Sir Thomas Neame

Third son of FREDERICK NEAME of Luton, Selling, born 23rd December, 1885, at Macknade, he married Gwendolyn Mary THOMSON, daughter of George Thomson of Torquay. Educated at St. Michael's, Westgate, he became head of the School and obtained an entrance scholarship to Cheltenham College. Whilst there, he took three further scholarships, became head of his house, Senior Prefect, Captain of the Cadet Corps, and was a member of the School XV. Then after obtaining a scholarship to Queen's College, Cambridge, and an Exhibition to Gonville and Caius, he entered the latter and took his Tripos in Natural Science and later his M.A. degree. He Captained the College XV, and played hockey and lawn tennis for the College. He held the rank of Captain of the University Rifle and Volunteer Corps. After leaving Cambridge, he spent two and a half years in factories in Germany, Austria, Poland and France. On his return, he was employed by Messrs. Stewarts and Lloyds Ltd. Of Birmingham, manufacturers of steel tubes and zinc sheet rolling as Department Manager. On the outbreak of war in August 1914, he volunteered for service and went to Gallipoli with the 9th Battalion, Worcester Regiment (part of Kitchener's first 100,000). Wounded in the assault on Sari Bair, he was sent home and was subsequently employed on munitions work. After the war he entered a partnership with his father at Macknade, Colkins and Abbey Farms, occupied in hop, fruit, dairy farming, poultry and pigs. They had Friesian Cattle and developed six 2,000 gallon cows, two of which gave over 100lbs. of milk in one day. He won several open milk and dairy trials between 1920 and 1926, had the highest herd average milk yield in Kent, and was three times second in the Silcock All-England Dairy Herd's Competition. He was elected Chairman and Vice-President of the Kent Milk Recording Society, Chairman of the Canterbury Farmers' Club and the Faversham Branch of the N.F.U.