Proceedings of the Lewisham Antiquarian Society

Wewisham Hnifiauarian Society

iDistory of Wewisbam.

1908.

The

[Proceedings
of the

Lewisham Entiquarian Society
yn — ~~ Kk
for

1902-1907.

Printed for the Society by
Charles Worth, The Blackbeatb Press, S. E.

1908.

Contents.

List oF OFFICERS AND MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL
EIGHTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT FOR 1902

NINETEENTH ANNUAL REPORT FOR 1903 ... ts

_ Twenty-TuHirp ANNUAL REPORY FOR 1907
BALANCE SHEETS an ve hip ane een
RULES... at Rin PF x
PROCEEDINGS, 1897-1907... 2 Por Sus

List OF MEMBERS ... ih me —F 2

Pewisham Antiquarian Society.

President.
Sir EDWARD W. BRABROOK, C.B., F.S.A.

Chairman of the Council.
PERCY W. AMES, Esq.. LL.D., F.S.A., F.R.G.S.

Vice=Presidents.
PERCY W. AMES, Esq., LL D., F.S.A., F.R.G.S.
The LORD AVEBURY, F.R.S., F.L.S.
WILLIAM E. BALL, Esq., LL.D.
The Rev. Canon R. RHODES BRISTOW, M.A.
The Right Hon. The EARL OF DARTMOUTH.
LELAND L. DUNCAN, Esq., M.V.O., F.S.A.
THOMAS V. HOLMES, Esq., F.G.S.
HERBERT-C. KIRBY, Esq.
The Right Rev. The LORD BISHOP OF LICHFIELD, D.D.

Council.
PERCY DODD, Esq.
ALFRED L. HARDY, Esq.
ARTHUR W. HISCOX, Esq.
HERBERT JONES, Esgq., F.S.A.
LEONARD M. MAY, Esq.
JOHN H. PORTER, Esq.
: R. GARRAWAY RICE, Esq., F.S.A.
EDWARD C. SINKLER, Esq.
CHARLES A. SPON, Esq.
EDWARD C. THURGOOD, Esq.

honorary Treasurer.
LEWIS C. THOMSON, Esq.

honorary Secretary.
JOSEPH W. BROOKES, Esq.

fonorary Auditor.
LLEWELLYN W. WHITE, Esq.

Lewisham Antiquarian Society,

Eigbteenth Annual Report, 1902.

The Council has the pleasure to present the Eighteenth
Annual Report. During the year seven meetings have been
held.

7TH JANUARY. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, when papers
were read: (1) on ‘‘Medizval Lavatories,” by Edward
W. Brabrook, Esq., c.B., F.S.A., Vice-President of the
Society; (2) ‘‘Fonts and their Sculptures,” by George
C. Druce, Esq. Both were illustrated by a number of
lantern slides.

28TH JANUARY. Seventeenth Annual General Meeting in the
Parish Church Hall. Lecture, illustrated by lantern
slides, on ‘‘Underground Greenwich,” by W. E. Ball,
Esq., LL.D., President.

25TH FEBRUARY. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, when
A. R. Goddard, Esq., read a paper on ‘‘Nine Men’s
Morris,” an old Viking game, illustrated by numerous
diagrams. Herbert Jones, Esq., F.Ss.A., member of the
Council, gave a brief description of the Roman Villa
recently discovered in Greenwich Park. Leland L. Duncan,
Esq., F.S.A., read a paper on ‘‘Some Glimpses of Lewis-
ham in the 14th Century,” with extracts from the Court
Roll of the Manor. R. Garraway Rice, Esq., F.S.A.,
member of the Council, gave a lantern exhibition of old
buildings, tombs and other objects of antiquarian interest.

11TH Marcu. Meeting in the Court Hill Schools, when Leland
L. Duncan, Esq., F.s.A., read papers: (1) on ‘‘The
Attempt made in 1614 to enclose the Common of West-
wood, which covered the ground now occupied by
Sydenham”; (2) on ‘‘A Letter to the Rev. Abraham
Colfe, dated 1642, hitherto unpublished, which gives some
particulars of the place as seen by a London Puritan”;
(3) on ‘The Action by the Rev. Abraham Colfe to recover
Tythes withheld by certain parishioners in 1653.”

(9)

21st JuNE. Visit to Cobham Hall, Gravesend, by kind per-
mission of Lord Darnley, when the house and its inter-
esting collection of pictures, etc., were inspected. After
tea a visit was paid to Cobham Church, which contains a
fine collection of brasses and tombs.

12TH NOVEMBER. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, when
A. D. Webster, Esq., Superintendent of Greenwich Park,
gave a lecture on ‘‘Greenwich Park: its History and
Associations,” illustrated by a large number of lantern
slides.

15TH NOVEMBER. Meeting, arranged by Gifford Hooper, Esq.,
at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich, by kind permission
of Admiral Sir R. More Molineux, G.c.B., when the Crypt
of the old Palace of Placentia was inspected, also the
Museum, Chapel, etc.; afterwards A. D. Webster, Esq.,
conducted the party through the underground passages
in Greenwich Park; and after tea in the kiosk, the
various ‘‘finds,” lately discovered at the Roman Villa in
the Park, were explained.

During the year the Society has lost 38 members, 21
members have been elected, and the number now on the register
is 174.

The volume containing Particulars of Visits, etc., 1899-
1go1, and the paper on ‘‘The Maze of Maze Hill, Troy Towns
and Jerusalem Roads,” by W. E. Ball, Esq., Lu.p., has been
published and issued to members whose subscriptions were not
in arrear.

The Council desires to thank all members and friends who
have contributed to the success of the Society in the past year
by reading papers, arranging meetings, etc.

W. E. BALL, President.

HERBERT C. KIRBY, Hon. Secretary.
14th January, 1903.

ineteenth Annual Report, 1903.

In presenting the Annual Report the Council congratulates
the members upon the continued success and usefulness of the
Society. During the year eight meetings have been held.

27TH JANUARY. Annual General Meeting in the Parish Church
Hall. Charles Welch, Esq., Librarian of the Corporation
of the City of London, gave a lecture upon ‘‘The Ancient
Guilds of the City of London,” illustrated by about 160
lantern slides.

( 10 )

24TH FEBRUARY. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, when
George C. Druce, Esq., read a_ paper upon ‘Early -
Christian Art in the Catacombs of Rome,’” illustrated by
numerous lantern views.

1oTH Marcu. Meeting in the Court Hill Schools, when (1)
H. Chettle, Esq., M.A., read a paper, entitled ‘‘ Words”;
and (2) Philip M. Johnstone, Esq., gave an account of
the Wall Paintings in Claverley Church, representing an
incident of the Norman Conquest. Mr. Johnstone’s
account was illustrated by full-sized coloured tracings.

4TH APRIL. Visit, under the direction of A. L. Hardy, Esq., a
member of the Council, to Crosby Hall, and the Churches
of St. Helen, Bishopsgate, St. Andrew Undershaft, All
Hallows Staining (tower and Norman crypt), and St.
Olave, Hart Street.

otH May. Visit, arranged by J. H. Porter, Esq., member of
Council, to Lingfield, where the ancient Guest House
was visited, by kind permission of C. J. Hayward, Esq.,
who afterwards conducted the members over the Parish
Church, and gave an address upon its history and monu-
ments. The neighbouring half-timber houses, and the
village cross and stone cell were also visited.

6TH JUNE. Visit to Merstham and Chaldon, arranged by Gifford
Hooper, Esq. At Merstham, T. Fisher, Esq., Church-
warden, conducted the members over the Parish Church.
At Chaldon, under the guidance of the Rev. G. E. Belcher,
Rector, the Church was visited with its unique twelfth-
century wall-painting representing the Ladder of Salva-
tion of the Human Soul, and the Road to Heaven.
Papers were read in the two Churches by Mr. Gifford
Hooper.

12TH NOVEMBER. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall. A paper
upon ‘‘Samuel Pepys and St. Olave’s, Hart Street,’ was
read by Mr. J. W. Brookes, one of the Honorary Sec-
retaries of the Society. Herbert Jones, Esq., F.s.A.,
member of the Council, gave an account of recent ex-
cavations at Caerwent and Silchester, and the discoveries
at Newgate Prison; and a number of lantern slides were
exhibited: (1) from photographs taken at Lingfield,
Merstham, etc., by F. W. Nunn, aa: and J. H. Porter,
Esq.; and (2) Views prepared by J. C. Weare, Esq., of
Blackheath, Greenwich, Eltham, etc.

8TH DECEMBER. Meeting at the Parish Church Hall, when a
paper was read by Leonard M. May, Esq., member of
Council, upon ‘‘The Architecture of our Parish Churches,”
illustrated by numerous lantern slides.

The number of members now upon the register is 187.

(11),

The Council desires to thank Charles A. Spon, Esq., who
has kindly performed the duties of Honorary Treasurer during
the absence of Miss M. L. Spon in the United States; also
the members and others who have during the year read papers
or otherwise contributed to the success of the Society.

The Council also wishes to express regret that removal
from Lewisham has necessitated Mr. H. C. Kirby’s resignation
of the office of Honorary Secretary, and its high appreciation of
the valuable services he has rendered the Society during his
seventeen years’ tenure of that office.

W. E. BALL, Preszdent.
JOSEPH W. BROOKES, Hon. Secretary.

15th January, 1904.

Twentieth Annual Report, 1904.

The Council has the pleasure to present its Report for the
year 1904. The meetings held were nine in number.

26TH JANUARY. Annual General Meeting in the Parish Church
' Hall. W.E. Ball, Esq., tu.p., President of the Society,
read a paper on ‘‘The Connection of Greenwich and
Lewisham with Flanders, and its Influence on the
History of England.”

