Until the late 1970s/early 1980s there was a household waste landfill site otherwise known as "the tip/dump" just outside Rainham. The site has long gone but the location is still visible when you walk past and from the air.

The site was between Otterham Quay Lane and Seymour Road with the access via Otterham Quay lane and Canterbury Lane. I remember trips there with my dad when we had rubbish to get rid of from the garden clearance and house rebuilding project that he was working on from the mid 1970s.

Unlike current household waste dumps where there are separate bins for different materials and you load the waste into the various skips to be taken away off site at this dump there was a low wall that you reversed up to and then literally just chucked your waste from the back of the car into the tip so it filled up the massive hole in the ground over time.

If you go past the site now it is mainly grass but with ventilation pipes popping out across the site which are for venting out the gases from the decomposition of the waste underneath. Building of new houses is taking place nearby but planning permission has been refused for some due to the proximity of the landfill site to the proposed development.

Details

Category: History Articles

I've been sent these photos by Trish of old classic cars driving through Rainham in the 1980s. Having previously attended the Bucket & Spade run in my classic car myself I thought it was possible that these were from one of the early years of the Bucket & Spade run when it started from Gillingham Business Park. The run started in 1981 so these could be some of the very earliest Bucket & Spade run photos. The cars shown in the photos are SBR216V (Lada 1600), EXN767 (Railton) and PV2231 (Citroen? - plate reregistered).

On closer inspection there is a car at the rear of the second photo that looks a Mk3 Ford Fiesta which was launched in 1989 so these would have been taken after this date.

Details

Category: History Articles

This information and photo was kindly sent in by Jade Parker.

I managed to find a photo from July 1977 of the Silver Jubilee Street Party. The photo attached is on my nanny's road. Bettescombe Road, where my nanny, grandad, mum, aunt and uncle lived since '72. 

My mum remembers there was a fancy dress competition where my aunt and uncle participated, they dressed up as a pearly king and queen and their outfits were made my great grandmother that was from east London. The time of the jubilee competition was changed and sadly they missed the start and they had already chosen the winner. It was disappointing since my great grandmother spent many weeks sewing their outfits. 

Details

Category: History Articles

JD Wetherspoon have now reopened the old Railway pub as their newest venue opposite Rainham Kent Station. The pub has a long history dating back to the early 1900s but closed around 2012 due to declining trade. It stayed empty until JD Wetherspoon bought the building and have massively extended it to create the new Railway pub. What was the old pub car park has now been turned into part of the building and there is an outside terrace for smokers and drinkers that faces towards Rainham station.

How the Railway Pub used to look back in the early 1900s when it was known as The Railway Hotel

The Railway pub in 2009

Details

Category: History Articles