed that 'having served 4 years 

 he shall be excused 7 years following'. Read's suc- 

 cessor, William Hamshire, also served 4 years con- 

 secutively, but 3 years remained the usual term of office 

 until 1 744. From 1 744 until 1 8 1 o the overseers nearly 

 always served for one year only. They seem to have 

 been chosen on a rota system and occasionally the officer 

 chosen appointed another man to perform the duties 

 of the office. Thomas Woodthorp acted for Capel Cure 

 in 1796-7 and again in 1 801-2. Jonathan Lewis, the 

 vestry clerk, acted as overseer for Capel Cure in 1 808-9 

 and for William Clark in the following year. During 

 the year ending at Easter 1 8 1 1 Lewis again acted as 

 overseer, but on what basis is not clear. If he received 

 any payment for performing the duties of overseer 

 during these years, such payment was not made, it 

 would seem, out of the poor rate. In April 181 1, how- 

 ever, a meeting of the vestry agreed 'for Jonathan Lewis 

 to be the acting Overseer for the year ensuing and to 

 have a salary of ^^lo p. annum and to be paid for 

 journeys'. Lewis continued to act as salaried overseer 

 every year from 181 1 until 1835 with the possible 

 exception of the year 1819—20. Each year there was 

 a formal agreement at the Easter vestry to renew his 

 appointment. In 1822 his salary as overseer was 

 increased to ;^l 3 1 3/. 



Constables were nominated in Vestry at least from 

 1667. Until 1 72 1 the parish always had two of these 

 officers, each of whom served several years con- 

 secutively. From 1 72 1 there was only one constable 

 for the parish and he usually served for many years. 

 Richard White was constable from 1721 until at least 

 1740, and R. Perry from 1744 until at least 1760. 



Two surveyors of highways were nominated annually 

 until 1700 after which there was usually only one 

 nomination until 1742. The surveyor was chosen from 

 a rota of landholders, as appears from the rector's note 

 on 26 December 1722, 'Mr. William Poole Surveyor 

 as a Deputy for the Revd. Tho. Wragg Clerk for 

 Gainthrops'.53 From 1742 there were several nomina- 

 tions each year for the office of surveyor but there are 

 indications that there was only one acting surveyor. 



From 1666 until after 1750 the overseers, church- 

 wardens, constables, and surveyors were each granted 

 separate rates for which they were directly responsible 

 to the parish. Until 1702 it was the custom for each 

 officer to present an annual account at the Easter vestry. 

 Occasionally one officer was ordered to pay another 

 officer's deficit out of his surplus. From 1702 the sur- 

 veyors submitted their accounts at Christmas instead of 

 at Easter but the other officers continued to make their 

 annual account at Easter. From 1758, if not before, 

 the overseer submitted interim accounts to the vestry 



5° Ibid. 



s' Ibid. 



S2 Ibid. 



S3 Ibid. 



16 



