Editing Romford (section)

===Local government===
Romford formed a chapelry in the large ancient parish of [[Hornchurch]] in the [[Becontree (hundred)|Becontree]] hundred of [[Essex]]; as well as the town it included the wards of Collier Row, [[Harold Wood]], and Noak Hill.<ref name=bho_local_gov>{{cite book | url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=42818 | publisher=[[British History Online]] | title=Romford: Local government, A History of the County of Essex: Volume 7 | year=1978 | author=Powell, W.R. (Edr.) | series= [[Victoria County History]] | access-date=6 August 2009}}</ref> Through ancient custom the area enjoyed special status and a charter in 1465 removed the parish from the Becontree hundred and the county of Essex and it instead formed the independent [[Royal Liberty of Havering|liberty of Havering]] governed from a court house in the market place.<ref name=bho_liberty/> Over time the vestry of Romford chapelry absorbed the local powers that would usually be held by the parish authorities in Hornchurch<ref name=bho_local_gov/> and in 1849 Romford became a separate parish within the liberty.<ref name=vision_lib>{{Cite vob | url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10199463&c_id=10001043 | name=Havering atte Bower liberty | access-date=6 August 2009 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071001043708/http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10199463&c_id=10001043 | archive-date=1 October 2007 | df=dmy-all }}</ref> [[Improvement commissioners]] were set up in 1819 for paving, lighting, [[Watchman (law enforcement)|watching]], and cleansing of the marketplace and main streets.<ref name=bho_local_gov/> As the town grew this arrangement became ineffective at controlling sanitation and in 1851 a [[local board of health]] was set up for the parish; although its area was reduced in 1855 to cover only the town ward.<ref name=bho_local_gov/> The remainder of the parish became part of the Romford [[sanitary district|rural sanitary district]] in 1875. These changes and the introduction of the Romford [[Poor Law Union]] in 1836<ref name=bho_local_gov/> eroded the powers of the liberty and it was finally abolished in 1892 and reincorporated into Essex.<ref name=bho_liberty/>

The [[Local Government Act 1894]] reformed local government and created the [[Municipal Borough of Romford|Romford Urban District]] and [[Romford Rural District]] to replace the local board and sanitary district;  following which the Romford parish was split into ''Romford Urban'' and ''Romford Rural'' along the lines of the urban district.<ref name=bho_local_gov/> In 1900 the parish was recombined and the urban district expanded to cover all of the former area of the historic chapelry, except for [[Noak Hill]] which remained in the rural district and had become a parish in its own right in 1895.<ref name=bho_local_gov/> The enlarged urban district formed part of the [[London Traffic Area]] from 1924 and the [[London Passenger Transport Board|London Passenger Transport Area]] from 1933.<ref name=robson_london>{{cite book |title=The Government and Mis-government of London |last=Robson |first=William |year=1939 |publisher=Allen & Unwin |location=London }}</ref> The suburban expansion of London caused an increase in population during the 1930s<ref name=population_new/> and the urban district was expanded further in 1934, taking in the parishes of [[Havering-atte-Bower]] and Noak Hill.<ref name=vob_romford_mb/> It was incorporated as the [[Municipal Borough of Romford]] in 1937.<ref name=vob_romford_mb/> In 1965 the municipal borough was abolished and its former area was combined with that of [[Hornchurch Urban District]]; it was again removed from Essex and since then has formed the northern part of the [[London Borough of Havering]] in [[Greater London]].<ref name=vob_havering_lb>{{cite vob | url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10166913&c_id=10001043 | name=Havering LB | map=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/boundary_map_page.jsp?u_id=10166913&c_id= | access-date=6 August 2009 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090211082200/http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10166913&c_id=10001043 | archive-date=11 February 2009 | df=dmy-all }}</ref> For elections to the Greater London Council, Romford was part of the [[Havering (electoral division)|Havering]] electoral division until 1973 and then the [[Romford (electoral division)|Romford]] electoral division until 1986.