MAPLESTEAD (GREAT)>
The Imperial Gazetteer of England & Wales...., by John Marius Wilson. circa 1866>
MAPLESTEAD (GREAT)>, a village and a parish in Halstead district, Essex. The village stands on high ground, 1 mile NE of the Colne river and the Colne Valley railway, 2¾ miles NNW of Halstead; took its name from maple-trees, which anciently flourished on or around its site; and has the repute of being a very healthy place. The parish slopes from the village to the river, and comprises 1,929 acres. Post-town, Halstead. Real property, £3,373. Pop., 462. Houses, 106. The property is subdivided. The manor belonged, at Domesday, to the Gernons; passed to the Deanes; and, with Dynes Hall, belongs now to H.J. Sperling, Esq. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Rochester. Value, £210. Patron, the Rev. D. Fraser. The church has a Norman apse, and a square tower; was enlarged and improved in 1861; and contains monuments of Sir John and Lady Deane. There are a national school, and charities £3.>
MAPLESTEAD (LITTLE)>, a parish in Halstead district, Essex; 2¼ miles N of Halstead r. station. Post-town, Halstead. Acres, 1,062. Real property, £1,703. Pop., 325. Houses, 73. The property is divided among a few. The manor, with 333 acres, belongs to Sabbatarian Trustees. A preceptory of the Knight's Hospitallers was founded here, in 1186, by Juliana de Burgo; and went successively to the Wisemans, the Guyons, and others. The living is a p. curacy in the diocese of Rochester. Value, £72. Patrons, the Sab. Trustees. The church belongs to the preceptory; had the privilege of sanctuary; was restored or rebuilt in 1857; retains its ancient form and feature; is in fine decorated English style; has a circular nave, 30 feet in diameter, surrounded by a peristyle of six clustered columns, and an eastern apse or semi-circular chancel; measures 62 feet in length; and contains a restored Primitive Norman font. There is an Independent chapel.>
Transcribed by Noel Clark>