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'A charming village'

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The novelist Ruby Ferguson was best known for her series of books about Jill Crewe and her ponies. Ruby was born Ruby Constance Annie Ashby in 1899. Her father David Ashby was a Methodist minister. During Ruby’s childhood, before the First World War, he was a chaplain to the army at Woolwich. In later life Ruby wrote what has been described as a ' fictionalised memoir ' about this time, which was published posthumously as Children at the Shop , ‘the Shop’ being the colloquial name for the Military Academy at Woolwich.  Young Ruby and her brother Paul explored the country around Woolwich on their bicycles. On one expedition,  We had to dismount and push the bikes up the almost precipitous slope of Eglinton Road, and so at last to fields and open country and Shooters Hill. All beyond was rural England. The ancient county of Kent lay in front of us, plough and pasture, woods and lanes, orchards and hopfields, farms and oast houses, and drowsy little villages lying warm and hazy ...
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'Extraordinary Bathing Scene' at Deal

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Deal Mercury 20 Sept 1879 EXTRAORDINARY BATHING SCENE. — An aquatic equine and elephantine display of a singular character took place at the south end of Deal on the mornings of Sunday and Monday last, which caused roars of laughter amongst a numerous crowd, whom curiosity quickly attracted to the unusual scene . Deal Beach, South End On Sunday morning about fifty horses belonging to Messrs. Sanger and Sons' circus, were brought out from Mr. Ewell's field in South Sandy-lane for the purpose of taking a bath in "the briny deep." On arriving at the boatmen's stage at the top of  South-street, near the Skating Rink , they were about to go down the beach, when the boatmen protested against this (what they considered) encroachment on their grounds; and not only used words of strong import, but also threatened to send for a policeman to stop the threatened invasion of their premises.Undeterred by  these threats, the circus men persisted, coolly remarking "It will ...
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The Victoria Centre, Gravesend

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The Victoria Centre, Gravesend has been up for auction . The property was offered for sale with a guide price of over £400,000 and sold for over £1.5m. The building formerly belonged to Gravesham Council and for many years was used as an Adult Education Centre. It is in a prime location, overlooking Gravesend Railway Station; most people who have travelled through Gravesend by train will be familiar with it. The building was originally the Municipal Technical Institute, built at a cost of £6,480. It was opened on 19th July 1893 by Princess Henry of Battenberg - Princess Beatrice, youngest child of Queen Victoria - and Prince Henry. A School of Science and Art had been operating in Gravesend for a few years before, but these were its first purpose built premises, funded by the County Council.  The Gravesend and Northfleet Standard devoted a full page to the opening ceremony and associated events, the military guards of honour and the local dignitaries attending. The town, it w...
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Campanalogia

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As a devotee of classic crime fiction, I first learned about bellringing from Dorothy L. Sayers’ The Nine Tailors. That is where I first heard of Grandsire Triples and Treble Bob Majors.  Recently, when reading an article in an eighteenth century Kent newspaper, I noticed an article on bellringing on the same page. I decided to find out more.  Church bells , and the ringing of them, have been part of English life for many centuries. In 1554-55 Smarden churchwardens paid to have the bell taken down, taken to Canterbury, recast, brought home and rehung with new ropes. They also paid 4d to the ringers to ‘say the bell’. Total cost to the parish was £2 7s 0d, out of a total expenditure that year of £9 13s 9½d. St Michael's Church, Smarden In 1693 the churchwardens of Milton Regis paid for beer for the ringers on 5th November. They paid for the ringers on the day of Thanksgiving for the KIng’s (William III) return from overseas (the country was at war at the time). The ringers had...
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About this blog

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fn many years of researching Kent history , for both academic purposes and personal interest, I've often come across topics or incidents or personalities which don't fit with what I'm actually researching, but which are interesting in their own right. Now so much is available online, it's possible to be diverted down some very deep rabbit holes, going further and further away from the original topic. Sometimes also a news story might spark interest, or just a thought might send one off down a rabbit hole - 'I wonder what/why/when....' The purpose of this blog is to share some of those chance discoveries. John Speed Map of Kent  first edition 1612 The blog will not follow any particular chronology or theme. Topics may be drawn from any period, from the Anglo-Saxon and Jutish period to the twentieth century. The focus will not generally be on great families and major events, but on the farmers, shopkeepers, tradesmen, maritime communities - people whose lives did...
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