Wivenhoe
Encyclopedia
Wivenhoe is a town
in north eastern Essex
, England
, approximately 3 miles (4.8 km) south east of Colchester
. Historically Wivenhoe village, on the banks of the River Colne
, and Wivenhoe Cross, on the higher ground to the north, were two separate settlements but with considerable development in the 19th century the two have merged.
In 2008, the town had a population of over 10,000. The town's history centres around fishing, ship building, and smuggling. The town is considered to have a bohemian quality, remaining popular with local artists and writers.
Much of lower Wivenhoe is also a designated conservation area
, with many streets being of particular architectural interest.
name meaning Wifa's (Wiven) Ridge (hoe). Wifa was a person or tribe the town's area belonged to before the Norman Conquest. The town's first church, St. Mary-the-Virgin, is of Saxon origin. According to folk etymology, the name derived from "Wyvernhoe" , originating from a mythical beast called a wyvern
and the previously mentioned ridge (hoe).
of 1086 as Wiivnhou when it formed part of the land of Robert Gernon, where there was a mill, 12 acres (48,562.3 m²) of meadow and pasture for 60 sheep. Wivenhoe developed as a port and until the late 19th century was effectively a port for Colchester
, as large ships were unable to navigate any further up the River Colne
, and had two prosperous shipyards. It became an important port for trade for Colchester and developed shipbuilding, commerce and fishing industries. The period of greatest prosperity for the town came with the arrival of the railway in 1863.
In 1884 the town suffered significant damage when it lay close to the epicentre of one of the most destructive UK earthquake
s of all time - the 1884 Colchester earthquake
. In 1890, there was a population of about 2,000 mostly engaged in fishing for oysters and sprats and in ship and yacht building. A dry dock was built in 1889 and extended in 1904, making it one of the largest on the East Coast; it was demolished in the mid-1960s. In the 1960s, Wivenhoe Park
was chosen as the location for the University of Essex
.
During the UK miners' strike (1984-1985), the now defunct Wivenhoe Port imported coal and became subject to picketing by miners (many from Yorkshire), which led to a very substantial police presence, some of them drafted in from other counties, and violent skirmishes as striking miners tried to prevent vehicles entering and leaving the port.
. The site was the home for several centuries of the Rebow family, descendants of Flemish clothweavers from Colchester
. Wivenhoe House was designed for Isaac Rebow in 1759 by Thomas Reynolds; the park itself was designed by Richard Woods. it was remodelled in 1846-7 by T. Hopper. It was the setting for a John Constable
painting, which was painted for Major-General Francis Slater-Rebow in 1816 for a fee of 100 guineas and is a view of the house across the lake.
is served by an electric rail service to and from London Liverpool Street currently provided by National Express East Anglia. The town is connected by a seasonal foot ferry
service at weekends in the summer across the River Colne, Essex
to Fingringhoe
and Rowhedge
. There is a bus connection to Colchester. Wivenhoe is just over one hour from Stansted Airport and 30 minutes from Harwich International Port
.
, a long-standing artistic community, and commuters. Property prices averaged £286,000 in February 2008. The town has a number of small, local shops: there is a bookshop, chemist, two post offices, corner house coffee shop, toy shop, delicatessen, tea rooms, greengrocer, Co-op, pet supplier and florist. There are six pubs, some of which are the venue for musical events, including a jazz club. The Crab & Winkle Gallery can be found at the town's railway station. The town is popular with students from the university who walk from the campus to enjoy the facilities of the town's public houses and its waterfront.
The town has a number of sports and leisure clubs and societies: Wivenhoe Sailing Club's clubhouse is just downstream of the river barrier. Wivenhoe Town Football Club play at Broad Lane Sports Ground, which is also used by Colchester United Ladies
and Wivenhoe Old Boys Football Club, and is also home to Wivenhoe Tennis Club. Wivenhoe Town Cricket Club is located on Rectory Road. There are a number of musical and theatre groups, and an art gallery. The King George V
Playing Field is in the lower half of the town, with a small skate park, football pitches, a small play park and a dog-walking area. There is a bowls club on De Vere Lane and a bridge club meets in the Town Council's offices.
