I grew up in hearing of the slow, country speech of the people of Sussex.
Only occasionally have I heard it over the past fifty and more years, for most of the English immigrants to the prairies come from the industrial areas of the Midlands and North of England. Continue reading South Saxon
Major Oliver Kite, better known to many thousands of television viewers as “Ollie Kite”, recently came to Rye to make a film for one of his programmes. Continue reading Oliver Kite
Eighteen small boats from the Port of Rye tied up in Boulogne Harbour over the Whitsun holiday and their crews enjoyed a few days on French soil. The small fleet left Rye Harbour in the early morning of Whit Saturday and set off into the stiff wind heading for Dungeness Point and then on to Boulogne.
On the cross channel journey, somewhere between Dungeness and Boulogne, tragedy struck the eighteen foot boat “Rosina”. No other boat was near her when she ran into trouble. The crew of two, Mr. Gibson, a grocer of Ferry Road, Rye and his brother-in-law, Mr. Skinner were lost. When the “Rosina” was reported missing a full scale search was mounted but despite the clear weather the damaged boat was not found until the following Tuesday, one body was recovered by a fishing boat. Several of the boats turned back at about the half way point on the outward journey but 18 boats, including the “Little Robert” with our camera team aboard, continued on course and safely put into Boulogne Harbour.
“Little Robert” the smallest and slowest of the boats to complete the trip, was at sea for seven hours. The wind was still fairly strong when the time came for the return trip but with favourable tides and currents the Rye fleet made good time. All 18 boats were safely in Rye Harbour by 6.30 on Whit Monday evening. “Little Robert” took only 5 hours for the 40 mile return crossing. Boats to complete the trip were — Sariki, Waterwitch, Atlanta, Scoter, Zingara, Shelduck, Chiloe, Inverurie, Condeline, Goose-Girl, Dove, Manana, Red Cloverx, Alouette, Little Robert, Industry II, Veritas, Sagapo.
From “Rye’s Own” July 1966 Issue
With the New Year comes the usual warnings from the various motoring organisations in the Country to take special care when driving. The reasons given for the vast number of road accidents that happen at this time of the year are many and varied—the main ones being ice, fog and drink. So much emphasis is put on road accidents being a modern day phenomena it is difficult to believe that even as far back as the early nineteen hundreds Rye had its fair share of traffic accidents.
We do not know for sure when the first motor car graced the streets of Rye but a tale from that far off time illustrates the interest that the local people were taking in the development of the petrol engine.
A certain young man entered the barbers shop that used to be at 14 Cinque Ports Street, and in an excited voice exclaimed “There is a horseless carriage outside the Crown.” A great rush for the door took place, and the entire saloon was emptied, save for the barber and the young man. The excited throng raced round the corner to the Crown Hotel, only to find a small pedlar’s cart with a mule harnessed
The first motor accident of any consequence in Rye was on 21 March, 1905. A nearly new Panhard 7 h.p. French motor car careered out of control down Rye Hill, crashing into the paling fence and eventually coming to rest on the pavement in a very sad state indeed, a complete wreck— fortunately no one was seriously hurt. (This was published in the January 1966 issue of “Rye’s Own” – New facts about the accident soon emerged and we learned that Captain Oaks was killed in the crash) The photograph of this incident gives some idea of the speed at which the car must have been travelling. Note the solid tyres, one of which has been torn from the rim.
The other pictures are of an accident that has been repeated more than once since. A 1904 four cylinder Sunbeam ran into the channel at the Strand on the night of 24 August, 1906. Great effort was made to retrieve the wreck from the Channel and the other photograph shows the state of the car when it was eventually towed out the following day.
These are but two mishaps of the time, no doubt there are many others that have gone unrecorded or forgotten.
Motoring in those days was a far more exhilarating and adventurous affair than it is in these modern times. The driver really had to dress up for the occasion—a proper motoring jacket and of course the inevitable pair of goggles. The lady of his choice also had to take proper precautions. The enormous hats with ostrich feathers and all the trimmings of that age of fashion had to be tied with a gay scarf securely knotted under the chin.
A modern day accident in Landgate. In a no waiting area too
A days motoring was a very special occasion, with the wind whipping in the faces of the occupants and more often than not, the excercise of pushing on the very steep hills. Garages were very few and far between and journeys had to be planned carefully in advance and there was always the risk that the joy ride would end by walking home, this was not always the case though, as the owners of these temperamental machines were all good mechanics— they had to be, even to start them.
On the 15th October local girl Sandra Kewell of Lea Avenue, a pretty seventeen years old, lined up before the judges at the area final of the Butlin’s Princess Competition held at the holiday camp Minehead in Somerset. Continue reading Rye Girl in Beauty Final
