Strawberry Fields
| Most of this website deals with buildings in Biggin Hill that have survived from the village's earliest beginnings. This page, however, is a bit different. It shows that history can come to life with the help of crop markings and searching in the hedgerows. Just to the North of the Aperfield Inn is a field of around 45 Acres, owned by the Chevening Estate, called Strawberry Fields (note the name is 'plural'). The crop grown here varies from year to year but it is still an active field that grows crops as, indeed, it has been for many many years. So why is it called Strawberry Fields? |
| Tony Lewis |
| This aerial photo shows the size and location of the field. The Aperfield Inn is at the bottom of the picture, with Main Road running on the left and Cherry Lodge golf course in the top right corner. For many years now it has been a single field but in days gone by it was divided up into smaller fields. These grew various fruit crops but mostly, and most famously (locally), strawberries. People would come from miles around to spend the day in the country and 'pick their own'. |
| Google Earth |
Google Earth location
| This aerial photo from 1990 shows a very dry field in the height of summer and the conditions are right to see crop markings. You can clearly see darker lines running across the field from left to right. These are where the tracks dividing the individual fields used to be. |
| Google Earth |
| An aerial photo from the 1960's shows a very different scene. It clearly shows the original field layout with individual plots. The tracks in-between lead left to Main Road where, at points 'A' and 'B', they break through the hedgerow on to the road. |
| Google Earth |
| What at first glance, from Main Road, is a continuous hedgerow, gives up its hidden secrets when looked at a bit closer. Two old wooden gate posts (one complete with hinge bracket) mark the spot where one of the tracks between the fields met the road. This gap in the hedge is at point 'A' on the 1960's map. |
| Tony Lewis |
| A little further North is another gap which marks the point where another track met the road, at point 'B' on the map. This too has one remaining gate post with hinge bracket. Although these two gaps are no longer used as vehicular entrances to the field (the curb stones on both dip down at these points) they are still used by walkers and dog walkers. |
| Tony Lewis |
| This final photo was sent to me by Anne Matthews (ne Hassell). She sent me photos and memories for the book 'The Biggin Hill We Knew 3' which can be found on this website. Amongst the photos was this one of Anne sitting in Strawberry Fields in the early 1960's. Anne says:
I often used to walk through a track in those fields from Sutherland
Avenue. I did not know the fields were called 'Strawberry Fields'.
If I remember correctly there was an access footpath from the Main Road
near the Fox & Hounds and also track further down towards Biggin Hill.
It was a big field and the dividing hedges had gone before my time. |
| Anne Matthews |
