Whilst working in the area, I decided to go on a walk and stumbled across this purely by chance. Just a few minutes walk away from the Olympic Stadium, this Second World War pillbox was built around 1940 and forms what would have been part of the outer London defence ring – one of the…
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Our 2015 Halloween documentary brings the horror of everyday life in the 17th Century up to present when the boys travel down to Leigh, Essex to take a look at the site of ‘the Doom Pond’. Supposedly used to drown innocent individuals accused of witchcraft, there is no need to make-believe this Halloween when history…
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Turn back the clock to 1850 and Canvey Island little more than farmland and a small village, much like the Wild West. Only few of these actually remain today, with Brickhouse Farm being one of the only still in operation. So, where did all the rest go? Well, a majority became left abandoned due to…
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These peculiar concrete remains are located in the wooden area west of the current sewage works, just north of the waterline. We came across the mysterious ruins for the first time in early 2013, and they were indeed quite impressive! It was a privilege to be the first to photograph the construction although it wasn’t…
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“Aviation pioneers and their workforce founded Britain’s aircraft seaplane and flying boat industry” Dating back as early as 1897, the Short Brothers had always had an interest in aviation. At the turn of the century they were already selling coal-gas filled balloons for people to fly, but it was the first flight by two brothers…
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Paglesham’s flourishing oyster-farming industry dates back to the late 19th Century. Whilst oysters have been farmed around the Essex coastline as far back as the Roman era, they exploded in popularity nearing the turn of 1900 because they were a cheap source of food for the poor. By the early 20th Century, oyster beds at…
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What was the V-3 Cannon and the Fortress of Mimoyecques? Most people interested in military history or alive in the war will be familiar with the V-1 ‘Doodlebug’ and the V-2 rocket-bomb used during the to bomb England over the channel in the late war. Both of these bombs were unmanned rocket-propelled aircraft which were…
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Thundersley Glen is great example of how even the most seemingly natural spaces have a history all of their own; and how this changed the landscape. A section of woodland in Benfleet adjoining with Mount Road Wood and Shipwright’s Wood in Benfleet. It was once part of the greater Jarvis Wood belonging to Jarvis Hall…
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British Troops have been pushed back to Dunkirk; all that lies between the Germans and Britain is the English Channel. With the threat of German troops soon being on British Land, orders were sent out across the land to built defences in towns, near main roads, railways and key areas. Starting along the coast and…
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Beyond the Point are good friends and close-working colleagues with the Bay Museum. Like us, they are bringing Canvey’s history into the 21st Century with a team of historians and collectors experienced in encouraging an interest in people of all ages. We genuinely suggest you pay them a visit. We also established their now-thriving website…
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