23RD FEBRUARY. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, when
Leland L. Duncan, Esq., M.v.0., F.S.A., one of the Vice-
Presidents of the Society, gave an address upon ‘‘ Lewis-
ham and Blackheath in Days gone by,” which was
illustrated by over 70 lantern slides, mainly of buildings
no longer existing, prepared from old prints and
photographs.

22ND Marcu. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, Herbert
Jones, Esq., F.S.A., a member of the Council, gave an
address upon ‘‘The Roman Wall from Newcastle to
Carlisle,” which was illustrated by diagrams and a
number of lantern slides taken and kindly-lent by A. S.
Gover, Esq.

‘12TH Aprit. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, when Douglas
Strutt, Esq., a member of the: Council, gave a lecture
upon ‘‘The Antiquities of Constantinople,” illustrated by
numerous lantern slides, ;

( 12)

11TH JUNE. Meeting at Guildford, under the direction of
Douglas Strutt, Esq. The members visited the Grammar
School (endowed by Edward VI), Archbishop Abbott’s
Hospital, the Guildhall, the Parish Church of St. Mary,
and the Castle Keep and Grounds. Tea was served at
the ‘‘Sign of the Angel,” where the 13th century vaults
were afterwards inspected.

gTH JuLty. Meeting at Chislehurst, under the guidance of
E. A. Webb, Esq., F.s.A. The Parish Church of St.
Nicholas was visited; also, by permission of G. Marsham
Townshend, Esq., the site of Scadbury House. Mr.
Webb gave an account of the history both of the Church
and Scadbury. After tea at the ‘‘Bickley Arms,”’ the
members were conducted through the caves in the chalk
by W. J. Nichols, Esq., who read a paper on their
probable origin.

29TH OcTOBER. Meeting in the City of London, arranged by
A. L. Hardy, Esq., a member of the Council. The
Churches of St. Magnus the Martyr and St. Dunstan-in-
the-East (both partly the work of Sir Christopher Wren)
were visited; also the Hall of the Bakers’ Company in
Harp Lane; and the house in Love Lane supposed to
have been built and occupied by Sir Christopher Wren.

15TH NOVEMBER. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, when
Leland L. Duncan, Esq., M.v.0., F.S.A., repeated his
address upon ‘‘Lewisham and Blackheath in Days gone |
by,” the lantern slides exhibited on the 23rd February
being again shown, with one or two additions.

13TH DECEMBER. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, when
R. Garraway Rice, Esq., F.s.A., exhibited and described
a large number of lantern slides of archeological interest,
mainly of the City of York and neighbourhood; also a
set of sixteen slides of some fine iron work at Hampton
Court.

'* The number of members now upon the register of the
Society is 180.

The Gouncil again desires to thank Charles A. Spon, Esq.,
for performing the duties of Honorary Treasurer during the
continued absence of Miss M: L. Spon; to Ernest S. W. Hart,
Esq., for his valuable assistance in the management of the
lantern; also to the members of the Society and others who
have read papers or otherwise contributed to the success of the
Society during the year.

The new long focus optical lantern recently purchased by
the Society has proved a valuable acquisition, and enabled the
slides in illustration of papers read to be shown to much greater
advantage than before,

(13 )

It is hoped that arrangements may shortly be made for the
publication in a permanent form of Mr. Leland L. Duncan’s
lecture upon ‘‘Old Lewisham and Blackheath,” with repro-
ductions of the old views and photographs exhibited.

W. E. BALL, Preszdent.

J. W. BROOKES, Hon. Secretary.
15th January, 1905.

Twenty-First Annual Report, 1905.

In presenting its Report for the year 1905, the Council
desires to congratulate the members upon the Society having
attained its ‘‘ majority,” and to express the hope that it may
have many more years of usefulness before it. In 1905 nine
meetings were held :—

17TH JANUARY. Annual General Meeting in the Parish Church
Hall, W. E. Ball, Esq., tu.p., the retiring President in
the Chair. W. E. Brabrook, Esq., c.B., F.S.A., etc.,
Founder of the Society, and its first President, was re-
elected President for the ensuing year. Gilbert H.
Lovegrove, Esq., gave a Popular Lecture upon ‘‘ West-
minster Abbey,” fully illustrated by lantern slides.

14TH FEBRUARY. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall. George
C. Druce, Esq., read a paper entitled ‘‘ Pictures in
Ecclesiastical Architecture,” illustrated by lantern slides.

14TH Marcu. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall. Leonard M.
May, Esqg., member of Council, gave an_ illustrated
Lecture upon ‘‘ English Monumental Brasses, from the
XIII to the XVI century.”

6TH May. Meeting at Brasted and Sundridge, under the
guidance of J. H. Porter, Esq., member of Council. The
Parish Churches of Brasted and Sundridge were visited,
and papers were read by J. H. Porter, Esq., and F. W.
Nunn, Esq.

3RD JuNE. Meeting at West Wickham. Wickham Court and
Gardens were visited, by kind permission of Sir Henry
Farnaby Lennard, also the Parish Church of St. John the
Baptist, noted for its fifteenth century brasses, monu-
ments and glass, and its original carved oak chancel
screen. Afterwards the members walked to Hayes,
where the ancient British entrenchments upon the
Common were inspected,

( 14)

29TH JUNE. Whole day Meeting at Maidstone, arranged by
F. W. Nunn, Esg., member of Council. The fine Parish
Church of All Saints, the Archbishop’s Palace, the Col-
lege founded by Archbishop Courtenay, and the County
Museum in Chillingford Manor House, were visited ;
also, by kind permission of Dudley C. Falcke, Esq., the
remains of Allington Castle, partly dating from the
XIII century,

30TH SEPTEMBER. Meeting in Southwark Cathedral, under the
guidance of the Rev. Canon R. Rhodes Bristow. After-
wards the members visited the remains of the ‘‘George,”
one of the old galleried inns for which Southwark was
formerly famous.

7TH NOVEMBER. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, when
Andrew Oliver, Esq., A.R.I.B.A., gave an_ illustrated
Lecture entitled ‘‘ A Ramble in Old London,” describing
many old buildings lying between Trafalgar Square and
the Tower, a large number of which no longer exist.

5TH DECEMBER. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall. Philip H.
Newman, Esq., F.S.A., R.B.A., F.R.S.L., gave a Lecture
upon ‘‘ Art Recollections of a Tour in Spain,” illustrated
by upwards of ninety slides prepared from Mr. Newman’s
own photographs.

In April last the Council forwarded to the Worshipful
Company of Leathersellers, a petition in favour of the preserva-
tion of the old Almshouses founded by the Rev. Abraham
Colfe, Vicar of Lewisham, 1610 to 1657. At the enquiry held
on ist December in the Town Hall, Catford, by the Charity
Commissioners, this Society was represented by Leland
L. Duncan, M.v.o., F.S.A., Vice-President, and by E. C.
Thurgood, Esq., member of Council, the former of whom gave
evidence. The Commissioner’s report has not yet been made
public; but the Council hope some scheme may be decided
upon which will ensure the retention of the old buildings,
‘which have been for 250 years a picturesque element in the
High Street of the Parish.”

The Council regrets the death during the year of the Rev.
J. Morlais Jones, formerly a Vice-President of the Society ; and
of James W. Ramsay, Esq., who for five years acted as
Honorary Auditor.

The number of Members now upon the roll of the Society
is 170.
The Council again desire to thank Ernest S. W. Hart, Esq.

for undertaking the management of the lantern at the Society’s
meetings.

(15)

The Treasurer’s Statement of Accounts will be laid before
the Society, and whilst satisfactory as showing a balance in
hand in favour of the Society, that balance is too small to allow
of any publications or other efforts for the good of the Society
being contemplated. The Council accordingly recommends to
the consideration of the Society whether it would not be
desirable to increase the annual subscription from 2s. 6d. to 5s.

EDWARD W. BRABROOK, President.
JOSEPH W. BROOKES, Hon. Secretary.

16th January, 1906.

Twenty=Second Annual Report, 1906.

During the past year eight meetings were held :—

a 16TH JANUARY. Annual General Meeting in the Parish Church

.. Hall. The President, Sir E. W. Brabrook, c.B.,-F.S.A.,

a etc., gave an address upon ‘‘ The Coming-of-Age of the
Lewisham Antiquarian Society.”

13TH FEBRUARY. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall Club
Room. A. E. Salter, Esq., p.sc., a member of the

7 Council, read a paper ‘‘ On the Evidence for the Great

Antiquity of Man in Northern Kent and Surrey,”’ which
was illustrated by maps, diagrams and specimens of flint
implements.

13TH Marcu. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall. Douglas
Strutt, Esq., member of Council, gave a Lecture upon
‘The Cathedrals of England and Wales,” illustrated by
lantern slides.

18tH May. Meeting in Essex, under the guidance of J. H.
Porter, Esg., member of Council, when Ingatestone,
Mountnessing, Margaretting, Fryerning, Blackmore and
Greenstead Churches were visited; also Ingatestone
Hall, and Blackmore House, known as ‘‘ Jericho.” At
the latter the members were entertained at tea by the
kindness of the owner, T. R. Hull, Esq.

16TH JUNE. Meeting at Westerham, arranged by Lewis C.
Thomson, Esq., member of Council, when by the kind-
ness of Lieut.-Col. Warde, Squerryes Court was visited ;
and afterwards the spacious Parish Church.

( 16 )

22ND SEPTEMBER. Meeting at Waltham, Essex, arranged by
Douglas Strutt, Esq., member of Council. The Abbey
Church of the Holy Cross was visited, under the guidance
of the Rev. J. H. Stamp, who afterwards conducted the
members to the remains of the monastery, and also to
the house of Mr. Cressy in Romeland, a fifteenth century
building known to have been visited by Cranmer, Fox
and Gardiner.

20TH NOVEMBER. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, when
the Rev. W. Chynoweth Pope gave a fully illustrated
Lecture entitled ‘‘ In the Italian Boot.”’