, and Millfields Primary.
Secondary schools are available in the surrounding area. The University of Essex
has been located at Wivenhoe Park since 1964.
who played Miss Marple
in the BBC adaptations of Agatha Christie
's novels, and children's writer Leila Berg
. It is also home of the poet and musician Martin Newell
.
It was once a favourite watering hole of the painter Francis Bacon
(whose house still remains as it was when he died, on Queens Road), and several journalists and writers have been based in the lower end of the town - George Gale
(former editor of The Spectator
, Daily Telegraph cartoonist and Daily Express
columnist) and Peregrine Worsthorne
, (former editor of the Sunday Telegraph
) both had homes there.
Actor-manager Sir John Martin-Harvey
was born in the village in 1863 and is commemorated by a blue plaque on Quay House, one of his childhood homes. He was the son of yacht-designer John Harvey and grandson of Thomas Harvey, yacht builder. The Volante was built by Thomas Harvey & Son (Thomas & Thomas Harvey junior) in the Halifax Yard at Ipswich. The "Volante" competed in the first America's Cup
in 1851.
During the first half of the nineteenth century, Wivenhoe Hall was the home of William Brummell, brother of the more famous Beau Brummell
.
Harry Bensley
became famous for taking on a wager to walk around Britain and eighteen other countries while wearing an iron mask and pushing a perambulator. Bensley lived in the village with his wife, Kate, after having served in the First World War.
Wivenhoe also became the adopted home of Louis Claiborne. Mr. Claiborne served as a U.S. Deputy Solicitor General from 1962 to 1985, presented oral argument in over 70 cases to the United States Supreme Court and is regarded as "one of the single most important lawyers in environmental law's formative years in the Court." Additionally, Claiborne was noted for being one of only a few American lawyers to have been admitted as an English barrister, and also for being one of even a smaller number of English barristers to have argued before the United States Supreme Court.
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
in north eastern Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, approximately 3 miles (4.8 km) south east of Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
. Historically Wivenhoe village, on the banks of the River Colne
River Colne, Essex
The River Colne is a small river that runs through Colchester, England. It is not a tributary of any other river, instead having an estuary that joins the sea near Brightlingsea.-Source:...
, and Wivenhoe Cross, on the higher ground to the north, were two separate settlements but with considerable development in the 19th century the two have merged.
In 2008, the town had a population of over 10,000. The town's history centres around fishing, ship building, and smuggling. The town is considered to have a bohemian quality, remaining popular with local artists and writers.
Much of lower Wivenhoe is also a designated conservation area
Conservation area
A conservation areas is a tract of land that has been awarded protected status in order to ensure that natural features, cultural heritage or biota are safeguarded...
, with many streets being of particular architectural interest.
Etymology
Wivenhoe may be derived from a SaxonOld English language
Old English or Anglo-Saxon is an early form of the English language that was spoken and written by the Anglo-Saxons and their descendants in parts of what are now England and southeastern Scotland between at least the mid-5th century and the mid-12th century...
name meaning Wifa's (Wiven) Ridge (hoe). Wifa was a person or tribe the town's area belonged to before the Norman Conquest. The town's first church, St. Mary-the-Virgin, is of Saxon origin. According to folk etymology, the name derived from "Wyvernhoe" , originating from a mythical beast called a wyvern
Wyvern
A wyvern or wivern is a legendary winged reptilian creature with a dragon's head, two legs , and a barbed tail. The wyvern is found in heraldry. There exists a purely sea-dwelling variant, termed the Sea-Wyvern which has a fish tail in place of a barbed dragon's tail...
and the previously mentioned ridge (hoe).
History
Wivenhoe, which is thought to mean Wifa's Ridge, is of Saxon origin. It is recorded in the Domesday BookDomesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
of 1086 as Wiivnhou when it formed part of the land of Robert Gernon, where there was a mill, 12 acres (48,562.3 m²) of meadow and pasture for 60 sheep. Wivenhoe developed as a port and until the late 19th century was effectively a port for Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
, as large ships were unable to navigate any further up the River Colne
River Colne, Essex
The River Colne is a small river that runs through Colchester, England. It is not a tributary of any other river, instead having an estuary that joins the sea near Brightlingsea.-Source:...
