One branch of my family comes from Ashdon in Essex, near Saffron Walden. The original village grew around what is now All Saints Church, which you can see on the map below. With today’s Covid 19 pandemic hurtling round the world, it reminded me of what the village did during the Black Death. In the 13th century the parish suffered, with bubonic plague reducing the population by at least one third. In the case of Ashdon, the many dead were buried in communal pits sited to the south of the church, at what is now Church End. This event caused the remaining healthy population to migrate into the Bourne valley with Crown Hill becoming the new village centre, which is why you will find that Ashdon is spread over two distinct sites. Social distancing is nothing new.
As soon as this lockdown began, it reminded me of the story of the village of Eyam in1665 (sorry not in Essex, as per the thread category) in Derbyshire.
Eyam is a beautiful little village not far from us, we intend go do the 'plague trail' which takes you around the village giving information on the poor souls who died - very interesting.
