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About Kent Life
To view a video of our premier heritage farm attraction please click below.
The site also plays host to a variety of historical buildings including Petts Farmhouse, Ulcombe Village Hall, Old & Water cottages, Cuxton Chapel and a new Agricultural store. Many of these have been saved from demolition and perfectly restored to their original form on site. Through its buildings, Kent Life allows visitors to discover a rich and vibrant history of the people who lived and worked in the Garden of England over the past 150 years. It is one of the few remaining places in Britain where hops are grown, harvested, dried and packed in our magnificent double Oast house by hand, using only time honoured, traditional techniques. This process is celebrated at our annual Beer & Hop Festival in September, one of our extensive range of exciting events to look forward to throughout the year.
Kent Life also offers a developing nature trail, aviary, boat trips, tractor rides and stilt walking as well as other activites to entertain visitors during holidays and weekends, such as sheep dog trial and sheep shearing demonstrations, bottle-feeding lambs, craft activites and animal grooming, we even have and 'Adopt An Animal scheme'.
'So whether you are looking for a great family day out or a journey back through time, come and visit Kent Life'
History Of Kent Life
The 28-acre site that now constitutes Kent Life 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 Tyrwhitt-Drake family. It passed to the only son Sir Garrard Tyrwhitt-Drake who inherited it after his father passed away in the early 1900's. An eccentric man, Garrard Tyrwhitt-Drake established a small zoo on the grounds and it is believed that he had a fascination for the Zebra, painting black and white stripes on a donkey so he could admire it from his manor!
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 Bourough council had created 'The Museum of Kent Life' (as it was formerly known) on the site of the old Sandling farm, and it was officially opened to the public on 6th July 1985.
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 changes through the centuries which not only has resonance throughout Kent, but also has a significance for the wider community.
Having been open to the public as a visitor attraction for over 20 years, Kent Life is now very much part of the community that surrounds it. Recently, the ambitious developments that have taken place as a result of outside investment have breathed new life into this much-loved site and it can look forward to a very bright future. |