11TH DECEMBER. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall. Leland
L. Duncan, Esq., M.v.0., F.S.A., read a paper entitled
‘Church Notes in Kent,” dealing mainly with the wills
of Kentish folk in the sixteenth and seventeenth cen-
turies. The Lecture was illustrated by specially prepared
lantern slides from Mr, Duncan’s own photographs.

The thanks of the Society are again due to Mr. Ernest
Hart for kindly working the lantern.

In accordance with the notice given in the Council’s Report
for 1905, a Resolution was submitted to the Meeting held on
13th March, and passed unanimously, raising the annual
subscription payable by members of the Society, to five
shillings ; and the Council hopes shortly, by means of the
additional funds so obtained, to resume the publication of
occasional volumes of reports of the Proceedings of the Society.

The Council congratulates the Society on the success of the
efforts made to prevent the destruction of the Colfe Almshouses,
efforts to which the Society was able to give some assistance.
The amount required for the repair of the Almshouses has now
been raised, and it is expected that they will soon be put again
into a habitable condition.

During the past year the Society has been admitted an
Associated Society of the British Association, and was
represented at the Conference of Delegates at York in August
last by A. E. Salter, Esq., D.sc.

EDWARD W. BRABROOK, Preszdentz.
JOSEPH W. BROOKES, Hon. Secretary.

15th January, 1907.

%

(17)

Twenty=Third Annual Report, 1907.

The Council is glad to be able to report another successful |
year’s work. The meetings of the Society during 1907 were
nine in number :—

15TH JANUARY. Annual General Meeting held in the Parish
Church Hall. Sir E. W. Brabrook, c.B., v.pP.S.A., etc.,
President of the Society, read a paper upon ‘‘ The
Progress of Antiquarian Research up to and in the XIX
Century.” This paper has since been printed in the
“* Antiquary.”

19TH FEBRUARY. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, when
C. A. Spon, Esq., Hon. Treasurer of the Society, gave
an illustrated Lecture entitled ‘‘ A Visit to Cracow—the
Old Capital of Poland.”

12TH Marcu. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, when a
paper was read by George C. Druce, Esq., upon ‘‘ Animal
Sculptures in Church Architecture, and their meaning,”
which was illustrated by lantern slides.

16TH ApRiIL. Meeting in the Parish Church Hall. Lewis C.
Thomson, Esq., a member of the Council, read a paper
upon ‘‘ Early Man in Devon, with special reference to
Dartmoor,” with lantern views.

8tH May. Whole day Meeting in Tunbridge Wells and
neighbourhood, under the direction of J. H. Porter, Esq.,
a member of the Council, when the ruins of Bayham
Abbey, Scotney Castle, and Goudhurst Church were
visited ; descriptive notes being read by Mr. Porter.

8tH JuNE. Meeting at Otford, arranged by Lewis C.
Thomson, Esq., when the principal objects of interest
visited were the ruins of the former Palace of the Arch-
bishops of Canterbury, Becket’s Well, the ‘* Bull. Inn,”
built in 1650, and Otford Parish Church. Short papers
upon these buildings were read by Mr. Thomson.

5TH OcToBerR. A visit was paid to the Church and Crypt of St.
John’s, Clerkenwell, under the guidance of Mr. Church-
warden Fincham, who gave an interesting account of the
Knights Hospitallers of St. John; and to the Church of
St. Giles, Cripplegate, where the Rev. Prebendary Barff,
Vicar, kindly acted as guide.

19TH NOVEMBER. Meeting at the Parish Church Hall, when
Leland L. Duncan, Esq., M.v.0., F.S.A., a Vice-President
of the Society, gave a Lecture entitled ‘‘An Archeological
Holiday in Kent,” illustrated by specially prepared slides
from Mr. Duncan’s own photographs.

(18 )

10TH DECEMBER. Meeting at the Parish Church Hall, when
Lewis C. Thomson, Esq. lectured upon ‘‘A Glimpse of
Old Cornwall.” The illustrative slides were kindly lent
by Thurston Peter, Esq,

The thanks of the Society are due to Mr. E. S. W. Hart
and Mr. C. A. Spon for working the lantern at the evening
meetings.

In the Report for 1906 reference was made to the fact that
the sum required for the repair of the Colfe Almshouses had
been collected, and the Council now congratulates the
Worshipful Company of Leathersellers, the Members of this
Society, and the inhabitants of Lewisham generally, that the
picturesque old houses, which Lewisham could so ill afford to
lose, have been put into a state of efficient repair, and are again
occupied.

The hope expressed by the Council in 1904 that arrange-
ments might shortly be made for the publication in permanent
form of Mr. Duncan’s lecture upon ‘‘Old Lewisham,” has
hitherto been impossible of fulfilment owing to lack of funds.
The increase in the annual subscription, however, has now
enabled the Hon. Treasurer to accumulate a larger balance.
Moreover, during the past year the Council has been in con-
sultation with the Committee of the Lewisham Municipal
Association, which has voted a substantial grant towards the
object in view. The book is now in process of preparation by
Mr. Duncan, and the Council hopes to issue it, adequately
illustrated, to all Members of the Society within the present
year.

The number of members upon the roll of the Society is
now 124.

EDWARD BRABROOK, Preszdent.
JOSEPH W. BROOKES, Hon. Secretary.

14th January, 1908.

(19)

Copy of the Hudited Balance Sheets of the Lewisham Antiquarian
Society, from 1902 to 1907.

1902. £ s. de 1902. £-s. d.
Balance brought forward 18 18 3 | Printing... GEIS "EO
Subscriptions... .. 22 4 0 | Postage and Stationery Sieh a
Balance on Excursions .. 1 7 11 | Hire of Hall, ao of

Meetings, etc. woe 716" 10
Balance... si el) (Or 10
442 10 2 #42 10 2

1903. 4 s. d. 1903. 1B ay Gk
Balance brought forward 11 © 6 | Printing 29. 0
Subscriptions .. It 12 6 | Postage and Stationery _ 7 ape!
Sale of Periodicals ah 4 6 | Hire of Hall, partes © of

Meetings, etc. : 7oTS 2o

Loss on Excursions a 18

Balance... ae ee Tepe ko

422.17 6 #22 17 6

ee ———————————

1904, & s.d. i 1904. £ s. d.
Balance brought forward 5 17 10°, Printing... +e Seg 6
Subscriptions... 20 7 6 | Postage and Stationery Zim ie 9
Excursions = Ei II 10 Hie of Hall, Expenses of

Meetings, etc. on, Tle les: O

Purchase of Lantern ity GRT4Fe

| Balance... ...- ere: Sait he =

426 17 2 | 426 17 2

SSS ee

905. ws, g. | 1905: £s. d.
Ridacce brought seine 4 4 2 | Printing, etc. Gas

Subscriptions... 12 12 6 | Postage and Stationery OER |

Excursions rile .. 3 3 8 | Hire of Halland Expenses

of Meetings, etc. piebEOn OO

Balance .. j Aa) Ga 45 10

#20 0 4 $20 0 4

1906. 4 s. d. 1906.
Balance ... aoc 3s 3 4 6 | Printing, etc. :
Subscriptions oe .. 13 17 6 | Postage, Stationery, etc.
Excursions 215 9 | Hireof Halland Expenses
of Meetings, etc. ;
Donation to Colfe’s Alms-
houses
Balance
£19 17 9
ee SS eee
1907. aS: 1907.
Balance ce .. 3 6 o | Printing, ‘etc. j
Subscriptions —... .. 18 5 o | Postage and Stationery —
Excursions i. bits 8 6 | Hire of Halland Expenses
of Meetings, etc.
Balance :
421 19 6

Rules of the Society.

L Soma.
4. 2G
ia 190 4
S19) 05
2 26
3 1650
£19 17 9
L said.
210 to
215 79
Ss
719 8
£21 19 6

1. The objects of the Society are to study, and, as far as practicable,
to record Antiquities, with special regard to the Parish of Lewisham.

2. The Society: shall have for Officers :

twelve Members of the Council,

Treasurer, elected at the Annual Meeting in each year.

Honorary

Vice-Presidents, Honorary Secretary, Honorary Treasurer,

Members of the Council shall be eligible for re-election.

3. Members shall be elected by the Council.

and

a President, Vice-Presidents,
Secretary, and Honorary
The President,

nine

4. The Annual Subscription shall be 5s., payable on the rst January.
A Member may commute the 5s. for life, by payment of two guineas.

5. The Annual Meeting shall be held in January.

6. Rules may be altered or rescinded,

General Meetings called for the purpose by the Council,

and Members excluded, at

Diary

(21)

of Proceedings, 189721907.

Continued from the Volume of Proceedings, 1896, Page 12.

1897.

1808.

1899.

3rd April.

29th May.

7th Dec.

25th Jan.

22nd Feb.

22nd Mar.

14th May.
16th July.

15th Oct.

6th Dec.

3st Jan.

14th Mar.

Meeting at St. Bartholomew-the-Great,
Smithfield, under E. A. Wess, Esq.

Meeting at Pulborough and Hardham
Priory, under R. Garraway Rice, Esq.,
F.S.A.

Meeting in the Parish Church Hall, Lewis-
ham.—Lecture by A. R. Gopparp, Esq.,
on the Margate Grotto and its Shell
Mosaic.

Thirteenth General Meeting.—Address by
the President, P. W. Ames, Esq., F.S.A.,
on the Poetry and Science of Archeology;
and Exhibition of Objects of Antiquarian
Interest. ;

Papers by J. Lewis Anpr&, Esq., F.S.A., on
Heraldry in English Monumental Art ;
and by R. Garraway Rice, Esq., F.S.A.,
on the Capture of the Ship, ‘‘ St. Paul,”
in Cuckmere Bay, by a French Privateer,
in May, 1747.

Lecture by HERBERT JONES, Esq., F.S.A., on
the Excavations at Silchester.

Meeting at Southfleet, Kent.

