THURROCK Historical Society chair Susan Yates continues her occasional series of features as she takes another trip down Memory Lane

According to locals it was originally to be built at the top of New Barn Lane. Every day they would collect stone to use but a naughty dragon moved the stones over night to the Green so that is where it was built.

Bardfield Saling round tower church, St Peter and St Paul, is the only example in the UK from the decorated period and therefore the last to be built in medieval times. Sadly during World War II the east wall was damaged and as a result was rebuilt without the East window.

St Mary the Virgin, Great Leighs is 12th century and Grade-I listed. It has a fantastic zig-zag Romanesque doorway with Gothic panelled door probably not original. It was originally the church for Lyons Hall but this village has now gone.

Round tower number five is Pentlow's St George and St Gregory. This 12th century church built on the site of a Saxon one is Grade-I listed. It has very interesting monuments to Edward Felton and his wife 1542, Judge George Kempe 1606 and his son John Kempe and wife 1609. Our last one is Lamarsh's church of Holy Innocents built circa 1140 and Grade I listed.

Little Maplestead's church built circa 1335 was built by the Knights Hospitallers of St John and every year on St John the Baptist day in June the St John Ambulance and Knights Hospitallers Order in full regalia hold a service here. It is based on the church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem. It is one of only four round churches in England the others being Cambridge, the Temple Church, London and Northampton.

One of my favourite Essex churches is St Stephens at Great Wigborough. This church is a landmark for miles around which may be why Zeppelin L33 shot down over Wanstead in September 1916 landed in the lane to Little Wigborough.

The crew torched the craft and then handed themselves in to the local 'bobby'. Part of the Zeppelin has been made into a frame for the story of L33 which is displayed in the church. Probably of more interest is the fact that this church is in earthquake country.

Here people do not talk of the '87 hurricane but the '84 earthquake. 22nd April 1884 that is, when at 9.10am an earthquake shook the area from Colchester to West Mersea. It badly shook the church dislodging pinnacles from the tower and causing serious cracks in the walls making the building unsafe. The tower was rebuilt by public subscription and the Rev Frederick Theobold paid for the rest. A true Christian gentleman.

My favourite Essex church is St Andrew's Greensted juxta Ongar.

It is the oldest wooden church in the world and the oldest wooden building standing in Europe. The nave walls are all that is left of the original Saxon church possibly erected 1060. The oak logs which make up its walls have been dated by dendrochronology to 845.

It is said the walls are made of timbers from an old galleon. If only those walls could talk what stories could they tell?

Just outside south east of the porch is a grave said to be that of a bowman from the Crusades. It has a coped stone coffin lid which is not a local material and therefore the body seems likely to have been that of a local hero. Another interesting grave here is that of Edward Edwards who died in 1842 after an accident using a scythe, as a result of a bet, in the Inn which he owned, after a bout of heavy drinking. The grave is marked by a small, now broken, wooden cross visible as you enter the churchyard.

I cannot wait until we are all allowed out again to visit these monuments to our history once more. If you want to know about the history of a village look at the local church. As the village prospers so does the church likewise when the village falls on hard times the church reflects this too.