(Click onto the photos to enlarge them)
Teston Church St. Peter and St. Paul
The village
church is dedicated to
St. Peter and St. Paul. Although the original registers date back to 1539, the present building dates from 1710. On one wall of the church, under a window, is a memorial tablet to a former vicar, the Rev James Ramsay. He was the Rector of Teston and Nettlestead from 1781 until he died in July 1789. He was also a friend of Pitt and Wilberforce and he worked with them for the abolition of slavery. There is also a memorial to Nestor who was Ramsey's black slave and companion from the Caribbean island of St Christopher (now usually known as St Kitts). Nestor is also buried in the churchyard.
Teston Bridge Country Park
Teston Bridge Country Park is the ideal place for a family day out by the river. There is plenty to keep children busy with a large open, green space to run around in, and an enclosed area with children's play equipment.
Teston Bridge is a Site of Nature Conservation Interest and attracts many different forms of wildlife. Birds such as kingfishers, terns and snipe can be seen from time to time. And during the summer months, bats including pipistrelle, noctule and daubenton glide up and down the banks searching for air-borne insects .
On the south bank of the Medway at
Teston Lock stands the picturesque ruins of Tutsham Mill, which are covered in ivy. This was also known as the West Farleigh Oil Mill because oil cake
for cattle feed was manufactured here. The mill was burnt down in 1885 but the ruins are still visible
today.
The site is named after
Teston Bridge, an historic medieval bridge over the River Medway. The bridge had to be widened in 1749 to allow barges to sail to Maidstone when the river was made navigable.
The lock was originally constructed in the 1740s, when 14 locks were built to make the river navigable from Maidstone to Tonbridge to allow export of iron products from the Weald, for example cannon to the Royal Dockland at Chatham. The current
Teston Lock was built in 1911 and will take craft up to 24.5m by 5.6m with a draft of 1.7m. Beside the lock is one of the last weirs on
the Medway
Most of the
weirs were removed in the 16th Century because
of the severe flooding they cause.
The
River Medway at Teston Bridge is 5.41m above mean sea level, and 7.31m upstream of the weir and lock. It lies 10.4km upstream of Allington where the river becomes tidal.
Cricket Ball Factory
The small village of Teston has a
modest claim to fame as the site of the first
cricket ball factory in
the world. In the middle of the nineteenth century, Thomas Martin
began making cricket balls in a workshop above the post office. When he retired
the business was taken over by Alfred Reader who expanded the
business and transferred it to the factory. The factory was built in 1927 on the Malling road. The workers at the Reader factory
formed their own trade union -
The Teston Independent Society of Cricket Ball Makers -
to represent their interests. It was the smallest trade union in the
country and was only de-listed in March 2006.
Teston ClubTeston Club is situated at the centre of the idyllic village of Teston
in the heart of the Kent countryside and just four miles from
Maidstone, the county town of Kent. The club first opened its
doors on January 1st 1894 and has been a focal point for the community
in and around Teston. The club runs a variety of social events. Also, it has a selection of fine beers and wines,
members lounge and games bar including a full-size antique snooker
table.
