Canvey

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Nigel Cox © "SU9780 : Grand Union Canal (Slough Arm)"

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Canvey

TitleCanvey

CountyBerkshire

CoordinatesLat : 51.5166667 Lon : -0.6

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Description Incorrect Description? Tell Us!Canvey Island (area 18.45 km²; pop. 37,000) is an island in the River Thames estuary off the coast of Essex, England. It is also the name of the town on that island, though this is sometimes shortened to Canvey.

The name Canvey is Anglo Saxon in origin, and means "Cana's island", meaning that the modern name is a compound of two languages, meaning literally "Cana's island island". It was first recorded in manorial records of 1255 as Caneveye. The island is not mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, but sheep grazing marshland lying to the south of the county is mentioned extensively.

Geologically, Canvey Island was originally part of the mainland, then the coastline broke up into smaller pieces, and the modern island is made up of five of those pieces. There are historical maps held at the Essex Record Office that show where the five separate islands originally lay and it is thought that these are the marshes referred to in earlier records. Sheep farming was a mainstay industry of the island until very recently.

Because of the geological history of the island subsidence was a common problem and sea defences have been built to protect the island from the Thames since the 14th century. In the early 17th century Dutch builders were employed to reclaim land from the Thames and to strengthen the sea defences. Because of this a strong Dutch community formed in Canvey Island, evidence of which can still be found in local street names, place names and architecture. This island is also home to the Canvey Island Monster.

In 1791, 1881 and 1897 the whole island was almost completely submerged due to extensive flooding of the River Thames. More modern sea defences have now been installed, and are maintained regularly. However, in 1953 the great North Sea flood hit the island and caused the deaths of 58 people. Many of the people that died were in the East of the Island at the newlands part of the Island. These people were in the Holiday Bungalows and the water had risen to ceiling level. Those who were unable to get out onto the roof would have drowned. There was one area of the Island that was kept above water, the Village part of the Island is partly above sea level (about two feet) and there was a small dry area here. The pub there was renamed the King Canute (formally called the Red Cow)

The coast of Canvey was host to the Chapman Lighthouse famously described in Joseph Conrad's novel 'Heart of Darkness'. It is believed that the peril of the mudflats below such shallow waters off the Canvey coast prompted the Romans to devise some form of beacon as a warning in the area. In 1851 a hexagonal lighthouse was constructed by the engineer James Walker, a consultant lighthouse engineer at Trinity House at the time. This all-iron lighthouse replaced a lightship which had been moored in the area for the preceding four years. The lighthouse was demolished in 1957 due to its poor condition.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Canvey"

Location Map

Local Campsites

Highclere Farm is 7.47 Miles away
Hurley Riverside Park is 9.85 Miles away
Chertsey Camping is 9.97 Miles away
Walton on Thames is 13.22 Miles away

Local Tourist Attractions

Windsor Castle and St George's Chapel is 2.27 Miles away
Legoland Windsor is 4.24 Miles away
Hayes Pool is 5.63 Miles away
Coral Reef is 10.53 Miles away
National Trust Osterley Park is 10.82 Miles away
Chiltern Pools is 11.03 Miles away
Vue Cinema Harrow is 12.12 Miles away
West Wycombe Park is 12.27 Miles away
Hampton Heated Open Air Pool is 12.45 Miles away
Woking Leisure Centre and Pool in the Park is 14.39 Miles away

Local Golf Courses

Farnham Park Golf Course is 1.71 Miles away
Datchet Golf Club is 2.35 Miles away
Maidenhead Golf Club is 5.45 Miles away
Denham Golf Club is 6.15 Miles away
Beaconsfield Golf Club is 6.43 Miles away
Royal Ascot Golf Club is 7.47 Miles away
Mill Ride Golf Club is 7.83 Miles away
Bisham Abbey Golf Club is 8.65 Miles away
Hurst Golf Club is 12.15 Miles away
Chesham & Ley Hill Golf Club is 13.17 Miles away

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