ONGAR HUNDRED 



STANFORD RIVERS 



and the heirs male of their bodies, and the right heirs 

 of Lore, and as to the manor of Rowenho to Richard 

 Salyng the bastard and John son of Richard and the 

 heirs male of their bodies and the right heirs of Lore." 



John Chaumbir of Epping held the manor of Little- 

 bury in 141 2, when it was said to be worth £20.*° In 

 1424 Chaumbir remitted to William Beauchamp of 

 London all his right in the manors of Littlebury and 

 Rowenho.*' Chaumbir and Beauchamp were probably 

 tenants under the Salyngs, for in 1468-g John Salyng 

 held the manors*^ and in 1469-70 Roger Salyng of 

 Merton (Surr.) and his sons John Salyng of Stanford 

 Rivers and John Salyng of Merton made a conveyance 

 of Littlebury and Rowenho. 'J 



Richard Salyng, who died in 1528, was said to hold 

 Littlebury and Rowenho of the queen as of her manor 

 of Ansty (Herts.), parcel of the honor of Clare. 84 His 

 son and heir Augustine Salyng died in 1546, leaving 

 an infant daughter Alice. *5 Augustine had mortgaged 

 the manors in 1544 to Sir Richard Rich.** In 1547 

 the wardship of Alice Salyng was given to William 

 Morris, together with an annuity of (jj 6s. id. from 

 the issues of Littlebury and Rowenho.*' Alice died in 

 1 5 5 1 and the manors passed to her aunts, daughters of 

 Richard Salyng: Elizabeth Rolfe and Katharine 

 Johnson.** In 1553 the manors were conveyed by 

 Elizabeth and her husband William Rolfe and Katherine 

 and her husband George Johnson to Robert Geyre and 

 John Foley.*' The purpose of this conveyance is not 

 clear, but it may have been part of the procedure neces- 

 sary for securing Littlebury and Rowenho upon 

 William Atwood, who was the second husband of 

 Alice widow of Augustine Salyng.'" 



William Atwood died in 1600 holding Littlebury 

 and Rowenho of Sir Henry Cocke as of his manor of 

 Ansty." In 1594 the manors had been settled upon 

 John Atwood, son of William, on John's marriage to 

 Dorothy daughter of William Walter of Wimbledon. '^ 

 John Atwood was succeeded by his son William, from 

 whom the estate passed to his son, another William, 

 who was alive at the time of the Essex Visitation of 

 1664-8. '3 In 1701 William Atwood, probably the 

 son of the previous William, and Anne Atwood, 

 widow, conveyed Littlebury to John Bull.'* A Mrs. 

 Bull held the estate in 1729.'' 



The Littlebury estate of the Atwoods was subse- 

 quently divided. In 1767 a dispute arose between 

 John Tempest, executor of John Petre, and acting lord 

 of the manor of Stanford Rivers, and Timothy Graves 

 of Littlebury, whose wife was the daughter of Mrs. 

 Bull.'* The dispute concerned manorial rights in 

 Littlebury, which Graves claimed as his own. The 

 depositions in the case show that the Atwoods' estate 

 had lain along both sides of the main road and that 

 Graves held only the part to the east, the part to the 

 west having become the property of a Mr. Jones. The 

 outcome of the dispute is not clear, but Timothy 

 Graves continued to deny that Littlebury was part of 

 the manor of Stanford Rivers, and a few years later. 



when Lord Petre was administering the Bellhouse 

 estate, there was another quarrel, over fishing rights, 

 in the course of which Graves pushed one of Lord 

 Petre's servants into the Roding." 