Meeting at Horsham, under J. Lewis ANDRE,
Esq;, F.S.A.

Meeting at Norfolk College, Greenwich. —
Paper upon the College and its Founder,
the Earl of Northampton, by C. A.
BRADFORD, Esq.

Lecture by W. Srater, Esq., on the Abbeys
of England: their Rise and Fall.

Fourteenth General Meeting.—Lecture by
the President, P. W. Ames, Esq., F.S.A.,
on the Archeology of Egypt.

Papers on Mazes on Village Greens, by
W. E. BALL, Esq., LL.p.; on a View of
Ladywell, circa 1820, by C. A. BRADFORD,
Esq., F.R.S.L.; on the Round Towers of
Greece, by the President, Percy W.
AMES, F.S.A.; and on a Schedule of

1900.

Igol.

st July.
29th July.
5th Dec.

16th Mar.

24th Mar.
27th Mar.

21st April.
gth June.

23rd June.
2tst July.
13th Nov.

4th Dec.

12th Feb.

12th Mar.

4th May.
8th June.
17th Aug.
30th Nov.
3rd Dec.

(22)

Ancient Buildings in London for the
London County Council, by LeLanp L.
Duncan, Esq., F.5.A.

Meeting at Eltham, under OswaLD BARRON,
Esq.

Meeting at Tonbridge, under ALrrep L.
Harpy, Esq.

Paper on the Medicinal Wells of London,
with special reference to Sydenham.

Fifteenth Annual General Meeting.—Ad-
dress by R. GARRAWAY RICE, Esq, F.S.A.,
on Rambles of an Antiquary, in West
Sussex.

Meeting in the Chapel of St. Etheldreda,
Ely Place, and visit to the Soane Museum.

Lecture by P. M. Jounstone, Esq , on Low
Side Windows.

Visit to Newgate Prison.

Visit to Bexley, under ALFRED L. Harpy,
Esq...

Visit to St. Albans,
BROOKES, Esq.

Visit to Stone and Swanscombe, under H.
Sropes, Esq.

Lecture by Professor RoMesH DUTT, C.1.E.,
F.R.S.L., on the Great Indian Epics.

under JosEPH W.

"Lecture by WALTER SLATER, Esq., on the

Canterbury Pilgrims.

Sixteenth Annual General Meeting.—Ad-
dress by the President, Dr. W. E. BALt,
on Education in the First Centuries of the
Christian Era, and Notes on the Origin of
Universities.

Lecture by W. J. Harpy, Esq., entitled
‘‘English History on Parchment and
Paper.”

Visit to Knole House, Sevenoaks.

Visit to Penshurst Place.

Visit to Mote House, Ightham.

Visit to Gray's Inn, under Dr. W. E. BALL.

Lecture by H. C. Ricnarps, Esq., K.C.,
F.S.A., M.P., on Old London,

1902.

1903.

7th Jan.

28th Jan.

25th Feb.

11th Mar.

21st June.
12th Nov.

15th Nov.

27th Jan.

24th Feb.

1oth Mar.

4th April.

oth May.
6th June.

12th Nov.

“0 2a)

Paper by E. W. BRABROOK, Esq., C.B., F.S.Asy
on Medizval Lavatories ; and Lecture by
Georce C. Druce, Esq., on Fonts and
their Sculptures.

Seventeenth General Meeting.—Address by
Dr. W. E. Batt, President, on Under-
ground Greenwich.

Papers by A. R. GoppaRD, Esq., on Nine
Men’s Morris; HERBERT JONES, Esq.,§-S A.,
on the Roman Remains in Greenwich
Park; and Letanp L. DUNCAN, Esq,, F.S.A.5
on Glimpses of Lewisham in the 14th
Century.

Papers by LELAND L. Duncan, Esq., F.S.A.,
(1) on an attempt in 1614 to enclose West-
wood Common; (2) on an Unpublished
Letter to the Rev. Abraham Colfe, dated
1642; and (3) on an Action by the Rev.
Abraham Colfe, in 1653, to Recover Tithes.

Visit to Cobham Hall.

Lecture by A. D. WEBSTER, Esq., on Green-
wich Park.

Meeting at Greenwich, under GIFFORD
Hooper, Esq., and A. D. WEBSTER, Esq.

Eighteenth General Meeting. Lecture by
CHARLES WELCH, Esq,., Guildhall Librarian,
onthe Ancient Guilds of the City of London.

Paper by GEorGE C. DRUCE, Esq., on the
Catacombs of Rome.

Papers by H. CHETTLE, Esq, M.A., entitled
“Words”; and P. M. JOHNSTONE, Esq.,
upon the Wall Paintings in Claverley
Church.

Visit, under A. L. Harpy, Esq., to Crosby
‘Hall, and the Churches of St. Helen,
Bishopsgate, St. Andrew Undershaft, and
St. Olave, Hart Street.

Visit, under J. H. PoRTER, Esq., to Lingfield.

Visit, under GIFFORD Hooper, Esq., to
Merstham and Chaldon.

Papers by J. W. BROOKEs, Esq., on Samuel
Pepys and St. Olave’s, Hart Street; and
by HERBERT Jones, Esq., F.S.A., On the
Roman Remains at Caerwent, Silchester,
and the Site of Newgate Prison,

1904.

1905.

8th Dec.

26th Jan.

23rd Feb.

22nd Mar.
12th April.
11th June.

gth July.

29th Oct.

15th Nov.

13th Dec.

17th Jan.

14th Feb.
14th Mar.
6th May.

3rd June.

2oth June.

30th Sept.
7th Nov.

( 24 )

Paper by LrEonarp May, Esq., on the
Architecture of our Parish Churches.

Nineteenth General Meeting.—Dr. W. E.
BALL, President, read a paper on the Con-
nection of Lewisham and Greenwich with
Flanders.

Address by Letanp L. Duwcan, Esq.,
M.V.O., F.S.A., on Lewisham and Black-
heath in days gone by.

Address by H. Jones, Esq., F.s.A., on the
Roman Wall from Newcastle to Carlisle.

Lecture by Dovucias Strutt, Esq., on
Constantinople.
Meeting at Guildford, under DouGLas

Srrutt, Esq.

Meeting at Chislehurst, under E. A. WEBB,
Esq., F.S.A.

Visit, “under A. L. Harpy, Esq., to ime
Churches of St. Magnus and St. Dunstan-
in the-East, and the Hall of the Bakers’
Company, etc.

LELAND L. Duncan, Esq., M.V.O., F.S.A.,
repeated his Lecture upon Old Lewisham
and Blackheath.

Lecture by R. GARRAWAY RICcE, Esq., F.S.A.,
on the City of York, and some fine
Ironwork at Hampton Court.

Twentieth General Meeting.—Lecture by
GILBERT H. LOVEGROVE, Esq., on West-
minster Abbey.

Lecture, entitled ‘‘ Pictures in Ecclesiastical
Architecture,” by GEorcE C. Druce, Esq.

Lecture by Leonarp M. May, Esq., on
English Monumental Brasses.

Meeting at Brasted and Sundridge, under
J. H. Porter, Esq.

Meeting at West Wickham and Hayes.

Whole Day Meeting at Maidstone, under
F. W. Nunn, Esq.

Meeting in Southwark Cathedral.

Lecture by ANDREW OLIVER, Esq., F.R.I.B.A.,
entitled ‘‘A Ramble in Old London,”

5th Dec.

1906.

13th Feb.

13th Mar.
18th May.
16th June.
22nd Sept.
2oth Nov.

11th Dec.

1907.

1gth Feb.

12th Mar.

16th April.
8th May.
8th June.
5th Oct.

1gth Nov.

1oth Dec.

16th Jan.

15th Jan.

(25)

Lecture by Puitip H. NEwMAN, Esq., F.S.A.,
R.B.A., F.R.S.L., ‘Art Recollections of a
Tour in Spain.”

Twenty-first General Meeting.—Lecture on
‘‘The Coming of Age of the Lewisham
Antiquarian Society,” by the President,
Sir E. W. BRABROOK, C.B., F.S.A.

Lecture by Dr. A. E. Satter, ‘‘The Anti-
quity of Man in Northern Kent and
Surrey.”

Lecture on ‘‘The Cathedrals of England
and Wales,” by Douc.as Strutt, Esq.
Meeting at Ingatestone and other places in

Essex, under J. H. Porter, Esq.

Meeting, under L. C. THomson, Esq., at
Westerham.

Meeting, under DoucLas Strutt, Esq., at
Waltham, Essex.

Lecture by the Rev. W. CHYNOWETH POPE,
entitled ‘‘In the Italian Boot.”

Lecture, entitled ‘‘Church Notes in Kent,”
by LeLanp L. Duncan, Esq., M.V.0., F.S.A.

Twenty-second General Meeting.—Lecture,
by Sir E. W. BRABROOK, C.B., F.S.A., On
‘‘The Progress of Antiquarian Research.”’

Lecture by C. A. Spon, Esq., on ‘‘A Visit
to Cracow.”

Paper, by Grorce C. Druce, Esq., on
“Animal Sculptures in Church Archi-
tecture.”

Paper, on ‘‘Early Man in Devon,” by Lewis
C. THomson, Esq.

Whole day meeting in Tunbridge Wells and
neighbourhood, under J. H. Porter, Esq.

Meeting, under L. C. THomson, Esq., at
Otford.

Visit to the Churches of St. John, Clerken-
well and St. Giles, Cripplegate.

Lecture by LELAND L. Duncan, Esq., M.V.0.,
F.S.A., entitled ‘An Archeological Holiday
in Kent.”

Lecture, ‘‘A Glimpse of Old. Cornwall,” by
L. C. THomson, Esq.

( 26 )

Dist of Members.

Ames, PERcy W., Esq., LL.D., F.S.A., 71 Lewisham Park.
AMEs, Mrs. P. W., 71 Lewisham Park.

