Sundridge Road / Brasted Road / Hanging Banks / Ashen Cross

Ide Hill

Above postcard, circa 1960, kindly sent by Michael Leigh.

Above postcard, circa 1960, kindly sent by Michael Leigh.

Above postcard, circa 1960, kindly sent by Michael Leigh.

Nothing known about this pub yet, but I do know there is a Wheatsheaf Hill in Ide Hill, which is what the pub was probably named after.

However, I also know of a "Wheatsheaf" addressed as Riverhead, and I have also seen this also addressed as Sundridge.

From research compiled by Michael Leigh I am informed that there is no mention of the pub in the 1841 census, however, the 1851 census shows a grocer and beershop keeper addressed at Ashen Croft Hanging Bank which we believe is this pub.

William Marchant was living in Chiddingstone in 1841 and died around 1854. He was also the cousin of Ann Marchant who was the wife of Joseph Leigh, known to be running the beerhouse in 1861, so it is assumed he took it over from William on his death.

On 29 September 1866, a group of hop pickers who had been lodging at the Wheatsheaf got into a fight with the locals and a man called Dobson was killed. The incident and the trail were widely reported in the national press where the beer house was referred to as Leighs. (See the report here.)

In the 1881 census, Ann Leigh is the beer house keeper. Next door are Richard Hurton and his wife, the former Mary Ann Lockyer and when Ann Leigh dies in 1883, they take over the running of the pub.
When Richard Hurton dies, his wife Mary Ann takes over and is still running the pub at the time of the census in 1911.

On 22 August 1985 the Kentish Times published an article entitled "Taking the lid off mayhem and murder" which included the following section about riots involving hop pickers in C19th Kent.

"One of the worst incidents was at Ide Hill in 1866, which had already proved a bad year with strikes by pickers and a lot of bad feeling between them and local people. A group from Surrey had been lodging with alehouse keeper, Joseph Leigh, and had been having a few drinks and a bit of fun at his house. They left and had a few more drinks at the "Cock Inn" and were ordered out. A fight broke out between the locals, who apparently started it, and a picker called Dobson was killed."

Reports of the incident, on 29 September 1866, appeared in the Sevenoaks Express and the District Advertiser and the (London) Times on Tuesday 2 October 1866.

Reports of the Coroner's Inquest on 2 October 1866 and the Magistrates' Court on 5 October 1866 appeared in Sevenoaks Express and the District Advertiser on 9 October 1866.

A report of the Magistrates' Court proceedings appeared in the Times on 6 October 1866. All the papers covered the trial which was held on 22 December 1866 - the Times on 24 December 1866 and the Sevenoaks Express and the District Advertiser on 25 December 1866.

The reports which appeared in the Sevenoaks Express and the District Advertiser were more detailed but I didn't make copies. In them, Joseph Leigh's name is mentioned frequently but he wasn't called as a witness. The "Wheatsheaf" is not referred to by that name but always as "Leigh's, Leigh's beer house of beer shop or Mr. Leigh's beer house". The reports also say that the beer house had a skittle alley.

I thought it important to pass on the publication dates in case you or other researchers wanted to look into things further.

I think the first mention I have of the name Wheatsheaf is in 1871.

LICENSEE LIST

MARCHANT William 1851-54 dec'd

LEIGH Joseph 1854-75 dec'd (also grocer age 69 in 1871)

LEIGH Ann 1875-83 dec'd (widow age 75 in 1881)

HURTON Richard 1883+

HURTON Mary Ann (widow) 1911+

LYNCH Jeremiah 1939+ (age 61 in 1939)

https://pubwiki.co.uk/Wheatsheaf.shtml

From Melville's Directory 1858

From the Kelly's Directory 1862

Census