Tourist Profile
See all that Kent has to offer - in one place
KENT Life, near Maidstone, was set up in 1985 as a working heritage farm on which to tell the story of everything once Kentish. The well-established attraction offers
28 acres of fun in a working farm, from hands-on activities for children to age- old farming traditions that bring back memories of the past. With animals to cuddle, tractors to ride, play areas to go wild in, fascinating historic buildings to explore and cafés to relax in, Kent Life is a destination that all the family can enjoy.
Bequeathed to the people of Maidstone The 28-acre site has evolved through
the years from the historic Sandling Farm, an area that formed part of the wider Allington Castle estate in the mid 16th century - stretching some 461 acres - and was owned by Thomas Wyatt. The Allington Castle estate, later known as the Cobtree Estate, was the property of the Tyrwhitt-Drake family. It passed to the only son Sir Garrard Tyrwhitt-Drake, who inherited it after his father passed away in the early 1900s.
A charitable trust was set up for the
Cobtree Estate in 1952. After Sir Garrard Tyrwhitt-Drake died childless in 1964, his estate was bequeathed to the people of Maidstone. By 1983 a joint project between Kent County Council and Maidstone Borough council had
created The Museum of Kent Life (as it was formerly known) on the site of the old Sandling Farm, and was officially opened to the public on July 6 1985.
Becoming established The attraction was set up as a working
heritage farm on which to tell the story of everything once Kentish. The preservation of the region's heritage began with the renovation of the Oast house, farmyard, gardens and Sandling House. The Vale Farm Barn was the first of the attraction's buildings from around the county to be saved from destruction and opened in 1990 having been rebuilt on site. The reconstruction of Petts Farmhouse, Ulcombe Village Hall, Lenham Cottages, Cuxton Chapel and the agricultural store came next. These historic buildings depict a wealth of history and
18 Mid Kent Living
changes through the centuries which not only has resonance throughout Kent, but also has significance for the wider community. Having been open to the public as a
visitor attraction since 1985, Kent Life is very much part of the community that surrounds it. In more recent years the ambitious developments that have taken place have been as a result of outside investment that has breathed new life into the attraction. Buildings and homes Perhaps fittingly, the journey around
Kent Life begins in the oast house, arguably the type of building most synonymous with the county. This happens to be the last working coal- fired oast in Britain, as well as being one of the only ones made of ragstone - a traditional Kentish building material. Among the vast array of rebuilt,
relocated and refurbished buildings of historical interest, Kent Life houses an agricultural store, barn, chapel, granary, traditional telephone box, village hall, shepherd's hut, blacksmith's forge, wagon store, general store, cobblers shop, school room, cooperage, farmhouse, WWII cottage, hopper's huts and Ma Larkin's kitchen from the popular ’Darling Buds Of May’ series.
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