Spanton and Wills
The Bridge and District Branch of the British Legion may justly claim to be one of the most
successful units in this great national organisation of ex-Service men. It is estimated that
about 90 per cent of the men in the area who have served in the Forces are members of the
branch, whilst apart from furthering the specific objects of the Legion, a great deal is done to
promote the welfare and happiness of the people in the district. A great part of the credit for
the success of the branch must be given to Mr S Waghorn, the extremely able and energetic
Hon. Secretary, who puts his whole heart into the work. Sir John Prestige, who succeeded the
late Colonel the Hon. MG Talbot as President, takes a deep personal and active interest in the
movement, and the branch has a most popular Chairman in Mr HB Spanton. On Armistice
Day and on other occasions the members always turn out in force to pay fitting homage to the
old comrades who fell in the war, and the branch is to be represented at the forthcoming rally
on June 2 [1932] at Preston Hall, which will be attended by the Prince of Wales.
The branch may be said to be almost the mainspring of the social life of the district.
Entertainments, social evenings, and treats of various kinds are organised, all of which
provide keen enjoyment, and the dinner which is held by the Legion every year is a
memorable event.
Mr HB Spanton, the Chairman of the branch, is a typical representative of the agricultural life
of the county. The family originally belonged to Spaunton, near Pickering, in Yorkshire.
Subsequently, a branch of the Spantons migrated to Norfolk; in the latter years of the 18th
century Mr William Spanton came to Canterbury, and in 1792 married a Miss Furley,
daughter of a builder in the city. Since that time the Spantons have been very prominent in the
agricultural industry of East Kent. The late Mr Harry Spanton, the father of the Chairman of
the Bridge branch of the British Legion, who farmed for many yearsat Chislet Court, was not
only extraordinarily popular and an exceptionally good farmer, butin face, figure and
characteristics he was a perfect representative of John Bull. His younger son, Mr Frank
Spanton, still carries on Chislet Court.
Mr HB Spanton, who farms some 400 acres at Lenhall Farm, Bishopsboume, in his early
years forsook agriculture for the ‘call of the sea’. Educated at Sandwich School, after a period
‘on the farm’ he qualified as a master mariner, and subsequently held a commission in the
Royal Naval Reserve. When he had served 13 years in the Mercanytile Marine, Mr Spanton
retired in April, 1912, but was mobilised on April 22, 1915, for active duty in the Great War,
serving on HMS Ark Royal and HMS Empress respectively. He was demobilised on October
2 1919, and returned to his old occupation on the land. After being tenant of Howletts Farm
from 1922 to 1926, he took Lenhall Farn, Bishopsbourne. He was married to Miss Edith Jane
Castle in 1924 at Petham Church.
Mr HB Spanton takes a keeninterest in agricultural politics, and is Chairman of the
Canterbury branch of the National Farmers’ Union and an active member of the old-
established canterbury Farmers‘ Club. A forceful and humorous speaker, contributions from
‘The Admiral‘ are always welcomed by his fellow members.
The Grand Old Man
Bridge is justly proud of Mr Charles Wills, the village's Grand Old Man, who will celebrate
his 84* birthday next week. He has earned the gratitude of the residents by reason of his long
career of useful public service. As a boy, he attended the Commercial School at Canterbury
and later the Dane John Academy. He then entered his father's bakery business, of which he
assumed control on his father's death in 1896.
Of charming andsympathetic disposition, he has prominently identified himself with nearly
every phase of the village life. For some 70 years he assisted the St Peter's Church choir, and
in the years gone by was always a popular entertainer in the district.
Perhaps, however, Mr Wills’ chief claim to distinction is his connection for over 50 years with
the Bridge Fire Brigade, of which he was Chief officer for over 30 years. Upon his retirement