, and had two prosperous shipyards. It became an important port for trade for Colchester and developed shipbuilding, commerce and fishing industries. The period of greatest prosperity for the town came with the arrival of the railway in 1863.
In 1884 the town suffered significant damage when it lay close to the epicentre of one of the most destructive UK earthquake
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
s of all time - the 1884 Colchester earthquake
1884 Colchester earthquake
The Colchester earthquake, also known as the Great English Earthquake, occurred on 22 April 1884. It caused considerable damage in Colchester and the surrounding villages in Essex...
. In 1890, there was a population of about 2,000 mostly engaged in fishing for oysters and sprats and in ship and yacht building. A dry dock was built in 1889 and extended in 1904, making it one of the largest on the East Coast; it was demolished in the mid-1960s. In the 1960s, Wivenhoe Park
Wivenhoe Park
Wivenhoe Park, located on the Eastern edge of Colchester is a multi-acre landscaped green space.Until the 1960s its main claim to fame was that it was the setting for one of Constable's landscape paintings. From the 1960s onwards, however, it has been home to the University of Essex. The park is...
was chosen as the location for the University of Essex
University of Essex
The University of Essex is a British campus university whose original and largest campus is near the town of Colchester, England. Established in 1963 and receiving its Royal Charter in 1965...
.
During the UK miners' strike (1984-1985), the now defunct Wivenhoe Port imported coal and became subject to picketing by miners (many from Yorkshire), which led to a very substantial police presence, some of them drafted in from other counties, and violent skirmishes as striking miners tried to prevent vehicles entering and leaving the port.
Wivenhoe Park
Wivenhoe Park, bordering on the town of Colchester, is the location for the University of EssexUniversity of Essex
The University of Essex is a British campus university whose original and largest campus is near the town of Colchester, England. Established in 1963 and receiving its Royal Charter in 1965...
. The site was the home for several centuries of the Rebow family, descendants of Flemish clothweavers from Colchester
Colchester
Colchester is an historic town and the largest settlement within the borough of Colchester in Essex, England.At the time of the census in 2001, it had a population of 104,390. However, the population is rapidly increasing, and has been named as one of Britain's fastest growing towns. As the...
. Wivenhoe House was designed for Isaac Rebow in 1759 by Thomas Reynolds; the park itself was designed by Richard Woods. it was remodelled in 1846-7 by T. Hopper. It was the setting for a John Constable
John Constable
John Constable was an English Romantic painter. Born in Suffolk, he is known principally for his landscape paintings of Dedham Vale, the area surrounding his home—now known as "Constable Country"—which he invested with an intensity of affection...
painting, which was painted for Major-General Francis Slater-Rebow in 1816 for a fee of 100 guineas and is a view of the house across the lake.
Transport
Wivenhoe stationWivenhoe railway station
Wivenhoe railway station is on the Tendring Hundred Railway and serves the small town of Wivenhoe in Essex, England. It is operated by National Express East Anglia. The station has two platforms and a footbridge, and a manned ticket office and waiting room...
is served by an electric rail service to and from London Liverpool Street currently provided by National Express East Anglia. The town is connected by a seasonal foot ferry
Ferry
A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
service at weekends in the summer across the River Colne, Essex
River Colne, Essex
The River Colne is a small river that runs through Colchester, England. It is not a tributary of any other river, instead having an estuary that joins the sea near Brightlingsea.-Source:...
to Fingringhoe
Fingringhoe
Fingringhoe is a village and civil parish in Essex, England located five miles south-east of Colchester. The centre of the village is classified as a conservation area featuring a traditional village pond and red telephone box. The Roman River flows nearby before entering the River Colne.-St....
and Rowhedge
Rowhedge
Rowhedge is a village in Essex.Formerly in the parish of East Donyland, it is now a ward of Colchester Borough Council. It is on the south bank of the River Colne and is the first settlement downstream, about 4 km from Colchester. Wivenhoe is on the opposite bank and Fingringhoe is about...
