The Village of Thundersley has a long and somewhat chequered history. The weathervane depicting both St. Peter and St Michael on top of the steeple of the old church can be seen from almost anywhere in the village. This was and is important as it does place the church at the centre of the community. The church is a grade II listed building, and the steeple and bell tower are reputedly built from ships timbers rescued from the Spanish Armada, and when you look at the timbers in the church there is evidence to support this idea. The church is also an excellent venue for musical concerts, historical talks, etc., whilst the church halls are available for other activities within the community such as dances, whist drives rtc.
Thundersley was at one time a place of great local importance, as being densely wooded, it was one of the hunting grounds of royalty. Indeed we can boast that we were the village that had three manor houses. We still have Jarvis Hall and Thundersley Lodge in The Chase, and the 11th century church in its proud position on top of the hill, overlooking what used to be the Pitsea Marshes to the west; now an urban connotation.
The White Hart Public House in the main road of the village has its own claim to fame. It is the building in which the local court cases were heard. Whether it was a Public House at the time is not precisely known. There was also a workhouse in the village and we still have copies of the inventory of that institution, so there is a great deal of history to preserve.
Fergus Hume (1859-1932) Novelist.
Fergus Hume was born in England on the 8th July 1859, the second son of Dr. James Hume. He was taken to New Zealand at an early age by his father, educated at Otago Boy’s High School and the university of Otago. He was admitted to the New Zealand bar in 1885, and immediately went to Melbourne, intending to practice his profession. He began writing plays, but found it impossible to persuade the managers of the Melbourne theatres to even read them. Finding that the novels of Gaboriau were then very popular in Melbourne, he obtained and read a set of them and determined to write a novel in a similar vein.The result was The mystery of a Hansom Cab which was an immediate success when it was published in 1886. In 1888, Hume returned to England, settled in Essex and remained there for the rest of his life. Foe more than 30 years a constant stream of detective novels flowed from his pen, but he never repeated the success of his first book which sold in excess of half a million copies in his lifetime. There is “Hulme Cottage” in Kenneth Road, and it is rumoured that he actually lived in this house. In his latter years he did much lecturing to young people’s clubs and debating societies. He died at Thundersley on the 12th July 1932.
Source: Otago Daily Times. 13th July 1932. The Times 14th July 1932.
