High Country History Group

Romans in Essex? Colchester comes to mind immediately, but Roman occupation had been widespread. There is evidence that Harlow was a religious and trading centre of local importance before the arrival of the Romans. Although there is little evidence of actual settlement, a small hill, known as Stanegrove, within the flood plain of the River Stort, appears to have been used for religious ceremonies.

After AD 43, Harlow found itself within the triangle formed by the Roman roads of Stane Street, Ermine Street and the military road linking London and Colchester. Settlement during the Roman period is demonstrated by the discovery of two villas within the boundary of modern Harlow. In 1940, an enemy bomb ‘excavated’ another villa. The site of Stanegrove developed as a venerated centre and around AD 80 a Roman temple was built there of flint and mortar. The temple was extended over the next century, eventually falling into decay around AD 400¹.

Are the hops in a Greensted hedgerow evidence of some Roman settlement?

Accounts of court actions present an unfavourable perspective on lawlessness in the Forest. Records of good citizenship do not balance these accounts! However, the actions do provide testament to the application of justice, which is often thorough and considered.

William I introduced the Law of the Forest. Harsh penalties, such as blinding and dismemberment, were the stated punishment for failure to respect the King’s venison, deer and wild boar, within the Royal Forest. However, evidence of these punishments being exacted is hard to find and a fine or amercement became the accepted penalty for transgression. The income from fines was more acceptable than mutilation to a King, burdened with Exchequer pressures under a regimen of building castles and conducting expensive military campaigns.

Court actions within the Law of the Forest are well recorded. The following is an example from Inquisitions concerning the Venison in the Forest of Essex¹

“On the day of St Thomas the Martyr in the twenty-fourth of the reign of king Henry (29 December 1239) ‘Gilbert Dun the forester and Robert his servant were riding through the Forest of Hainault; and they saw eight men with bows and arrows and greyhounds in the same forest.’

Wisely, Gilbert sent for help. The men could reasonably be presumed to be poaching deer, since dogs, whose very presence within the forest was illegal, were on hand. The dogs were greyhounds, and would not have been lawed². Finding eight, armed men in that situation placed the forester and his servant in a threatening situation, which occasionally foresters did not survive! The next day Gilbert returned to the forest with others and on seeing the men again, “. . . they raised the cry upon them, and followed them and put them to flight, but they did not know what became of them; but the men were harboured at the house of Richard, the son of Peter of London and Woodford”.

It was then customary for the foresters and verderers to set up an inquisition into the incident to which representatives of a number, and usually four, neighbouring townships were called to give their version of events, if they had one. In this case the townships were Barking, Stapleford Abbots, Lambourne and Wanstead. In turn, each said that they knew nothing. Other witnesses testified:
“John the son of Roger, the woodward of Chigwell, says that when he was on his way to the wood in Hainault . . . he saw seven men, five with bows and two with four greyhounds, of whom three had masks, and he showed this to Roger his father; and the same Roger asked him if he recognised the men. He replied that John le Blund of Edmonton was one of them.” John le Blund had kept his pigs in the wood under pannage³.

Accusations were sometimes based entirely on circumstantial evidence. “John the woodward of Lambourne, says that he suspects the parson of Stapleford because he often saw him going with greyhounds in the forest of the lord King”. The woodward was an officer of a wood in charge of the growing timber. It was not unusual for the finger of suspicion to be pointed towards the local vicar, or indeed to a forest official.

Simon the son of Conis of Chigwell, who had already testified against Nicholas the son of Osbert and Eudes the fisher, both from Chigwell, then added that when he came “to the house of his lord Richard the son of Peter in Woodford for a quarter of oats and three sheepskins to take away to London, and had reached the door of the aforesaid house, two men came out with bows and arrows and seized him and made him pledge faith that he would show nothing of them to anybody, and that he would forthwith go the way that he first proposed to go; and they followed him a full furlong saying to him that if he returned they would punish him severely”.

The inquisition was a preliminary to a hearing of the case at a Forest Eyre, a circuit court of the Forest, before the Chief Justice of the Forests. The evidence against the suspects compelled them to attend. It was usual to confiscate chattels from those bound to appear. The chattels found at the house of Richard were 40 sheep and eight quarters of oats. The chattels were entrusted to named individuals for safekeeping.

For the time being, Justice was seen to be done.

The Access to Archives (A2A) on line catalogue allows you to find material held in over 300 repositories across England. It also enables you to obtain copies of documents.

