The Francis Frith Collection.
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Stock, Essex

Stock photos

Displaying 1 of 1 old photos of Stock.   View all Stock photos

Stock, the Square c1965 photo

Stock, the Square c1965

Stock photos
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Stock maps

Historic maps of Stock and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis.   View all Stock maps

Stock map

Historic map of Stock

Essex map

Illustrated Victorian map of Essex

Stock map

Historic Map of any Stock postcode

Stock maps
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Stock books

Displaying 2 of 13 books about Stock and the local area.   View all Stock books

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Braintree Town and City Memories
Hardback
rrp £16  £4.80

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Chigwell Photographic Memories
Paperback
rrp £10.99  £3.30

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Chigwell Photographic Memories
Hardback
rrp £14.99  £4.50

Stock books
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Memories of Stock

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Essex memories

Chantry Cafe

I remember this old cafe very well - not too well lit inside, but friendly atmosphere - my Mum, her friend Joan Slaney and son Michael (who was the same age as me) used to have tea and cakes etc. in the cafe on some occasions after our Mum's had picked us up from school.  The last time I went to Billericay (many years ago now) this cafe had become an Indian Restaurant.

Shared on 08 February 2009 by Jane Bridger.

Catholic Church, Laindon Road, Billericay

This old church was modernised, including an extension at the front, sometime in the 1980s (I believe). My cousin Marion got married here, early 1980s, and the modernisation work took place sometime later - need to find dates. Personally, I did not think the modernisation work was in keeping with the original architecture.

Shared on 08 February 2009

RELATIVES IN BILLERICAY

1929-1939
I didnt live there mydad's family lived there .they came down from tottenham.
they were in the building trade. an address for my uncle is st helens slicers gate mill
road. I wonder if any one remembers the family.

My uncle left to build his own house over the river fenn creek woodham ferrers.
My dad Gordon helped to build broomfield hospital.I would love someone to give me some memories of my dad. manningvc@aol.com

Shared on 12 January 2008 by Victoria Manning.

Memory Lane 1950 - 1957

I have wonderfull memories of Billericay, Church. As a child my Mother would take my Brothers Paul, Barry & Sisters Margaret & Angela & I to the Sunday Service. Father Alawyshes Roch was the priest at that time. He was a good family friend to the Gurnett's. I believe Father Roch wrote a couple of books. While listening to the Choir we would always sit & try to pick out my Grandmother Alice Gurnett & Aunt Agnes Lyons voices. If we heard them we knew we would get to visit with them after the service. We would also look around to see if Auntie Jo & Auntie Eileen were there. I recall the Processions & the Benediction Mass along with all the incense. I distincly remember the wrought iron staircase leading up to where the choir was. The Baptism font seemed so big. The people always seemed so sad clutching their Rosaries & many would have tears in their eyes. Just down from the church on the corner was where they would set up the Circus tents when they came to town. Just a little distance away was Lake Meadows where we would go for the odd picnic & see the swans. If I recall correctly Father Roch lived close by this area.

Shared on 02 January 2008 by Bernie Ling.

Extracts From Stock & Essex books

Displaying a selection of extracts from Frith books about Stock, inspired by Frith photos.

Chelmsford - A History & Celebration

By now, the High Street was crammed with houses: all the plots had been filled. The tenements could only expand lengthways along their own ‘backsides’, and most buildings had a jumble of outhouses, barns and sheds at the rear. Middle Row, which had hitherto backed onto the conduit-stream, now began occupying pockets of land on the west side of the stream, too. Initially, these were used as woodyards, but they soon evolved into half- timbered outbuildings; so Back Lane became somewhat narrower. The High Street, too, grew more restricted when another line of market stalls, permanent enough to have tiled roofs, was erected immediately to the east of Middle Row. These were known as Little Middle Row. The High Street, at this point, was now nine feet wide. Many of the town’s inns were now large and well established: these included the Boar’s Head, which stood on the site of Woolworth’s. Across the road - and stretching down to the bridge - were two inns fused together, the Lion and the Hart; and on the far corner of Springfield Road - where Next now is - was the Crown. Each had a carriageway opening onto a large, enclosed courtyard. Ranged around this major road junction, they were well placed to receive passing custom.

This is an extract from Chelmsford - A History & Celebration.
Read more and see photos from this book.

Chelmsford - A History & Celebration

The situation resulted in the formation of a local Board of Health. Their headquarters, ironically, were in the same Middle Row house where the first cholera victims had died. The Board brought about swingeing changes in Chelmsford - although much of it was a question of getting the townspeople to alter things they were perfectly happy with. The members of the Board took steps to get the entire town properly drained, and to restrict animals wandering the High Street too freely on market-day. In 1851 the members of the Board finally shut off the conduit stream, and replaced the domed conduit-head rotunda with Judge Tindal’s statue. From then on, Conduit Square and Back Lane became Tindal Square and Tindal Street, respectively. Market-day was also posing problems for the corn merchants. They were not satisfied that the new Shire Hall provided them with a suitable trading floor. Inside, the building was darkened and cluttered by dividing walls and architectural fripperies. They could only inspect their corn properly by taking it outside. The magistrates made an effort to improve the space, but it was not really a solution. Finally, a purpose-built Corn Exchange was erected in Tindal Square. It opened for business in June 1857, and was certainly a grand building. Its yellow-brick Italianate façade masked a long, glass-roofed trading-area. There were no more complaints about insufficient light. The architect was Frederic Chancellor, a Londoner.

This is an extract from Chelmsford - A History & Celebration.
Read more and see photos from this book.

Chelmsford - A History & Celebration

And fair enough - the road signs to Chelmsford do not shout ‘Historic Cathedral City’ - they say things like ‘County town since 1250’, or ‘The birthplace of radio’. Good old Chelmsford: straightforward, practical, and aware of civic duty. What often gets overlooked though, is that it is also an historic cathedral city, in the sense that it is both a cathedral city and historic. And although it is foolish to say that one place is more historic than another - because everywhere is equally historic when it comes down to it - it is indeed true that some places’ histories are more interesting or better documented than others. Chelmsford has been smiled-upon in both respects. Follow a heritage trail around Chelmsford, however, and you can be forgiven for thinking that half of its history lies under car parks. In some cases, you would be right. But if Chelmsford wears its history lightly, it is because it has always been mindful of moving forward, of building on the past. Consider this: give or take a few yards, Guglielmo Marconi founded the world’s first radio factory on the very spot where a 1st-century pagan temple had once stood. Ley-line enthusiasts would undoubtedly discern a paranormal significance in this. I prefer to see it as an example of how a town can rise and rise again, like a phoenix. Anyway, Chelmsford still retains a lot of overground history - it is just a matter of knowing where to look. There can be enormous history in the kink of a pavement, the width of an alleyway. And, being relatively flat, this is a good town to explore on foot.

This is an extract from Chelmsford - A History & Celebration.
Read more and see photos from this book.