In 1 8 1 1 Joseph Waylet conveyed to Timothy 

 Phillips the manor of Littlebury, with '6 messuages, 

 2 mills, I dovehouse, 4 barns, 4 stables, 4 orchards, 

 100 acres of land, 100 acres of meadow, 50 acres of 

 pasture, 50 acres of wood, 20 acres of land covered by 

 water and common of pasture for all cattle.''* In 1842 

 the owner of Littlebury was J. Kynaston and the tenant 

 E. Phillips. The farm consisted of 1 13 acres." 



The older part of Littlebury Hall is of late-l6th- 

 century date and is of brick with an upper story of 

 timber framing. It is T-shaped, the long arm of the T 

 having two original windows with moulded brick 

 jambs and hood-moulds, a moulded oak door-frame, 

 and some original glass. The cross-wing to the north 

 was refronted in the late i8th or early 19th century 

 and has a Georgian doorcase flanked by two wide bay 

 windows. Internally there is some 16th-century panel- 

 ling and moulded woodwork. In the middle of the 

 19th century it was said of Littlebury Hall that more 

 than 20 rooms had been taken down in living memory.' 

 In 192 1 foundations were observed to the east of the 

 house, showing that it was at one time of greater extent.^ 

 For Littlebury Mill see above, p. 210. 



The manor of TRJCETS seems originally to have 

 been held in chief, but from the middle of the 14th 

 century was treated as being held of the manor of 

 Stanford Rivers. 



In 1268 John de Tracy and Margery his wife con- 

 veyed to William de Tracy i messuage and i virgate 

 of land in Stanford Rivers, to hold of John and Margery 

 and the heirs of Margery at a nominal rent.-s In 1 3 1 5 

 Hugh de Tracy and Agnes his sister conveyed to 

 Margery de Tracy I messuage, i carucate of land, 25 

 acres of meadow, 50 acres of wood, 40 acres of pasture, 

 and 5 ox. rent in Stanford Rivers.* In 1325 a settle- 

 ment was made securing to Margery de Tracy the life 

 interest in l messuage, 360 acres of land, 25 acres of 

 meadow, 50 acres of wood, 40 acres of pasture, and 

 50X. rent in Stanford Rivers and pasture for 14 cows 

 and 14 heifers in the great park of Ongar.s There was 

 to be remainder to Thomas de Tracy and Mabel his 

 wife and the right heirs of Thomas. By 1335 both 

 Margery and Thomas had evidently died, for in that 

 year the king granted to Mabel Fitzwaryn, damsel of 

 Queen Philippa, custody of the lands in Stanford , 

 Rivers belonging to the heir of Thomas de Tracy 

 tenant in chief.* The heir was James de Tracy, who 

 made proof of age in 1348.' It is not unlikely that he 

 died in the Black Death, for in 1353 Thomas de Tracy 

 his son died seised of a tenement in Stanford Rivers 

 called Tracy, said to be held of the Earl of Stafford by 

 the service of a pair of spurs or 6d. and by the rent of 

 I lb. pepper yearly at the earl's manor of Stanford 

 Rivers.* The heir of Thomas was his kinsman Hugh 

 de Tracy, chaplain. 



" Ibid. 



8' Feud. Aids, vi, 442. 



8* Cat. Close, 1422-9, 140. 



'^ C54/320 m. 22. 



83 C54/331 m. 19. 



*< C14.2/51/107. 



85 C142/74/67. 



«« Ibid. 



" Cal.Pat. 1547-8, 142. 



88 C142/93/60. 



" CP2S(2)/57/424. 



»" Fisits. of Essex (Harl. Soc), 338. 

 9" C142/262/137. 



92 Ibid. 



93 yisii. of Essex, 1664-8 (ed. J. J. 

 Howard), 9. 



94 CP25(2)/830, East. 13 Wm. III. 

 According to Morant, i, 155, the manor 

 was sold to Mrs. Sarah Bull (d. 1694). 



95 E.R.O., D/DP Mi 141. 



9' Ibid. 97 Ibid. 



08 CP25(2)/i3i2,Trin. 51 Geo. III. 



215 



99 E.R.O., D/CT 327. 



> MS. Hist, of Stanford Rivers by 

 Revd. H. Tattam, D.D., rector 1850-68, 

 in keeping of the present rector. 



^ Hist. Mon. Com. Essex, ii, 221. 



3 Feet of F. Essex, \, 266. 



4 Ibid, ii, 158. 



5 Ibid. 217. 



' Cal. Fat. 1334-8, 97. 

 ^ Cal. Inq.f.m. ix, p. 138. 

 8 Ibid. X, p. 74, 



