\ BRIDGE PARISBHACOUNCIL Chairman: Ann V Edmonds Clerk: Christobel N Seath Please reply to: The Clerk, Bridgeford House, Brewery Lane, Bridge, Canterbury, Kent, CT4 5LF Tel: 01227 831085 Email; clerk@bridgevillage.org.uk 15 February 2007 Mr M M Raraty 41 Bridge Down Bridge Canterbury CT4 SBA ‘jg .. rite. ’2cL‘~r;C;i Bridge Parish Meeting — 12"‘ April 2007 As you know, each year Bridge Parish Council organises an Annual Parish Meeting, which is held in the village hall and to which all parishioners are invited. This year the meeting will be held on Thursday 12"‘. April at 7.30 pm. The parish council has decided to invite four or five people representing local organisations and societies to speak at the meeting. I am therefore writing to ask whether you would be willing to talk for about five minutes about Bridge History Society’s programme and in particular about the Kent History Society Conference meeting in May, which I am sure will be of interest to the village. We hope you would also be willing to answer some questions from the floor. I should be most grateful if you could let me know as soon as possible whether you would be willing to speak at the meeting. With kind regards Yours sincerely L'reL=._,L..».r.;; /\,v 3;“-it Christobel N Seath (Parish Clerk) BRIDGE PARISH COUNCIL Chairman: Ann V Edmonds Clerk: Christobel N Seath Please reply to: The Clerk, Bridgeford House, Brewery Lane, Bridge, Canterbury, Kent, CT4 5LF Tel: 01227 831085 Email; clerk@bridgevillage.org.uk 15 February 2007 Mr M M Raraty 41 Bridge Down Bridge Canterbury CT4 5BA bcéis WU /‘ Canterbury Archaeological Trust At its meeting last week, Bridge Parish Council discussed the enclosed request from Canterbury Archaeological Trust for information about military and civil defence sites in the area. it was suggested that you might be in the best position to respond to this letter because of your extensive local historical knowledge and through the resources of the village archive which you hold. I am therefore writing on behalf of the parish council to ask whether you would be kind enough to reply to the enclosed request on behalf of Bridge. Please let me know if you are unable to assist with this. With kind regards Yours sincerely C,QL«.Ef€t:4a‘,C IV i17v;t<~- Christobel N Seath (Parish Clerk) Encs CANTERBURY ARCHAE©L©GICAL TRUST LT? ; A REGISTERED CHARITY ‘[7 92a Broad Street - Canterbury - Kent - CT1 ZLU Tel: 01227 462062 Fax: 01227 784724 Email: admin@canterburytrust.co.uk http://www.canterburytrust.co.uk Mrs C Seath Bridge Parish Council Bridgeford House Brewery Lane Bridge Canterbury CT4 5LF 2 February 2007 (enc) Dear Mrs Seath, RE: Survey of twentieth-century defences in Kent. I am preparing a database of military and civil defence sites in the District of Canterbury, on behalf of the Historic Fortifications Network. I should be Very grateful if you could communicate the enclosed request to your council. 1 should also be very interested to know whether you hold any local history material which might relevant to the above survey. Thank you for considering this request. Yours sincerely, Peter Seary Building Recording Technician Patron of the Trust Director of the Trust Registered Charity No. The Lord Archbishop of Canterbury Paul Bennett, B.A., F.S.A., M.I.F.A. 278861 Chairman of the Trust Company Secretary Company Registered No. The Lord Mayor Lawrence Lyle. M.A. 1441517 (England) Members of Bridge Parish Council TWENTIETH—CENTURY DEFENCES IN CANTERBURY DISTRICT Canterbury Archaeological Trust is currently undertaking a survey of twentieth-century defensive sites in the District of Canterbury. This is part of a wider ‘Defence of Kent’ survey, organised by Kent County Council, and covering the whole of Kent. The information we collect will be added to the County Sites and Monuments Record, and will be used to help Kent County Council fulfil its heritage conservation responsibilities, to inform tourism and promotion initiatives, and for educational and research purposes. The survey of Kent’s twentieth-century military and civil defence sites is being carried out through a project called the Historic Fortifications Network. The Network is a partnership of 25 organisations in Kent, East Sussex, Nord Pas de Calais (France) and West Flanders (Belgium) and is dedicated to the conservation and promotion of the fortified remains of the region which together form a globally important set of monuments. The project is co-ordinated in the UK by Kent County Council and is part funded by the EU through the Interreg programme. For more information please see our website www.fortifications.org Our task, at Canterbury Archaeological Trust, is to identify, interpret, and record military sites and buildings fiom all phases of the twentieth century — from before the First World War, through the two World Wars, the Cold War, and beyond. We are looking for all kinds of defensive installations and obstacles to invasion: roadblocks, obstacles for aircraft and tanks, trenches, pillboxes, rifle ranges, camps, barracks, drill halls, air-raid shelters and bunkers, to name but a few; we are also interested in pre-existing buildings, such as village halls, adapted for military or