Thornham's Vicar

      A day in the life of Reverend John Crawley, vicar of Thornham's All Saint's church, up on the hill outside of the town. The church was heavily modernised in the mid-1800's but there has been a church on the site since the early 1200's, and was a stopping point for pilgrims from London on the way to Canterbury, thus helping it get it's name from the patron saint of travellers.

       Twice a week the Reverend travels to the nearby town of Smallport, to visit those of his flock who can't make it to All Saints's to see him, and as this is a railway blog, he goes by train. A short bus ride gets him to the Thornham terminus of the Thornham Bay Light Railway, where his train has just arrived.

       The abandoned quarry is the Reverend's favourite part of the journey, he always puts down his book when he gets to this part.

      Then before he knows it, he has arrived in Smallport. The station here is always busy as it is right next to the goods yard and the canal, but this means he can say hello to the local workers on his way to see the people he is visiting.

Thornham town

     This is a tour of the outskirts of the town that gives the narrow gauge railway its name. Thornham is a historic walled, market town somewhere on the north coast of Kent, with trade links to both the near by Canterbury and, the slightly more distant, London. 

      Thornham is a bustling town, with long stretches of its historic wall still standing, as seen here near the station. Access to this side of the town is therefore difficult for cars, but there are bigger gaps in the wall elsewhere, that have allowed for bigger roads to be built.

       The petrol station, come car dealership, is doing well up against the town wall.

       The market has grown so large, in Thornham, that it has spread outside the town walls, onto the side streets. Although, a few of the locals has expressed views that they prefer having a much more local market outside their door, rather than having to walk all the way into town.

       Who is that on the mobile phone in the 1960's?