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Hailsham, Sussex

Historical Description

Hailsham, a small town and a parish in Sussex. The town stands in a pleasant vale, with a station on the L.B. & S.C.R., 56 miles from London, 5½ NW of Pevensey Bay, 13 E by S of Lewes, and If mile E of Cuckmere river. It .has a post, money order, and telegraph office; is a seat of petty sessions and a police court, and has a parish church, a chapel of ease at Polegate, and a mission room at Magham Down, two dissenting chapels, and a good public recreation ground. The church is Later English, consists of nave and two aisles, and has a low pinnacled tower; the building has been restored at different times. It has a peal of eight bells. The curfew bell is still rung here. A cattle and sheep market is held on alternate Wednesdays, and is one of the largest in the county. A cattle and sheep fair is held on 12 Aug. A priory of Black canons was founded at Michaelham, on the river Cuckmere, in the time of Henry III., and is now represented partly by a tower and partly by a farmhouse. A Premon-stratensian monastery was founded at Otham by Ralph de Dene, and afterwards removed to Bayham, and traces of its walls still exist. Acreage of parish, 5330; population, 3369. The living is a vicarage, with that of Polegate annexed, in the diocese of Chichester; joint net value,, £100 with residence. The manufacture of rope, twine, mats, and matting is carried on to a considerable extent.

Transcribed from The Comprehensive Gazetteer of England & Wales, 1894-5

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Ancient CountySussex 
Ecclesiastical parishHailsham St. Mary 
HundredDill 
Poor Law unionHailsham 

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.


Civil Registration

For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.


Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Hailsham from the following:


Maps

Online maps of Hailsham are available from a number of sites:


Newspapers and Periodicals

The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following Sussex newspapers online:

DistrictWealden
CountyEast Sussex
RegionSouth East
CountryEngland
Postal districtBN27
Post TownHailsham

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