Little Chart
Encyclopedia
Little Chart is a civil parish
and small village
to the north-east of Ashford
in Kent
, South East England
. The parish has an area of 1485 acres (6 km²), and a population of 239. Within the parish boundaries are two hamlets: Little Chart Forstal (the term forstal means the land in front of a farm and farmyard; cp Painters Forstal
); and Rooting Street. The Forstal is also home to Little Chart Cricket Club.
The main property in the district, Surrenden Park, to the south of the village, was owned by the Dering family
for over 400 years; the family estate covered much of this part of Kent. Part of their property was Calehill Park, to the north. Neither property now exists: Surrenden succumbed to fire in 1952; Calehill was demolished in 1951.
The original village church, dedicated to St Mary the Virgin and the Holy Rood, was wrecked in 1944 by a V-1 flying bomb
during World War II
; it stood on a site further upstream from the village, near Chart Court. The new church is now within the village.
The Ford Paper Mill, named after the one-time ford over the Great Stour, has a long history, and is still in operation dealing in salvaged paper.
The Stour Valley Walk
, which follows the Great Stour river, and the Greensand Way
, from north to south, are both routed through the village. The village public house
is the Swan Inn.
The Oscar-nominated sound engineer Jonathan Bates
was born in the village.
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
and small village
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
to the north-east of Ashford
Ashford, Kent
Ashford is a town in the borough of Ashford in Kent, England. In 2005 it was voted the fourth best place to live in the United Kingdom. It lies on the Great Stour river, the M20 motorway, and the South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways. Its agricultural market is one of the most...
in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, South East England
South East England
South East England is one of the nine official regions of England, designated in 1994 and adopted for statistical purposes in 1999. It consists of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey and West Sussex...
. The parish has an area of 1485 acres (6 km²), and a population of 239. Within the parish boundaries are two hamlets: Little Chart Forstal (the term forstal means the land in front of a farm and farmyard; cp Painters Forstal
Painters Forstal
Painters Forstal is a village in the Borough of Swale in Kent, England....
); and Rooting Street. The Forstal is also home to Little Chart Cricket Club.
The main property in the district, Surrenden Park, to the south of the village, was owned by the Dering family
Edward Dering
Sir Edward Dering, 1st Baronet was an English antiquary and politician.-Ancestry and childhood:Dering was the eldest son of Sir Anthony Dering of Surrenden Dering in Pluckley, Kent . His mother, Sir Anthony's second wife, was Frances, daughter of Chief Baron Robert Bell. He was born in the Tower...
for over 400 years; the family estate covered much of this part of Kent. Part of their property was Calehill Park, to the north. Neither property now exists: Surrenden succumbed to fire in 1952; Calehill was demolished in 1951.
The original village church, dedicated to St Mary the Virgin and the Holy Rood, was wrecked in 1944 by a V-1 flying bomb
V-1 flying bomb
The V-1 flying bomb, also known as the Buzz Bomb or Doodlebug, was an early pulse-jet-powered predecessor of the cruise missile....
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
; it stood on a site further upstream from the village, near Chart Court. The new church is now within the village.
The Ford Paper Mill, named after the one-time ford over the Great Stour, has a long history, and is still in operation dealing in salvaged paper.
The Stour Valley Walk
Stour Valley Walk
The Stour Valley Walk is a recreational walking route that follows the River Stour, through the Low Weald and Kent Downs, from its source at Lenham to its estuary at Pegwell Bay....
, which follows the Great Stour river, and the Greensand Way
Greensand Way
The Greensand Way is long distance walk of in southeast England, from Haslemere in Surrey to Hamstreet in Kent. It follows the Greensand Ridge along the Surrey Hills and Chart Hills. The route is mostly rural, passing through woods, and alongside fruit orchards and hop farms in Kent and links...
, from north to south, are both routed through the village. The village public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
is the Swan Inn.
The Oscar-nominated sound engineer Jonathan Bates
Jonathan Bates (sound engineer)
Jonathan Bates was a British sound engineer. He was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Sound for the film Gandhi. He worked on over 65 films between 1962 and 2007 and was the youngest son of writer H. E. Bates.-External links:...
was born in the village.