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These decaying and overgrown sheds buried in the north Kent marshes on the outskirts of Dartford are the former site of Wells Fireworks Factory. Wells Fireworks was founded by Joseph Wells in 1837 and it operated from multiple premises before settling in Joyce Green Lane in 1938 despite of the then London County Council objected to the site because of its proximity to three local hospitals earmarked for treating smallpox – the Joyce Green, Orchard and the Long Reach (all already demolished). In the late 1970s it became financially impossible to compete with Chinese imports and Wells was forced to shut its manufacturing plant in Dartford. More and more fencing has been erected around the site in 2019 with some suggesting the site could be cleared out very soon and handed over to some housing developers.