ARNOLD,, FRANK T., Esq., 82 London Street, Greenwich.
ATKINS, FREDERIC, Esq., 7 Slaithwaite Road.

AVEBURY, LORD, 6 St. James’ Square, S.W.

BAKER-BEALL, CHARLES H., Esq., 30 Manor Park, Brockley.

BALL, WILLIAM E., Esq., LL.D., Chartfield Cottage, The Chart, Brasted.

BALL, Mrs. W. E., Chartfield Cottage, The Chart, Brasted.

BANNEHR, WILLIAM J., Esq., 7 Glensdale Road, Brockley.

BANNERMAN, W. BRUCE, Esq., F.S.A., The Lindens, Sydenham Road, Croydon.

BarR, Miss JESSIE A., 12 Lewisham Park.

BATTYE, Miss, 1 Albacore Crescent.

BELL, JOSEPH M., Esq., 380 High Street.

BELSHAW, EDWARD, Esq., 1.S.0., 49 Lee Terrace, Blackheath.

BIDDISCOMBE, J. R., Esq., Elmington, 91 Eltham Road, Lee.

BLANDFORD, W. FFOLLIOTT, Esq., 35 Gunterstone Road, West Kensington,
S.W.

BRABROOK, Sir EDWARD W., C.B., F.S.A., V.P.A.1., V.P.R.S.L., 178 Bedford Hill,
Balham, S.W.

BRADFORD, CHARLES A., Esq., F.S.A., 4 Park Place, S.W.

Bristow, The Rev. Canon, M.A., St. Olave'’s, Eliot Park.

BROOKES, JOSEPH W., Esq., Pembroke Lodge, Slaithwaite Road.

BROOKES, Mrs. J. W., Pembroke Lodge, Slaithwaite Road.

Brown, Ernest D. H., Esq., 49 Sandrock Road.

BYRNE, JOHN M., Esq., Bracklyn, Bromley Road, Catford.

CoLLeTT, ALBERT J., Esq., L.D.s., 181 Hither Green Lane, Lewisham.
Co.tteTT, Mrs. A. J., 181 Hither Green Lane, Lewisham.
Crapp, WILLIAM A., Esq., 35 Westmount Road, Eltham.

Danpo, Miss ANN, 31 Crescent Road, Brockley.

DaRTMOUTH, The Right Hon. The EArt OF, 37 Charles Street, W.
Davis, Henry T., Esq., 115 Lewisham Road.

DEVERELL, FREDERICK H., Esq., 7 Grote’s Place, Blackheath.
DeEwick, JOsEPH, Esq., 59 Clarendon Road.

DEwIck, Miss, 1 Dartmouth Grove, Blackheath.

DEwIck, Miss KATHERINE, 59 Clarendon Road.

DOoBELL, Mrs., Sherard House, Eltham.

Dopp, Percy, Esq., Lulworth, Eastern Road, Brockley.

DovceE, Rev. WILLIAM, B.A., St. Stephen's Vicarage, Tabard Street, S.E.
DREW, ALFRED C., Esq., St. Andrew's, Lingards Road.

Duncan, LELAND L., Esq., M.V.0., F.S.A., Rosslair, Lingards Road.

( 27)

Eames, Rev. JOHN, M.A., The Briars, Lingards Road.
EarL, S., Esq., Grassmount, Queen's Road, Forest Hill.
EMMERSON, Mrs. J., 55 Court Hill Road,

FOUNTAIN, FREDERICK, Esq., 44 Crooms Hill, Greenwich.

GALZINI, Mrs., 10 Rosenthal Road, Catford.

GLOVER, Miss A. C., 20 Limes Grove.

GODFREY, WALTER H., Esq., 8 Glebe Place, Chelsea, S.W.
GOODCHILD, Miss E. M., 67 Tyrwhitt Road, Brockley.
GorRDON, Mrs., 9 St. Germans Place, Blackheath.

Guy, ALBERT L., Esq., A.R.1.B.A., Rostrevor, Lewisham Park.

Harpy, ALFRED L., Esq., 4o Tyrwhitt Road, Brockley.

Harpy, Epwarb, Esq., L.c.P., Bloomfield House, Bromley Road, Catford.
HaAsLeuorst, A. C., Esq., 72 Burnt Ash Hill, Lee.

Hiscox, ARTHUR W., Esgq., 23 Slaithwaite Road.

Hitcucock, WALTER M., Esq., Mayfield, Orchard Road, Blackheath.
HopGeEtTtTs, WILLIAM, Esq., F.R.S.L., 16 Manor Park, Lee.

Houmes, T. VINCENT, Esq., F.G.S., 28 Crooms Hill, Greenwich.

HouGu, Rev. Canon WILLIAM W., The Vicarage.

HUMPHREYS, JOHN H., Esq., 107 Algernon Road.

JONES, HERBERT, Esq., F.S.A., 42 Shooters Hill Road, Blackheath.

KarLowa, Mrs., The Hollies, 39 Avenue Road.

KENNEDY, ARTHUR, Esq., 78 Tyrwhitt Road, Brockley.

Keys, RoserT S., Esq., Wharncliffe, 237 Devonshire Road, Honor Oak Park.
KIBBLE, Miss, The Laurels, Ravensbourne Park, Catford.

KiBBLE, Miss A., The Laurels, Ravensbourne Park, Catford.

KirsBy, HERBERT C., Esq., The Hollies, Copthorne, Sussex.

Lewis, Major H. Duncan, Llanwarne, Belmont Park, Lee.

Lewis, Percy P., Esq., 41 Manor Park, Lee.

LICHFIELP, The LorpD BISHOP OF, D.D., The Palace, Lichfield.

Loncspon, Rev. W. Hook, M.A., The Vicarage, St. Andrew's, Stockwell, S.W.
Lucas, FRANK W., Esq., M.A., B.SC., Ferndale, Westcombe Park, Blackheath.

McEwen, Hucu D., Esq., 24 Lanier Road.

McPualit, AnGus, Esq., 6 Weigall Road, Lee.

McPualtt, Mrs. A., 6 Weigall Road, Lee.

Major, JOSEPH M., Esq., 213 High Street.

May, LEONARD M., Esq., 60 Shooters Hill Road, Blackheath.
MERCER, WILLIAM J., Esq., 12 Marine Terrace, Margate,
MOFFETT, H., Esq., 3 Marlborough Road, Lee.

Morris, Miss, 59A Algiers Road.

Mote, FRED, Esq., M.A., LL.B., 17 Lansdown Road, Lee.

( 28 )
OXENHAM, Epwarp H., Esgq., F.R.S.L., Keston, Rushey Green, Catford.

PAKEMAN, Miss Mary, 2 Morley Road.

PORTER, JAMES H., Esq., 103 High Road, Lee.
PORTER, Mrs. J. H., tog High Road, Lee.
POWELL, CHARLES, Esq., 70 Brockley Road, S.E.

Rice, R. GARRAWAY, Esq., F.S.A., 23 Cyril Mansions, Prince of Wales
Road, S.W.

RICHARDSON, PERCY, Esq., 50 Oxford Gardens, W.

RICHARDSON, PERCY, Esq., 163 Algernon Road, Lewisham.
RUCKER, FREDERICK G., Esq., 4 Vanbrugh Terrace, Blackheath.
Rupp, ROBERT W., Esq., Queen’s Road, Clock House, Beckenham.
Rupp, Mrs. R. W., Queen's Road, Clock House, Beckenham.

SADLER, FRANK, Esq., 18 Boyne Road.

SAUNDERS, JAMES E., Esq., J.P., F.S.A., F.G.S., F.L.S., Chelvistone, Eltham
Road, Lee.

SAUNDERS, MARTIN L., Esq., A.R.1.B.A., 13 Blessington Road, Lee.

SINKLER, EDWARD C., Esq., 55 Clarendon Road.

Spon, CHARLES A., Esq., 5 Blandford Road, St. Albans.

STAINES, ARTHUR J., Esq., 50 Vicar’s Hill.

STILES, Mrs. F. M., 35 Westmount Road, Eltham.

STONE, JOHN M., Esq., M.A., 5 St. Germans Place, Blackheath.

STONE, GEORGE, Esq., 6 Dermody Gardens. ;

STONE, Miss FLORENCE, 6 Dermody Gardens.

STRAW, EDWIN H., Esq., Eweline, Bromley Road, Catford.

TuHomson, LEwis C., Esq., 2 Granville Park.
THURGOOD, ERNEST C., Esq., 223 High Street.

WATERER, W. J., Esq., 185 Upper Thames Street.

Watts, J. NIxon, Esq., 32 St. Margaret's Square, Brockley.

WEEKES, Miss Mary, 2 Eliot Cottages, Blackheath.

WHEELEY, ARTHUR T., Esq., 29 Medusa Road, Catford.

WHITE, W. LLEWELLYN, Esq., 22 High Street.

WICKHAM, WILLIAM, Esq., Swiss Cottage, Dacre Park, Lee.

WITHERDEN, Mrs., 2 Morley Road.

WRIGHT, EDMUND H., Esq., Hunmanby, Coper’s Cope Road, New Beckenham

LEWISHAM CHURCH, PRIOR TO THE REBUILDING IN 1774.

From a water-colour sketch in the possession of H. T. Woop, Esg., of Hollington, Sussex.

history

of the

Borough of Lewisham,

With an 3tinerary,

by

Leland LZ. Duncan,

M.V.0., F.S5.A.

With Chapters on the Geology of the District by
W. h. Griffin,

and

On the Local Authorities by A. Wi. Hiscox,
sometime Mayor of the Borough.

Printed and Published by Charles Worth, The Blackheath Press, London, 9.E-

1908.

Preface.

HE story of Lewisham and Lee which is the
subject of the following pages has been set
forth with a double object. First and fore-
most it is an outcome of a desire on the part
of the members of the Lewisham Municipal

Association and the Lewisham Antiquarian Society to interest

their fellow-townsmen in. the place in which they live, and,

secondly, it seemed very desirable that the many changes which
have taken place in the district within the last half-century
should be placed on record in’ a handy form.

