ONGAR HUNDRED 



CHIGWELL 



Road Baptist Church. A Baptist church was formally 

 constituted in 1909, taking over the brick building of 

 the King's Place Congregational Church, which had 

 closed in 1906."' By 1930 there were 56 members, 

 45 Sunday school pupils, and 13 teachers." In 195 1 

 there were 74 members, 87 pupils, and 16 teachers. '^ 

 For most of its history the church has supported a 

 minister. 



The church is of red brick, in similar style to the 

 Methodist church (see below) which was built 

 two years earlier. Beside it is the earlier iron 

 church. 



For a short time before 1827 there was a Wesleyan 

 Methodist congregation meeting at Chigwell. This 

 had certainly ceased by iSig.'^^ This mission had 

 probably been carried on by members of the North 

 East London Circuit, which a few years later built a 

 small church at Abridge in Lambourne (q.v.). 



No other reference has been found to Methodism in 

 Chigwell until 1878. In that year Edward Pope, 

 founder of the Loughton Methodist Church (q-v.), 

 bought land for ^200 in Queen's Road, Buckhurst 

 Hill, upon which an iron church was erected. '♦ In 

 1880 this was put in trust and included in the Wanstead 

 and Woodford Circuit. In 1886 a new brick church 

 was built to the design of Charles Bell of New Broad 

 Street, London, at a cost of ;^i ,940. In 1898 new floor- 

 ing was installed for £t^o. In February 1908 the 

 organ of the Palmerston Road Congregational Church 

 was bought for £<)$'< the old organ was sold to the 

 Loughton Wesleyan Church for ;{^45. 



In 1 9 10 it was decided to station a minister at Buck- 

 hurst Hill. A house was leased in 191 7 and bought two 

 years later. 



In 1928 the jubilee of the church was celebrated 

 by the building of the Jubilee Room, behind the school- 

 room. This cost £s^o. In 1934 the Buckhurst Hill 

 minister was transferred to Loughton and a lay pastor, 

 Mr. G. J. Gaisford, was appointed to Buckhurst Hill. 

 This arrangement continued until 1937, when Mr. 

 Gaisford left. The church now (1953) shares a minister 

 with the Hermon Hill church at Wanstead. Its 

 membership is 90. The building is of red brick, in 

 Gothic style. 



A new Methodist church was opened in Burrow 

 Road, on the Hainault estate in 1952. '5 



The present Salvation Army hall at the north end 

 of Alfred Road, Buckhurst Hill, is probably the build- 

 ing erected about 1863 by Mr. Gingell (see above, 

 Palmerston Road Congregational Church). The 

 Salvation Army has used it for at least 20 years.'* It 

 is a small building of stock brick. 



The Plymouth Brethren have a small hall in Queen's 

 Road, Buckhurst Hill; it is of stock brick and was built 

 in 1884." 



Princes Hall, Princes Road, Buckhurst Hill, has 

 been used for religious meetings since 1886 or earlier.'^ 

 It is a small red-brick building. 



The surviving court rolls of the manor of Woolston 



Hall run from 1423 to 1749" 



PARISH and are continued by court 



GOFERNMENT books for the period 1750- 



jiND POOR 1863.' There are no rolk for 



RELIEF 1460-82 and 1509-46 and 



there are a few short gaps later 

 in the series. The manor court took an active part in 

 local affairs until the end of the 17th century. Ale- 

 tasters were appointed regularly until 1640 and con- 

 stables until 1840. In the early 19th century, when 

 there was a single constable, he combined this office 

 with that of woodward, and the court continued to 

 appoint a woodward by that title alone up to 1862. 

 There appears to have been a manorial grange and 

 bakehouse which was derelict by 1463.* The court 

 dealt with minor nuisances and occasionally with cases 

 of assault. In 1578 the Poor Relief Act of 1576^ was 

 invoked to deal with an 'idle woman' harboured in the 

 house of a manorial tenant. In 1427 and 1606 it was 

 presented that the lord of the manor ought to repair 

 bridges, but in 1682 the parish surveyors were pre- 

 sented for failing to repair a footbridge. 



There are court rolls for the manor of Chigwell Hall 

 for the periods 1 595-1619 and 1687-1721 and books 

 for 1734-99 ^"'J i882-i90i.'» So far as can be judged 

 from these rolls alone this court during the 17th 

 century and later dealt only with business relating to 

 the copyhold tenements of the manor. There are no 

 records of the appointment of local officials in the 

 court, but in 1790 the parish vestry nominated two 

 constables, one for Chigwell Hall lordship and one for 

 Barringtons lordship (see below). 5 Neither was the 

 same man as was appointed constable by the Woolston 

 court in the same year. 



Existing court rolls of the manor of Barringtons cover 

 the period 1652-175 1.* On every occasion except one 

 during this period the court met only as a. court baron. 

 In 1695 it also viewed frankpledge, and appointed a 

 constable. The appointment by the vestry in 1790, 

 however, suggests that a constable was appointed for 

 this manor on occasions after 1695 which were not 

 recorded in the rolls. 



There is little information concerning poor relief 

 before the i8th century. The Guild of the Holy 

 Trinity (see above. Church) took a regular part in 

 relieving the poor. The poor men's chest in the parish 

 church is mentioned in 1 5 50,' and the collectors of the 

 poor in 1564.' 



Vestry minute books have survived for 1712-49, 

 1 789-1 804, and 1847-94.9 There are overseers' 

 accounts for 1821-36 and an almost complete series 

 of bills for i784-i836."> 



For a large and fairly populous parish attendance at 

 the vestry was normally not numerous; there were 

 rarely more than twelve ratepayers present. Meetings 

 were usually held in the vestry room, but in 1870 and 

 1872 exceptionally large attendances necessitated an 



'» Ibid. 



»' Bapt. Handbk. 1930. 



»^ Ibid. 1951. 



" E.R.O., Q/CR 3/1/66. 



^* The following acct. is based on an 

 address by A. W. Leach at Wanstead, 

 1919 (reported in Mins. of Local Preachers 

 Mtg. Wanstead and Woodford Circuit), 

 Trust Deeds and other church records. 



95 Inf. from Rcvd. P. H. Wingham. 



96 Inf. from local resident. 

 «' Kelly's Dir. Essex {i%%6). 



98 Ibid. 1886 f. 



99 E.R.O., D/DEs M9+-109. 



> E.R.O., D/DEs M80, 81, D/DZn 

 I, 2. 



2 E.R.O., T/P 17. 



J 18 Eliz. 1,0.3. 



■• E.R.O., D/DDa Mi-I2. 



5 E.R.O., D/P 166/8/10. 



<• E.R.O., D/DU 97/1-6. 



' Will of John Hill: Archd. Essex 2.1 

 Thonder; Will of Nicholas Sympson: 

 Comm. Ct. London 144 Clyffe. 



37 



8 Will ofThomasHewett: Archd. Essex 

 114. Newington. For Charity relief see 

 Charities, below. 



9 E.R.O., D/P 166/8/1, 10, II. 



**> Ibid. 166/12/1-7, 10-12. There are 

 many other miscellaneous parish records : 

 see Essex Par. Recs. 78. Unless otherwise 

 stated information below is from the 

 vestry minutes and overseers' accounts 

 and bills. 



