St John's Green, Writtle, c.1955
Reproduced courtesy of The Francis Frith Collection.
History of Writtle >> Writtle Snippets
When researching for this website we often find a little snippet of information on a location or subject which may be of interest. Some are quirky, some show that there is nothing new in this world, and some about the attitudes and morals of the time. [index to snippets] Here is one for Writtle about the troubles brought by the new railway.
The Essex Standard 19 April 1839
Railroad Workmen
On Monday a complaint was laid before Magistrates, in this town, against eleven of the brickmakers employed in the neighbourhood, by the Eastern Counties' Railway Company, for having struck and quitted their work, a dispute having arisen respecting their wages. Warrants are issued gainst the whole of them.
Another of the brickmakers, named William Hearn, was also charged before the Revds. Dr Penrose and C.A. St. John Mildmay, with creating a disturbance in the street, at Writtle, on Sunday, and fighting during Divine Service with a man named Robert Bright.
He was ordered to find surities to keep the peace for three months, and Mr Midlmay told him that the labourers would not be allowed to pursue that riotous and disorderly course which they had done at some other places, for a strict eye would be kept upon their proceedings by the police of the neighbourhood.
[End of article]
Newspapers could provide a wealth of information about your ancestors or where they lived. See our article on exploring newspaper archives.
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The Essex Record Office 'ERO' are custodians of the parish registers of Essex. Ancestry.co.uk have now transcribed the entire collection of Essex parish registers. Search now on Ancestry for your Essex ancestors. Then on the results page click on ‘request image’ and you will be taken to the ERO website where you can purchase an image of the relevant page.
Visit our Parish Registers of Essex page for more information.
Newspaper archives are now a very important source of information for researching your family tree.
Try our example search to help you discover if your ancestors are in the British Newspaper Archive.
Writtle - Cary's New and Correct English Atlas, 1798
Writtle - First Series Ordnance Survey Map 1805
Ebay is a good source of old images of Essex towns and villages. If you're looking for pictures to add to your family tree album, then try one of the auctions, or there are several 'Buy It Now' shops offering postcards which have been touched up and improved - so if you're unsure about bidding, try these.
Link below already formatted for Essex and Postcards.