The very large increase in population within the Borough
area during the above period, with the consequent building of
new streets, has tended to obscure the historical interest of the
place, whilst the ever-absorbing power of London has robbed
the neighbourhood of any local feeling which once prevailed.
That the claims of its history will ever by themselves rekindle
that local feeling is not of course to be looked for, but they
may play their part, and it is with that hope that this book
has been prepared.

The outline of the history of the Manors of Lewisham and
Lee and the subsidiary’manors within the area of the Borough
given by HASTED (Drake’s edition) necessarily forms the ground-
work of the first portion of the historical sections, but this has
been developed by adding details of the local life and institu-
tions from the Court Rolls and Rentals of the Manor, from
the Assize Rolls and other documents in the Public Record
Office.

Vili PREFACE.

The manorial history alone cannot, however, be made to
tell the story of each part of the Borough, and an Itinerary
was therefore devised as being the best means of dealing in a
sequence easily followed with the particular history of each
locality. The plan selected is that of a walk from Blackheath
to Bromley Hill, with necessary deviations to Lee, Hither Green,
Brockley, Perry Hill, and Sydenham.

Lewisham a little over half-a-century ago consisted of the
villas round Blackheath, a few shops and cottages in the High
Street, interspersed with larger houses standing in their own
grounds, and small hamlets at Perry Hill, Sydenham and
Southend. There were practically no side roads to the High
Street, which was unpaved, and the stream with the elm trees
on its banks down the western side gave it a rural appearance
not without points of beauty. Lee was a parish of parks and
farms, the houses being mostly grouped in the Old Road and
at Lee Green. The Itinerary tells the story of the gradual
change to the busy town of to-day, and will, it is hoped, give
a fresh interest to the place even to the dwellers in the newest
roads.

The section dealing with the Geology of the district has
been kindly contributed by Mr. W. H. GRIFFIN, Hon. Secretary
of the Catford and District Natural History Society, who has
made the subject a special study. Few dwellers in the neigh-
bourhood are aware how full of interest it is from a geological
point of view, and how close at hand many of the problems of
physiography can be studied.

After the decay of the manorial system came the gradual
rise of the present Local Authorities, whose history is told by
Mr. A. W. HISCOX, sometime Mayor of the Borough, on behalf
of the Lewisham Municipal Association. The number of
authorities having jurisdiction within the Borough is bewilder-
ing even to those fairly well acquainted with such matters.
This section of the book will, it is hoped, tend to a greater
knowledge of, and interest in, the work of these bodies which
touch the daily life of the community at every point. In

PREFACE. ix

drawing up this chapter Mr. Hiscox had the advantage of
access to an exhaustive manuscript dealing with the subject,
compiled by Mr. H. Mott, Clerk to the Guardians.

It is a pleasant duty to record here the help given in
arranging the Itinerary. The recollections of Lewisham about
1840 sent me by HENRY WOOD, Esq., now of Hollington, and
Mrs. DOBELL, of Eltham, form the groundwork of the story
of the High Street, whilst many of Mr. Wood’s photographs
taken about 1856-60 are reproduced in the illustrations. To
HAROLD C. LEWIN, Esq., Steward of the Manor of Lewisham,
I am indebted for much valuable information regarding the
manorial property, the old fields, and the Inclosure Award of
1810. He was also instrumental in bringing to light much
entirely new matter regarding the Manors of Lee, Bankers, and
Shroffold. The WorRsIIIPFUL COMPANY OF LEATHERSELLERS
kindly allowed access to their records and to an interesting
map of their Lewisham trust property at Perry Hill and Lower
Sydenham, dated 1723. To the VICAR and CHURCHWARDENS
I am indebted for access to the Tithe Books and Map of the
Parish of Lewisham dated 1845, whilst the BOROUGH AUTHORI-
TIES at the Town Hall have been ever ready to answer any
enquiries. My special thanks are also due to W. H. NUNN, Esq.,
of Lee, who very kindly photographed many of the engravings
reproduced in these pages; to J. CABBAN, Esq., for permitting
copies to be taken from the Kadwell collection in his possession ;
and to other friends who have assisted with information or sug-
gestions.

In dealing with a mass of facts, names and dates such as
are contained in the Itinerary, it is too much to hope that no
inaccuracies will be found, although every effort has been made
to verify all statements. I would ask that any necessary cor-
rections may be sent to me in order that a record may be
kept of them for future editions.

One more word. It was of the essence of the scheme
under which this book has been published that its price should
bring it within the reach of all. The number of pages had

x PREFACE.

therefore to be limited, and exigencies of space have forbidden
any elaboration. I would ask my fellow townsmen’s indulgence
if, in my desire to leave as few spots in the Borough unnamed
as possible, the result seems more like a catalogue than a
readable history.

LELAND L. DUNCAN.
LEWISHAM.

1908.

Authorities

In addition to those referred to above.

Hasted’s History of Kent: Hundred of Blackheath. "Edited by
H. H. Drake.

Court Rolls of the Manor of Lewisham (Edward I, II, III, and
Henry V). Public Record Office, 5554

SiMe jit |
Rental of the Manor (Edward II). Public Record Office, Rental
No. 360.

Court Rolls of Lee, Bankers, and Shroffold. Messrs. Newton,
Lewin & Levett.

Wills of Former Residents, 1440 to 1600. Rochester Consistory
Court and Prerogative Court of Canterbury at Somerset
House.

Plan of Lewisham, taken from JOHN RocQueE’s Survey, 1741 to 1745.
History of Lee. By F. H. Hart, 1882.

Bulletins de l Académie Royale des Sciences et Belles Lettres de
Bruxelles, 1842 (Tome ix, 1" partie).

Messager des Sciences Historiques de Belgique, 1842. Precis anali-
tiques des documents historiques concernant les relations de
ancien comté de Flandre avec l’Angleterre, conservés aux
archives de la Flandre Orientale. Par JuLes DE SAINT
GENOIS.

Contents.

PART /.
THE GEOLOGY OF LEWISHAM AND THE
NEIGHBOURHOOD.
SeHAPLER PAGE
Il. Tue ‘‘Souip” GEOLOGY = = = - = I
I]. Tue SUPERFICIAL GEOLOGY - = = oe oe 8
PART 71.

THE HISTORY OF THE BOROUGH.
I. Earty Hisrory to A.D. 1300 - - - - 17

ll. Tue FourtTEENTH AND FIFTEENTH CENTURIES - 28

Ill. From THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY TO THE PRESENT
TIME - - - - - = = = 39

PART //1.
AN ITINERARY OF THE BOROUGH.

1. From BLACKHEATH TO THE CLOCK TOWER - - 57

I]. AN IrineRARY THROUGH LEE - - - - 85

11]. From tHe Crock Tower To THE VICARAGE - 96
IV. Tue Vicarace, Lapywett, BRocKLEY AND HONOR

Oak = > 2 = a - = = 108

-V. Tue Parish Cuurcn to RusSHEY GREEN” - - 118

VI. Carrorp, Perry Hitt anp Forest Hitt - - 140

_ VII. SypenHam~ - = 2 < = = x - 148

VIII. SanGLey, BELLINGHAM AND SOUTHEND - - 153

PART IV.
OUR LOCAL AUTHORITIES. 157

eee Cs rah me pate ae
den ; i sigs : S = A he *

Dist of Fllustrations.

NotTe.—The blocks of illustrations marked * have been lent by the Abraham
Colfe Club, the remainder (except 48) have been provided at the

expense of the Lewisham Municipal Association.

Plate Page
Lewisham Church, prior to1774. From a copy, in the possession
- of H. T. Wood, Esq., of a water-colour drawing formerly in
the Beresford Hope Collection®* ... ode ep Frontispiece
1. Section of Thanet Sand in Belmont Hill. From a photograph ... 3
2. Section of Woolwich Beds at Belmont Hill. From a photograph 4
3. Fossilized Bones found on the Forster Estate at Catford. From
a photograph 9
4. Bones and Flint Implements from the Upper Ravensbourne
Valley. From a photograph 11
5. Eoliths from Flood-drift at Belmont Hill. From a photograph 15
6. View of a Water Mill at Lewisham. From an engraving
published by Carrington Bowles, 1777. From a copy in
possession of J. Cabban, Esq. Pi a ee nad 23
7. Map of Lewisham, 1745. From the Survey by John Rocque® ... 41
8. Record in the handwriting of the Rev. Abraham Colfe of the
Opening of the Grammar School, 1652. From the original
in the Library of Colfe’s Grammar School* 43
g. View of Rushey Green (Vue sur le Boulingrin de Rushy en
Kent). From an engraving published by Carrington Bowles,
1771. Add. MS. British Museum, 31979, fol. 236* 45
10. A View at Lewisham. Published by Carrington Bowles, 1770.
From a copy in possession of C. A. Bradford, Esq. ... 47
11. Ditto, ditto we qu oe sae td 49
12. A View of Blackheath, looking towards Lewisham. From an
} engraving by J. Course, ¢. 1750. From a copy in possession
of the Lewisham Antiquarian Society * : “fs 5!
13. A View of Blackheath by Moonlight. From an engraving
published by Carrington Bowles, 1770, in possession of the
Author* ia oo 35
14. View on Blackheath. From an etching by S. Prout, 1815, in
. possession of the Author™* sus as ny 59
15. View of Blackheath. From ‘‘ Blackheath, a Poem,” by Noble,
1810* .., ‘NG aes Sek as ar “nd Re 63
16. The Seat of the late Sir Gregory Page at Blackheath. From an
éngraving published by Harrison & Co., May rst, 1783 65

xiv ILLUSTRATIONS.
Plate Page
17. View from Lewisham Hill, looking towards Lee. From a drawing

by T. M. Baynes, printed by C. Hullmandel and published

by D. Walther, Brydges Street, Covent Garden, 1823"... 67

18. View from Lewisham Hill. From Noble's Poem on Blackheath,
LGIO™ sere aoe oe oss HS ye de. wes = 69

19. The Gravel Pits at the top of Lewisham Hill. From a drawing
by T. M. Baynes, printed by C. Hullmandel and published
by D. Walther, Brydges Street, Covent Garden, 1823* ... 71

