The Lesnes Hundred

The Lesnes Hundred by Eric MacLennan is a socially engaged piece of art offering members of the public the opportunity to name a tree after someone important to them. We’ve always given names to important things in our life, so why not give trees individual names too? Not the names of celebrities or the famous, but the unsung of the community. The people that matter to us.

As well as celebrating our ‘unsung’, The Lesnes Hundred will give focus to the importance of the environment for our future. Named trees will be more cherished. Trees have always been important to us, we need them now, more than ever, to combat the climate crisis, they’ve inspired poets and painters around the world, and they can even improve our happiness. We care about our trees, so by naming them we will show how we value them.

From January to May 2021 Artist Eric MacLennan interviewed a hundred members of the public (people of all ages and backgrounds) who all came forward to name a tree in Lesnes Abbey Woods after someone important to them… an unsung hero(ine).

These interviews are now all completed.

One hundred trees have now been named after these extraordinary people.

This will be known as The Lesnes Hundred.

The Lesnes Hundred are:

• Campaigner who saved an ancient woodland
• Conservation Volunteer
• Good Samaritan
• Campaigner for social justice
• Methodist Minister
• Estate Manager
• Friend and carer - full of laughter
• Maverick
• Footballer
• Artist
• Grandmother
• Teacher
• Sheltered accommodation worker
• Nurse
• Cleaner
• Mum
• Volunteer who helps refugees
• A special friend who put others before herself
  Grassroots community activist
• A kind mum
• Primary school teacher
• Theatre director
• Kind aunt
• Inspirational fitness trainer
• Best friend who puts family first
• Best friend with shared sense of humour
• Parent support group leader
• GP and conservationist
• Charity runner and local community champion
• Dad who saw beauty in small things
• Dedicated mental health professional for young people
• Performer, writer, puppeteer and disability rights activist
• Grandad who offered random acts of kindness
• Radical art critic
• Children’s poet
• Children’s centre manager
• Co-ordinator of a mental health arts project
• Loyal and popular council worker
• A romantic
• Promoter of mental health recovery through the arts
• Good neighbour
• Teacher, mentor and player of the bagpipes
• Loyal and brave friend in junior school
• Retired nurse and supportive neighbour
• Litter picker
• Female firefighter
• Partner and driving force for good
• Gardener
• Spiritual guide
• Moral supporter
• Charity runner
• Subtle matchmaker
• Haematologist and hero
• Local artist
• Pharmacist who did much for the community
• Life and soul of the party with a heart of gold
• Someone who puts others first
• Tennis coach
• Cafe manager
• Amazing stepdad
• Engineer
• Walking group leader
• A doer not a talker
• Blind woman always on the lookout for others
• Inspirational musician
• Excellent manager
• Brilliant dad
• Inspirational nurse
• Choir leader
• A builder of living willow fences
• A brilliant caretaker
• Piano teacher
• Hospital chaplain
• Primary Headmistress
• Homeschooling mum
• Horse whisperer
• Skydiver
• A woman who helped those in need
• A young musician
• A new born baby
• Local legend
• Volunteer groundsman
• Charity fundraiser
• A supporter of everybody
• A good friend in hard times
• A pillar of strength
• A selfless twin sister
• An east-end docker and wonderful dad
• Hospital worker with two other jobs
• University professor
• A phenomenal woman
• A Brownie leader
• A foodbank helper
• A charity trust helper
• Volunteer for three charities
• A worker with the homeless
• A healer
• A hospice worker
• Artist and environmental campaigner
• Selfless dad and gardener

A celebration of people. A celebration of trees.

Each tree can be identified by a small aluminium number tag with “TLH” and a number .

The trail of The Lesnes Hundred was first opened to the public on 12th June 2021 as part of The Estuary Festival.

You can access recordings on Soundcloud that tell you about the unsung heroes these trees are named after.

The book of the project will be published later this year, telling their stories and the stories of the trees.

The title of the work -  The Lesnes Hundred  - gives an acknowledging nod to the ancient name of the area that included Lesnes Abbey Woods, which was known in the 1100s as “The Hundred of Little and Lesnes”

A “hundred” is term used to describe a division of land that was used around a thousand years ago in England.

If you download Sound Cloud on your phone or tablet you will be able to listen to the amazing people who have become The Lesnes Hundred