What the Dickens is going on in Chigwell?

At the end of our journey, local history buffs congregated under the Dickens Oak.

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On Saturday 5th December 10 people from Chigwell and the surrounding area travelled across the various sites in Chigwell Row and Chigwell Village that had a connection to the world famous author Charles Dickens. 

Initially people met just behind the car park of the Maypole pub

The tour began at the Dido Oak in Hainault Forest accessible via Sylvan Way.  This is a veteran oak (old but not quite ancient a list of definitions can be found here) that was once made famous in Tatler Magazine back in 1903, due to an article about the Hermit of Hainault, a man named William Bell otherwise known as Dido who once lived in the forest under the cover of some sackcloth.  In his pocket he carried herbal roots, snakes, newts and anything else he could make money form.  Apparently he used to say:

'They call me Doctor Bell, Because I make my patients well.'

It should be noted that Tatler a magazine that was initiated in 1901 wrote this article about the Hermit of Hainault in 1903.  Chigwell must have been a very important place back then.

Read the Tatler article  (here)

We are pretty sure that most local people will no little about the Dido Oak which is a named tree and not a heritage tree, because no specific incident of historical interest happened there. But would love to hear from anyone else who can share anything about its history.

Yuvraj and Hannah explore the Dido Oak a named tree

A jaunt through Hainault Forest however short is always a special treat.

After basking in the glory of the Dido Oak our party of 10 travelled to the Chigwell Row Parish sign right at the centre of our ward (well close enough anyway). 

Joseph reads an extract from the Dickens novel 'Barnaby Rudge' which mentions Chigwell Row.

The extract that was read out by Joseph.

We then travelled to the Maypole Pub where we marvelled at the 19th Century leaded windows.  Possibly the exact same windows that Charles Dickens (Who frequented both the Maypole and Kings Head Inn), peered out of over 150 years ago.

At this point people separated into their vehicles and we drove to St Mary's Church in Chigwell Village a grade II listed building (click here). After finding parking we began a small tour of the significant Charles Dickens sites there.  Of course St Mary's Church was around in the time of Dickens, the nave and chancel of the church date back to the 12th Century after all.  George Shillibeer (RIP) a former resident of Chigwell Row was buried on the grounds of St Mary's Church.  He is often referred to as the father of the London Transport system.  His horse-drawn coaches called the Omnibus where the first ever stop-and-ride public transport system in the UK and are deemed a precursor to London Buses. You can read more about him (here).  When he passed away Elizabeth the Queen Mother visited St Mary's Church for his funeral and in 1979 several London buses were painted green in the colours of his original Omnibus to commemorate 150 years since the Omnibus began.  Shillibeer Walk in Chigwell Row is named in memory of him at the location of his former home.

Our group were inspired by the age and beauty of the church.  

War memorial at St Mary's Church.

One view of St Mary's Church

An alternative angle shot

Chigwell High School was around during the time of Charles Dickens and William Penn one of its former students is honoured as the founder of Pennsylvania.

Some of the older cottages in Chigwell Village

We ended our tour at the Charles Dickens Oak which is a named tree and not a heritage tree.  This is because the Oak which is located on Vicarage Lane would certainly have been seen and passed by Charles Dickens but does not have any recorded history of impacting on his life or writings.  We might be wrong and would love to hear from someone who knows otherwise. 

The Charles Dickens Oak is a at least 300 years old with a girth of almost 20ft, the tree is near to the Kings Head Pub which it is believed Charles Dickens portrayed as the Maypole in Barnaby Rudge.   The tree is the oldest and has the largest girth of any tree within Chigwell at 5.81m and the height of 1.50m. The Tree is a pedunculate Oak which is still alive though some branches are hollowing.

Hannah Chowdhry seeking protection from the cold, standing by the beautiful Charles Dickens Oak.

The special oak has a huge girth that our small group of 10 could not cover.

We travelled to the famous Kings Head Inn characterised as the Maypole Inn within the Charles Dickens Novel Barnaby Rudge.  The Pub was built in 1547 in the last year of king Henry the VIII's life. It was often frequented by Charles Dickens, Dick Turpin and Winston Churchill to name but a few of the famous people that have enjoyed time here. Currently it operates as a Turkish Restaurant, but is owned by local businessman and celebrity Alan Sugar under the banner of his property company Amsprop.  The fine tudor work is still a marvel to behold.

Handouts with much more detailed information on all these sites were prepared by Neil Patel and Wilson Chowdhry.  These can be emailed to anyone interested in learning more about Chigwell free of cost.  CRRA will be running more free historical mapping events like this throughout this year and the next and you can be placed on an invitation list if you would like to be reminded of our next events.

We would like to thank everyone who joined us on Saturday for making the day really special.