[2][3] Canewdon is situated on one of the highest hills of the Essex coastline, from which St Nicholas's Church affords wide views of the Crouch estuary.

For instance, gravel extraction from early 20th century found prehistoric remains, such as a hoard of Neolithic axes and Iron Age.

[4] Along the coast were Roman Red Hill salterns structures constructed of clay floors heated by flues, dating based upon Romano-British pottery.

[2] The name Canewdon is derived from the Old English 'hill of Cana's people,'[2][3] first documented in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Carenduna,[6] at a time when there were 28 households.

[4] Agnes Frances Whitwell (née Morley), originally from Canewdon, was killed in 1915 by a bomb dropped by a Zeppelin, which landed on her home at 120 North Road, Southend-on-Sea.

Information from the Chain Home sites and observation posts were transmitted via underground telephone lines to a central plotting room for probable raid analysis and warning notification.

[4] The 14th-century Parish Church of St Nicholas at the end of the village High Street stands on a ridge overlooking the River Crouch.

Five years later Cicely Makin was accused of witchcraft, and was unable to find five people who would swear that she was not a witch.

[12] Author Ian Yearsley has written a novel based on the witchcraft legends in the village, called The Curse of Cannow's End (published in 2012).