Romford
is an ancient market town and railway station, head of a petty sessional
division, union and county court district, in the Southern division of the
county, in the Southern division of the county, seated on the little river Rom,
whence it derives its name, on the high road from London to Colchester, with a
station on the Great Eastern railway and another on a branch of the London,
Tilbury and Southend railway from Hornchurch, 12 miles from Whitechapel, 17
south west from Chelmsford, 7 north east from Barking, and 6 south west from
Brentwood. The principal street, in which the cattle market is held, is a wide
thoroughfare, of considerable length, running from west to east. The town was
governed by a Local Board of Health, formed in 1894, but is now, under the
provisions of the “Local Government Act, 1894” (56 and 57 Vict c 73), controlled
by an Urban District Council, and is lighted with gas from works in Nursery
walk, established in 1825, but since bought by a company, and enlarged in 1889.
Water is supplied by the South Essex Water Company, who derive their supply from
Grays. Romford was the capital of
the liberty of Havering atte Bower until the abolition of the liberty, 9 May,
1892: this liberty comprised the parishes of Hornchurch, Romford and Havering:
and had an ancient, peculiar, and separate jurisdiction, granted by various
charters from the time of Edward the Confessor, whose original grant has since
received many additions and confirmations: it was independent of the county,
appointed its own magistrates, had a clerk of the peace, coroner, quarter and
petty sessions, courts of record and ancient demesne, and a county court: all
business relative to the liberty was transacted in the town of Romford, which
has in consequence been appointed the head of a petty sessional division. The
manorial Court, however, is still in existence, and meets annually on the
Tuesday in Whitsun week for the election of officers, viz : High Steward and
Deputy High Steward, also for the payment of quit rents.
The
ancient civil parish of Romford was in 1895, under the operation of the “Local
Government Act, 1894” (56 and 57 Vict c 73), divided into three civil parishes,
viz : Romford Urban, Romford Rural and Noak Hill. The Urban parish comprised the
same area as Urban district, and the Rural the remainder of the old parish
except Noak Hill, which will be found under a separate heading. On the
amalgamation of Romford Urban and Rural parishes, on April 24th,
1900, the district was divided into wards for parochial purposes., the old town
of Romford being divided into the wards of North, Central and South, and the
Rural portion into Collier Row and Harold Wood wards: ecclesiastically, it is in
the rural deanery of Chafford, archdeaconry of Essex and diocese of Chelmsford.
The
church of St Edward the Confessor, erected in 1850 on the site of the old parish
church, built in 1410, is a building of Kentish rag with Bath stone dressings in
the later Decorated style, and consists of chancel, nave with clerestory, aisles
with chapels and an embattled tower on the south side with a spire 162 feet in
height and containing a clock and 8 bells dated respectively 1850, 1756, 1704,
1651 and three others 1636, one being undated; the east window was given by Col
Graves in memory of his wife: there is also a stained window in the south aisle
to the memory of Edward Ind esq, JP, d 1848: in the north aisle of the church is
a stately monument, with alabaster effigies, of himself and his lady and their
children in kneeling attitudes to Sir Anthony Cooke (preceptor to King Edward
VI); who died June 11, 1576: the Latin inscription on this monument, enumerating
the various members of his family, is supposed to have been furnished by his
daughters, who were among the learned females of that age: against the south
wall of the chancel formerly stood the fine monument, now in the porch, of Sir
George Hervey knt, 4th son of Sir Nicholas Hervey of Marks; he had
previously been sheriff of Essex, 38 Eliz (1595-6) and was at the time of his
death, 10th August 1605, lieutenant of the Tower of London, where he
died: but was buried here on the south side of the chancel with heraldic
honours: there is a long inscription in gilt letters on a slab of black marble,
to himself, his wife and various members of his family: previously placed on the
south wall of the chancel, immediately west of the Hervey monument, is the
stately tomb, with her recumbent effigy of Anne Carew, raised by her famous son,
George, first and only Baron Carew and eventually Earl of Totnes; she was the
daughter of Sir Nicholas Hervey, Knt, and sister of Sir George Hervey knt, dean
of Windsor; he died 15th of June, 1583 and his wife, 27th
August, 1605, at 76: the church will seat 830 persons. The register dates from
the year 1561 and is in very good condition. The living is nominally a vicarage,
but is rather in the nature of a chaplaincy exempt from ecclesiastical
