England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Netteswell St Andrew

The Parish

The parish of Netteswell lies in western Essex forming s stretch of the county's border with neighbouring Hertfordshire. Netteswell is located roughly 2 miles southwest of the town of Harlow, once a discrete separate village it has now become subsumed in the 20th century development of Harlow New Town becoming just one of the "neighbourhoods" that that new town is divided into. The original village of Netteswell stood about 1 half mile south of the original route of the A414 roads which linked Harlow with Hertford. At the time of this transcript the centre of the village lay immediately south of the river Stort with a tail of properties headed southwards to Tye Green where the former parish church sits. Like most Essex parishes it was largely arable although early gazetteers estimate around 25% was pastures, mainly on the flood-plain of the Stort. Today Netteswell is merely just one area within the oblong of modern development that sits south of the Stort for over 3 miles from southwest to northeast. Modern developments have come to the parish, the Stort was canalised early as the Stort Navigation and the London to Bishops Stortford railway line follows a similar line through the north of Netteswell parish. Netteswell is drained southwest and then south by the Stort which soon meets the Lea to pass through eastern Greater London to the outer Thames Estuary and the North Sea. Netteswell is sited at between 40 and 60 metres above the sea on the valley sides of the river, land rises gently southwards to breach the 100 metres contour at Rye Hill the highest ground nearby. Netteswell parish covered just over 1,500 acres making it typically sized for the area, it would have supported a population of close to 350 parishioners. Netteswell is not specifically mentioned in Domesday Book.

The Church

St Andrew's church has been deconsecrated and re-purposed as Harlow Study Centre, it stands just west of St Andrew Meadows and south of Second Avenue. Whilst there is documentary evidence of a church on this site in 1127 there is nothing remaining of that 12th century church in today's building. Both nave and chancel are from the 13th century and in the Early English Gothic style, the chancel retains its lancet style windows characteristic of that style, other windows were replaced in the later medieval period in the Perpendicular style. This work was presumably contemporary with the original construction of the belfry and splay-foot spire. Much else of the appearance of the church dates from the thorough restoration of 1875 which gives us much of the external features of the church today, it also added the northwestern vestry. The church's transfer to non-ecclesiastical use resulted in conversion work in 1988-9. St Andrews Meadows has a large car park for users of the Study Centre. The churchyard has a few easily avoidable trees but otherwise has few concerns for the photographer.