Whitstable, Kent

Historical Description

Whitstable, a small town and a parish in Kent. The town stands on the coast, with stations on the L.C. & D.R. and S.E.R., 59 miles from London, and 6 NNW of Canterbury. It has a post, money order, and telegraph office. Acreage, 3676; population of the civil parish, 4828; of the ecclesiastical, 4845. There is an urban district council of twelve members. The town is long and straggling, carries on a great oyster fishery and a considerable coal trade. The oyster fishery is under the control and management of the Incorporated Company of Dredgers, which numbers about 500 members who are admitted by right of inheritance. Tankerton Castle is a handsome structure of Kentish ragstone formerly standing in extensive grounds beautifully wooded, but which are now converted into a watering-place. The Whitstable Institute was established in 1864 for the promotion of literature, science, and art. There is a large coastguard station. Ancient remains are on a sea-bank in Tankerton Bay, and Roman pottery has been found in dredging for oysters. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Canterbury; net value, £300 with residence. Patron, the Archbishop. The Church of All Saints is a building in the Decorated and Perpendicular styles, and has been thoroughly restored at considerable cost. A handsome memorial pulpit has been placed in the church. There are Baptist, Congregational, and Primitive Methodist chapels, and six almshouses.

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.

Civil Registration

For general information about Civil Registration (births, marriages and deaths) see the Civil Registration page.

Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Whitstable from the following:

• Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Whitstable (All Saints))

Maps

Online maps of Whitstable are available from a number of sites:

• Bing (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• Google Streetview.
• National Library of Scotland. (Old maps)
• OpenStreetMap.
• old-maps.co.uk (Old Ordnance Survey maps to buy).
• Streetmap.co.uk (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• A Vision of Britain through Time. (Old maps)

Newspapers and Periodicals

The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following Kent newspapers online:

• Kent & Sussex Courier
• Whitstable Times and Herne Bay Herald
• Dover Express
• Kentish Gazette
• Folkestone, Hythe, Sandgate & Cheriton Herald
• Kentish Chronicle
• Maidstone Telegraph

Visitations Heraldic

The Visitation of Kent, 1619 is available on the Heraldry page, as is also The Visitation of Kent, 1663-68.