Shorne

Shorne

The old post office and the top of Crown Lane
Shorne
Shorne shown within Kent
Population 2,487 (2011 Census including Thong)[1]
OS grid reference TQ692710
District
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town Gravesend
Postcode district DA12
Dialling code 01474
Police Kent
Fire Kent
Ambulance South East Coast
EU Parliament South East England
UK Parliament

Shorne is a village and civil parish in the Gravesham District of Kent, England. The parish is three miles (4.8 km) to the east of Gravesend. Most of the land is well-drained but its marshes, the Shorne Marshes reach down to the Thames Estuary and are an SSSI amid the North Kent Marshes on the Hoo Peninsula proper.

Contemporary Shorne

Village sign outside the old post office at Shorne.

Shorne village is clustered around two locations. Upper Shorne is about 3 miles east of Gravesend, south of the A226 with Lower Shorne north of the A226 extending toward the Thames Estuary and Shorne Marshes. Although most of the village occupies a shallow valley the perimeter of upper Shorne lies on some of the highest ground in the vicinity giving magnificent views of the Thames Estuary from Gravesend to Southend. There are several areas of woodland to the west and east of the village including Great Crabbles Wood and Starmore Woods to the east and Randall Wood, Shorne Wood and Brewers Wood to the west. Most of the woodland to the west is part of the picturesque Shorne Wood Country Park.

Upper Shorne has its own junior school, Medical Practice, grocery store, hair dressers and beauty parlour positioned just opposite the village hall. A vehicle repair shop and car saleroom is located at the Shorne crossroads on the A226. There are three public houses – the Rose and Crown, the Copperfield and the See Ho.

Himansu Basu the noted Obstetrician Gynaecologist, researcher and active member of Rotary International lives in Shorne.

Cricketer George Bennett came from Shorne.

In 1975 the serial killer, Patrick Mackay, committed his final murder at St Katherine's.

Governance

Shorne is part of the electoral ward called Shorne,Cobham and Luddesdown.

Demographics

According to the census results for 2001[2] there were 2,485 people in 1,028 households in the Parish of Shorne. Of those residents between the ages of 16 to 74, 60% had a higher qualification (at level 2 to 5) and 86% of the dwellings were owner occupied. The population of Shorne Parish at the 2011 census was 2487 residents in 1033 households.[2]

Transport

Two miles to the north, the A2 is an eight-lane dual carriageway leading west into London and north via the M25 London orbital, the Dartford Tunnel and Queen Elizabeth II Bridge to the M11 and M1 motorways. Eastward the A2 connects directly to the M2 at Strood leading to the Isle of Thanet coastal resorts and to the Dover ports. Parallel to the A2 runs the Eurostar high-speed rail link to the continent via the Channel Tunnel. There is easy access to Gravesend railway station situated about 4 miles from Shorne.

Other transport issues relating to Shorne centre around a proposed new Lower Thames Crossing with one option to build a 4 or 6 road link around and close to Shorne (Jan 2016). The threat of a new Thames Estuary Airport nearby on the Isle of Grain seems to have subsided (2015).

In April 2017, it was announced that the government choice for the Lower Thames Crossing was for a tunnel under the Thames between East Tilbury and Shorne.[3]

Places of interest

Much of upper Shorne is a conservation area with thirteen listed buildings and many others of interest. These include:[4]

Little St Katherine's

Little St. Katherine's at Shorne.

Situated halfway up Forge Lane, it was originally a simple yeoman's hall house from the 16th century. It is timber-framed in oak and in-filled with rough-cast plasterwork.

Pipes Place

Placed further up Forge Lane almost opposite Little St, Katherines. A local magistrate, Richard Parker lived on the site in 1642. Jarvis Maplesden the grandson of a local tanner purchased the house early in the 18th century along with twenty acres of land, which included St. Katharine's Chapel. Several generations of the Maplesden family lived in the house and there are gravestones bearing the Maplesden name still in the churchyard. The Maplesden family is responsible for its present build and design in the Georgian style. In about 1870 George Arnold, Mayor of Gravesend, bought and restored the ruined chapel.[5] The house is now used by a religious order as flats for retired members.

St Katherine's House and Chapel on Forge Lane

First recorded from the 13th century, it was turned into a malt house after the Catholic suppression. About 300 years later it was restored by George Arnold and again used as a Catholic church. St. Katherine's House next to it is privately owned.

St Peter and St Paul Church

St Peter and St Paul's church at Shorne.

Dating from the Saxon era it has a double splayed window on the north side and an excellent figure of Henry of Cobham (d. 1315) to the south. The village war memorial stands just inside the main gate.

The old post office and adjacent houses

The post office is timber-framed with some of these still visible. Originally in red brick it now has cement rendering on the outside with clay roofing tiles. It is said that Charles Dickens posted his manuscripts here. It is now a private house.

Prospect Cottage

Opposite the post office this is a timber-framed 17th-century house in private ownership.

The Old Vicarage

On the corner opposite Butchers Hill – this is a timber-framed home retaining some 17th century features. Next to it there is a similar house from the Edwardian period.

Other old buildings with character include

The Rose and Crown public house in the Street The Church Cottages and Smith's Cottages along Butchers Hill

Mill Cottages, Mill House and the remains of Shorne Mill

Mill House itself is 19th century, but the mill at the top of Mill Hill Lane is much older. In 1776 it had to be rebuilt after being struck by lightning. It was still in use in 1880, but by the Second World War it had lost its sails and an observation platform was added. In 1952 most of the wooden structure was destroyed in a fire, so that there is now very little left of interest.

The war memorial

The war memorial at Shorne.

In the grounds of St Peter and St Paul's church.

There is an old village pump along the Ridgeway.

Smith's Farm

Along Forge Lane

Methodist Chapel 1892

Founded in 1892 and situated in the street near to the old post office, it was used as a chapel until about 2008, when it was sold to be converted to a private dwelling whilst retaining many of its original features.

Zion Chapel

Dedicated in 1838, Zion Chapel is situated along the Ridgeway. It was converted to a private residence in the 1990s and retains much of its original character.

Swedish timber prefabricated houses

Off Swillers Lane in Hollands Close – in 1946 the Swedish government donated some 5,000 timber homes[6] to the UK in gratitude for its co-operation during the Second World War. Six of these are still in use in Shorne as three blocks of semi-detached dwellings.

Archaeology

Shorne Barrow (or tumulus) and Randalls Wood Barrow are two nearby ancient features.[7]

Randall Manor Dig – This is a 14th-century manor currently (2012) being excavated in Shorne Wood Country Park.[8]

Landmarks

Shornemead Fort on the Thames Estuary about 2½ miles to the north. The fort is on the Shorne Marshes, part of the North Kent Marshes. It was built in the 1860s to defend the mouth of the Thames.

Warren Farm within the boundary of Shorne is a traditional orchard with exceptional views of the surrounding area.

Cobham Hall and Darnley Mausoleum are about 2 miles to the south.

Adjacent to Shorne village there is Shorne Wood Country Park, designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest for its wildlife value.

About a mile to the east of Shorne is the site of the old Gravesend Airport.

Other views of Shorne

References

  1. ↑ "Civil Parish population 2011". Retrieved 30 September 2015.
  2. ↑ The Office for National Statistics
  3. ↑ BBC News online, 12.4.17
  4. ↑ Shorne Conservation Area Statement 1999 – Gravesham Borough Council
  5. ↑ Shorne: The History of a Kentish Village by A F Allen
  6. ↑ British post-war temporary prefab houses
  7. ↑ The Megalithic Portal
  8. ↑ Discover Gravesham
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