A HISTORY OF ESSEX 



beside the parish church. There are later additions, 

 including a large classroom dated 1903. 



An unknown donor before 1786 gave a rent-charge 

 for the benefit of eight old poor people 

 CH^RITIES^" of the parish not receiving poor relief. 

 In 1834 theland charged wasTheydon 

 Hall and the money was distributed at Christmas in 

 shares of 2S. i>d. each to poor people, most of whom 

 were in fact receiving parish relief. 



The Poor's Land comprised two small pieces of 

 pasture in Theydon Mead. The rent of 30/. a year 

 was said in 1835 to have been paid until 1833 into the 

 poor rate, and after that into a fund made up of 

 voluntary contributions, which was used to buy bread 

 and clothes for the poor. The land was sold in 1921 

 for ^^40 which was invested in stock. 



The almshouses were established under a deed of 

 1753 by which Benjamin Smart, then lord of the 

 manor, gave a small piece of land in trust for the build- 

 ing of cottages for poor old people receiving parish 

 rehef.' Some cottages seem to have been built soon 

 after. There was no mention of the almshouses in the . 

 1835 Report. In 1905 they were four in number, in 

 one block, each consisting of two rooms; they had been 

 renovated two years earlier by the lord of the manor. 

 Their use was limited by lack of endowment and 

 though stipends were paid to the inmates from 1907 

 out of Elizabeth Wild's Charity (see below), by 195 1 

 only two of the cottages were occupied and all were in 

 very bad repair. In 1953 part of the site was sold for 

 ^^580 and the almshouses were repaired and converted 

 into two cottages. By a scheme of that date all the exist- 

 ing parish charities are managed together under the 

 name of the United Charities and all their incomes, 

 which had been unspent for several years, are applicable 

 to the upkeep of the almshouses, after the payments for 

 Elizabeth Wild's tomb and memorial tablet. The 

 almshouses are on the north side of Coppice Row op- 

 posite Birch Hall. They consist of a single-story range. 



rough-cast with a tiled roof. The mullioned windows 

 have four-centred heads to the lights. There are three 

 gabled porches to the front, the large central porch 

 containing two doorways. 



Elizabeth Wild, by will proved 1844, left ;^i,ooo 

 to be invested for the maintenance of her vault and a 

 tablet reciting the terms of her bequest, and subject 

 thereto for the payment of ;^lo each Christmas to poor 

 parishioners chosen by the trustees. The surplus was 

 to be given to four poor widows resident in the parish 

 for 20 years before, or if there were none, to the poor 

 in general. By a Scheme of 1907 the income after the 

 expenses of the vault and tablet was to be used in the 

 payment of stipends to the almspeople. In 1950 the 

 payment of stipends was stopped; part of the income of 

 j^24 14-f. \d. was spent on repairs to the almshouses. 



Louisa Elizabeth Young, by will proved i8gi, left 

 ^^489 16/. stock of which half was to go to the National 

 School and half to support a clothing club, and if this 

 was discontinued, for the benefit of the poor of the 

 parish in general. In fact the stock received by each 

 beneficiary was only ^^169 8/. <)d. The clothing club 

 was still in existence in 1905. In 1950 the income was 



£.\ 9- 



Frances Mary Buss, by deed of 1897, gave ^100 in 

 trust for the benefit of poor members of the Church of 

 England or for purposes connected with it. There was 

 a gift over to the Memorial Scholarship Fund on failure 

 to keep her grave in repair. In 1950 the income was 

 £,z \6s. \od. 



John Hyett, by will proved 1719, left ^^5 a year for 

 the apprenticing of poor boys, preferably resident in 

 the manor of Gregories (see above. Manors). The 

 sum was charged on the manor and was apparently paid 

 in 1721.^' In about 18 14 it had not been received for 

 some years^^ and there is no later record of it. 



The Theydon Bois Nursing Association was left 

 with a balance of jC5°° when it was wound up in 

 1949. 



THEYDON GARNON 



Theydon Garnon adjoins Epping to the east.' The 

 ancient parish boundary was a little to the east of 

 Epping High Street, so that Theydon Garnon formerly 

 included much of the town.^ In 1840 the area of the 

 parish was 3,161 acres.' In 1896 the part of Theydon 

 Garnon lying within the Epping Special Drainage 

 Area was included in the newly formed Epping Urban 

 District.* The area affected comprised about 770 acres 

 in the north-west of the parish, containing about three- 

 quarters of the population. This reduced Theydon 

 Garnon to a completely rural parish. There were 

 further transfers of small areas from Theydon Garnon 

 to Epping Urban District in 1934' and to Epping 

 Upland in 1946.* In 1948 it was proposed by the 

 county council that Theydon Garnon should be 

 abolished as a civil parish by adding the part north of 

 the railway to North Weald and incorporating the rest 

 m Theydon Bois.^ The main proposal was not ap- 



proved by the Minister of Health. Theydon Garnon 

 remained a parish and there were only minor boundary 

 changes: the part of this parish north of the railway was 

 transferred to North Weald (q.v.) and the parts of 

 North Weald and Epping Upland to the south of the 

 railway were added to Theydon Garnon.* In 1953 

 the area of Theydon Garnon was 2,342 acres.' 



Most of the sections of this article relate to the whole 

 ancient parish. The architectural descriptions, how- 

 ever, of those parts of the ancient parish which lie in 

 Epping town and its suburbs to the east of the railway, 

 and the history of nonconformist churches and of any 

 industry in the Epping town portion of the ancient 

 parish are reserved for treatment under Epping. 



Theydon Garnon, the largest of the three Theydons, 

 takes its distinctive name from the family of Gernon 

 which held the capital manor from the 13th century."* 

 From at least the late i6th century, and especially in 



" Rtf. Com. Char. (Estex), H.C. 216, 

 pp. 246-7 (1835), xxi (i); Char. Com. 

 files. 

 " E. Ogborne, Hitt. Ettex, 260. 

 " Ibid. 

 ' O.S. 3\ in. Map, tfaeets^i/49, 52/40- 

 ' O.S. 6 in. Map (ist edn.), sheets 1, 

 Iviii. 



' E.R.O., D/CT 350. 



* Co. of Essex (Epping &c.), Conf. 

 Order, i8g6. 



5 Essex Revienv Order, ig34. 



<> Co. of Essex (Rural Parishes) Conf. 

 Order, 1^46. 



' Co. of Essex {Alteration of Rural 

 Parishes) (No. 2), Order, ig48. 



' Co. of Essex (Alteration of Rural 

 Parishes) Confirmation Order No. 2, ig4g. 



258 



Inf. from Essex Co. Council. 

 ■0 See below, Manors j P.N. Essex 

 (E.P.N.S.), 83. Dr. keaney errs in 

 identifying Theydon Garnon with Theydon 

 Paulyn; the latter was in fact identical 

 with Theydon Mount (q.v.). For a note 

 on the meaning of Theydon see under 

 Theydon Bois. 



