Title:
CANVEY ISLAND URBAN DISTRICT COUNCIL
Level: Category
Urban District Council records
Level: Fonds
CANVEY ISLAND URBAN DISTRICT COUNCIL
Scope and Content:
Clerk's Department
D/UCi 1/1 Meetings of Council and Committees
D/UCi 1/2 Newscuttings books
D/UCi 1/3 Miscellaneous
D/UCi 1/4 Correspondence files etc.
D/UCi 1/5 Miscellaneous photographs
D/UCi 1/6 Plans of Essex River Authority's Thames Tidal Defence programme
D/UCi 1/7 Papers relating to civic dinners
D/UCi 1/8 Contracts for major building developments
D/UCi 1/9 Contracts for sewerage schemes
D/UCi 1/10 Year books
D/UCi 1/11 Agreement and licences
D/UCi 1/12 Official guides and pamphlets
D/UCi 1/13 Papers relating to ward boundaries and councillors

Engineer and Surveyor's Department
D/UCi 2/1-13 Planning and building regulation, including building plans
D/UCi 2/14 Maps, plans and reports
D/UCi 2/15 Correspondence files
D/UCi 2/16 Staff records
D/UCi 2/17 Ordnance Survey maps of Canvey Island
D/UCi 2/18 Maps made by outside bodies
D/UCi 2/19 Drainage plans
D/UCi 2/20 Photographs of unmade roads
D/UCi 2/21 Private street works

Treasurer's Department
D/UCi 3/1 Flood disaster records
D/UCi 3/2 Rate books
D/UCi 3/3 Rates produce books
D/UCi 3/4 Files relating to valuation of property
D/UCi 3/5 General ledgers
D/UCi 3/6 Housing accounts
D/UCi 3/7 Altered tithe apportionments

The deposited building control plans from 1902 relating to Canvey Island were transferred from Rochford R.D.C, to Canvey U.D.C, at that time.

The problems which the Rochford R.D.C., Canvey U.D.C. and other councils in areas with extensive "plot lands" faced in influencing or controlling property development and providing basic public utilities and services of any kind before the passing of the Town and Country Planning Act (1947) are described in Hugh J. Gayler, "Land Speculation and Urban Development; Contrasts in South East Essex, 1880-1940", Urban Studies , vol. vii, number 1, pp. 21-36 (1970). Also described by Gayler (pp.31-32) are the absurd, unconventional, and unsuccessful schemes of Frederick Hester during 1899-1905 to develop a comprehensive seaside and health resort on the eastern side of Canvey Island (ending in Hester's bankruptcy in 1905) and the subsequent development of the "Canvey Plots" which was "more akin to the mainland villages such as Laindon and Pitsea than to other seaside resorts in Essex." (Fuller details appear in H.J. Gayler The Coastal Resorts of Essex... unpublished M.A. thesis (London) 1965 (copy in ERO, catalogued as T/Z 561/1/17).

An index to the plans transferred from Rochford R.D.C. to Canvey U.D.C. in 1926 (D/UCi 2/3) giving number of plan, name of owner and description and location of property with a summary at front arranged alphabetically by roads should be used as a finding aid by students wishing to consult the plans. The original numbering of the plans allocated by Rochford R.D.C. was retained by Canvey U.D.C. Transferred plans dated January 1902 to end of 1915 bear nos. 710 to 4268. From 1916 a new numbering sequence started with number 2440 and ran to number 4637 in October 1923 when another new series was started and plans October 1923 to March 1926 bear numbers 23 to 2106. Unfortunately, the index, which is arranged in chronological order of date on which the plans were approved ceases at June 1923 (plan 4494). Thus, plans nos. 4495 to 4637 (June-Oct.1923) and 23 to 2106 (Oct.1923-March 1926) are unindexed. All the plans are now stored in numerical order and the three series, which were merged when deposited, have not been separated. One further pitfall remains to add confusion; at an unknown date prior to 1926 a fire at Rochford R.D.C. offices destroyed an unknown number of plans, including some relating to the area taken over by Canvey Island U.D.C., and researchers should therefore bear in mind that the series of transferred plans is incomplete.

For plans submitted to Canvey U.D.C. for approval after March 1926 there are three finding aids available to researchers: (i) "Register of Plans 1926-1928", listing plans 1-486, giving name of architect or owner, builder, road, description of property, date of approval, with index at front (alphabetical by initial letter of surname of architect or owner); (ii) "Register of Plans 1928-1930", listing plans 486A-924, giving same information and indexed as (i) above; (iii) Index of plans 1926-1954 arranged under roads and giving plan number, name of owner (or architect), description of property, date approved or disapproved.
Admin History:
Canvey Island was formed into a civil and ecclesiastical parish on 4 March 1881 and was included in the newly formed Rochford Rural District in 1894. Under the provisions of the Canvey Island (Constitution of Urban district) Order, 1926, the parish was converted into an Urban District. Under the Local Government Act of 1972, Canvey Island Urban District and Benfleet Urban District joined to form Castle Point District from 1 April 1974.