| Woodham Mortimer | |
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Woodham Mortimer
Woodham Mortimer shown within Essex |
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| Population | 550 |
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| OS grid reference | TL815044 |
| District | Maldon |
| Shire county | Essex |
| Region | East |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Maldon |
| Postcode district | CM9 |
| Dialling code | 01245 & 01621 |
| Police | Essex |
| Fire | Essex |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| EU Parliament | East of England |
| UK Parliament | Witham |
| List of places: UK • England • Essex | |
Woodham Mortimer is a village on the Dengie peninsula about three miles west-south-west of Maldon in the English county of Essex. The village is part of the Wickham Bishops and Woodham ward of the Maldon district.[1]
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The village was first recorded as "Wudeham" in c. 975. The name is derived from the old English words "wudu" (wood in modern English) and "ham" (home, or homestead). At the time of the Norman Conquest the parish belonged to Ralph Peverell and was known as Little Woodham. Henry II gave the parish to Robert de Mortimer, leading to the change in name.[2]
There are two public houses, the Royal Oak on the A414 and the Hurdlemakers Arms on Post Office Road. Its name refers to the hurdles which used to be made from materials cut in the nearby woods.[3] There is a golf driving range with 9-hole pitch and putt that was opened in 1967[4] on Burnham Road.
The village has a pre-school based in the village hall on Post Office Road. It was established in 1972.[5] Next to the village hall is a playing field with swings and a small football pitch.
The parish church is St Margaret's. The original church on the site may date from the 16th century, however, it was rebuilt in the 19th century leaving little evidence of the older church with only the south wall and east end remaining.
Evidence for the age of the church includes the 13th century font (although the base is newer) and the 17th century carvings on the pulpit.
The church has a small window commemorating Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee.
The graveyard includes the grave of Peter Chamberlen.
Woodham Mortimer Hall is a 17th century gabled house that Hugh and Peter Chamberlen lived in. There is a blue plaque fixed to the hall noting them as pioneering obstetricians who invented the forceps. The hall passed out of the Chamberlen family in 1715 when the family home was sold. The forceps were found in 1813 under a trap door in the loft of the hall and given to the Medical and Chirurgical Society which passed them to the Royal Society of Medicine in 1818.[6]
There is a war memorial commemorating the nine people from the village who died during the World Wars. There is also a memorial erected in 1825 to William Alexander, who left his lands to the poor.
Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Woodham_Mortimer Woodham Mortimer] at Wikimedia Commons
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