The smallest of the three village pubs, The Brown Jug stayed in business for almost two centuries. The building was originally constructed as a farm cottage in a row of cottages belonging to the Horsham Farm estate in 1838. It’s believed that a 17th century alehouse once occupied the site.
The building became a pub in 1856 and was named after the small, brown drinking jug - popular at the time. It appeared on the National Census List for Upchurch in 1871, with 49 year old George Packer and his 45 year old wife Sarah being listed as proprietors. By 1881 Charles Horton and his wife Elizabeth from Hollingbourne had taken over and managed the pub until 1891 when it was sold at a public auction in Strood.
The Hortons were succeeded by Henry Woolley, his wife Ellen and their seven children. When the cement works became established on the marshes, Mr Woolley delivered beer to the workers on his horse drawn cart while bargemen sailing their barges along the river regularly visited the pub for refreshment. In 1904 a flood extended to the pub and submerged the cellar, but after a recovery, business continued.
Thomas Polhill became proprietor during the pre-World War One period, followed by Edward Packer, who stayed there during the 1920s and the 1930s. John and Daisy Napier ran the pub during the 1940s, followed by Gertrude Babbage during the early 1960s.
Local cement workers outside the pub in 1908.
On the left, Hannah Packer with sister and landlady Elsie Packer to her right in 1914.
The Jug's distinctive Shepherd Neame sign was a familiar sight to passers-by for many years.
The Brown Jug in December 2020.
Click the montage to enlarge.
Eric and Pat Funnell arrived as proprietors in December 1965. They lived and worked at the pub for over thirty five years and became very well-known in the area. Eric had previously worked as a landscape gardener at Bowaters Mill in Sittingbourne. The couple managed The Brown Jug as a small, local pub and even won the brewery’s Best Kept Garden Competition. Eric Funnell also got the rights to run a bar at the Rochester Corn Exchange in 1972, but a row developed when Rochester publicans objected because Eric Funnell came from outside the Medway area. However, he won the rights to run the bar even though he had a lot of local opposition from Rochester publicans.
After Eric and Pat Funnell had departed, the building was refurbished and managed by tenant Darren Yeomans but continued to retain its small pub atmosphere with a regular band of drinkers, darts teams and visiting musicians.
Three couples followed Darren Yeomans as Shepherd Neame tenants until the Faversham brewery put the pub freehold up for sale. New owner Kate Johns and son Dan, with wife Rachel, arrived and began running the pub as a Free House in 2011.
After a downturn in trade throughout the Coronavirus pandemic lockdowns and preparing for retirement, Kate Johns applied for planning permission to convert the building into two houses. At first, the planning application was refused, but a second application proved successful, and so The Brown Jug, which had served the village since the mid-19th century, ended.
The Brown Jug finally closed on Saturday 30th October 2021.
About David
David was born and raised at Ham Green and still lives there today.
He writes from personal experience about Upchurch village life and the changes that have taken place over the years.
David's book, Memories of Upchurch, is a very readable and detailed historical study of the village and is available direct from David at: david3702001@yahoo.co.uk price £12 + postage and packing.