. There is a bus connection to Colchester. Wivenhoe is just over one hour from Stansted Airport and 30 minutes from Harwich International Port
Harwich International Port
Harwich International Port is a North Sea seaport in Essex, England. It lies on the south bank of the River Stour one mile upstream from the town of Harwich, opposite Port of Felixstowe...
.
Society and leisure
Wivenhoe has a population of between nine and ten thousand people with a mixture of students from the University of EssexUniversity of Essex
The University of Essex is a British campus university whose original and largest campus is near the town of Colchester, England. Established in 1963 and receiving its Royal Charter in 1965...
, a long-standing artistic community, and commuters. Property prices averaged £286,000 in February 2008. The town has a number of small, local shops: there is a bookshop, chemist, two post offices, corner house coffee shop, toy shop, delicatessen, tea rooms, greengrocer, Co-op, pet supplier and florist. There are six pubs, some of which are the venue for musical events, including a jazz club. The Crab & Winkle Gallery can be found at the town's railway station. The town is popular with students from the university who walk from the campus to enjoy the facilities of the town's public houses and its waterfront.
The town has a number of sports and leisure clubs and societies: Wivenhoe Sailing Club's clubhouse is just downstream of the river barrier. Wivenhoe Town Football Club play at Broad Lane Sports Ground, which is also used by Colchester United Ladies
Colchester United L.F.C.
Colchester United Ladies Football Club are an English ladies football team based in Colchester, Essex and are affiliated to Colchester United F.C.-History:The club was founded in 1992 under the name of Colchester Royals...
and Wivenhoe Old Boys Football Club, and is also home to Wivenhoe Tennis Club. Wivenhoe Town Cricket Club is located on Rectory Road. There are a number of musical and theatre groups, and an art gallery. The King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
Playing Field is in the lower half of the town, with a small skate park, football pitches, a small play park and a dog-walking area. There is a bowls club on De Vere Lane and a bridge club meets in the Town Council's offices.
Education
Wivenhoe has two primary schools: Broomgrove Infant and JuniorBroomgrove Junior School
Broomgrove Junior School is a primary school in Wivenhoe, Essex. Broomgrove Junior School is located towards the top end of the village. The school works hard to provide a safe, happy and stimulating environment where both children and adults are valued...
, and Millfields Primary.
Secondary schools are available in the surrounding area. The University of Essex
University of Essex
The University of Essex is a British campus university whose original and largest campus is near the town of Colchester, England. Established in 1963 and receiving its Royal Charter in 1965...
has been located at Wivenhoe Park since 1964.
Notable residents/natives
It was home, until her death, of the actress Joan HicksonJoan Hickson
Joan Hickson OBE was an English actress of theatre, film and television, famed for playing Agatha Christie's Miss Marple in the television series Miss Marple.- Wivenhoe :...
who played Miss Marple
Miss Marple
Jane Marple, usually referred to as Miss Marple, is a fictional character appearing in twelve of Agatha Christie's crime novels and in twenty short stories. Miss Marple is an elderly spinster who lives in the village of St. Mary Mead and acts as an amateur detective. She is one of the most famous...
in the BBC adaptations of Agatha Christie
Agatha Christie
Dame Agatha Christie DBE was a British crime writer of novels, short stories, and plays. She also wrote romances under the name Mary Westmacott, but she is best remembered for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections , and her successful West End plays.According to...
's novels, and children's writer Leila Berg
Leila Berg
Leila Berg is a British children's author, known also as a journalist and writer on education and children's rights. She began writing in a more realistic and gritty style, for younger children, in the 1960s, in the Nippers series of readers in an influential move designed to bring children's...
. It is also home of the poet and musician Martin Newell
Martin Newell (musician)
Martin Newell , also known as "the Wild Man of Wivenhoe", is an English rock musician, singer, guitarist, songwriter, poet and author. He grew up in an army family in various parts of England and the Far East...
.
