Chatham

Chatham Kent Computer Services

Approximate Population: 70,540

Chatham is a large area within Medway, Kent, in South East England. It developed around a 17th-century naval dockyard on the River Medway, and was once a separate town.

Although the dockyard has long been closed and is now being redeveloped, into a business and residential community, its major buildings remain; so that, in addition to that more modern usage, the historical importance of the dockyard makes an important contribution to the tourist industry. In addition to Chatham being a naval town it also has military connections: several Army barracks were located here, together with 19th-century forts which provided a defensive shield for the dockyard.

The town has important road links and the railway and bus stations are the main interchanges for the area. It is the administrative headquarters of Medway unitary authority, as well as its principal shopping centre.

The name Chatham was first recorded as Cetham in 880, its name coming from the British root ceto and the Old English ham thus meaning a forest settlement. The Domesday Book records the place as Ceteham.

Chatham stands on the A2 road along the line of the ancient Celtic route, which was paved by the Romans, and named Watling Street by the Anglo-Saxons. Among finds have been the remains of a Roman cemetery. After the Norman invasion the manor of Chatham, originally Saxon, was given by William the Conqueror to Earl Godwinson.

Chatham Kent Computer Services