Hockley

Hockley is a large village and civil parish in Essex in the East of England located between Chelmsford and Southend-on-Sea, or, more specifically, between Rayleigh and Rochford. It came to prominence during the coming of the railway in the 1890s[2] and at the 2001 census had a population of 13,616 people,[3] reducing to 9,616 at the 2011 Census,[1]. The parish of Hockley itself had a population of 8,909 at the (2001 census), while the urban area runs into the neighbouring parish of Hawkwell. Hockley railway station serves the village.

For other uses, see Hockley (disambiguation).

Hockley
Hockley is located in Essex
Hockley
Hockley
Location within Essex
Population9,616 (2011)[1]
OS grid referenceTQ826924
Civil parish
  • Hockley
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townHOCKLEY
Postcode districtSS5
Dialling code01702
PoliceEssex
FireEssex
AmbulanceEast of England
UK Parliament

History

The place-name 'Hockley' is first attested in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as Hocheleia. The name means "Hocca's woodland clearing or glade".[4] Today, there is still a large wooded area named Hockley Woods. Notable buildings in the village include the church of St Peter and Paul, which has a nave which was possibly built before the twelfth century, a thirteenth-century chancel and a fourteenth-century tower, the upper half of which is octagonal and was built at a later date. The tower holds three bells, manufactured by Miles Gray in 1626, by James Bartlett in 1684 and by John Hodgson in 1657, and the building is Grade II* listed.[5] The church is situated to the north-west of the village centre, where Grade II listed Spa Pump Room is situated. The building was built as a spa to a design by James Lockyer in 1842, after Robert Clay found a medicinal spring there in 1838.[6] Hockley is also the site of the former Bullwood Hall prison which closed in 2013.[7]

Plumberow Mount, a Roman burial mound,[8] was excavated in 1913 by Mr. E. B. Francis. At the time, there was a summer house on the top of the mound, and so trenches were cut on three sides. The excavation found a Roman coin of Domitian and some Saxon pottery which may indicate a secondary burial. The oval mound is 14 feet (4.3 m) high, and 76 feet (23 m) in diameter, with a flattened top, where the summerhouse was located.[9] Since 2005, a metal fence has surrounded the mound to protect it from erosion, and a number of trees which were growing on or near it were cut down at the same time.[10]

In 2009, the sixteenth-century Hockley Pendant was discovered in a field at Hockley.[11]

Governance

Hockley has a parish council consisting of two wards[12] and is part of Rochford District Council[13]

References
  1. UK Census (2011). "Local Area Report – Hockley Parish (1170213946)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  2. "Hockley Parish Council website: History". Hockley-essex.gov.uk. Retrieved 3 May 2013.
  3. "Entry for K80403 Hockley". Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 8 February 2007. Retrieved 22 March 2011.
  4. Eilert Ekwall, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Place-names, p.243.
  5. Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1112667)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 22 March 2011. Church of St Peter and St Paul, Hockley
  6. Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1112670)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 22 March 2011. Hockley Spa Rooms
  7. Danny Shaw (10 January 2013). "BBC News - Seven prison closures in England announced". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 3 May 2013.
  8. "Plumberow Mount". Geograph. 27 July 2006. Retrieved 3 May 2013.
  9. Historic England. "Plumberow Mount (419159)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 22 March 2011.
  10. "Plumberow Mount". The Megalithic Portal. Retrieved 22 March 2011.
  11. "Boy, four, unearths 16th Century gold pendant in Essex". BBC News Online. 17 November 2010. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
  12. "Hockley Parish Council | Councillors". Hockley Parish Council. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  13. "Rochford District Council". www.rochford.gov.uk. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
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