The Public Record Office, The Historical Manuscripts Commission and the British Library are leading the A2A project. Some 187 Record Offices, repositories and other organisations are taking part in the scheme. Currently 3.9 million individual catalogue entries have been included on the database. Another 300,000 pages will be added by the time the project ends in March 2004.

The database can be accessed on
www.a2a.pro.gov.uk

For example a search of ‘Theydon Mount’ produced 5 hits – the example below was located under Worcestershire Records Office:-

Copy of indenture between Thomas Luther of Stapleford Tawny [Stapleford Tawney], Essex, Esq., Anthony Luther of Kelvedon, Essex, Esq., Robert Burn of Rubbingworth, Essex, Esq., Richard Glyd the elder, citizen and tallow chandler of London, Richard Mills, citizen and draper of London, and Anne Jackson, daughter of Luke Jackson, late citizen and girdler of London, deceased, being a settlement, previous to the marriage of the said Thomas Luther and Anne Jackson, of the Manor of Suttons, Essex, a capital messuage called Suttons, a messuage, a messuage called Bardens, a messuage called Cutlers and a messuage called Woodhatch all with land and appurtenances in Stapleford Tawny; a messuage called Michells in Stapleford Tawny with land and appurtenances in Stapleford Tawny, Stanford Rivers and Navestock Essex; a farm called Garnish Mill, land and appurtenances in Thaydon Garnon [Theydon Garnon], Essex; a tenement called New Barne, land and appurtenances in Thaydon at Mount [Theydon Mount], Essex; a messuage called Hunts Farme, land and appurtenances in Lamborne [Lambourne], Essex; a messuage called Hillhouse, land and appurtenances in Thaydon Garnon and Thaydon Boys [Theydon Bois], Essex; a messuage called Lane’s house, land and appurtenances in Standford Rivers; a messuage called Hattons, land and appurtenances in Stapleford Abbott [Stapleford Abbots], Essex; and marsh land in Barkeing [Barking], Essex. Witnesses: David Edwards, James Winstanly, Robert Haworth, Ch. Pitfield, John Pickman, William Grudgefield.

Whilst on the subject of World War II, I have for some time been trying to find out details of an accident involving two American aircraft that collided over Tawney Common in 1944, causing damage to local properties. Thanks to Ian McTaggart, a keen Aviation Photography and Historical Researcher, I now have the details.

On 8th March 1944, two B-26 Marauders, on a mission to Soesterberg, collided and crashed within 100 yards of each other 300 yards south of Mount Farm. Both aircraft were carrying a bomb load, and unfortunately both of the crews were killed in the crash.

It is not usual to find the names of women on war memorials, yet on the 1939-45 memorial in St Margaret’s Church, Stanford Rivers, there are two.

Joyce D.P.Hillbrown, and
Theodora A. Metcalf.

These two names do not appear on the Commonwealth War Graves Roll of Honour. Does any reader have any knowledge of these two women and why their names appear on the memorial?

Many of you will know that the old Ongar Union Workhouse at Stanford Rivers, is currently occupied by Piggotts. A planning application has been submitted to Epping Forest Council for a proposed redevelopment of the site to provide fifty dwellings, ranging from one bedroom flats to 3 bedroom houses. There is local opposition to the plan, but to date we do not know whether this application will be allowed.

The other day I wandered into the Guards Chapel in Birdcage Walk, London, and saw commemororated on the roll of honour, the name ‘Edward Hay, Lord’. In the churchyard at St Michael’s, Theydon Mount is a Commonwealth War Grave to Lord Edward Douglas John Hay, who until his tragic death had lived at Hill Hall, Theydon Mount.

Lord Hay was a Lieutenant Colonel in the Grenadier Guards and was killed, along with some 120 others on Sunday 18th June 1944 when the Guards Chapel was hit by a flying bomb during divine service. The chapel was completely destroyed, but was subsequently rebuilt.

Edward Hay was the son of William Montague Hay, 10th Marquess of Tweeddale and the Marchioness Tweedale. He was married to Audrey Latham, daughter of Sir Thomas Latham.

He served in the 1914-18 War. He was Staff Captain to General Sir Edmund Ironside. From 1921 - 1923 he was Military Secretary to the Rt. Hon. Sir Herbert Samuel.

The chapel is well worth a visit if you are in London, together with the Guards Museum which is opposite.

