Work in progress in the KAS Library

The resources of the KAS library contain collections of MSS notes bequeathed to the KAS by eminent Kentish historians, archaeologists and antiquarians, and our aim is always to make these interesting collections more readily accessible to researchers. Described below are two such collections on which volunteers from among our members have been working to bring knowledge of, and accessibility to, their contents to a wider audience.

J.J. Torr - MSS notes on Kent Churches, copied from Rev Bryan Faussett's original MSS volumes.

J.J. Torr was a dedicated antiquarian, and a long time KAS member. On his death in 1883, KAS acquired several hundreds of his MSS notebooks, practically all of which were concerned with church architecture and history, and were copied from MS in libraries such as Lambeth Palace, British Museum and Canterbury Cathedral. Six of Torr's MS note books in KAS possession are copies of MS books on Kent Churches (mainly East Kent) by the distinguished Kent historian, Rev. Bryan Faussett in 1756-1760. The original Faussett books are in the Library of the Society of Antiquaries, London. They have not been catalogued in any detail, but they contain much information derived from monumental inscriptions etc which may no longer themselves be extant, and which Torr has faithfully copied in six MS volumes in our possession.

To make the information in the Torr/Faussett notes more accessible to researchers, KAS volunteers have extracted from them names and other particulars of persons mentioned in them, together with location and dates. In due course, we plan to post all such details on our kentarchaeology.org.uk website. In the meantime, the notes themselves and the index of information extracted from them by our volunteers continue to be available for study in the KAS library.

Hussey files on Families and Places.

Arthur Hussey (1862-1941), a Vice President of the KAS, was "a most diligent student of wills in the Canterbury Probate Registry", and contributed many papers to Archaeologia Cantiana. He left a collection of his MS notes to the Society, and amongst them are some 350 files in two sets, one on named families, and the other on Kentish locations with particular reference to families associated with the locations.

To assist researchers consulting the files, volunteers from the membership of the KAS have provided each file with a synopsis of contents, particularly noting names, dates and places of people mentioned in the files. In due course, we plan to post these synopses on the website, but in the meantime, the files and synopses are available for study in the KAS Library.

Books, Booklets and Pamphlets on Kent Cities, Towns and Villages.

Volunteers working in the Library have also recently completed the re-listing of items on the shelves relating to the history and archaeology of specific Kent locations, and their work is now available for use in the library to assist in the speedy location of items on the shelves. As part of this work, items in a bad state of repair have been identified, and suitably refurbished.

Acquisitions to the KAS Library June - December 2006

• Hill Figures of Kent (Dr Mark Hows)
• For the Sake of the Children (Peter Hayward)
• Sussex Archaeological Collections Vol.143, 2005.
• Revue Historique de Dunkerque et du Littoral. Nos.37 & 38.
• Nomina Vol. 28, 2005.
• Surrey Archaeological Collections Vol. 92, 2005.
• Archaeologia Cambrensis, Vol.153, 2004.
• Anglo Saxon Cemeteries of Kent. Vols 1 & 2. (A. Richardson).
• Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society Vol. 127. 2005.
• Glorious Past - Women and Evangelical Religion in Kent and Northamptonshire. (Sibyl Phillips).
• Wroxeter Archaeology: Excavation and Research on the Defences of the Town 1968-1992. Vol.CXXVIII.
• Archaeometry Vol.48 P.3.
• Archaeological Journal, Vol.162, 2005: and "Finland and Tallinn", Summer Meeting of the R.A.I. 2005, Supplement to Vol.162.
• Proceedings of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, Vol.134, 2005.
• Jahresschrift fur Mitteldeutsches Forgesichte Band 89. Fornvannen 2006/3.
• Yorkshire Archaeological Journal Vol.75.
• Suffolk Records Society - "Savage Fortune", History of the Savage Family.
• St. Radigunds Abbey, Dover. (Grace Moylan).
• Gender and Petty Crime in Late Medieval England; the local courts in Kent 1460-1560 (Karen Jones).
• Nomina Vol. 28, 2005.
• Kent Family History Society Vol.11 No.8
• On East Hill - Life on the North Downs.
• Archies Vol. 28 No.4 (Orpington and District Archaeological Society).

• Hampshire Studies Vol.61 (Proceedings of the Hampshire Field Club and Archaeological Society).
• Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland Vol.134.
• Abbey Farm, Minster, Thanet. 1. The pottery. catalogue Aug. 2006. 2. The metal work; in progress Aug. 2006. 3. Bone and needles. May 2005. (KAS Fieldwork Committee).
• Transactions of Woolhope Naturalist Field Club, Herefordshire, Vol.51.
• Transactions, Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol.vi.
• Britannia Vol.xxxvii.
• Suffolk Institute of Archaeology and History, Vol.xlii p.2.
• Journal of Roman Studies xcvii 2006.
• Society of Antiquaries of London, Journal Vol.86, 2006.
• Medieval Archaeology Vol.50.
• Montgomeryshire Collections, Vol.94 2006.
• Leicestershire Archaeological and Historical Society, Transactions Vol.80 2006.
• London and Middlesex Archaeological Society (LAMAS) Vol.56.
• Townwall Street, Dover. Excavations 1988. (Archaeology of Canterbury new series, Volume III, Canterbury Archaeological Trust).