Dartford
Stone House, formerly known as the "East London Lunatic Asylum", was built in the 19th century on spacious grounds with a large castellated structure, to house and treat the mentally ill. It remains one of the largest and most visible structures in Dartford, is currently operated by the
NHS to manage regional health care delivery, and is also home to a nursing school.
Unemployment levels, taken from the 2001 census, are at 3.8% - one of the highest unemployment rates for a medium-sized town in England at the time. By 2006 this had decreased to 2.2%, somewhat below the national average.
1In early 2006
SEEDA (The South East England Development Agency) purchased a 2.6 hectare site on the edge of the town which had been used by Unwins, an off-license chain, which went into administration in 2005. They also purchased the neighbouring Matrix Business Centre to protect its future. They intend to develop the site as 'Dartford Northern Gateway', with a mixture of retail and other businesses and housing.
Dartford houses several schools:
*
Dartford Grammar School (mixed sixth-form)
*
Dartford Grammar School for Girls*
Dartford Technology College*
Wilmington Grammar School for Boys*
Wilmington Grammar School for Girls*
Leigh City Technology CollegeRoads
The coming of the railways brought an end to the turnpikes. Eventually
tarmacadam roads appeared; and in 1925 the building of what was to become the A2 main road took traffic away from Dartford town Centre. In the middle of the 18th century a toll road, following the course of Watling Street and connecting London with Canterbury, was completed through Dartford. Later, a road south to
Sevenoaks was built. Dartford is perhaps most well-known for the
Dartford Crossing, the main mode of crossing the
River Thames to the east of London, where the
M25 crosses the river via the
Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, a toll bridge.
Railways
The first railway from London to reach the town was the North Kent Line via
Woolwich in 1849, connecting at
Gravesend with the line through the Medway Towns. Later two more lines were built:
*the
Dartford Loop line through
Sidcup opened in 1866
*the
Bexleyheath line'' opened in 1895The three routes make Dartford a very busy junction. All the lines were electrified on
6 June 1926.
In 1801, Dartford's population was c.2400; by the 2001 census it had increased to 85,911. [https://www.statistics.gov.uk/census2001/pyramids/printV/29UD.asp 2001 census figures for Dartford]
This area west of the town escaped being enclosed during the late 18th/early 19th century. It is now well known as a
dogging hotspot; the remoteness of the land makes it an ideal spot for such activity to take place.[
1] It is also the original source for the name of the
Dartford Warbler.
*
Sir Mick Jagger and
Keith Richards of
The Rolling Stones are said to have met at
Dartford railway station in the early sixties, although they had already known each other at primary school. Jagger attended
Dartford Grammar School.
*
Sir Peter Blake is also a notable belfry.
*
Wat Tyler, the leader of the
Peasants' Revolt of 1381, lived in Dartford.
*
Pete Tong,
British BBC Radio 1 DJ was born in Dartford in 1960
*
Pocahontas is buried in nearby
Gravesend.
*
Sidney Keyes, the war poet, was born and grew up in Dartford.
*Famed ornithologist
John Latham was a practising physician in Dartford, and discovered the
Dartford Warbler on Dartford Heath.
*
Kenneth Noye, the notorious
M25 murderer, lived in nearby
West Kingsdown and was tried at Dartford
Magistrates' Court.
Twin towns
Associated towns
*‘'Kent History Illustrated
- Frank W Jessup (KCC, 1966)
*‘'Railways of the Southern Region -
Geoffrey Body (PSL Field Guide 1989)
*
Local History -
Mark Chatwin (1997)
*
The Dartford town archive*
Dartford Local History