jurisdiction, net yearly value £640, and residence, in the gift of New College,
Oxford, who grant the vicar what is termed “a lease”, and held since 1909 by the
Rev George Milner Bell, MA, of that College. The
St
Andrew’s is an ecclesiastical parish formed June 12, 1856, from the mother
parish; the church, erected in 1862 is a plain building of stone in the
Perpendicular style, consisting of chancel, nave, south aisle, south porch, and
a western belfry, with spire containing 1
bell: there are three stained windows in the chancel: the church affords 600
sittings.. The register dates from the year 1863. The living was declared a
rectory
The corn
exchange, in the High Street, is private property, but is let for public
meetings and concerts: the large hall will hold over 400 persons. The Lecture
hall of the Congregational school is also let for similar purposes. The Public
Baths, in Mawney’s road, and opened in 1900, were erected by the Urban District
Council at a cost of £9,000 and are available for public entertainments from
November to March. The Police station, in
Charities: Roger Reede of Havering, by will dated 14th February,
1482, left his “new built place in Jay’s Mead, otherwise called Hoo Croft”, for
five poor men: these were rebuilt in 1784, and there are now six almshouses; one
almsman who preserves order, is called “the ruler”, and receives £43 yearly, the
other men £39, the widows £33: all being supplied with clothes, coals and
medical aid: clothes are distributed from the surplus to the poor of Romford,
Hornchurch and Dagenham. Robert Ballard in 1660 devised two houses in Romford to
the churchwardens, for the repair of the highways.. William Armstead, of
Hornchurch, gave to the poor of Romford £2, arising from a farm at Hay Green,
and distributed in bread and money and Andrew Reynolds, by will dated
Francis
Quarles, the celebrated author of the “Book of Emblems”, was born in May, 1592
in the old manor house, called “Stewards”, that manor having been the property
of the Quarles family since 1588; he was educated at Christ’s College, Cambridge
and became cup bearer to the Queen of Bohemia and about 1621 was appointed
secretary to Archbishop Usher, whom he accompanied to Ireland: his resolute
adherence to the royal cause during the civil war occasioned him much loss, both
of property, books and MSS, and is thought to have hastened his death, which
took place 8th September, 1644. Golf links of 18 holes have been
formed at Gidea Hall. Marshalls Park, on the north of the town, the property of
Mrs MacIntosh, of
The
population of the wards in 1911 was :- Central, 3,927; Collier Row, 1,733;
Harold Wood, 1.757; North, 4,883; South, 4,670.
The
population of the ecclesiastical parishes in 1911 was:- St Edward the Confessor
(parish church) with Noak Hill, 7,972; St Andrew, 9,220
Romford
Rural Parish was formed in 1895 in pursuance of the “Local Government Act, 1894”
(56 and 57 Vict c 73), but was amalgamated with Romford Urban parish in 1900.
Collier
Row (
Gidea Park, which includes the hamlet of
Romford
Common is a hamlet of scattered houses commencing about 2 miles north east.
Pillar
Letter Box cleared 8 & 11.15 am & 1.15 & 8 pm; Sunday 9 am
Rush
Green is a hamlet 1 mile south west. A cemetery of 12 acres about 1 mile from
the town, was opened in October, 1871: there are two mortuary chapels and a
porter’s lodge; it is under the control of the Romford Urban District Council,
who also keep the old cemetery in repair.
Squirrels
heath is a village, 1 mile east, with a station on the Great eastern railway.
The chapel of All Saints is a wooden building on a brick foundation, erected on
land given by Mr Alfred Savill at a cost of £504, defrayed by subscriptions: it
consists of chancel, nave and a bell-cot containing one bell, and was dedicated
Aug 3rd, 1884, by the Lord Bishop of Colchester: a vestry and parish
room were added in 1892: the church will seat 240 persons. Here is a factory
belonging to the Great Eastern Railway Co, in which about 80 persons are
employed in the making of sheets, horse cloths, sacks etc: a building was
erected in 1900 for the preparation of forage and horse provender, and employs
about 20 persons.
Official Establishments, Local Institutions etc
Post, M O
& T O & Telephonic Express Delivery Office,
Town
Sub-Post & M O Offices:-
Market
place – William Towers Moore, sub-postmaster. Letters dispatched at 8.30, 10.30
& 11.30 am & 1.45, 4 , 6.25 & 8 pm & 12
Post
Office,
Post M &
T office, Hare Street – Miss Annie Sparrow, sub-postmistress. Letters are
delivered from Romford at 6.45 & 10 am & 1.25, 3.45 & 7.15 pm; dispatched at
8.20, 10.25 & 11.30 am & 3.55 & 8 pm; Sundays, 9.25 am
Post
Office, Squirrels Heath – Thomas Maple, sub-postmaster. Letters dispatched at
8.25 & 10.25 am & 4 & 8 pm; Sunday,
Post
Office, Collier Row – Ernst James Legg, sub-postmaster. Letters from Romford
delivered at
Post
Office, Rush Green – John Rockingham, sub-postmaster. Letters dispatched
at
Trying to avoid privacy and cookie settings overwriting content