This is a relatively sleepy little Village but it has had its moments. The picture above shows the main part of the older Village with the Nailbourne in the foreground. To the left is the main street up through the Village where the local pub stands, The Duke of Cumberland. On the top of the hill, on the road out of the Village, stands the Church of St. John the Baptist (on the skyline to the right of the picture).

The area to the North and North East of the Village is known as 'Barham Downs'. It is here, over centuries that many armies have camped, from the Romans to the British Army at the time of the Napoleonic Wars. There are ancient burial mounds all over this area and many folk tales of the gold which they are supposed to contain. Of course, nobody knows which ones!

Something which might be of interest to genealogists is the fact that, particularly during the time of the Napoleonic Wars, the Church was frequently used for the marriages and baptisms of the troops that were in the camps on the Barham Downs. So, if you have members of the British Army in your family tree at this time and they might have been in Kent, these records could be a place to look. One of these days I must try and complete a transcript although don't hold your breath! Many churches in Kent are well known for their yew trees but St. John the Baptist at Barham is noteworthy for its magnificent beech trees.

I have a lot of information to add about Barham thanks to information provided to me by Mike Young. I will try to get to this as soon as I can but in the meantime, I have added the picture of the local Church and the individual page contains a small amount of information.