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Southend is made up from the area covered by the medieval manors of Prittlewell Priory, Earls Hall, Temple Sutton, Milton Hall and Chalkwell Hall. These are all within the ancient parish of Prittlewell.
The origins of Southend-on-Sea go back to the 7th Century, where a priory once stood. In 1760, Southend was just a few poor fishermen's huts and a settlement of farms, but because it lay at the southern extremity of the lands of Prittlewell Priory it was called South End. This earliest settlement was farmed by tenants of the priory, the principal of these being a farm called Facons. The main means of moving their produce was by river and along the lane, later known as 'Southend Lane,' and even more recently 'Old Southend Road.' This led to a landing stage at Stratende. By the early 18th Century oyster breeding grounds were found offshore and so the settlement expanded to the west. By 1770 the population had increased to 13 cottages and one house, and by 1800 there were 53 houses and cottages in Old Southend, and to the west of Southend Lane there was a mixture of private houses, shops and public houses. At the eastern end beyond the lane was Prospect Place and eventually the Theatre. Vandervoord's great house stood at the corner of Southend Lane and the seafront had its own private jetty. The Terrace and Grand Hotel were built in 1791 on the cliffs of what is now known as Pier Hill, just to the west of the original hamlet.
In 1809 the Prince Regent (the future George IV) decided that the village of Prittlewell would provide a healthier environment for his wife Princess Caroline, as she had been advised to bathe in the sea by her practitioner. Princess Caroline stayed at Prittlewell's "south end" in the Terrace and Grand Hotel and, because of this Royal visit, they were renamed 'The Royal Terrace' and 'Royal Hotel'. From this time forward, its popularity as a seaside resort increased.
The landowners, fishermen and other major residents led by Alderman William Heygate applied to Parliament for permission to build a pier at Southend. Permission was granted, and the foundation stone was laid in 1829 by the Lord Mayor of London. The first wooden pier was opened for use in June 1830 and was 600ft long. It was extended in 1833 to 1500ft, and completely replaced in 1889 with a steel and iron structure, designed by James Brunlees and costing in the region of £80,000. Today, it extends to approximately one and a third miles, and is the longest pier in the country. Photo: Southend Pier
However it was not until the arrival of the London, Tilbury & Southend Railway that the town started to really expand, with the Southend terminus now known as Southend Central being opened shortly afterwards. A second line was introduced from Shenfield to Southend Victoria. Southend's first local board was started about this time, and the town grew very rapidly, quickly swallowing the once major port of Prittlewell. The population increased from 3,000 in the 1850s to 47,000 by the turn of the century, and again by 1921 to 120,000. A three foot six inch gauge electric tramway was opened on the pier, and this established Southend amongst the pioneers for introducing electric traction. Due to the success of the electric railway on the pier it was decided to build an electric tramway to serve the town and its rapidly growing population.
Work began in 1900 with single-track lines being laid the same size gauge that used on the pier, initially with 14 cars. The cars were of varying capacity from 20 passengers to 58 passengers but it was found that the smaller ones were of little use being too small. By the mid 1900s, the tramway travelled around the whole of the town. Photo: Southend Victoria Station
Motor buses came to Southend in the early 1900s, although the first ones introduced by the Sea and District Motor Omnibus Company Ltd were short lived, the project aroused interest in this new form of transportation. As their reliability improved, they were seen to be a good way of providing transport to the areas where it was impossible to lay tram lines. They decided to venture out to the nearby Westcliffe on Sea, but it proved to be a very unsuccessful venture, losing money for the Council, who promptly decided to terminate the service.
The vehicles were sold back to the suppliers, one in fact ending up as a coal lorry. Bus companies in the surrounding areas had more success however, and were soon supplying a service to the areas away from the tram routes, specifically the new housing estates. The tramway also suffered, as the cars were not maintained well and the service was inadequate for the amount of passengers wishing to use them. By the 1930s it was realised that trolley buses were more economical than the tramways and it was cheaper to extend the trackless route rather than lay new tracks. No new tram cars had been purchased and most dated back to the First World War. Photo: The Cliffs Pavillion, Westcliffe
There had been very little maintenance and by now they were very dilapidated and slow. It was decided to cut back on the tram service and remove some of the tracks, replacing them with trolley buses. During the Second World War it was agreed that due to the drastic slump in traffic, the tram system was no longer required and the last tram ran on April 8th 1942. The tracks were removed and the cars sent for scrap.
Photos by Andy Howes of Wedding Days Photography © 2000
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