Upchurch
Upchurch maps (2 available)
Map of Kent
Beautifully hand-drawn and coloured, dating from around 1840
Personalised maps
Create an historic map centred directly on any postcode!
Upchurch books (30 available)
- 3 photos on Upchurch appear in 1 Frith books - View photos of Upchurch
- Read extracts and see photos from these books on Upchurch and Kent
Upchurch memories
Read and share memories of Upchurch and Kent inspired by Frith photos
Jenkins Farm / My Grandparents' Orchard
I remember visiting my Grandparents orchard which was on the bend at the bottom of the hill leading into Upchurch coming in from Gillingham, and opposite was a cattle farm owned by the Jenkins family.
I spent many a wonderful weekend there up until probably the early Sixties when Grandma Young (I think her first name was Maude) moved into Rainham.
Does anyone else remember these times and maybe my family?
My Mum and Dad along with the rest of the family helped in the orchards, their names were Bill and Win and they worked alongside my mum's brother who I only knew as Uncle Son.
The Jenkins' farm always intrigued me as a youngster and they ...read more here
Contributed by Steve Tallamy
Kent memories
Jenkins Farm / My Grandparents' Orchard
I remember visiting my Grandparents orchard which was on the bend at the bottom of the hill leading into Upchurch coming in from Gillingham, and opposite was a cattle farm owned by the Jenkins family.
I spent many a wonderful weekend there up until probably the early Sixties when Grandma Young (I think her first name was Maude) moved into Rainham.
Does anyone else remember these times and maybe my family?
My Mum and Dad along with the rest of the family helped in the orchards, their names were Bill and Win and they worked alongside my mum's brother who I only knew as Uncle Son.
The Jenkins' farm always intrigued me as a youngster and they ...read more here
A memory of Upchurch contributed by Steve Tallamy
Jezreels Tower
I was born within walking distance of the Jezreels Tower which dominated the skyline & was always a source of fascination for growing children. As there was little traffic in those days we were allowed to play in the streets and wander at will. Whenever possible we would make our way up Canterbury Street to the ruins of the tower and dare each other to explore around it. I remember an old gentleman in a long sweeping coat and wide-brimmed hat who was regularly to be seen around Gillingham. He had the distinctive beard and long pigtail of hair hanging down his back - he was one of the last of the Jezreelite sect still living in the area. The ...read more here
A memory of Gillingham contributed by Doreen Swain
My short life in Gillingham, Kent
I was born in a naval nursing home called "Canada House" on the 18th November 1954. I was the first child and boy - I was spoilt. I went to school at Byron Road Infants school until I was 6 then we moved to Swalecliffe in Kent. I was 5 years old and both my mother and grandmother took me to play and have a picnic on the "Darland Banks". We walked from the "Jezerals" along the top road, and up to the "banks". I was very excited I seem to remember.
We belonged to Green Street Tabernacle Baptist Church, we attended Church regularly. I remember being a bridesmaid to my mother's friend Doreen. My paternal grandma lived in Richmond Road ...read more here
A memory of Gillingham contributed by frances fagg
Extracts From Upchurch & Kent books
The most distinctive feature of the church is its curious ‘candle-snuffer’ two-tier steeple, but the village also remembers that
in 1560, its vicar was Edmund Drake, father of Francis Drake. Seventeen years later, Francis Drake began the historic round-
the-world voyage that earned him his knighthood in 1581.
An extract from from"Chatham and the Medway Towns Photographic Memories".
The sailing barges look very
much at home bottomed-
out on the creek mud. From
the 1830s to the 1930s,
barges like this brought
manure from London for
the fields, and gasworks
ash and other refuse for
the local brickworks. The
barges would return to the
metropolis with up to 80
tons of mud for the cement
works, or with locally-made
bricks demanded by the
hugely expanding capital.
An extract from from"Chatham and the Medway Towns Photographic Memories".
Although actually very old, this is another Medway-side village that was left with a distinctly Victorian appearance by the
19th century building boom, when it was a source of brick earth and also chalk for cement making. The infants’ school,
built in 1881, forms a village centre with the church and The Crown Inn.
An extract from from"Chatham and the Medway Towns Photographic Memories".
In 1933, 70 acres of chalk
downland were acquired by
Chatham and Gillingham
councils to create this
beautiful open countryside
nature reserve between the
two towns. The local wildlife
includes several species of
orchids and butterflies. At
the centre of this picture,
we can see the horses of
travellers whose mobile
homes are among the trees.
An extract from from"Chatham and the Medway Towns Photographic Memories".
The bus advertises Fremlins’
ales outside the Red Lion,
a Style & Winch house of
flamboyant grandeur, but
now no more, sad to say.
There are now traffic lights
and a great deal more
traffic where this policeman
stands on point duty at the
junction of High Street with
Corporation Street (left) and
Star Hill (right).
An extract from from"Chatham and the Medway Towns Photographic Memories".