It was once a favourite watering hole of the painter Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon (painter)
Francis Bacon , was an Irish-born British figurative painter known for his bold, austere, graphic and emotionally raw imagery. Bacon's painterly but abstract figures typically appear isolated in glass or steel geometrical cages set against flat, nondescript backgrounds...
(whose house still remains as it was when he died, on Queens Road), and several journalists and writers have been based in the lower end of the town - George Gale
George Gale
George Gale may refer to:*George Alexander Gale, Canadian jurist*George Gale *George Gale *George Gale , , American judge*George Washington Gale , priest and teacher...
(former editor of The Spectator
The Spectator
The Spectator is a weekly British magazine first published on 6 July 1828. It is currently owned by David and Frederick Barclay, who also owns The Daily Telegraph. Its principal subject areas are politics and culture...
, Daily Telegraph cartoonist and Daily Express
Daily Express
The Daily Express switched from broadsheet to tabloid in 1977 and was bought by the construction company Trafalgar House in the same year. Its publishing company, Beaverbrook Newspapers, was renamed Express Newspapers...
columnist) and Peregrine Worsthorne
Peregrine Worsthorne
Sir Peregrine Gerard Worsthorne is a British journalist, writer and broadcaster. He was educated at Stowe School, Peterhouse, Cambridge and Magdalen College, Oxford. Worsthorne spent the largest part of his career at the Telegraph newspaper titles, eventually becoming editor of The Sunday Telegraph...
, (former editor of the Sunday Telegraph
Sunday Telegraph
The Sunday Telegraph is a British broadsheet newspaper, founded in February 1961. It is the sister paper of The Daily Telegraph, but is run separately with a different editorial staff, although there is some cross-usage of stories...
) both had homes there.
Actor-manager Sir John Martin-Harvey
John Martin-Harvey
John Martin Harvey , known after his knighthood in 1921 as Sir John Martin-Harvey, was a romantic actor of the English theatre....
was born in the village in 1863 and is commemorated by a blue plaque on Quay House, one of his childhood homes. He was the son of yacht-designer John Harvey and grandson of Thomas Harvey, yacht builder. The Volante was built by Thomas Harvey & Son (Thomas & Thomas Harvey junior) in the Halifax Yard at Ipswich. The "Volante" competed in the first America's Cup
America's Cup
The America’s Cup is a trophy awarded to the winner of the America's Cup match races between two yachts. One yacht, known as the defender, represents the yacht club that currently holds the America's Cup and the second yacht, known as the challenger, represents the yacht club that is challenging...
in 1851.
During the first half of the nineteenth century, Wivenhoe Hall was the home of William Brummell, brother of the more famous Beau Brummell
Beau Brummell
Beau Brummell, born as George Bryan Brummell , was the arbiter of men's fashion in Regency England and a friend of the Prince Regent, the future King George IV...
.
Harry Bensley
Harry Bensley
Harry Bensley was an English rake and adventurer, best remembered as the subject of an extraordinary wager between John Pierpont Morgan and Hugh Cecil Lowther, 5th Earl of Lonsdale. How much of his story is based on fact is unclear....
became famous for taking on a wager to walk around Britain and eighteen other countries while wearing an iron mask and pushing a perambulator. Bensley lived in the village with his wife, Kate, after having served in the First World War.
Wivenhoe also became the adopted home of Louis Claiborne. Mr. Claiborne served as a U.S. Deputy Solicitor General from 1962 to 1985, presented oral argument in over 70 cases to the United States Supreme Court and is regarded as "one of the single most important lawyers in environmental law's formative years in the Court." Additionally, Claiborne was noted for being one of only a few American lawyers to have been admitted as an English barrister, and also for being one of even a smaller number of English barristers to have argued before the United States Supreme Court.
External links
- The Wivenhoe Encyclopedia - maintained by Eugene Kraft, Paul Alden, and Wivenhoe Town Council
- Homepage for Wivenhoe Town Council
- Broomgrove Junior School
- Wivenhoe Funny Farm
- Wivenhoe Town Football Club
- Wivenhoe May Fair
- Wivenhoe Fingringhoe Rowhedge Ferry
- Transition Town Wivenhoe