Latest news with #ChathamDockyard
BBC News
3 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Card from 1700s found in Chatham Historic Dockyard restoration
During a major restoration at one of Kent's most well-known historic naval residence, workers were surprised to discover a 300-year-old Jack of Spades card under a Historic Chatham Dockyard is undergoing several major restoration projects, one of them includes the Commissioner's House built in said this was a "beautiful playing card that has lain in the dark waiting to be found" underneath the mansion's first Alexandra Wade for the Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust said the discovery was a "tangible reminder of the lives once lived here - a small, personal object that has survived nearly three centuries". The trust said it contacted the Worshipful Company of Playing Card Makers in London to uncover the mystery of the card. The company dated the Jack of Spades to between 1725 and 1750."While other similar examples do exist but this particular Jack of Spades is unique because of the way it has been altered," Ms Wade explained three of the corners have been cut off at uneven angles and believed this was done to repurpose the card. "These cuts seem to be intentional and when the card was placed under the microscope, we could see evidence of feathers stuck in that top edge," Ms Wade said. "The card is bent in a certain way and there are parts of the design that have worn away that suggest it may have been used as a brush."Ms Wade said they believe the Jack of Spades fell through the thin gaps in the wooden floor by chance. "There were some pretty big gaps in the original floorboards so it wouldn't be hard to lose a card down there. Their lost item has turned into a very exciting find for us," she added. 'Time capsule' Following the discovery of the Jack of Spades, this inspired the trust to launch a call out to people to design their own unique set of cards featuring their memories of the submissions will then be sealed in a time capsule and will be placed inside the rooftop of the Commissioner's House."As we restore Commissioner's House to safeguard it for the future, our time capsule will give the people of today the same chance to be remembered," Ms Wade said. "Just as this card has sparked our curiosity, we hope our Dockyard Deck will one day inspire future generations to imagine the stories behind the objects we've left behind."The trust says the Jack of Spades is now on display now at the dockyard.
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Yahoo
The new river cruises from Southend Pier taking passengers to 'Dickens country'
NEW day-trip cruises are setting sail from Southend Pier this summer taking passengers back in time to "Dickens country". New for 2025, Jetstream Tours is offering trips to Rochester in Kent, allowing daytrippers to walk in the cobbled street of historic Rochester, visit the best kept example of Norman architecture at Rochester's historic castle, pop into Rochester's Cathedral or have a spot of lunch. "This day out visiting Rochester will allow you to discover the historic relevance of the River Medway, sailing past Chatham Dockyard and Upnor Castle," the boat tour company explains. "Our commentary along the way will point out more than just what you can see but allow you uncover relics of the deep, stories of battles and rebuilding. "Hop into history with one of our most exciting tours yet." This month, cruises are setting of from the end of the pier on Sunday, July 13, and Sunday, July 27. Cruises are scheduled next month on Sunday, August 10, and Sunday, August 24, as well as the first Sunday of September. For tickets, visit Ticket prices include access on to the pier and use of the pier train. Onboard facilities include a bar, selling soft drinks and light snacks. The duration of the cruise totals five hours, at a cost of £28 per adult, £26 for OAPs, and £22 for a child ticket. It also offers family tickets for £85. Children under three can board for free but must have a ticket.
BBC News
16-06-2025
- BBC News
Gillingham bus disaster: The day disaster struck Medway
Just before Christmas in 1951, tragedy struck Medway. Twenty-four children were killed and 18 others injured after being hit by a double-decker bus outside Chatham Dockyard in what was then the most deadly road accident in British the evening of 4 December, the children, all Royal Marine cadets, had been marching in military formation down Dock Road. They were excited as they were on their way to a boxing match, local historian Pam Mills told Secret Kent. Marching in line with the traffic, not opposed to it, the boys wore dark blue military uniforms, it was foggy, a streetlight light had failed and they did not have a red light behind them, she detailed. That was when the bus, without its headlights on (something that was legal at the time), ploughed into the back of one column of marching children. Driver John William George Samson "didn't realise what he'd done," said Ms Mills. "Reports show he felt like he was going over rubble." The vehicle came to a standstill and the 57-year-old jumped out, then the "sudden realisation hit", she said. 'Everybody felt it' Seventeen cadets, all aged between 9 and 13, died at the scene but, said Ms Mills, not all were killed by the impact and were trapped under the bus. She said it "must have been horrific" for people there who were part of the rescue operation "and for the families, my goodness".Ms Mills told Secret Kent the emotion in the community after the incident was "palpable"."Everybody felt it," she added. At an inquest, the coroner ruled the crash an accident and recommended that no criminal charges be brought against Samson, a bus driver of 25 years, owing to the circumstances that night. Despite this, police prosecuted him for dangerous driving and he was found guilty, though the jury recommended leniency. "You could actually feel how sorry he was," said Ms Mills. "He was a local man. He knew these boys and they knew him.""In effect, he was another victim of this tragedy. He was absolutely traumatised and he lived with it for the rest of his life."Sampson never drove a bus again but he was kept on at the company and remained in the area for the rest of his life. Standing in Gillingham Cemetery looking at the graves of the cadets, Ms Mills told Secret Kent any parent would look at the ages on the headstones and feel heartbroken. "These boys, they shouldn't be forgotten," she said.