20. View from Lewisham Hill. Ditto* ... ve woe ove aa 73

21. Colfe’s Grammar School, Garden Front, 1887. Showing part of
the House as erected by the Rev. Abraham Colfe, 1652.
From a photograph* Ce Mee: ee cz eae va 75

22. Colfe’s Grammar School, 1831. From the Frontispiece to the
Catalogue of the Library, by W. H. Black, 1831*_... ee 75

23. The ‘‘ Plough” Inn, about 1820. From a painting engraved in
the ‘‘ London and County Journal” diel ane ae e 76

24. The ‘‘ Plough” Inn, about 1840. From a water-colour drawing
in the possession of W. H. Nunn, Esq.... 500 baa ie aE

25. The ‘‘Old Roebuck” and the Plough Green. From a drawing
by J. R. Bowring, dated 1810, now in the possession of
Mrs. Stephen Williams, Penrally, Rhayader, Radnorshire* 78

26. The ‘** Roebuck” Inn, about 1830. From a billhead in possession
of W. H. Nunn, Esq. op a oe ie Pe se 79

27. Old Lewisham Bridge, looking towards Loampit Vale. From a
drawing by J. R. Bowring, dated 9th September, 1810, now
in the possession of Mrs. Stephen Williams* . . as a 80

28. View of Messrs. Lee’s House, &c., Loam Pit Hill, Kent, 1824.
From a lithograph by C. T. Cracklow, Surveyor, 1 Crane

Court, Fleet Street, in possession of the Author oe ete 82
29. The Cage, Lewisham, about 1840. From a sketch published in

the ‘‘ London and County Journal,” 19th January, 1895 _... 84
30. The Stocks, Lewisham. Ditto Lee ae Bee =o ae 84

31. Lee Bridge House. From an old photograph in possession of
W. H. Nunn, Esq. ... x oe aac a +3 86

32. ‘Lee Grove” (‘‘The Cedars”). From a drawing by T. J.
Rawlins, lithographed by R. Martin and published in
Greenwood's ‘‘ Epitome of the History of Kent,” 1838... 388

33. Lee Rectory and Church, 1841. From an engraving published
by Geo. Childs, 12 Amwell Street, Claremont Square eae 89

34. The Old Church, Lee, North Side. From a_ water-colour
drawing, about 1800, in possession of the Author _... oes go

35: Lee Church. From an engraving published id by S. Wood-
burn, 112 St. Martin's Lane, London _... , 6 ae gt

ILLUSTRATIONS. xv
Plate ‘ Page
36. Boone’s Old Almshouses, High Road, Lee. From a photograph 93

37- The Seat of the late Lord Dacre, Lee. From an engraving by
R. Newman ... tie nd ay es at se ie 94

38. Mr. Allen’s House, High Street, Lewisham. From an old photo-
graph in possession of the late Mrs. Whomes.. cae a 96

39. Mr. William Allen's House, on site of Avenue Road, Lewisham.
A pencil sketch from memory, by H. T. Wood, Esq. so 97

40. College Farm House, about 1860. From a water-colour sketch
in possession of the late Mr. Clark, the last occupant se 98

41. The Old ‘‘White Hart” Inn, about 1870. From a photograph 99

42. Old Houses near the ‘‘ White Hart.” From a photograph by the
Author... a “As oes re ies ee ag Es 100

43. ‘‘The Limes.” From an engraving in the ‘‘ Youths’ Instructor,”
ite Thaemter aa ae Ass ae es ite er Fac hanaiie (1

44. The High Street, Lewisham, opposite Morley Road. From a
photograph by H. T. Wood, Esq., taken about 1860 a LOR

45. Old Gabled House on the site of the Congregational Church,
Lewisham High Street. From drawings from memory by
H. T. Wood, Esq., and Mrs. Dobell ... = ts a 105

46. Owen's Shop, 304 High Street, Lewisham, about 1840. From a
water-colour drawing in possession of Mr. Robert Patch,
engraved in the ‘‘London and County Journal” for 15th
December, 1894 ___... Je nen as ade ane 7 TOO

47. Lewisham House, about 1890. From a photograph evs 1s Ha)

48. Ladywell. From a drawing by Henry Warren, lithographed
by C. Hullmandel and published in a series of views of the
Ravensbourne. The block has been kindly lent by the

publishers of the ‘‘ Home Counties Magazine” ot AE RL
49. Ladywell Bridge, about 1810. From a sketch in possession of

H. T. Wood, Esq. ... tae “hs Sh: eae ate Soe 0 v.58
50. Ladywell Bridge and Vicar's Hill, eh From a photograph by

H. T. Wood, Esq. ... ons ee = =f ee eee
51. Ladywell Mage tj about ae From a painting by Mr. David

Brown .. #5 as Ae 455 As: sha dang LES

52. The “Brockley Jack” Inn, From a photograph in possession of

W. H. Nunn, Esq. ... 4G ae = “7 a Ps ae ey.

53. View of the High Street from the Parish Church southwards,
about 1860. Froma photograph by H. T. Wood, Esq. ... 122

54. Mr. Pilcher’s House (lately Weatherley's), No. 313 High Street,
Lewisham. From a photograph by H. T. Wood, Esq.,
about 1860... a a ae is ant - ca Ea

Cottages formerly opposite St. Mary's Church. From a photo-
graph by H. T. Wood, Esq., about 1860 ec See Za naa

mn
<b

69.

I
ty

ILLUSTRATIONS.

Colfe’s Almshouses. From a photograph by Rowland L. Hewitt,
Esq. * ae = a Boe erg

Mr. Woodham’s House, High Street (now No. 394). From a
photograph by H. T. Wood, Esq., about 1857 oes

Exchequer Place, High Street, Lewisham. From a photograph

View of the High Street, near the ‘‘George” Inn, about 1870.
From a photograph Bi

View of Mount Pleasant House, the Seat of Abraham Constable,
Esq., 1825. From a lithograph in possession of the Author

‘‘ The Maples,” at the corner of George Lane, about 1830. From
a drawing by C. Burton, lithographed by P. Simonau, and
published by C. T. Cracklow, Surveyor, 1 Crane Court,
Fleet Street, in possession of the Author

The ‘‘Elm Tree” Inn, formerly near the Pound, High Street.
From a photograph és

““The Priory Farm,” Rushey Green. From a photograph in
possession of the Author ...

The Lawn View of ‘‘The Priory,” Lewisham. From a litho-
graph published by C. T. Cracklow, aba be 1 Crane
Court, Fleet Street, about 1835 F sis

Catford Bridge, about 1835. From a drawing

Place House, Catford, about 1810. From a wash drawing.
British Museum, Add. MS. 31,979, fol. 234

Place House, Catford. From a drawing by J. C. Barrow, F.s.A.,
engraved by G. J. Parkyns, and published 1791

Perry Hill House (Manor House). From a drawing by J.
Brandard, lithographed by R. Martin, and published by
Greenwood in the ‘‘ Epitome of the History of Kent,” 1838...

The Dwelling of Alexander Roberts, at Sydenham Wells. From
an engraving by T. Bonnor, about 1780, in possession of
the Author

The Back of the ‘Greyhound ” Inn, Sydenham, with the Canal,

July, 1818. Froma pencil sketch in Add. MS. 31,979, fol. 233,
British Museum .e an ;

View on the Sydenham Canal. From an engraving by L.
Lightfoot, in the possession of J. Cabban, Esq.

View at Southend. From an engraving published by Carrington
Bowles, 1770, in possession of J. Cabban, Esq.

BRITISH
MUSEUM

5 “DEC 21

“TURAL
, STO RY.

146

149

The Borough of Lewisham.

PART I.

The Geology of Lewisham and the Weigbbourbood.

By W. H. GrirrFin,
Hon. Secretary Catford and District Natural History Society.

HERE is a general impression that no locality
can possess interesting geological features in the
absence of exposed masses of fossiliferous rocks.
This is quite erroneous. Fossils are interesting
objects, and, moreover, they assist in determining
the geological position of the rocks which contain

them ; but, apart from fossils, the acquisition of some knowledge

of the manner in which the present surface configuration of any
locality has been brought about, and of the nature of the under-
lying beds, is a fascinating pursuit.

No metropolitan suburb affords better facilities for such a
pursuit than Lewisham and the neighbourhood.

Although we strongly believe in studying objects rather than
relying entirely upon information gleaned from books; neverthe-
less, books are indispensable as tools to work with, and the
following will be found useful to those who determine to study the
geology of this district :—

(1) Huxley’s ‘‘Physiography,” an eminently readable book,

dealing especially with the London basin and the
Thames valley.
(2) Whitaker’s ‘‘Geology of London,” in two vols., price 11s.
(3) Whitaker’s ‘‘Guide to the Geology of London and the
Neighbourhood.” A useful little handbook, price ts.

(4) The last edition of Sir Charles Lyell’s ‘‘Students' Elements

of Geology,” edited by Professor Judd.

(5) Jukes-Browne’s ‘‘ Building of the British Isles.”

(6) Sheet Four of the ‘‘Geological Drift Map of the London

District,” price 1s. 6d.

There are two methods in which the geology of a stated.
locality may be dealt with: from the surface downwards, or from
below upwards. For the present purpose the latter will be the
more convenient.

2 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

CHAPTER I.

THE ‘‘So.ip” GEOLOGY.

