Lectures

8th January 2020: Members' Evening

At the January 2020 Members' Evening of the Wye Historical Society we heard first from Paul Burnham on the history of the Methodist Church in Wye. John Wesley, founder of the Methodist movement, started preaching in Britain after returning from missionary work, but his style was not acceptable to many in the clergy. He often preached outdoors; one of the earliest places was the Buttermarket in Canterbury in 1750. Wesley only visited Ashford once, in 1771, as it was not on the Kent or Sussex circuits. Despite these early Methodists suffering great opposition the Canterbury Methodist chapel was built in St Peter’s Street in 1811 and they received an extra preacher to mission in the Ashford area. Richard Robarts was provided no transport but had soon started groups in Wye and Great Chart. Thomas Berry and his family, who rented Coombe Manor in Hastingleigh, were prime movers in building the first chapel in Wye, in 1824. This was in Luckley’s Field, off Bridge Street. Most services were taken by lay preachers and held in the afternoon or evening. The building was very small and soon became dilapidated. John S W Sawbridge-Erle-Drax (The Mad Major) took the building in exchange for land for a new chapel on Bridge Street. On 16th June 1869 Francis Lycett laid the foundation stone, related in a 3000 word article in the Kentish Express. In 1979 the main roof truss broke so the chapel temporarily moved to the school room. The roof was replaced and the chapel was remodelled into an octagonal shape. Prominent lay preachers have included Captain James Templeton, a student of Wye College, his son Eaen, and Douglas Sell. In later years Revd John Makey and his wife Aileen retired to Wye and Aileen founded the Options Club.

For the second talk Lucy Huntingdon spoke on the Women’s Land Army in Wye. The ladies, based at Wye College, were only in the village for training from September to December 1939 but they made a big impact. For the autumn term 180 male students at Wye College were shipped off to Reading and replaced with 180 women. They came from all walks of life and their ages ranged from 18 to 53, though most were young. There was a matron in charge of their welfare and they weren’t allowed to visit pubs or smoke in the street. Each girl had to clean her own room and get up at 5am-6am. After work they had high tea at 6.30pm and their evening was free; with weekly concerts and dances ‘lights out’ was 10pm (11pm on Saturdays), though some got in later through the cellars. The uniform was brown breeches and green sweaters, though the Wye girls never got this; photos show them in dungarees and ordinary clothes. Land girls received ten shillings per week while training and 28 shillings once trained (men received 38 shillings). They worked 48 hours in the winter and 50 in the summer with no holidays. The girls could choose where they worked, e.g. dairy, poultry or tractor driving. Photographs show them working with horses at Coldharbour and hedge-laying at Silks Farm. The first girls had eight weeks’ training and later ones twelve weeks. In total 290 girls passed through in the three-month period. The press heard about the girls and an eight-minute film was made, with a five-page article in Picture Post. Immediately after their training there was no work for them so they had to go back to their previous jobs but later up to 80,000 girls worked in the Land Army between 1940 and 1945. They were noted for being cheerful, working all hours and earned respect from their tutors. This directly led to Swanley College girls being allowed to study at Wye.

Ellie Morris