A couple swapped Maldon for its American namesake more than 3,000 miles away during a visit stateside.

Gordon and Carol Melling, from Great Totham, enjoyed a visit to New England while on holiday earlier this month.

During their tour, which saw them take in Plymouth, Niagara Falls and Boston, the couple decided to make a stop in Malden, Massachusetts.

The American city has a population of 59,450 and is on the outskirts of Boston.

The name Malden was chosen by Joseph Hills, an early settler and landholder, who emigrated from Maldon in Essex.

As part of their visit Mr and Mrs Melling spent time in the Public Library and met with city mayor Gary Christenson.

Mr Melling, 67, said: “We recently visited New England on our holidays, and made a point of visiting Malden in Massachusetts which is named after Maldon in Essex.

"It is spelt 'den' rather than 'don'.

"I had been in touch with a lady out there - Dora St. Martin - and it turned out she was the director of the library.

“Our visit included a tour of their very impressive Public Library, and ended with a meeting with the mayor.

"On our last day our flight was at 10pm, so we said we would pop by.

"She showed us around the library - it really is quite impressive and was funded by Converse."

The couple's visit is the first time someone from Maldon has visited the US city since the 1930s.

Mr Melling said: "We went across to the mayor's office and had about a half an hour chat with him.

"We had a chat about Malden and gave us a couple of books about the town.

"He showed an interest in Maldon and about coming over to visit.

"It is interesting to know there is another Maldon out there."

But it wasn't just Malden the couple came across while in the US, they also saw references to Braintree and Ipswich.

Mr Melling added: "My wife if from Coggeshall and we managed to find a little farm museum called Coggeshall Farm Museum - that was interesting."

The couple's visit has also made on to the City of Malden website.

To see the article visit http://www.cityofmalden.org/content/maldon-england-residents-visit-malden-ma