Ken was devoted to the community. He joined June Lucas to edit the High Country Magazine following the death of the Revd David Callum. The magazine presented local news, articles, and literary offerings to a wide, loyal circulation. Ken contributed his poems, though less frequently in later years since, as editor, he felt a conflict. Ken was ever-present on the magazine bookstall, fund raising at local events. No new editors came forward and the magazine closed at the start of the new millennium.

Ken observed the parish keenly. Many years ago, during some building excavations towards the River Roding, some large stones, positioned in a pattern, were uncovered in the clay. The thought took root that these might be the foundations of an ancient crossing point. Despite the disinterest of the British Museum, the idea never passed. Even recently, Ken again voiced his misgivings about the British Museum

Ken was a gentleman. In a quiet and thoughtful way, Ken contributed much. From recent conversations, it was realised that Ken’s health was failing but his passing is still a loss that was not anticipated. Our sympathies go to Elsie and his family.

Anniversary

Eternity, we are aware,
Writes all the scripts,
Plays all the parts,
Directs all the scenes;
And will strut the stage endlessly
After we have lost the lights
And are gone.

Yet pray with me
That this past year
That now we celebrate
With cards, candles, and kind regards
May echo on in thoughtful words;
To some longevity.

O’ scar with lasting substance
The fading shadows that were You and Me
One year in all Eternity.

Ken Feakes

Although some distance from the High Country situated to the north west of Epping, Copped Hall stands on a ridge to the other side of the town. It is also situated on the second highest point in Essex and is part of a large area of unspoilt land not bisected by any through road or other thoroughfare.

In early days, when the great Forest of Waltham covered most of the south-west of Essex, it is probable that primitive man established himself on this extension of the Epping ridge and to the south of a stream (now Cobbin’s Brook); the access drive to Copped Hall has been carbon dated to as early as 2300 BC. A much later resident could have been Queen Boudicca of the Iceni who is reputed to have made her last stand against the Romans at nearby Ambresbury Banks and who is thought to be buried a little to the west of this ridge. The earliest known reference to an actual dwelling is in 1150 when a Copped Hall was owned by the Fitzhaucher family.

The name “Copped Hall” could be derived from the term “cop” meaning a house with a cap, a top of a hill or from simple association with the nearby Cobbin Brook. There have been three Copped Halls on this site; medieval, Tudor and the current Georgian mansion,

In 1537 the medieval Hall passed into the hands of the last Abbot of Waltham who in turn surrendered the property to King Henry the Eighth in a vain attempt to save the priory of Waltham during the dissolution of the monasteries. Although never a resident, the King was reputed to be at the Hall during the execution of Anne Boleyn, and his son Edward Sixth passed on the Hall to his sister Mary Tudor. While resident there, Mary was the centre of religious controversy in England by celebrating the Catholic Mass in defiance of the Royal Command. Also resident was her sister who, after succeeding to the throne as Elizabeth the First, granted the Hall in 1564 to Sir Thomas Heneage who rebuilt it as a large Tudor mansion with a central courtyard.

John Conyers built the current and Georgian mansion in 1758, a short distance to the south, in the “Palladian Style” and a later owner, Ernest Wythes added an extensive wing and large conservatory from 1895 onwards. He also laid out the great formal gardens for which the Hall was renowned in its heyday (about 1900) and which rivalled those at the Palace of Versailles in France. About this time it was rumoured that the then British Royal Family was considering acquiring the property as a royal country residence but Sandringham was possibly purchased instead.

An electrical fault was the probable cause of the fire, which gutted the Hall in 1917. During subsequent years the burnt out shell was progressively vandalised although the gardens were kept in good condition until 1952 after which they were asset stripped. The mansion was used as a piggery and also a mushroom farm before becoming derelict and a centre for undesirables who committed wanton damage in many areas.

In the 1980s and early 1990s the Hall was the subject of proposals for several developments including a golf course, hotel, extensive housing estate etc., but all were successfully rejected. In 1992 the Corporation of the City of London purchased part of the estate to the south to act as a buffer zone for Epping Forest and the bulk of the estate to the north was retained by the Talbot Trust. In 1993, a Copped Hall Trust was set up for the purpose of acquiring the Hall, its outbuildings and gardens, 785 acres in all, for the purpose of restoration; this acquisition was finally achieved in 1995, The current Trustees are Dennis Farve (chairman), Alan Cox (architect), John Padfield, Bob Perdeaux (treasurer), Gordon Brown and Duncan Lowther; Paul Bostock sits as the representative for the Epping Forest District Council. An Educational Sub committee of the Trust exists to arrange lectures and educational courses relating to the Hall generally.

