Leigh Sailing Club is housed in the original Leigh Station. The station was opened in 1855 connecting the people of Leigh with London.
Old Leigh as it is now known, was once the hub of Leigh on Sea and a primary shipping route to London and by the 16th century ships as large as 340 tons were built here, including it is said, the Mayflower, hence the name of a local pub.
An Elizabethan historian described Leigh as "a proper fine little towne and verie full of stout and adventurous sailers" (William Camden, 1551-1623). By the 1740s the deep water access had become silted and Leigh evolved to become a successful fishing village with a small amount of housing, one such family were my ancestors, the Cotgroves.
The railway caused the demolition of much of Old Leigh and new housing and streets were built on the higher ground of Leigh Broadway.
This cache is situated slightly past the Old Town along the Cinder Path.