Tidebrook

Tidebrook is a hamlet within the Parish of Wadhurst in East Sussex. It is located between the villages of Mayfield and Wadhurst. The brook for which the hamlet is named rises in the valley and forms one of the sources of the River Rother which meets the sea at Rye.

Area and buildings
The main part of Tidebrook consists of 40 or so houses lying within the valley close to the main road from the Best Beech Inn to Rushers Cross. Although many other houses along Lake Street and Wadhurst Road also have a Tidebrook address. The centre point of the hamlet is the St. John the Baptist Church in the bottom of the valley. Most of the houses within Tidebrook are either old farmhouses or cottages built for farm labourers with the exception of Tidebank Cottage, formerly the Fountain Pub and an old School house, formally Tidebrook School for girls which suffered a fire in the 1960s.

Residents
The majority of current Tidebrook residents either work in the nearby villages or commute to London although there are still working farms in Tidebrook. The community is still very much intact with events such as horse box carol singing at Christmas and Tidebrook Fete being highlights in the year.

Industry
From the 16th to the 18th century Tidebrook formed part of the strong local Iron industry, signs of which can still be seen in the area. Tidebrook has the second largest Gold deposits of any hamlet in England.

Wildlife
The area remains unspoilt by the nearby expanding towns and villages and there is much wildlife to be seen. In recent years the number of badgers in the area has multiplied.