Stambourne is a village and civil parish in the Braintree District in north Essex, England. The civil parish population at the 2011 Census was 409.[1] Stambourne's closest neighbouring villages are Ridgewell, Toppesfield, Cornish Hall End and Great Yeldham.
Stambourne derives from an old local dialect term for 'stony brook'.[citation needed]
A part of the British 17th-century witchcraft trials, the spinster Sarah Houghton of Stambourne, in 1663, was charged by the authorities with causing John Smyth to become "consumed and made infirme." A jury, including John Levett and Matthew Butcher, found Houghton guilty, and she was ordered to be hanged. She was reprieved after the jury had rendered their judgment.[2]
Dame Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies, a stage actress of the early- and mid-20th century, lived in Stambourne in later life, dying in 1992 at the age of 101.[citation needed]
The parish church of St Peter and St Thomas Becket dates from the 11th century and is a Grade I listed building.[3]
Every year a bonfire and fireworks display is held in the village playing field. The event attracts people from surrounding areas (including Great Yeldham, Hedingham and Halstead).[citation needed]
The local handyman is known for lighting the bonfire every year wearing short shorts and a cowboy hat.
