Canvey Island (vicinity Eighteen.45 sq klick; pop. 37,000) is an island in the River Thames estuary off the coast of Essex, England. These are as well a title of the town on that island, though this is sometimes shortened to Canvey.

A island's title is Anglo Saxon in origin, and means "Cana's island". It was number 1 recorded within manorial records of 1255 as Caneveye. A island is non mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, but sheep grazing marshland lying south of the county is mentioned extensively. Geologically, Canvey Isl& was originally part of a mainland, so a coastline broke higher into little pieces, and the modern island is manufactured higher of 5 of people pieces. There are historical maps held at a Essex Record Office that show within which a 5 separate islands originally lay & which are actually thought that these are a lakes referred to in sooner records. Sheep farming was the mainstay industry of the island until super recently.

Because of the geologic history of the island subsidence was a most common condition & sea defences keep around been built to protect a island from either a Thames since a 14th century. In the early 17th century Dutch builders were employed to reclaim l& from either a Thames and to strengthen a sea defences. Because of this the heavy Dutch community formed around Canvey Isl&, grounds to believe of which may however exist as witnessed inside local road list, toponym and architecture. Arms of the former Canvey Island Urban District Council Within 1791, 1881 and 1897 the whole island was almost wholly submerged due to extensive flooding of the River Thames. Extra modern sea defences keep around currently been installed, & come maintained regularly. Yet, inside 1953 serious floods along a east coast hit the isl& and caused the demise of 58 humans.

A coast of Canvey was unsuspecting hosts to the Chapman Lighthouse famously described within Joseph Conrad's novel 'Heart of Darkness'. Built inside 1851, this everthing-iron lighthouse replaced a lightship which got been moored in the area for the retiring tetrad years. A beacon was demolished within 1957 due to its unfortunate problem. These are believed that a peril of a mudflats in a image below such shallow waters off the Canvey coast prompted the Romans to devise occasionally form of beacon as a warning in the area. a hexangular beacon light was constructed per engineer James Walker, a adviser beacon light engineer at Trinity Home at the instance.

When you took a Second World War the island was one prevent of the GHQ Line, a line of concrete pillboxes constructed as a defence against the potential German invasion. A bit of of the old pillboxes come however in situ in todays world.

Supplementary recently (in the 1970s), Canvey Island was a centre of the pub rock musical movement, featuring entertainers such as Dr. Feelgood and Ian Dury.

More settlements on a island apart from either the independent town include Newlands and Leigh Beck. More local islands include Lower Horse and Two Tree Island.