England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Essendon St Mary

The Parish

The parish of Essendon lies in southern Hertfordshire roughly 3 1/2 miles east of the town of Hatfield.Essendon sits on the meandering B158 road which links Hertford through towards Potters Bar. Essendon is a long linear village with most properties lying either side of the B-road, from the parish church at its northern end it runs southwards for almost a mile. In medieval times this area was largely avoided by significant settlements having unproductive soils much was managed woodland with a few pastures lying in the north of the parish alongside the Lea. A glance at the map shows much of the area still marked out in woodland and copses although the traditional coppicing is no longer carried out and they are mainly used for recreation.Essendon is drained eastwards by the Lea which performs an arc around Hertford before heading south through eastern Great London to reach the outer Thames Estuary. Essendon is sited at around 100 metres above the sea at the parish church rising to 111 metres further south and 124 on the B-road yet further south as the highest local point. Essendon parish covered close 2,300 acres which would have supported a population of close to 700 parishioners. Essendon is not specifically mentioned in Domesday Book.

The Church

As already mentioned St Mary's church stands at the northern tip of the village on the junction of West End Lane and Church Street. Sadly there is very little of the medieval remaining at this church, only the Perpendicular western tower is genuinely of that period being a 15th century build but modified quite early in its life as recorded by a stone marked 1628. The remainder of the church is a Victorian rebuild completed during a lengthy campaign running from 1882-4. That work was completed utilising the Decorated style and makes good use of flint in chequer-work. The church, however, met with something of a disaster during World War I when a Zeppelin bomb struck the church causing damage to the east end, this had to be rebuilt in 1917. West End Lane is much used by locals for on-street parking outside the churchyard. Sadly for the photographer the favoured southern aspects are compromised by trees but other angles are available.