On 26 April 1998, an inaugural meeting of the Friends of the Copped Hall Trust (now known as the “Friends”) was held at the Hall in the restored Racquets Court; a committee was elected whose function is to support the Trust in its task of restoration by raising funds and providing practical help. The Friends Committee currently comprises Sylvia Keith (chairman), Nicola Munday (vice chairman), Trevor Roberts (past chairman), Pauline Dalton (secretary), Bob Perdeaux (treasurer and membership secretary), Margaret Gervis, Adelaide Karaskas, Iris Newbery, Howard Styles and Arnold Verral. The current membership stands at 420 and is steadily increasing.

Financial support for the project stems mainly from the leasing of the apartments and other outbuildings, from grants made by various organisations including the Essex Historical Society and the Epping Society and the fund-raising activities of the Friends; some £40.000 has been raised by the Friends in the last three years derived mainly from membership fees, donations and open days.

A working party of Friends spends each Sunday and some weekdays at the Hall and to date has carried out extensive work including clearance of the gardens, the creation of new lawns and the restoration of the Priory Garden. An early major milestone of achievement was the reopening, on the 22 Nov 98, of the main entrance of the Hall on the East Side, possibly for the first time since the fire, to facilitate the clearance of the adjacent rooms and the cellars

The outbuildings to the Hall have now been restored, converted into apartments and sold with covenanted leaseholds as residences. Part of the stables have also been restored including the turrets, the clock faces of which been regilded. Repairs to the centre structure to stabilise the chimneys, restore the immediate interior. and provide a temporary roof are almost complete. A complete restoration of the roof is planned.

A further milestone was the return, on 10 Nov 98, from the HM Prison at Bullwood Hall of some original stone work previously removed from the garden of the Hall. Further recoveries of this nature have been made and are directly due to the tireless efforts of the Project Architect, Alan Cox, who is tracking down the many items, which had been “lost” since the fire.

Other milestones included the important acquisition in early 1999 of the four acre Walled Garden, which has great potential, and also the restoration of the Priory Garden at the end of the same year. The latter now provides direct access to the grounds via two new, impressive iron gates.

An archaeological survey of the site of the Tudor mansion was carried out in 2001 followed by an actual excavation this year. The location of several rooms was established including some drains, all of which provide information for further research. An historical time line in the Racquets Court, which depicts events associated with the Hall over some 1,000 years, provides further historical reference.

Copped Hall is now well-known in historical circles and the Trust has given advice and help to other similar organisations wishing to acquire and restore historical houses for the benefit of the community; Valentines Mansion in Ilford is one such example. The M25 motorway, which cuts through part of the estate, has brought the Hall into prominence and prompted many enquiries regarding its past and future; the increased use of the footpath at the front has helped similarly. The Hall is not open to the public but private visits can be made by prior arrangement.

The Hall has been featured on TV on several occasions, only recently in the Simon Schama Presentation of the History of Britain. Its existence is now widely publicised in the local press, through lectures and various publicity media e.g. Copped Hall is now featured in the Essex version of the popular Monopoly board game.

It is more than probable that William Shakespeare wrote A Midsummer Night’s Dream for a wedding at the Tudor Hall and the play was performed in the long gallery. Therefore, this summer, the Trust and Friends staged a performance of the play in the grounds near the Tudor Hall; the event was a complete sell out months in advance.

Other fund raising events planned include morning tours at 10.45 on October 20th, November 17th and December 8th. Two Copped Hall lectures will be given in the Theydon Bois Village Hall at 20.00 on 10th and 24th November 2002. General enquiries regarding Copped Hall can be made via Trevor Roberts 01992 813002, Alan Cox 020 7267 1769 or on the Trust’s answer phone 01992 571657. The local press, particularly the Epping Guardian, regularly publishes details of these events.

Do help to restore this fine mansion on our doorstep so that, in the not too distant future, travellers on the M25 will see not a burnt out shell but a magnificently restored Hall, which will once again be a jewel in the crown of our national heritages. The simplest way to do so is to become a member of the Friends; enquiries can be made on any of the above phone numbers.

Nineteen members of the High Country History Group met in High Ongar. A hint of rain was in the air. Anybody might have suggested the group was headed for the Alps but the slopes of Norton Mandeville were the intended destination.

