FORDWHICH IN THE 60s SMALLEST TOWN IN ENGLAND IT LIES IN KENT HAVING A POPULATION OF 370

The historic Town of Fordwich lies on the Great Stour river, about two miles east of Canterbury, just south of the A28 road to Thanet, close to Sturry. Bus and train links to Fordwich and Canterbury are good.

There is evidence for a settlement at Fordwich in Roman times, and this developed over the centuries until Fordwich became the port of Canterbury. At that time the river was much wider than it is now and led directly into the Wantsum Channel, which separated the Isle of Thanet from the mainland. The stone for building Canterbury Cathedral, brought from Caen in France, was brought upriver and unloaded at Fordwich, and in the Cathedral Archives are records from 1424 and 1425 listing the transport of 400 tons of stone for the Cathedral.

Gradually the river, and the Wantsum Channel, started to silt up, despite several schemes to keep the waterways clear. The silting-up, together with the opening of the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway (the "Crab and Winkle Line") in 1830 impacted Fordwich's economic importance to Canterbury. Later, with the arrival of road transport, its fate was largely sealed. Thus, the nature of Fordwich changed. Today it's a small hamlet who's river is navigated purely by small pleasure craft.

Links with its illustrious past do remain however. Fordwich is a member, or 'limb', of the Cinque Port of Sandwich, and the Mayor Deputy of Fordwich still pays annual 'Ship Money' of 6s 8d to the Mayor of Sandwich at a ceremony held at Sandwich Town Hall. Fordwich was governed until 1883 by a Mayor and 12 Jurats, who were also Justices of the Peace. (Fordwich now has a Town Council of 5 councillors, elected every four years in the local council elections.) Fordwich is therefore a town with a long history, and the centre of Fordwich has been designated a Conservation Area, with many listed buildings.

Fordwich has another, and unique, claim to fame - it is the smallest town in Britain (based on population - Guiness Book of Records), and also has the smallest Town Hall in Britain (maximum capacity 41 people). The Chairman of the Town Council, elected by the councillors, is the Town Mayor. However, just to confuse matters, Fordwich also has a Mayor Deputy (who is normally the Chairman of the Town Council). The holder of this post is actually a Mayor Deputy of Sandwich in recognition of the special relationship Fordwich has by being a Limb of the Port of Sandwich. Fordwich United Charities is responsible for administering the various charities that have been set up over the centuries, and is a substantial land-owner, owning land on Romney Marsh and the Fordwich allotments. Fordwich United Charities also owns, and is responsible for, the Town Hall, which is a Grade 2* listed building.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• FORDWICH
• CANTERBURY
• KENT
• SMALLEST TOWN
• UK
• tourism

[britanichris]

Hi Again,

believe it or not, I built a substantial house on the right hand side just before you go over the little bridge from Sturry into Fordwich. The house I built is called Stourside, a tributary of course of the Stour. The house is opposite the estate agents G W Finn. It was not for our occupation, but for a developer who I contrracted to. I do not think the property is symathetic to the surroundings myself, but carried out the contract for monatary reasons. Merry xmas & happy new year

[TOPCAMERMAN]

@britanichris How interesting we shall be visiting down there again in the new year.

Regards John

[RoslynMargaret1959]

So lovely to see, thank you for sharing it, i had memories come flooding back that i had forgotten i had really enjoyed seeing this.

[timclarke989]

impressed by your film, made one along the same lines , Fordwich and Canterbury 2011