The river Stour
AS TO THE RIVER STOUR, which runs through
this city, the Britons are said, in general, to have
called their rivers by the name of dour, which, in
their language signified water; whence this city was
called by the Romans, Durovernum; though it is
written by Bede and others, Dorovernia, and Dorobernia; all names, however, of the same import. Leland has a singular conjecture, that this river was in
the Britons time, named Avona, and that the Romans
from thence, though corruptly, called the city Duravennum, for that of Dorand Avona, it should rather
have been called Doranona or Doravonum. (fn. 1)
In the early time of the Saxons, it was frequently
both called and written Æstura, Æstur, &c. (fn. 2) no doubt
from the Latin word æstuarium, an æstuary, or arm of
the sea, having, as is conjectured, flowed up, where
the course of this river is, over the level on which part
of Canterbury now stands, and as high up as Ashford
beyond it. (fn. 3) A circumstance rendered probable, by
the situation of the place, the history of former times,
and the several criteria and tokens which have corroborated it. (fn. 4) When this æstuary ceased to flow, leaving the lands dry, and this river to its present course,
is not, however to the purpose for me to enquire into
here; but to return to the name of the river. It was
afterwards written by the Saxons, Stur, as appears by
one of their codicils, so early as the year 686; and by
another in 814, it is written by its present name of
Stour. It was afterwards written both Stur and Stura,
and so Leland has it in his Itinerary, a name not singular to this river only, as there are others in different
parts of England called so likewise. (fn. 5)
The rise and course of this river has been already
so fully described in the former parts of the History
of Kent, that there can be no occasion to repeat them
here; I shall therefore continue my discourse of it,
by observing, that the advantage this city derived
from it was not attended without inconvenience, for it
was subject, from its nearness, to frequent inundations; an inconvenience hardly worth mentioning,
and of little consequence, as it has happened but
rarely for a long time past, nor indeed can it happen,
but upon very extraordinary floods, and then only in
the very lowest or western part of it, as the city stands
now so much higher than it formerly did, having been
from time to time much raised, as well by the devastations made of it in the time of the Danes, as the
several fires that have happened in it. (fn. 6)
Leland writes thus of the Stour, in his time. "The
river of Cantorbury now cawled Sture, springeth at
Kingges Snode, the which standeth southe, and a lytle
be west from Canterbury, and ys distant of Cant. a
xiiii or xv myles. Fro Kinges Snode to Assheford, a
market towne ii myles of on the farther syde of Sture.
Fro Assheford to Wye, a market towne iiii myels of
on the farther syde of Sture; to Chartham, a villag
iiii myles; to Cantorbiry iii myles; to Fordwic, on
the farther side, wher as yet ys a poore mayr; to
Sturemuthe, a faire village iiii myles be water; to
Richeboro, on the farther side ii myles or more; to
Sandwic, super Ripa a myle and so withyn a dim myle
yn to the mayne se.
"The water of Stur breaketh a lytle above Cantorbiri into ii armes, of the which one cummeth be
Westgate, and the other thorough the cyte under S.
Thomas hospitale, and meteth agayne yn one botom
beneth the cyte, a this side… ford, being half a..
"The river yn one place runneth thorough the
cite walle, the which is made there with ii or iii arches
for the curse of the streme." (fn. 7)
This stream continues the present course of the Stour,
which, owing to the mills built on it, and other obstructions, is not navigable in any shape, higher than
the town of Fordwich; but from thence, passing on
the inside of the Isle of Thanet, by the haven of
Sandwich, to the sea it is navigable for lighters, most
of which are employed in the conveyance of heavy
merchandise, such as coals, wood, stone, lime, bricks,
fir timber, &c. between those places, though the
stream is in different parts so shallow, and swerved up,
especially about Sandwich haven, owing to want of
proper management and attention, that the lighters
find frequent obstructions in passing along it.
It should seem, that in very early times, the chief
of the two branches of this river which runs through
Canterbury, was that by King's mill, through the
midst of the city; but the archbishops, to promote
the advantage of their mill at Westgate, caused much
of the stream to be diverted that way, so that the
branches at this time are nearly equal. (fn. 8)