These expanded “walk notes” are repeated here to encourage others to explore Norton Mandeville. The walk described is approximately three miles of easy walking, starting at High Ongar.

Church of St Mary the Virgin, High Ongar

Pevsner states: “The nave is Norman and has one of the most ornate doorways in Essex, with one order of columns, a curved lintel with zigzag, a tympanum with three strips of rosettes, also curved, an arch with zigzag, and a hood-mould with saltire crosses, etc.”¹. It might be added that the tympanum is the space between the lintel of a doorway and the arch above. Some of the rosettes have four limbs (described as saltire), but the outer rosettes have five limbs.

The nave is built of flint rubble with dressings of clunch partly replaced with limestone. The chancel was built or rebuilt in the middle of C13. Despite gradual repairs, it was reported around 1800 that the “the church of High Ongar is shored up and threatens downfall”. The S tower was built in 1858 and incorporates the S porch, brick with limestone dressing. This tower replaced an earlier tower, dating from the C15, which had a tall spire and survived until the new tower was built². The N vestry was added in 1885.

Church of All Saints, Norton Mandeville

Cross the A414, with care. The short cut at the east end of the main street through High Ongar leads directly to the road opposite. In a short distance, this road branches right to lead along the track to Norton Mandeville, one mile distant.

Today, the parish of Norton Mandeville covers 1,318 acres. The parish used to split the parish of High Ongar into two parts but in 1946, that part of High Ongar bordering the northern boundary of Norton Mandeville was again joined with Norton Mandeville. The parish population centres on Norton Heath, two miles W of the church³.

The church of All Saints is unexpectedly remote, explained by its position at the end of a minor road cul-de-sac. The oil lamps in this small church emphasise its tranquil setting. Pevsner suggests that the present nave and chancel are C14. However, wall fragments from C12 indicate an earlier church on the site. This dating is supported by a column fragment, spiral-carved with projecting moulding, which Pevsner adds, is “considered by the Royal Commission to be part of a pillar piscina”. The font is made of Barnack stone and dates from the late C12.

In 1769, the benefice was just six pounds a year, rather less than the wage of an agricultural worker at about £25 per year. At the same time, the curate held services once a month for a congregation of six or seven, “whose lives were said to be endangered by the damp of the church”. Additional rents had increased the benefice to £94 by 1810.

The church was restored in 1903 largely through an anonymous donation of £900 from the Revd. W. M. Oliver, who is commemorated in the E window. The timber porch and several windows were renewed at that time. The church suffered bomb damage in 1944. The “Friends of All Saints” have continued the maintenance of the church. The church is well preserved today.

Norton Hall, Norton Mandeville

Morant⁴ describes two manors in Norton Mandeville; the Manors of Norton Mandeville and Newarks Norton. There appears to be no trace of the ancient manor of Norton Mandeville; Newarks was demolished with the building of the World War II airfield over the estate.

An estate map of 1740⁵ shows Norton Hall farm to be the largest farm in the parish with an area of 264 acres. In 1490 the manor was sold to Merton College, Oxford, and the college retained the property until 1864. The brick Norton Hall farmhouse dates from 1864, a date scratched on a roof tile. Frederick Chancellor is believed to have been the architect of the house, farm buildings and the workmen’s cottages but fire is thought to have destroyed any remaining drawings. The buildings echo a prosperous era for agriculture. The Hall and farm buildings are immaculately maintained, in keeping with the church.

The present owner of the hall is Mr H. W. Chumbley. A guided tour of the farm buildings failed to discover any blemish on the farm buildings! The garden vegetable plot is kept is similar order, with the cultivation of some 26 different vegetables, outside of the orchard.

Forest Hall, High Ongar

Perhaps consistent with such a large parish, there were several manors in High Ongar. Morant, writing about the parish in the middle of the eighteenth century, refers to the manors of High Ongar, Astelyns, Forest Hall, Chevers, Ashe Hall, Wetherspane, Ongar Park and Passelow.

The manor of Forest Hall was formerly (Norton) Foliots Hall. The track, which passes the site of the hall, is private and permission should be obtained before entering. A useful map of the area is the OS map of 1873-1874⁶. The map shows the wooded nature of the Forest Hall estate, the sites of Little Forest Hall, the original site of Forest Hall, and its successor. The site of the gas works is shown together with the strangely named Dungeon Wood to the south, and nearer to High Ongar.

