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Created 25 July 2003 Latest revision or update: 24 December 2011
The Kentish towns of Rochester, Chatham, Gillingham and one or two other small towns near the Thames estuary in southeast England, form a single conurbation, and are known as the Medway Towns, named after the river Medway on, or close to which, the towns are situated. In 1974, the local government district of Medway was formed, within the county of Kent, by the merger of the municipal boroughs of Rochester (which then had City status) and Chatham, together with adjoining areas. In 1982, the district was renamed the City of Rochester-upon-Medway. In 1998, it was enlarged by the incorporation of the adjacent district of Gillingham, was renamed the Borough of Medway and become a unitary authority.
The has been a Jewish community in the Chatham and Rochester for nearly 300 years, and prior thereto, there had been a medieval Jewish community in Rochester. The community's synagogue, although called the Chatham Memorial Synagogue, is actually situated in Rochester.
Chatham from "Provincial Jewry in Victorian Britain" - Papers for a conference at University College, London, convened by the Jewish Historical Society of Great Britain, prepared by Aubrey Newman - 6th July 1975. Reproduced here with his kind consent. The Rise of Provincial Jewry - Chatham by Cecil Roth, 1950. Available on JCR-UK as part of the Susser Archive. A Brief History of Chatham Memorial Synagogue, reproduced from the Community's website. Chatham Cemetery, by Martyn Webster, includes an introductory article to the Chatham Cemetery database (above).
Other Chatham & Rochester Information
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