Robert Brand, farmer, who farmed Builden End farm in the 1800s was also a writer. He wrote down everything, and what is more he kept it. Although we only have part of his collection of papers he gives us a wealth of information about Chrishall, as well as other places...
Holy Trinity Church
There has been a church at Chrishall for over a thousand years. There are so many stories it could tell us if only we could hear. Did it really used to look down on a village that was spread over the fields on the south of the church? And what really happened when the Plague came? Even though most of the Chrishall houses are now further up the hill the church is still there to look over the village and a recent restoration has made it even more of a community space.
Below you will find articles about the previous vicars of Chrishall and even some of the medieval inhabitants of this village. The graveyard map is here too if you are trying to find ancestors. And it starts with a picture gallery of the church from the early part of the twentieth century up to the present day. (Click here for a description of the church from The Church of England website.)
Click on a photograph or article title to read more.
Mr Brand and the Church Band
Before 1870 the church did not have an organ to provide music for the church services. Instead there was a church band. It seems that various people played various instruments, the most common being the Bass Viol, the Harmonium, flute, clarinet and violin or viola....
And the village was burned
Is this the source of an intriguing and persistent folklore tale? Since I was very small, I have been brought up with the story that the old village of Chrishall was in the fields in front of the church going down towards the main Saffron Walden to Royston Road (known...
The Dove Brooch
(Image above: www.finds.org.uk) A brooch has been found near to Chrishall and it’s story raises some fascinating questions about the origins of the village. I was reminded about this little silver brooch when the Archive attended the recent 12th Century Live event at...
Parish Magazine December 1898
This is the start of our Christmas Articles published for 2018 and I thought it might be appropriate to start with a little light reading. So below is the Parish magazine for December 1898. This magazine covered the Chesterfords, Great Chishill, Chrishall, Debden,...
Church Newsletter July 1950
Some things don't change, thankfully, and it is good to know that we can all still enjoy a good local village fete. I thought you might enjoy Rev. Bagley's report of the success of Chrishall fete in July 1950 from the church magazine of that time. Walter and Bessie...
Parish Registers
Following, in the Advent 2017 series, from a piece on Aunt Daisy, it seems appropriate to have something further about the church. Here Irene Cranwell explores the early church registers. These are currently being transcribed and it is hoped will be available to...
Re-opening of the church 1869
In 2015 Chrishall Church underwent an extensive project to replace the floor, replace some of the pews with chairs and also make many of the pews moveable to make a more flexible meeting place for the village. This project has been a complete success and if you have...
Grazing on Chrishall Common
Before the Enclosure Acts, Chrishall Common was the land at the back of the High Street heading over towards Chishill. Exactly where it was I don’t know but you do see it marked on old maps …
Church gallery of images
Chrishall Church images Click on any of the images below to see the full details of these lovely images. On the larger copy of the first image below, for example, you can see two people walking down the footpath towards The Butts. Notice how in the older photographs...
Search all of Chrishall Village History website: