Bishopsbourne

infobox UK place
country = England
official_name= Bishopsbourne
static_

static_image_caption=Bishopsbourne church
latitude= 51.2307
longitude= 1.1353
population =
civil_parish=
shire_district= Canterbury
shire_county= Kent
region= South East England
constituency_westminster= Canterbury
post_town= CANTERBURY
postcode_district = CT4
postcode_area= CT
dial_code= 01227
os_grid_reference= TR189526

Bishopsbourne is a small village in Kent, England. It lies in the Nailbourne valley some convert|4|mi|km|0 from Canterbury and about convert|15|mi|km|0 from Dover. It has a public house, The Mermaid, built in 1861, and a church, St Mary's, with 14th-century wall paintings. Author Joseph Conrad lived here and his house, "Oswalds", still stands. The village hall is called "Conrad Hall" in his honour. Bishopsbourne was on the Elham Valley Light Railway until traffic stopped in 1947, the original railway station is now a private residence.

In 1844 an excavation at nearby Bourne Park revealed Iron Age remains. Mozart visited Bourne Park House in 1765.

Photographic pioneer Joseph Bancroft Reade was rector from 1863 until his death in 1870, and is buried at St Mary's.

External links

* [http://www.shepherdneame.co.uk/pubs/pubs.php/mermaidinn_canterbury The Mermaid]
* [http://www.paintedchurch.org/bishbwei.htm St Mary's - wall paintings]
* [http://www.barham-kent.org.uk/Rail%20Services.htm Elham Valley Railway]
* [http://web.arch.ox.ac.uk/archives/asbuckets/bucket.php?site_ID=37 Bucket Catalogue for Bishopsbourne, Bourne Park]
* [http://bish.nogbad.co.uk Site with details about Bishopsbourne and images of the village]