The Isle of Thanet in Kent was once so closely associated with Jewishness that it was variously nicknamed the Kosher del Sol and Jerusalem-on-Sea. Today, only a small (though growing) community of Jewish residents remains.
Piecing together the history of Jewish communities and tourism, the sites where they lived, stayed, and observed a religious life, and their part in the development of the seaside resorts of the East Kent coast and the UK more broadly, is a complex task. It involves delving into newspaper archives, examining architecture, and understanding the geography and history of the UK tourist trade, the history of migration, war, and the changing face of Jewish life from the late 18th-early 20th century.
In this extensive, decade-long research project, social historian and community researcher Katie Blythe explores the histories of Jewish people on the Isle.
In work that covers all the towns of Thanet: Margate, Ramsgate, Broadstairs, Cliftonville, Westgate-on-Sea, and Birchington-on-Sea (each with its own unique relationships to Jewish life in the UK and further afield), she has shed light on a past that has been largely overlooked and begun to give voice to generations of Jewish people and their changing identities.
PROJECTS & ACTIVITIES
Catalogue & Archive – coming soon
Jewish Thanet Walks – tour guide
Cliftonville Voices (2022)- lead researcher, oral historian and event organiser
Educational Packages for Schools – coming soon
Jewish History of Thanet 