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Turn back the clock across the county this week with Tia Challis.
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00:18Hello and welcome to Kent Chronicles live here on KMTV where we turn back time on all of Kent's
00:24history from the medieval era to the industrial revolution and everything in between. I'm
00:29Tia Chalice and join me as we turn back time and discuss all things history. And for this week
00:35we'll be looking into things produced in Kent and how they've left their mark over time from
00:40stained glass windows to lavender and much more. But first for this week's periodic profile our
00:46reporter Becky Udall journeyed down to Canterbury to investigate Stephen Williamson and his family
00:52looking into the wealth they created and spread throughout the city from their leather business.
00:57Let's take a look.
01:09For this week's periodic profile we'll be talking about the former owners of this building behind
01:14me. Built in 1850, Tower House was purchased by Stephen Williamson in 1886. The family lived there
01:23until 1935 when it was along with Westgate Gardens and Tanner Field donated to the city of Canterbury,
01:30a gesture that endeared the family to many of the city's residents. The Williamson family were once one
01:37of the wealthiest families in Canterbury, so wealthy that they were able to not only purchase Tower House,
01:43but they could also purchase the entirety of Westgate Gardens and Tanner Field. The source of this wealth
01:51was the family's leather tanning business. Founded in the 1790s by Stephen Williamson, St. Mildred's tannery
01:57passed through six generations of the Williamson family. During its life the business would achieve
02:03substantial commercial success, thriving in part due to the supply and demand caused by troops stationed
02:09nearby during the Napoleonic Wars. They would use the River Stour as the main passage for exporting their leather goods.
02:16They also supplied high quality leather to companies such as Connelly's Leather who were responsible for
02:22upholstering the interiors of the luxury car brands Rolls-Royce, Bentley and Jaguar, as well as several
02:28prestigious institutions, namely the leather used to cover the chairs that fill the chambers of the
02:34House of Commons and the House of Lords. Their leather work mastery eventually came to an end.
02:40Located behind me are the remains of their final branch which closed its doors in
02:452002. The end of a legacy. This is Becky Udall for KMTV.
03:01Now it's time to put your thinking caps on for tonight's Tea Time Trivia with Nathan Hardy.
03:08For this week's theme on natural products in Rochester, I asked the public how much they know about one
03:13megalithic structure. The question. Which ancient monument near the village of Aylesford is closely connected to Kent's natural heritage?
03:21I would say it's the Jacket Field Long Barrow. I think it's Whelan Smith Long Barrow.
03:27Oh, Kitt's Coty. The answer? Kitt's Coty House.
03:31Oh was it? I was thinking because of the Long Barrow being a barrel mound, that's where I was going.
03:35This ancient Neolithic monument sits within the Kent Downs landscape, which is classed as an official area of natural beauty.
03:41And it is an area known for its rich natural products including orchids, hops, wildflowers and locally made honey and
03:48herbal goods.
03:53And now, moving from stones to stained glass, we visited the University of Kent to attend a talk from Dr.
04:00Rachel Koopman,
04:01who told us all about her work analysing and restoring Canterbury Cathedral's miracle windows.
04:07These windows, designed and crafted right here in Kent, tell the rich story of St. Thomas Becket and the miracles
04:13he is said to have performed.
04:14Now, 800 years after their construction, Dr. Koopman's work has allowed her to give her identities back to figures thought
04:22long lost to time.
04:23Here is this week's Alluring Artifact.
04:34Canterbury's miracle windows. What are they? 800 year old stained glass windows,
04:41which were devoted to the life and miracles of Thomas Becket.
04:45In the ambulatory around Becket Shrine were these magnificent six meter tall windows seen by hundreds of thousands of medieval
04:54pilgrims over the years.
04:56Now, what's unusual about the miracle windows is that they are focused on the experiences of ordinary people.
05:03So much of medieval stained glass is about kings, about biblical stories, prophets, you know, these kind of highfalutin figures
05:13and stories.
05:15And for all but one of the windows, the Glaciers were using a text written by a monk of Canterbury,
05:21who was working, writing down these stories right after Becket's murder from 1171 to 1173.
05:30There's one story that really matches this panel nicely, and it's the story of Richard of Stanley, a knight from
05:38the region of York.
05:40And Richard here, he had fever, he had kidney pain, and he had contracted hands, and he had a vision
05:50of Thomas Becket.
05:51On the next night, when he lay fast asleep in the first part of the night, and the hour of
05:56his fever's onset had come,
05:58he thought that he saw in his dreams the true presence of St. Thomas.
06:03With the gentlest touch of his hand, he smoothed his head as well as the rest of the members of
06:10his body.
06:11And look, Becket is smoothing, see that, smoothing his feverish brow.
06:18And this is one of the most satisfying parts of our work, to be able to put names to these
06:23people.
06:23So it's not just a sick man, it is now Richard of Stanley, a knight from the region of York,
06:29who had kidney pain, a fever, and contracted hands.
