Chatham is probably best known for its Dockyard, which was
closed in the 1980s. It is a less well known fact that Charles Dickens
lived there during two different periods of his childhood, in Ordnance Terrace, and in The Brook.
Chatham was once home to The Royal Marines, whose barracks
were situated where the Lloyds of London building is now, on Dock Road
near the Dockyard entrance, opposite Fort Amherst. Lloyd's moved out several years
ago, and their old building is now Medway Council's headquarters.
Places of Interest
The following places are worth a look if you're in the area:
Note: Some of the items have links to external sites, which
are opened in new browser windows. I have no control over the contents
of any external site(s).
Although Rochester is very keen to associate itself with
Charles Dickens (quite rightly as he based many of his characters and
locations on people and places there) he never lived there. He lived in
Chatham with his family for several years in his youth on two separate
occasions. From 1817 to 1821 the Dickens family lived at number 2
Ordnance Terrace. The house is still standing, just a few yards from
the railway station. In fact, if you stand on the coastbound platform
of Chatham Railway Station and look up across the tracks at the row of
yellow brick houses visible from there, above platform 1, you can see
his rectangular plaque.
To get to the house from the station, leave by the main
entrance and turn left. Walk approximately 50 yards to the mini
roundabout and turn right along Ordnance Terrace. The house in which he
lived is just past the first turning on the left. In the photograph it
is the second house from the left with the blue front door and
rectangular plaque. The house isn't number 2 any more - it was
renumbered when more houses were built in the terrace.
Points of interest
When I was a child, I lived in the house next door to the
one the Dickens family lived in. A tenuous claim to fame, I know.
From 1821 to 1822 the Dickens family lived at 18 St Mary's
Place, The Brook. This house was demolished just after the Second World
War and the site is now covered by the Pentagon Centre.
St Mary's Church was Chatham's original parish church. It
stands in Dock Road, at the top of the hill leading to the town centre,
above Chatham Hard. The site is believed to have been used as a place
of worship since pagan times.
"The oldest thing in the Medway Towns"; a stone tablet 39"
high and 19" wide depicting the goddess Euphrosyne is built into the
porch. It was originally discovered built into the Norman wall of the
chapel which once stood on the site of the present porch, and is
believed to date from when Greek traders travelled up the Medway.
The church was used as a heritage centre for some time, but is
now closed. It is apparently awaiting conversion to offices. More
information is available from here.
A similar fate probably awaits St
John's Church, just along the road.
Built in 1849 on the opposite side of the valley in which
Chatham lies, All Saints' Hospital was originally a workhouse. Its most
recent role though was as the main maternity hospital for the Medway
Towns.
All of the patients and work previously undertaken at the
hospital have been transferred to Gillingham's Medway
Maritime Hospital.
Points of Interest
The building replaced the original workhouse, located at
the east end of the High Street. The original building featured in
Charles Dickens' novel "Oliver Twist", but wasn't big enough to house
all of the poor in the area. The site is now occupied by a new bingo
hall.
The hospital was the main maternity and geriatric hospital
for the Medway Towns. During the war it also treated a great number of
wounded servicemen.
As of 2pm on Friday 25th July 1999, the hospital ceased to
be owned by the Medway Health Authority. I was lucky enough to be able
to take some photographs of the site. Click here to have a look.
The site is now a housing estate. The roads are named after
the original hospital wards, so at least there is some sort of
continuity.
External Links:
Although the hospital has been demolished, multimap still has
it on its maps here, although you'll need to
select the aerial photograph option.
The PS Medway Queen is the
last paddle steamer of its type left in the UK. She was built in 1924
for the New Medway Steam Packet Company Ltd. and worked around the
Medway and Thames Estuaries. She was used as a minesweeper in the
Second World War and made seven crossings to rescue allied troops from
Dunkirk. Now, after several sinkings and rescues, she has been bought
and is being restored at Kingsnorth by The Medway Queen
Preservation Society web site. Have a look at their web site for
more information, and for ways to help them restore the steamer.
These two images are scans
of a medal struck to commemorate the incorporation of Chatham as a
Borough, on 10th December 1890. The obverse has a picture of
(presumably) C.T. Smith Esq, and the text around the edge is:
THE MAYOR OF CHATHAM
C.T. SMITH Esq C.C.
The reverse shows the coat
of arms of the newly-incorporated Borough, with its motto ("Loyal and
True"). The text around the edge is:
TO COMMEMORATE THE INCORPORATION OF
CHATHAM
DEC 10th 1890
The slightly odd thing about this medal is that the first
Mayor of Chatham, in 1890 was George Winch Esq. (A solicitor whose
company is still working in Chatham). I had problems finding out much
about CT Smith, until I received an e-mail from Ann Barrett, which
filled in more details:
I have a book dated 1903 called
CHATHAM LONG AGO AND NOW - a Lecture by Rev S D Scammell. It
commemorates the Incorporation of the Borough and has 46 illustrations
of mayoral robes, chains/medals and Civic dignitories. These include C
T Smith who, was Alderman and High Constable of Gillingham Court Leet
1900-1-2-3. He was the last High Constable in England! He also wrote
the preface for the book.
The PS Medway Queen is the
last paddle steamer of its type left in the UK. She was built in 1924
for the New Medway Steam Packet Company Ltd. and worked around the
Medway and Thames Estuaries. She was used as a minesweeper in the
Second World War and made seven crossings to rescue allied troops from
Dunkirk. Now, after several sinkings and rescues, she has been bought
and is being restored at Kingsnorth by The Medway Queen
Preservation Society web site. Have a look at their web site for
more information, and for ways to help them restore the steamer.
These two images are scans
of a medal struck to commemorate the incorporation of Chatham as a
Borough, on 10th December 1890. The obverse has a picture of
(presumably) C.T. Smith Esq, and the text around the edge is:
The reverse shows the coat
of arms of the newly-incorporated Borough, with its motto ("Loyal and
True"). The text around the edge is: