Over thirty headstones in the Parish cemetery bear the names of Curlings. Curlings also lived within the parishes of St. Peters in Broadstair, St. John's in Margate and St. Mary's in Minister, Thanet. But until the late 18th century the family stayed close to Thanet and in Kent County. Thanet was once an island with a deep passage through the Wantsum Channel emptying into the Thames and connecting with the River Stour, which opened into the English Channel at Sandwich. The channel has since silted in so that it is only a marsh that connects with the mainland.
Locals still consider it an island nevertheless.
Thanet was settled in the 5th century by the Jutes, a germanic people from the region between the Rhein and the Elbe Rivers. It is highly likely that the Curlings were of Jutish origin. The Curlings were farmers, fishermen, ship's masters, maltsters, and inn keepers. The South Chilton House and the Chilton Farm at the edge of Ramsgate overlooking Pegwell Bay is the site of the Chilton ancestral home. It was built of timber and daub and wattle, typical of late 16th century construction.