More Old Pictures of Castle Hedingham

Old Pictures of Castle Hedingham

Here are some more old pictures of Castle Hedingham. This second page of photographs are mainly concerned with St Nicholas' Church. I have very little information about the photographs here; if anyone can tell me more I'd like to hear.

I have kept picture sizes small so that the page downloads in a reasonable time - enlargements of most pictures are available by clicking on the images.

Modern view of St Nicholas' Church, Castle Hedingham

I think that this is probably the oldest exterior photo I possess of St Nicholas' Church, although I may be basing my judgement on some fairly superficial changes. The buildings (including the cottages which are just visible in the background) have altered very little, and yet the scene is so unfamilar I don't think I'd immediately have recognised this as St Nicholas! The modern picture on the right, taken from pretty much the same spot, demonstrates the reason; it's amazing what a difference a few trees can make to a view. The original card was never posted, but does have some notes about the architecture of the church written on it; these are dated 1908, so the photograph must predate that.

This picture has a much tidier look, and a small tree has appeared near the south porch (could it even be the one which appears near the junction of south chapel and chancel in the previous photo, having been replanted?), so it must have been taken some time later. Nonetheless, it certainly predates 1921, because the war memorial isn't in its present position in the immediate foreground.

St Nichols Church has changed very little, at least since the restoration of the late nineteenth century. This postcard has a handwritten note on the back, with a date of August 5th, 1936.

This picture was clearly taken after WWI, because the memorial is now in place. Beyond that, the only dating evidence I'm aware of is that the gates were replaced in 1964, so this is earlier than that. The fir tree which was happily (and probably rather threateningly!) growing close to the south porch in the two earlier pictures had clearly been removed by the time this picture was taken.

The interior of the church has also changed little. The cross above the rood screen was removed at some point, and no longer obscures the view of the Norman wheel window. The pulpit was restored in the twenties, and this picture is certainly earlier than that. Click here for information about the history of St Nicholas' Church.

This picture shows the back of Church Lane, with the keep to the left and St Nicholas' Church in the centre. The area from which the picture was taken was once used for growing hops (see the picture below), but was later allowed to return to (largely unmanaged) woodland. I'm not sure if I'd be able to locate the precise spot from which the picture was taken, but it will be either wooded or under a recent housing development.

This is rather obviously a much later postcard - it's postmarked 1966. The scenes depicted haven't really changed, but it's interesting to note that Church Ponds was then being called "Church Street"; someone happily had the taste to revert it to its original name.

Crouch Green

This scene, showing Crouch Green (about one mile south of the village centre) is much more peaceful than the modern equivalent. It's a slightly tenuous link, but I've placed it on this page about the church because it's quite likely that the green was the original location of the churchyard cross, erected as a war memorial in 1921 after spending many years supporting the cellars of the Falcon Inn ("Crouch" is derived from "cross").

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