Little Baddow


Little Baddow is a village to the east of Chelmsford, Essex. The name Baddow comes from an Old English word meaning 'bad water', and which was the original name of the River Chelmer. The village is positioned on one of the many elevated hills in Essex and comprises extensive woodlands owned by the National Trust and Essex Naturalist Trust. The village is bounded by the River Chelmer to the north.
Like many English villages the mainly car owning population has led to a decline in the number of shops in the village. While the community once supported several businesses there are now none left. There are two pubs, The Generals Arms and The Rodney, the Elm Green Preparatory School and a village hall. There are two long established churches, the Anglican St Mary the Virgin and the United Reformed Church. Both churches are architecturally interesting and have long histories. The Church of St Mary the Virgin contains a 14th-century Devil's door, dating to the time when medieval Christians believed the North of side of a church to be the abode of the Devil.
The village has its own sports ground and clubhouse which is home to the local cricket club, Little Baddow Cricket club, in the summer months and used year-round by the local running club, Little Baddow "Ridge" runners.
The manor was once a possession of Robert the Bruce
Thomas Hooker who founded the colony of Connecticut lived in the village as a child and was a school teacher there before going to Holland and then to New England.
Eric Eastwood settled in Little Baddow after he started work at Marconi Research Laboratory in 1948. He lived there until his death in his home in 1978.