Bradwell on Sea, Essex Genealogy

England   Essex   Essex Parishes



Parish History
BRADWELL-near-the-Sea (St. Thomas the Apostle), a parish, in the union of Maldon, hundred of Dengie, S. division of Essex, 12 miles (E.) from Maldon; containing 1034 inhabitants. The parish is situated at the mouth of the river Black-water, and is bounded on the east by the North Sea; it comprises 4733a. 3r. 18p., of which 3156 acres are arable, 972 pasture, 60 wood, and 134 common or waste. Camden places the Saxon city of Æthancestre at or near this place, which he also identifies with the Roman station Othona, where the Numerus Fortensium was posted under a commander styled Count of the Saxon Shore, at the decline of the Roman empire in Britain. A fair is held on the 24th of June. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £48, and in the gift of the Rev. T. Schreiber: the tithes have been commuted for £1300, and there are nearly 254 acres of glebe, with a house built by Sir H. Bate Dudley between 1781 and 1786. The church, rebuilt in 1706, is a handsome edifice, with a stone tower surmounted by a lofty spire, and is situated on elevated ground commanding fine prospects. An ancient chapel, called Capella-de-la-Val, of uncertain foundation, has long been in ruins. There is an endowed school in the parish.

From: Lewis, Samuel A., A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 334-339. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=50821

Bradwell St Thomas is an Ancient parish in Essex.

Apart from the brick tower built in 1706, the church is 14th century with restoration work carried out in 1864.

Bradwell was a Saxon Shore fort in Roman times known as Othona. The Anglo-Saxons originally called it Ithancester. Saint Cedd founded a monastery within the old walls in 653, which survives as the restored chapel of St Peter-on-the-Wall. From there, he evangelised Essex.



The diocese of Chelmsford was created in 1914, prior to this Essex parishes were in the jurisdiction of the Bishops of London until 1845 when they transferred to the diocese of Rochester. The diocese of Chelmsford has 474 parishes and 600 churches and is the second largest region in the church of England outside London.

During World War Two Bradwell Bay Airfield was a front line air base, named RAF Bradwell Bay at the time.

Bradwell-on-Sea is a villageand civil parish in Essex, England. It is located about 9 km (5 miles) north-northeast of Southminster and is 30 km (19 miles) east from the county town of Chelmsford. The village is in the district of Maldon Essx for local government purposes.

Civil Registration
Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. There are several Internet sites with name lists or indexes. A popular site is FreeBMD.

Church records
Contributor: Include here information for parish registers, Bishop’s Transcripts, non conformist and other types of church records, such as parish chest records. Add the contact information for the office holding the original records. Add links to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection

Online images are available Seax - Essex Archives Online From the Essex Record Office

Census records
Contributor: Include an overview if there is any unique information, such as the census for X year was destroyed. Add a link to online sites for indexes and/or images. Also add a link to the Family History Library Catalog showing the film numbers in their collection.

Index for the Census may be searched at FamilySearch Historical Records

http://www.1881pubs.com/ for details of public houses in the 1881 census

Poor Law Unions
Maldon Poor Law Union, Essex

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Essex Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

Maps and Gazetteers
Maps are a visual look at the locations in England. Gazetteers contain brief summaries about a place.


 * England Jurisdictions 1851
 * Vision of Britain

Web sites
Contributor: Add any relevant sites that aren’t mentioned above.