The district had its origins in the Chelmsford
Poor Law Union, which had been created in 1835 for a group of parishes to collectively deliver their responsibilities under the
poor laws. A
workhouse to serve the union was built in 1837 at Wood Street in the south-western suburbs of Chelmsford. That workhouse was destroyed in a fire in 1886. A replacement workhouse was built on the same site, opening in 1889. In 1872,
sanitary districts were established. In rural areas, public health and local government responsibilities were given to the existing
boards of guardians of poor law unions. The Chelmsford Rural Sanitary District therefore covered the poor law union with the exception of the parish of Chelmsford itself, which formed its own urban sanitary district, having been made a
local board district in 1850. The town of Chelmsford was subsequently incorporated as a
municipal borough in 1888. Rural sanitary districts were reconstituted as
rural districts with their own elected councils with effect from 28 December 1894, under the
Local Government Act 1894. The link with the poor law union continued in that all the rural district councillors were thereafter
ex officio members of the board of guardians. Chelmsford Rural District Council held its first official meeting on 1 January 1895. Edward Corder, a farmer from
Writtle, was appointed the first chairman of the council. He had chaired of the board of guardians since 1883, and went on to serve as chairman of the council until shortly before his death in 1899. The rural district ceded part of the parish of
Springfield (including the village itself) and part of the parish of
Writtle to the borough of Chelmsford in 1907. In 1934 there were further changes to the district boundary, when the borough of Chelmsford gained from the rural district, including parts of the parishes of Broomfield, Springfield, Widford, and Writtle. At the same time were transferred from Buttsbury parish to form part of
Billericay Urban District. Later that year, an area of , made up of
Mountnessing and parts of the parishes of
Downham,
Ramsden Bellhouse,
Ramsden Crays and
Shenfield, was gained from the abolished
Billericay Rural District. Also at this time was gained from the parish of
Hockley in
Rochford Rural District. ==Parishes==