civil defence use during wartime. Our survey area covers the whole of the district, from Barham in the south to Graveney and Reculver on the coast. Kent has, at times, been heavily fortified, so there are a great many sites we need to find. Besides the location, uses, and dates of these sites, we are also interested in their present condition, ownership, accessibility, and visibility. Much of our information will come from maps and archive documents; these, however, will not tell us everything we need to know. Nor can we begin adequately to scour this large district for sites on the ground. We are dependent on local historical knowledge to fill in the gaps. We should therefore be very grateful for anything members of your parish council can tell us about defensive sites in the Canterbury district, whether from distant memory, or concerning features and buildings you see every day. Should you be able to help us, please write to us at the following address: Defence of Kent Project (Canterbury District) Canterbury Archaeological Trust 92a Broad Street Canterbury CTl 2LU or E-mail us at: defence of kent canterbu st.co.uk Thank you for considering this request. (‘.‘4‘kN'lTERBURY ARCHAEOLOGICIAL TRUST L? .—~ ''’(;f‘ ' I‘ A REGISTERED CHARITY 92a Broad Street - Canterbury - Kent - CT1 2LU Tel: 01227 462062 Fax: 01227 784724 Email: admin@canterburytrust.co.uk http://www.canterburytrust.co.uk The Dacha Patrixbourne Road Bridge Canterbury 5 February 2007 (enc) Dear Mrs Vye RE: Survey of twentieth-century defences in Kent. I am preparing a database of military and civil defence sites in the District of Canterbury, on behalf of the Historic Fortifications Network. I should be very grateful if you could arrange to communicate the enclosed request to members of your society. Thank you for considering this request. Yours sincerely, p Peter Seary Building Recording Technician of the Trust,‘ 7 of Trust Registered Charity No. The Lord Archbishop of Canterbury Paul Bennett, B.A., F.S.A., M.I.F.A. 276851 Chainnen of the Trust company Secretary Company Registered No. The Lord Mayor Lawrence Lyle, M.A. 1441517 (England) Members of Bridge and District History Society TWENTIETH-CENTURY DEFENCES IN CANTERBURY DISTRICT Canterbury Archaeological Trust is currently undertaking a survey of twentieth-century defensive sites in the District of Canterbury. This is part of a wider ‘Defence of Kent’ survey, organised by Kent County Council, and covering the whole of Kent. The information we collect will be added to the County Sites and Monuments Record, and will be used to help Kent County Council fulfil its heritage conservation responsibilities, to inform tourism and promotion initiatives, and for educational and research purposes. The survey of Kent’s twentieth-century military and civil defence sites is being ca.rried out through a project called the Historic Fortifications Network. The Network is a partnership of 25 organisations in Kent, East Sussex, Nord Pas ‘de'Calais‘(France) *~ ~ " and West Flanders (Belgium) and is dedicated to the conservation and promotion of the fortified remains of the region which together form a globally important set of monuments. The project is co-ordinated in the UK by Kent County Council and is part funded by the EU through the Interreg programme. For more information please see our website y;vgw.fortif1cations.org Our task, at Canterbury Archaeological Trust, is to identify, interpret, and record military sites and buildings from all phases of the twentieth century — from before the First World War, through the two World Wars, the Cold War, and beyond. We are looking for all kinds of defensive installations and obstacles to invasion: roadblocks, obstacles for aircraft and tanks, trenches, pillboxes, rifle ranges, camps, barracks, drill halls, air-raid shelters and bunkers, to name but a few; we are also interested in pre-existing buildings, such as village halls, adapted for military or civil defence use during wartime. Our survey area covers the whole of the district, from Barham in the south to Graveney and Reculver on the coast. Kent has, at times, been heavily fortified, so there are a great many sites we need to find. Besides the location, uses, and dates of these sites, we are also interested in their present condition, ownership, accessibility, and visibility. Much of our information will come from maps and archive documents; these, however, will not tellus everything we need to know. Nor can we begin adequately to scourthis large V , district for sites on the ground. We are dependent on local historical knowledge to fill in the gaps. We should therefore be very grateful for anything members of your society can tell us about defensive sites in the Canterbury district, whether from distant memory, or concerning features and buildings you see every day. Should you be able to help us, please write to us at the following address: Defence of Kent Project (Canterbury District) Canterbury Archaeological Trust 92a Broad Street Canterbury CTl ZLU or E-mail us at: defence of kent(wcanterbufigst.co.uk Thank you for considering this request. CANTERBURY A1-i(JLoTWé°i‘”mcALT TRUST L‘? zocvh Fnwvmggg HA/1 M MK gzfzi V5. ., .___