Manningtree, Essex

Witches

I have visited Manningtree only once, but I have an interest in the area as my father (Donald Turner) is tracing our family tree and he has discovered that one of our ancestors - Elizabeth Goodwin was tried and hung as one of the witches of Manningtree  by Matthew Hopkins!  She was accused of casting a spell on a grocers horse,... [more]

schooldays and beyond

Starting school for the first time was at Mistley Norman School, my first teacher was Miss Temple in the infants we were given a slate board and slate pencil one thing that sticks in my memory we all had a small mattres and after dinner we all had to have a nap.Then we moved from the prefabs to Lawford soI was... [more]

Early memories of Brook Street

I lived in Brook Street with my family between about 1958 and 1967. We lived at the bottom of the road nearest the High Street and opposite a large pond, which was a source of great entertainmanet to me and my sister at times! We watched local firemen practice fire drill, unrolling huge hoses and aiming the water into... [more]

East Anglia

At 22 acres, Manningtree is the smallest parish in Essex; it is also the smallest town in England. Small it may be, but it was famous for its good pasturage, which is why, we must assume, Shakespeare describes Falstaff as a 'roasted Manningtree ox'. Manningtree also possesses a fine array of Georgian and Victorian frontages.

Essex Living Memories

This is a quiet town on the south bank of the River Stour, at the point where it begins to widen into the estuary. In the High Street there are a few parked cars, but no pedestrians, apart from the two women and a child in the doorway on the right. That house is now a shop, and the large building... [more]

Colchester Photographic Memories

Colchester was also visited by the Roman Emperor himself, who considered the capture of this capital vital to the success of the conquest from AD43 onwards. The next appearance on the chart of British history was less happy. Boudicca, or, as she used to be known, 'Boadicea', queen of the Iceni and daughter of King Prasutagus, ruled much of what is now East Anglia and rose in revolt after being... [more]