A private house since the early 1970s, set in a cottage almost facing the Bridge, the Rising Sun was an unlicensed beer house early in its commercial life. In 1894, William Plane – a former sergeant-major of the 1st Battalion, the Dorset Regiment – became landlord and fought a successful action to keep the pub alive, after the Justices appeared likely to deny it a licence. More than 50 signatures were gathered arguing in its favour, and one of the key arguments was that lovers of Westerham Ale would have to trek all the way to the Crown at the other end of the village for their favourite pint if the licence were denied.
In the mid-1950s, when landlord Frank Coon was in charge, a tame swan called Charlie used to waddle into the pub from the river, seeking food. He had been orphaned by a fox and raised by villagers. He was sometimes bold enough to pull at the door handle of the pub with his beak to gain admittance.
When the village was severely flooded in 1968, Bessie Motley, wife of licensee Frank Motley, told the Sevenoaks Chronicle that more than two feet of water inundated the pub. The couple retreated to an upstairs room with cat, dog and budgie – not forgetting barrels of beer. “Don’t worry, mister, the river won’t get into the beer,” Mrs Motley assured the newspaper.
Text by James Saynor.