West Peckham
West Peckham maps (2 available)
Map of Kent
Beautifully hand-drawn and coloured, dating from around 1840
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West Peckham books (30 available)
- 1 photos on West Peckham appear in 1 Frith books - View photos of West Peckham
- Read extracts and see photos from these books on West Peckham and Kent
West Peckham memories
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Kent memories
Fred and Dorcas
My Great Grandparents were Fred & Dorcas Beeching, and both died in 1915, they lived in Dunks Green, and two of their sons Sydney and William were killed in the Great War, their names appear on the memorial stone in Plaxtol i think.
Does anyone have memories of Dunks Green from any years.
Brian
A memory of Dunks Green contributed by brian beeching
Sturdey Family Tree
William Sturdey, Christened 3 Dec 1797 at Eynsford. 1851 Census:- Aged 53, Agricultural Labourer, Nut Tree Hall, Plaxtol Village. 1861 Census:- Aged 67 (s/b 63??), Farm Bailiff at Nut Tree Hall. Death Reg'd 3rd Qtr 1877 at Malling Regn District, aged 80 yrs. William Sturdey married Sarah Farrant (dob 1798,) 12 Oct 1819 at Wrotham Parish Church, Kent. 1851 Census:- Aged 52, Agricultural Labourer, born Fawkham, Kent. 1861 Census:- Aged 63, born Plaxtol, Kent. Death registered 2nd Qtr, 1870 at Malling Regn. District. Aged 72.
William Sturdey Son (second child) of Daniel and Mary Sturdey, nephew of Elizabeth Sturdey (died c.1794).
William and Sarah had four children, (1) Elizabeth - 1851 Census:- Aged ...read more here
A memory of Plaxtol contributed by Susan Enright
The Coronation
In 1953 very few households had television. I remember going along to the Fourways cafe on Coronation Day with my parents so that we could watch the Coronation on the television. My sister was only 3 and I was 5. The cafe was run by Mr and Mrs King. My now step mother worked there as a cook. Years later the cafe became the Fourways Furnishings, though I forget the exact name. That was run by Cyril & Hazel Knight.
The fish & chip shop on the corner, run by the Swinburnes, sold the most delicious ice lollies with real ice cream inside which we would buy on our way to Brownies which was held at the Church Hall on ...read more here
A memory of Borough Green contributed by MARIAN Smith
Ivy Hatch Court
These are the memories of my mother May born Ivy Hatch 1921.
The photo shows the gardens and rear elevation of Ivy Hatch Court. The house was owned by Colonel C.N.Watney and his wife Winifred from at least 1919 until approx 1945 when it was sold and converted into apartments/flats. There was a daughter Miss Patricia Watney and a son, name unknown.
Mrs Watney was a keen hunt supporter and rode to hounds with the West Kent Foxhounds
Colonel Watney is understood to have been a patron of St.Bartholomews Hospital, London
Household staff during the 1920s and '30s included:
Mr. Taylor - Butler
Mr Saunders - Chauffeur
Mr Ernie Cox - Head gardener (lived at The Lodge with wife and ...read more here
A memory of Ivy Hatch contributed by First name Last name
Extracts From West Peckham & Kent books
This village seems archetypal: it has a village green, a local store and a red telephone box; surrounded by fields and oasthouses it retains a deep rural tranquillity. On a nearby hill is an old cottage, once the abode of the notorious highwayman Jack Diamond, who is said still to haunt the area in ghostly form.
An extract from from"Villages of Kent 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".
The virtual absence of
motor traffic suggests that
this photograph may have
been taken in 1956, during
the Suez Crisis petrol
rationing, which did not
end until the following year.
The restrained architecture
of The Eagle Tavern
contrasts with that of both
the Town Hall and the
Chatham Constitution Club
on the right of this picture.
An extract from from"Chatham and the Medway Towns Photographic Memories".
This part of the High Street is very different today, with The Sun Hotel gone from its Medway
Street corner site. The dome further down the street was on the old Empire Theatre, which
could seat 2,500 people. It specialised in music hall-style entertainment before it closed
during the 1960s.
An extract from from"Chatham and the Medway Towns Photographic Memories".