Chart Sutton

"CHART SUTTON, a parish in the hundred of Eyhorne, lathe of Aylesford, in the county of Kent, 4 miles S.E. of Maidstone, and 5 N.W. of the Headcorn railway station of the South-Eastern line. The remains of an old castle, supposed to be of Saxon origin, though not extensive, are very picturesque; they are mantled with ivy, and crown the summit of a lofty hill. There is a fine view from the high ground at the back of the village over the Weald of Kent, as far as the Sussex hills. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Canterbury, in the patronage of the Dean and Chapter of Rochester. The church, dedicated to St. Michael, is a modern stone structure with tower. The register commences 1658. The charities amount to about £3 per annum. Sir Edmund Filmer, Bart., M.P., is lord of the manor. It is noted for producing superior hops. The chief residences are East Sutton Place, the seat of Sir Edmund Filmer, Bart., Wierton House, Prospect House, and at Sutton-Valence, Ivy Cottage, long the residence of Sir Alexander Morison, M.D."

[Transcribed from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland 1868 by Colin Hinson ©2010]