Jarvis Brook is a village and church parish in the Wealden District of East Sussex, England.[1] It lies in the south-east of the Crowborough civil parish, about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from Crowborough town centre.
| Jarvis Brook | |
|---|---|
| Village and ecclesiastical parish | |
 St Michael and All Angels church | |
  Jarvis Brook Location within East Sussex | |
| Area | 2.6 km2 (1.0 sq mi) |
| Population | 4,305 |
| • Density | 4,305/sq mi (1,662/km2) |
| OS grid reference | TQ533300 |
| Civil parish | |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | CROWBOROUGH |
| Postcode district | TN6 |
| Dialling code | 01892 |
| Police | Sussex |
| Fire | East Sussex |
| Ambulance | South East Coast |
| UK Parliament | |
In the 2021 Census, the electoral ward of the same name had a population of 4,305.[2]
Jarvis Brook has grown enough that to the north, Jarvis Brook Ward takes some of the land of the neighbouring village of Steel Cross.
History
editJarvis Brook was not mentioned in the Domesday Book from 1068,[3] but is mentioned in a custumal from 1346, being spelt as "Gervys Brook".[4] The spelling may have been influenced by Priscilla Jarvis of Mayfield, who owned land in the village. The earliest record of the village on a map is one from 1789.[5]
The village grew when Crowborough railway station, on the Uckfield branch of the Oxted line, opened. It was historically known as Crowborough and Jarvis Brook.[6] Despite the brickworks opening in 1879,[7] sidings there were opened in 7 years prior in 1872.[8] The brickworks later closed in early 1980[8] and the quarry feeding it was turned into a local nature reserve in 2009.[9]
The village has a baptist chapel that opened in 1876 called the Rethoboth Chapel.[10] The chapel was previously abandoned, however reopened in August 2022.[11]
A church school was built on the site of St Michael and All Angels church in 1882 on land lent by Lord Abergavenny, with the church following suite in 1902. The church became its own parish in 1934.[12]
The Jarvis Brook Memorial Hall is a hall that was constructed and given to the people by wealthy landowners around the 1920s and has been used for various purposes, including a World War 2 hospital, where it got its namesake. In more recent times, the hall has fallen into a state of disrepair, with funding needed for the roof.[13][14]
Transportation
editThe village gets an hourly service from Crowborough railway station, and an infrequent local bus around the village and to Crowborough nearby. Two bus lines operated by Wealdlink serve the village, one heading to Wadhurst and the other heading down to Battle.[15]
The B2157 runs along the north of the village and terminates at the B2100, which cuts straight through the village and heads down to Lamberhurst.[16]
The Jarvis Brook
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The Jarvis Brook is a small river that flows from several tributaries around Crowborough and is part of the Medway Upper catchment area.[17] The river feeds into the Eridge Stream.
Along the river was Maynards Gate Furnace, a blast iron furnace. It was working in 1653 but ruined by 1664.[18][19] It served the Maynards Gate Forge, which shared the same pond as the Furnace. The only modern evidence of its existence is the sudden ending of leat in a leveled area along the river downstream.[18]
The Environment Agency measures the water quality of the river systems in England. Each is given an overall ecological status, which may be one of five levels: high, good, moderate, poor and bad. There are several components that are used to determine this, including biological status, which looks at the quantity and varieties of invertebrates, angiosperms and fish. Chemical status, which compares the concentrations of various chemicals against known safe concentrations, is rated good or fail.[20]
The water quality of the Jarvis Brook is as follows:
| Section | Ecological status | Chemical Status | Overall status | Length | Catchment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jarvis Brook[21] | Moderate | Fail | Moderate | 4.033 km (2.506 mi) | 14.024 km2 (5.415 sq mi) |
Notable people
edit- Cate Blanchett currently resides in Highwell House, on Steep Road to the south of the village.[22]
- Richard Jefferies lived briefly at Rehoboth Villa (now Brook View House) near the Rehoboth Chapel.[23]
- Sam Taylor-Johnson resided in a converted schoolhouse as a child and attended Beacon Academy.[24]
References
edit- ↑ "Election Maps: Great Britain". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 21 August 2025.
- ↑ "Crowborough Jarvis Brook (Ward, United Kingdom) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location". www.citypopulation.de. Retrieved 11 August 2025.
- ↑ "Map | Domesday Book". opendomesday.org. Retrieved 27 April 2026.
- ↑ Brandon, P. F. (1969). "Medieval Clearances in the East Sussex Weald". Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers (48): 135–153. doi:10.2307/621495. ISSN 0020-2754. JSTOR 621495.
- ↑ "Old maps of Wealden District". OldMapsOnline. Retrieved 27 March 2026.
- ↑ "Disused Stations: Crowborough & Jarvis Brook Station". www.disused-stations.org.uk. Retrieved 9 May 2025.
- ↑ "crowborough.info - History". www.crowborough.info. Retrieved 9 April 2026.
- 1 2 "The Weald - Books, directories, magazines and pamphlets". theweald.org. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- ↑ "Crowborough Country Park - Country Park in Crowborough, Crowborough - Wealden". www.explorewealden.co.uk. Retrieved 7 February 2026.
- ↑ GENUKI. "Genuki: Rehoboth Chapel, Jarvis Brook, Baptist, Sussex". www.genuki.org.uk. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
- ↑ "About". Jarvis Brook Baptist Chapel. Retrieved 22 May 2026.
- ↑ PARISH OF JARVIS BROOK. <corpname>Church of England, Jarvis Brook Parish, East Sussex</corpname>. 1882–1993.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ↑ "Calls for funding to repair one of Jarvis Brook's best-loved buildings". SussexWorld. 7 January 2026. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
- ↑ Luxford, Iain (5 January 2026). "Historic Jarvis Brook hall needs your help". Crowborough News. Retrieved 7 March 2026.
- ↑ "Crowborough Transport Links". Crowborough Town Council. Retrieved 18 May 2026.
- ↑ "OpenStreetMap". OpenStreetMap. Retrieved 18 May 2026.
- ↑ "Water Body - Jarvis Brook". www.floodmapper.co.uk. Retrieved 25 March 2026.
- 1 2 Wealden Iron Research Group enter name of forge in search box
- ↑ "The Weald - Books, directories, magazines and pamphlets". theweald.org. Archived from the original on 15 December 2018. Retrieved 30 March 2026.
- ↑ "Glossary (see Biological quality element; Chemical status; and Ecological status)". Catchment Data Explorer. Environment Agency. 17 February 2016.
Text was copied from this source, which is available under an Open Government Licence v3.0. - ↑ "Jarvis Brook". Catchment Data Explorer. Environment Agency.
- ↑ Gladwin, Anna; Fox, Thomas (28 February 2022). "Cate Blanchett's quiet life in Sussex in her £5 million mansion". Sussex Live. Retrieved 7 February 2026.
- ↑ "Wildlife Walk". Richard Jefferies Museum. Retrieved 19 October 2025.
- ↑ "Sam Taylor-Johnson biography. British director, screenwriter, producer, actress, photographer and artist". biographs.org. Retrieved 7 February 2026.
External links
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Media related to Jarvis Brook at Wikimedia Commons