Thorrington is a village and civil parish

Civil parish

In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...

 in the Tendring

Tendring

Tendring is a local government district in North East Essex, England. It extends from the River Stour in the north, to the coast and the River Colne in the south, with the coast to the East and the town of Colchester to the west. Its council is based in Clacton-on-Sea. Towns in the district...

 district of Essex

Essex

Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...

, England. It lies 5 km east of Wivenhoe

Wivenhoe

Wivenhoe is a town in north eastern Essex, England, approximately south east of Colchester. Historically Wivenhoe village, on the banks of the River Colne, and Wivenhoe Cross, on the higher ground to the north, were two separate settlements but with considerable development in the 19th century the...

 and 3 km north of Brightlingsea

Brightlingsea

Brightlingsea is a coastal town in the Tendring district of Essex, England, located between Colchester and Clacton-on-Sea, situated at the mouth of the River Colne, on Brightlingsea Creek. It has an estimated population of 8500....

. The striking medieval flint church is dedicated to Mary Magdalene

Mary Magdalene

Mary Magdalene was one of Jesus' most celebrated disciples, and the most important woman disciple in the movement of Jesus. Jesus cleansed her of "seven demons", conventionally interpreted as referring to complex illnesses...

, and the patrons of the church are St John's College, Cambridge

St John's College, Cambridge

St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....

.

On the west side, the Tenpenny Brook forms the parish boundary between Thorrington and Alresford

Alresford, Essex

Alresford is a village in Essex, England. It is located southeast of Colchester and is northeast from the county town of Chelmsford. The village is in the district of Tendring and in the parliamentary constituency of North Essex....

. At the point where the brook flows into the Alresford Creek (a branch of the Colne Estuary

River Colne, Essex

The River Colne is a small river that runs through Colchester, England. It is not a tributary of any other river, instead having an estuary that joins the sea near Brightlingsea.-Source:...

) stands Thorrington Mill. This is a tide mill

Tide mill

A tide mill is a water mill driven by tidal rise and fall. A dam with a sluice is created across a suitable tidal inlet, or a section of river estuary is made into a reservoir. As the tide comes in, it enters the mill pond through a one way gate, and this gate closes automatically when the tide...

 built in 1831 and now a Grade II* listed building.

The east and northern boundaries of the parish are bounded by the Saltwater Brook. Where the Saltwater Brook flows into Flag Creek (formerly Borefleet Creeek or Byrflytt) is the former site of another Tidal Mill.

The Colchester to Clacton railway line passes just to the north of the village. Thorrington's station

Thorrington railway station

Thorington railway station was a station in Thorrington, Essex on the line from Colchester to Walton on the Naze and Clacton, opened in 1866 and closed in 1957. The station was situated in between Alresford and Great Bentley...

 was opened in 1867, and closed in 1957.

Great Bentley station

Great Bentley railway station

Great Bentley railway station is a staffed railway station serving Great Bentley in Essex, England. The station is located north east of London Liverpool Street on the Sunshine Coast Line, a branch of the Great Eastern Main Line. The station is located at street level on Station Road in the...

 is now the closest rail station with parking facilities, located around 2 miles north-east of the village.

Thorrington is also mentioned in the Domesday Book

Domesday Book

Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...

.

External links

• Link to National Archive
• Entry in Kelly's Directory of Essex, 1882 on the Images of England
  Images of England
  rightImages of England is an online photographic record of all the listed buildings in England at the date of February 2001. The archive gives access to over 323,000 colour images, each of which is matched with the item’s listed designation architectural description.This ‘snapshot’ is not an...
  
  website
• The mill on the Brightlingsea town website