Godmersham
Godmersham maps (2 available)
Map of Kent
Beautifully hand-drawn and coloured, dating from around 1840
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Godmersham books (11 available)
- 1 photos on Godmersham appear in 1 Frith books - View photos of Godmersham
- Read extracts and see photos from these books on Godmersham and Kent
Godmersham memories
Read and share memories of Godmersham and Kent inspired by Frith photos
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Kent memories
Don't get caught!
The Rev Lawson caught three of us smoking in the graveyard here, he then said he would tell my dad unless we all swept up the leaves around the main church door, which we all did. My dad was the local copper then, and a clout round the ear I would have got!!
A memory of Chilham contributed by nev bishop
Many a beer here
Many a beer here I have downed, served by the landlady who was then locally known as Brandy Lil, I can't imagine why though?
A memory of Chilham contributed by nev bishop
My first flat
No I'm not joking, when we first got married we lived in a flat in Chilham Castle which was at the time above the Battle of Britain museum at the rear of the castle, yes it was cold there in the winter. We were allowed to walk around the lakes and gardens, whenever we wished. My father was the local village policeman, PC Bill Bishop. who managed to persuade a certain Lord Mazzerin to rent it out to us. Mice, yes, they were in abundance, the record then was 21 in two days, what did I do with them all you may ask? My wife would throw them out of the window in disgust of condition of the castle. Just beneath ...read more here
A memory of Chilham contributed by nev bishop
Oh happy days
1st white house on left was the 2nd post office where I had to go every morning to collect and deliver all the Chilham newspapers around the village for the grand sum of £2 per week. Post master then was a Ken Parker, I had to finish by 8am to catch Herbi Arnold's school bus to get to Chartham Secondary School.
A memory of Chilham contributed by nev bishop
Extracts From Godmersham & Kent books
On the right is the old Belle Vue Tavern
dating back to the 1760s, which was an
earlier haunt for smugglers. In 1831,
the landlord Mr John Cramp received
a visit from the Duchess of Kent and
her daughter Princess Victoria; they
dined on potted shrimp paste. Later,
Mr Cramp received the Royal
Appointment of Purveyor of Essence
of Shrimps in Ordinary to Her Majesty
the Queen. On the left are the Floral
Tea Gardens followed by the Pear Tree
Inn, later Samuel Banger’s potted
shrimp paste factory. His small paste
pots had highly decorated lids
depicting scenes of Pegwell; today
they are valuable antiques.
An extract from from"Ramsgate Old and New Photographic Memories".
Work on building this
elegant square started in
1802 after James Townley
bought the ground. The
buildings on the left were
officers’ quarters during the
Napoleonic Wars. The
square was a large parade
ground, and nearby
Addington Street was a
military camp. Frith’s
photographer was standing
outside No 6 Royal Road,
where Vincent Van Gogh
had stayed.
An extract from from"Ramsgate Old and New Photographic Memories".
Here we see three of eight classical-style statues holding lanterns which stood at the
junction of the High Street and George Street outside Sangers Amphitheatre and
Hotel between 1911 and 1913. Six statues were removed and erected outside the
Hall by the sea in Margate; the other two remained until 1939. There was
controversy surrounding these figures: in 1908, Alderman Gwyn called them ‘an
eyesore and a disfigurement’. Lord George Sanger had seen the originals of the
statues in Paris outside the Grand Opera House in 1883, and had eight replicas cast,
paying £50 per figure for the transport and erection of these statues. Opposite is
Lloyds Bank, which moved to new premises in 1928, renting the building to the
NatWest Bank. The piano sign next door denotes Golden & Wind’s premises.
An extract from from"Ramsgate Old and New Photographic Memories".
Here we have a tranquil view at low water of the inner basin. On the extreme right is the Clock House. To its left in
Smeaton’s dry dock is a sailing vessel being repaired. The fishing smacks in the foreground have RE numbers, denoting that
they are registered in Ramsgate; later the E was dropped and only the letter R used.
An extract from from"Ramsgate Old and New Photographic Memories".
The abbey stands on the site of a Saxon nunnery set up by Domneva, and run by St Augustine’s
monks from Canterbury; it was destroyed in the ninth century by the invading Danes. Rebuilding
started in the 11th century. The year 1538 saw the Dissolution of the Monasteries by King Henry
VIII, and the land reverted to the Crown. Later, ownership of the grounds went to the Conyngham
family and various tenant farmers until 1937, when a community of German Benedictine nuns
bought the monastery and 10 acres of land.
An extract from from"Ramsgate Old and New Photographic Memories".