Hop-Picking Season!
Hop Culture is one of our oldest traditions, documented most clearly from 1520 in areas like Westbere near Canterbury. This however does not mean that hop culture was any less important before this date - in fact, Westbere itself experienced almost 100 years of hop production and beer making before 1520, resulting in much opposition and resistence.
Many family tree researchers will come across hop culture in their ancestry, with some of the more lucky ones discovering prosecutions for breaking associated laws. Many people believe that these diverse elements of social history add variety and colour to their own genealogy.
29 October 2006 More...