Shotgate
| Shotgate | |
| Essex | |
|---|---|
 Shotgate Sign | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TQ765925 |
| Location: | 51°36’29"N, 0°33’7"E |
| Data | |
| Post town: | Wickford |
| Postcode: | SS11 |
| Dialling code: | 01268 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Basildon |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Billericay |
Shotgate is a village in Essex which has become a contiguous suburb of Wickford, in the south of the county.
History
Mid-Iron Age pottery found at Shotgate Farm shows that the area was inhabited in 300 BC. In Roman times, a road ran from Ilford to Latchingdon through here. In the Saxon period commonhold land was often sliced into parallel strips known as 'Sceats'. This is the origin of the 'Shot' part of Shotgate, which has nothing to do with shooting or hunting.
The Domesday Book of 1086 lists four farmsteads in Wickford, one of which was probably on the site of Shotgate. By 1300 this is listed as Ames or Aimes Farm. By 1540 the Rede family owned the farm, and one of its members, Elizabeth, emigrated to America to marry the son of the governor of Massachusetts.
A turnpike road ran from Shenfield to Rayleigh until 1866 along the Old Southend Road, after which it was turned over to the Rochford Highway Board. During this period (1747), the Sharpe family renamed the Ames Farm as Shotgate Farm.
In 1907, houses were built as part of the plotlands initiative on Enfield Road and Oak Avenue. In 1921, the Archer family bought Shot Farm, and in 1927 sold land for development. This led to the foundation of modern-day Shotgate, consisting of Bruce Grove, 1st to 5th avenues and the shopping parades. In 1989, the village was greatly expanded by the Hodgsons Way Industrial Estate and housing estates, so named after the Second World War RAF Pilot Officer William Henry Hodgson, who was shot down but managed to ditch his Hurricane aircraft, avoiding the houses of the Shotgate estate.
Nature reserves
There are two adjoining nature reserves. Shotgate Thickets[1] form the northern part of this reserve. The southern part of the reserve is named Giddings Copse, in memory of the co-founder and ex-Chairman of the Wickford Wildlife Society - Phil Giddings. The reserve is situated on both sides of the tidal River Crouch which is narrow at this point. It consists of a remnant of old oak woodland on the south side, and thorn thickets, rough grassland and large ponds on the north side. With the adjoining river banks and railway embankment this small area has a surprising diversity of habitats and, consequently, of wildlife.
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Shotgate) |