Muswell Manor, a Grade II listed building is one of the oldest buildings in Leysdown. It dates back to 1540 with some original beams still in place. It has been known by many variations of its name - Mousehole, Muscles Farm and Mussel Manor.

It has always played an important part in the history of Leysdown, none more so than in 1909 (then known as Mussel Manor) when the Short Brothers, who will be remembered for their historic links with the Medway Towns, built their first factory and constructed their first aircraft here, namely the Wright "Flyers".

At the same time, the Manor was being used as the headquarters of the Aero Club of the United Kingdom and was visited by many distinguished pioneer aviators such as C.S. Rolls, J.T.C. Brabazon, the Wright Brothers and Frank McClean. In 1909, the first recognised flight by an Englishman and the first circular mile in Britain was flown from here, both by J.T.C. Brabazon.

An exhibition of these events and biographical details of the main personnel involved is displayed in the Bar.
We are approximately 1 mile from Leysdown Village and 200 yards from the beach.