06:39And now, for this week's long-standing landmark, we took a look at the history of natural produce at Castle
06:46Farm near Sevenoaks,
06:48famed for being the largest lavender farm in the UK.
06:52Lucy Keane joined me earlier to tell us all about it.
07:02Can you introduce our long-standing landmark for the week, and tell us a bit of the history behind it?
07:07Well, of course.
07:08Castle Farm in Shoreham, Kent, is a renowned 1,100-acre family farm, managed by the Alexander family.
07:16The farm's rich history dates back to 1892, when James Alexander brought 70 milking cows from Scotland,
07:23and this is now managed by the fourth generation of the family.
07:27And throughout the years, this landmark has grown several varieties of crops,
07:30including savoy cabbage, plums, parsnips, marrows, potatoes, and of course, apples and hops, which are still grown today.
07:39And in more recent years, the farm has transitioned into the lavender business,
07:43become the largest lavender farm in the UK, producing fragrant essential oils and more.
07:48So, regarding the lavender production, can you tell us a bit more about what makes that so interesting
07:54and the processes behind the production?
07:56Yes, I can.
07:57Well, interestingly, in the Victorian times, lavender from this area was put in bouquets,
08:02worn and even used to stem the smell of the sewers.
08:04But obviously, in more modern years, lavender oil mainly is used for aromatherapy and beauty purposes.
08:11And regarding the production side, with which the lavender fields are harvested,
08:15it goes through a distilling process on the farms, where lavender is put into large drums
08:19and the oil is extracted and sent to fragrance houses.
08:23The lavender harvested is also used for both hot and cold dishes and even drinks.
08:28Can you tell us a bit more about the other things that the Castle Farm has produced over the years?
08:32Of course.
08:34Well, beyond lavender, the farm produces hops, beef, apple, apple juice, and pumpkins.
08:39The hops in particular have been grown on Castle Farm for over 400 years.
08:43The hop flowers were picked and grown for beer and air-dried and packed tightly into hop pockets
08:48ready for the market.
08:50Before mechanisation, whole families would often travel down from the London docks,
08:54south of the Thames, to spend their summer holidays picking hops.
08:57They would not only be earning a wage, but enjoying the community atmosphere on Kentish hop farms,
09:03where they would live temporarily in hopper huts.
09:06Today, we still grow hops, well, still hops grown in the same field, sorry, but no longer for beer.
09:12All Castle Farm hops are grown for interior decoration or for sleep.
09:16To achieve top decorative quality, the hops are planted at extra-wide spacing
09:20to encourage flowering along the full length of the vine.
09:24So this landmark certainly has a vast history of natural produce that still continues to this day.
09:38And now, for this week's A Town Through Time, we're going to explore the history of Faversham
09:43and the cherry farms that fill its field.
09:46Louis Stephens joins me now in the studio.
09:48Hi.
09:48Hi, Louis. Thanks for joining us.
09:50So, first of all, can you tell me a bit about a key export in Faversham?
09:54What are the key exports there?
09:55Well, of course, Kentish as a county is known as the Garden of England.
09:59So you can imagine a lot of our exports are sort of greenery and fruit.
10:03And what's really interesting is in Faversham, I'd say that probably the main export
10:07and something that you can see for a large majority of that town is probably cherries and cherry farms.
10:14You know, the first commercial cherry orchard in Faversham was 1533.
10:20So there's a long and vast history of cherry farming in Faversham.
10:26And, of course, one of the interesting things about Kent as a whole is close proximity to London.
10:31And so, you know, of course, when you've got to think about exporting these cherries,
10:35you know, sort of the extra travel cost is a non-factor.
10:39So in terms of Faversham, you know, you can sort of go anywhere and there'll be a big cherry farm
10:46to sort of find.
10:47And there's plenty of walks available.
10:48In fact, coming up fairly soonish is National Cherry Day, 16th of July.
10:56Sorry.
10:57So people can celebrate that by going to Faversham and seeing a lot of cherry farms.
11:00That's interesting.
11:01I didn't know that.
11:02Happy Cherry Day for those who celebrate.
11:04And very, very, very quickly, can you tell us a good example of a cherry farm in Faversham?
11:09Well, there's Mount Ephraim, which is sort of 10 acres.
11:13And it's, of course, got a vast cherry farm.
11:15It's got a long history back to the 17th century.
11:19And it's just such a good example of a large cherry farm that can be found in Faversham.
11:23Oh, thank you so much for that, Louis.
11:27Well, it looks like that was one for the history books.
11:29You've been watching Kent Chronicles live here on KMTV.
11:33Don't forget, though, there's always history happening around us.
11:36And if you have a story you think we should be covering, then get in touch.
11:39But for me, that's all for today.
11:42Good night.
11:43Good night.
11:45Good night.
12:00Good night.
12:00Good night.
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