After the Conquest, the Dean and Chapter of St Paul’s held the manor. St Paul’s exchanged the manor for other lands held by King Henry VIII in 1544. The manor then passed through the ownership of William Rigges, briefly, then Sir Richard Rich, between 1544 and 1562, followed by the Stane family.

The Revd. J. B. Stane built a new mansion about 1845, 300m to the S of the original Hall, which had been built by Richard Stane in 1700. The Stane family owned the Hall and estate until the estate of 2,228 acres was put up for sale in 1862. The purchaser, J. L. Newall, was responsible for the building of Norton Hall Farm in 1864 (?). The Hall estate was again sold in 1919, the estate now comprising seventeen farms and 3,831 acres.

H. M. McCorquodale bought Forest Hall itself in 1924. On his death, the Hall was sold to the Air Ministry, later to be resold to Essex County Council. Forest Hall was demolished around 1951, after being uninhabited for several years. Barbara Cartland was a visitor to the Hall. Indeed, she married two McCorquodales, the second husband being Hugh!

Forest Hall was a large three-storey square structure in gault brick with stone and stucco dressings. On the upper floors there were seven windows in the front and central pediment. The Tuscan portico had three bays. Forest Hall was one of the largest mansions in the area. At its peak, the Hall employed 50 servants and possessed its own gas works and sawmill. The demolition of the Hall coincided with the publication of the Essex volume of the Victoria County History, in which it is still mentioned.

The return follows the Essex Way. The walk can be terminated in and around “The Foresters Arms” in High Ongar.

To the Worshipful the Magistracy of the County of Essex in Quarter Sessions Assembled. The humble petition of the inhabitants and rate payers of the united parishes of Stapleford Tawney and Theydon Mount in the County of Essex.

Herewith, that although the rural police has made a considerable addition to the Burthems laid upon your petitioners, it has not answered the ends for which it was instituted, within the parishes: the number of depredations during the night, having increased rather than diminished since its institution.

That it seems to your petitioners impossible to prevent such depredations in ...... localities, without an increase of expense, too great to be borne by rural parishes.

That your petitioners consider themselves by the Act of Parliament, entitled to a strict equality of taxation, for the usual police, with the Towns and Larger Villages; whereas in reality, the Burthem of this Force falls most unequally upon portions of the Count strictly against rural, the Towns and larger Villages having nearly all the Benefit from the Police; which is rarely seen in the more secluded situations.

Your Petitioners, therefore, humbly pray he Majesty’s Justices of the Peace of the County of Essex, in Quarter Sessions assembled, to take into their serious consideration whether it is not expedient forthwith to report it as their opinion to one of Her Majesty’s principal Secretaries of State, that the rural Police should be discontinued in the County of Essex.

The above resolution were agreed upon at a meeting of the Inhabitants and Rate payers of the two united Parishes aforesaid, holden in the Vestry Room of Stapleford Tawney, on Monday Dec 27, 1841; Sir Edward Bowyer Smijth of Hill Hall, in the chair.

Edward Bowyer Smijth, Bart.
Francis Tanner (Churchwarden)
John Smith
James Spencer
Thomas Rumball
Samuel Miller
Edward Hyde
John Mumford
Phi... Bailey
Thomas Shepher
Daniel Rumball
William Wood
Elizabeth Purviss
Mary Smith, Lady. Suttons
H Soanes (Rector)
Jon. Stokes
Richard Young
Charles Stevens
John Pavitt
Henry Stannard
Mary Cooper
William Dawkins
Christiana Worters
William Flack
William Sworder
James Wood
Charles Clark
Samuel Threader
John Rumball
Charles Osborn
Ann Stubbins
James Worters (Churchwarden)

3 other name indecipherable.

[714] From Thomas Kellnby in Springfield Gaol [Chelmsford] to the overseer Theydon Mount [1831]

Spingfield Convict
Gaole
April 20th 18[31]

Sir/
I Thearfore address you with thise letter to inform you that I have very ill and thanks be to god I now gitting Better of my illness I shall Estiem it as a perticulare favoure if you wold inform me when Harriett was Confined that I may be inable to gudge how long that I am to be Confined heare plase to give my love to her and I think long till the time comes that will release me from thise as the place is all to gather wheary unhearfull.

I conclude with
My kind love to all
That ask after me

Yours &c
Thomas Kellnby.

NB plase to send Answer By the return of post
and pay the postage of the letter if you plase