Prittlewell

Coordinates: 51°32′53″N 0°42′18″E / 51.548°N 0.705°E / 51.548; 0.705

Prittlewell is a district within the Borough of Southend-on-Sea, Essex. Historically, Prittlewell is the original town, Southend being the south end of Prittlewell.

The village of Prittlewell was originally centred at the joining of three main roads, East Street, West Street and North Street, which was extended south in the 19th century and renamed Victoria Avenue. The principal administrative buildings in Southend are located along Victoria Avenue, although Prittlewell is now mainly a residential area, served by Prittlewell railway station.

History

Prehistoric

People first settled by the Prittle Brook at least 10,000 years ago in the late Stone Age. Little appears to have affected life in Prittlewell as its population gradually evolved from their original character as hunter-gatherers to a more settled existence during the Bronze and Iron Ages.

Roman

The Roman occupation began to influence the area with the construction of a Roman-style dwelling, probably a farmhouse or villa close to the brook in what is now Priory Park. The introduction of new ideas, new skills and social structures under this Roman influence would have brought significant change to the area. The discovery of Roman burial sites during road and rail construction in the 1920s and 1930s indicated that the settlement was well developed and of some significance, although no prominent buildings were preserved.