The town of Leigh-on-Sea is located on the Northern side of the Thames estuary, near to Southend-on-Sea.
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| Leigh-on-Sea |
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| County: | Essex |
| District: | Southend-on-Sea |
| Population: | 22,509 (2011 census) |
Leigh first appears in the Saxon period, though the Romans also lived in the area too. In the Domesday book Legra (as it was then known) was a minor coastal settlement of fishermen. Leigh grew slowly, having a fishing industry and some maritime trade plus a number of local farms.
By the 16th century Leigh was a coastal port on the main shipping route to London and became a prosperous trading place. However, by the mid-18th century the deep water access which Leigh relied upon on for larger boats was silting up, killing much of the trade. The old town of Leigh was largely demolished by the building of the railway from London to Southend, Leigh-on-Sea station opened in 1855.
Leigh has continued to grow in size and is now considered a district of Southend. The town is now largely residential, there is still a port though the boats moored at Leigh are now mostly of the leisure variety.
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| Old buoy |