HE lowest formation exposed in our district is the
chalk which is the uppermost member of the
; Cretaceous system, that system again concluding
NEF) the*Secondary or Mesozoic Geological Period. A
greyish mud is now in course of deposition on
the floor of the North Atlantic which is known as
the Globegerina ooze, the Globegerine being a large genus of the
order Foraminifera. Probably this ooze will in some long distant
future constitute the chalk formation of a yet unborn continent.

Although most of the neighbouring chalk is protected by the
overlying Lower Tertiary beds, which will be presently described,
it is doubtful whether any of it represents the original uppermost
zone. In Mr. Whitaker’s ‘‘Guide” mentioned above it is stated
that the greatest thickness of chalk disclosed by well-borings near
London is 685ft. at Bushey. At Margate a thickness of 7o04ft. has
been bored through. We believe that at Dover it reaches 1,oooft.
It has been estimated that the Globegerina ooze is now being
deposited at the rate of a foot in a hundred years. If the chalk
was deposited at the same rate, then 100,000 years was occupied
in the deposition.

Many theories have been suggested in regard to the origin
of the noduiar flints which occur in bands in the upper chalk.
Let it be premised that water charged with carbon-dioxide derived
from the atmosphere is a powerful soivent. All rivers are con-
tinually carrying to the sea mineral matter of various descriptions
held in solution. Carbonate of lime is one such mineral, and with
it the Foraminifera form their shells. Silica is another mineral
which is used by the Radiolaria, another order of microscopic
Protozoa. It is also used by Sponges for their sfzcula. As-
suming that the waters of the cretaceous ocean contained at
alternating periods a preponderance, first of carbonate of lime,
and then of silica, the Foraminifera or Radiolaria would alternately
abound. They died in millions, and their tests sunk to the sea
floor. But the tests were again dissolved, and the silica gathered
about dead organic matter and nodules of chalk. Atoms of silica
penetrated the dead organisms and the chalk nodules, and dis-
placed the carbonate of lime. Thus fossil echinoderms are some-
times found, consisting mainly of carbonate of lime, and others
entirely of flint. Tabular flint, of which masses may be seen in
some of the galleries of the Chislehurst Caves, was probably
deposited after the chalk had become indurated. Water, charged
with silica, penetrated between the layers of chalk, and there the
silica came to rest. From the impress of organic structures some-
times seen in flint, it is inferred that at an early stage the silica
formed jelly-like masses, which ultimately became harder than steel.

GEOLOGY. 3

Chalk is seen close to the surface in the railway cutting at
St. John’s Station. It also occurs at the surface between the south
side of Blackheath Hill and the east side of the Lewisham Road.

We now leave the Secondary and enter the Tertiary or
Cainozoic Period. This is thrice divided into Eocene (the lowest
portion), Miocene, and Pliocene. In our district we have only
to do with the lower Eocene formation, comprising:—(1) The
Thanet beds; (2) Woolwich and Reading beds; (3) Oldhaven and
Blackheath beds; (4) The London Clay. The three first-named
are generally spoken of as the Lower London Tertiaries.

In our district the Thanet beds are represented by a white
sand which is a marine formation, and contains in its lower

PLATE 1.

portion numerous glauconitic granules. Until recent years fine
sections of this sand existed in the brick-fields off Loampit Hill.
On the west side of the railway cutting close to the London
side of St. John’s Station, there is a gap in the chalk about 4ft.
wide, due to a ‘‘fault,” which is filled in with Thanet sand. In
the cutting at and near Swanley Junction it is well shown, also in
a lane at the side of ‘*The Sandrock” Tavern on the Shirley Hills.

In 1906 the grounds of an old mansion at Belmont Hill were
laid out as a building estate. In the excavations made for cutting
out roads a fine section of Thanet sand was disclosed, which is
shown in Plate 1, reproduced from one of a series of photo-

B2

4 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

graphs of sections made for the Photographic Survey of Kent.
The white cliff behind the human figure at the left of the plate
is Thanet sand, which should be below the Woolwich beds shown
on the right. The displacement was occasioned by current action
at the period of the deposition of the Woolwich beds or by the
local disturbance mentioned on page 15. The bed of Thanet sand
exposed was 16ft. wide at the top, and more than 6ft. thick. It
extended backwards trooyds. from the exposed face, and then
terminated abruptly. Fossils are seldom found in this formation,
which varies much in thickness in different localities, although it is
fairly equal in our district. In borings described in Mr. Whitaker’s
larger book mentioned above, the thickness at the former Naval

PLATE 2.

School at New Cross is stated as 48ft. At Watney’s Brewery,
Brockley, it is goft.; at Lower Sydenham, a little to the south
of the railway station, 5oft.; at Greenwich Hospital, 55ft.; and at
Eltham and Shortlands, 4goft. and 48ft. respectively.

Superimposed on the Thanet beds are the Woolwich and
Reading beds. We will mention them by the former name only
because, although of similar age in both localities, they differ
greatly in character. In our district we have red and purple
mottled clay; blue, flaky, estuarine clay containing numerous
shells of Cyrena cunerformts, a bivalve mollusc somewhat like a
cockle, and blue clay with pebbles. These variations were well
shown at Belmont Hill. Plate 2 is reproduced from a photograph

GEOLOGY. 5

of the Cyrena bed there, which is seen at the lower portion of the
section behind the two human figures.

Sixty years ago the brick-fields at Loampit Hill were much
resorted to by London geologists for obtaining fossil shells and
plant remains from the Woolwich beds. In 1904-5 excavations
for sewers were made in a newly-formed road leading through the
Bromley Park Estate from the foot of Bromley Hill to Ravens-
bourne Railway Station. Shells of Cyrena cuneiformis were
turned out in plenty, also a few of Ostrea bellovacina. We ex-
amined the blue carbonaceous clay frequently in the hope of finding
imprints of leaves or stems of plants, but only found a solitary
impression-of the stem of a reed or sedge.

The following examples of the thickness of the Woolwich
beds in our district are recorded in Mr. Whitaker’s books :—

New Cross Naval School a aes a) 54 ft.

Brockley... ape ; Sais An Ek
Lower Sydenham ... aN fae ear tem eA Ont
Greenwich papel as Sie 334 axe, aa eat
Eltham fa . : 394 ft.

The Blackheath fue rest upon die Woolwich beds in our
district. In some localities they are found to be intercalated, and
occasionally they even rest directly upon the chalk, probably
because the Woolwich and Thanet beds had been previously
carried away. Sections of the Blackheath pebbles and sand were
formerly exposed in pits on the Heath, and on the sides of Black-
heath Point, but we fear they have all been hidden by turf. Many
good sections are, however, now visible in new roads on the
Kinnaird Park Estate to the east of Bromley Hill, and the Bromley
Park Estate on the West, also between Ravensbourne and Short-
lands railway- stations. The sand contains much oxide of iron,
and the shells of Ostrea and other mollusca afford lime. This
mineral matter binds the pebbles, sand and shells into masses
of conglomerate, which was formerly quarried at Sundridge Park,
Bromley. On the west side of the main road at the foot of
Bromley Hill, there is an old garden wall appertaining to an
isolated cottage, which is composed of blocks of it. Again, nearly
opposite the Ravensbourne railway station, there is a large excava-
tion, where masses of it are exposed. Occasionally bands of
light-coloured sand, free from pebbles, also occur. We have seen
it exposed on the Kinnaird Park Estate, and in the Eltham Golf-
ground. In 1905 excavations for sewers were in progress in a
new road opposite to the approach to Well Hall railway station—
large masses of the conglomerate were then turned out. In some
instances they. passed into a calcareous sandstone free from
pebbles. After a few weeks’ exposure the surface of this stone
crumbled to a powder, and some ardent collectors whom we took
there obtained from it teeth of sharks of various species.

Our remarks on the ‘‘solid” geology of the district will

6 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

conclude with the London Clay, which is the prevalent formation
exposed at the surface. Inasmuch as there are in the less elevated
localities tracts of ‘‘derived” London Clay generally containing
sub-angular flints, it is well to explain that the clay, when 27 sztu,
is quite free from such stones. True, it rests upon a basement
bed consisting of a mixture of clay and wel/-rolled flint pebbles, but
the mass of it is quite free from them. The large, rounded con-
cretions frequently found in it are known as septarian nodules,
because they sometimes contain internally sepa, or dividing bands
of crystalline carbonate of lime. When opportunity offers it is
worth while to break these septaria with a hammer, because they
sometimes contain fossils.

The London Clay being the uppermost of our local Tertiaries,
it follows that the highest elevations are of that formation. As
a whole it has been subjected to enormous denudation. At the top
of the slope in Whitefoot Lane, leading up from Southend Village
(which slope, by the way, is the east bank of the older Ravens-
bourne), a good view may be obtained of Shooters Hill, rising
to 42oft. and of the Crystal Palace, where the elevation is over
3ooft. Both hills are of London Clay. The intermediate gap,
about 7 miles wide, was undoubtedly also once occupied with
London Clay rising to at least 5ooft. This has all been swept
away. But the highest point at Shooters Hill does not by any
means represent the original deposit, because there, also, denuda-
tion has occurred. It is worth while to spend a few hours in
exploring the summit of Shooters Hill. The observer will ask,,
Why should this huge pyramid of clay have withstood the in- -
fluences which occasioned the denudation all around? If he has
used his eyes in approaching the summit by way of the main road
from Blackheath he will have noticed in roadside banks and
gardens near the summit numerous water-worn flints, some of
large size. Then in a narrow alley between the fences of enclosed
pleasure grounds, that on the west side appertaining to Severn-
droog Castle, he will see a gravel pit, and through the fence may
at times discern in the gravel white quartz pebbles. Returning
to the main road proceed a short distance down the eastern side
of the hill towards Welling, and take the first turning on the left.
Examine the bank on the left side of that road. A few years ago
we dug from it fragments of ferruginous sandstone. From the
opposite side of the same road there is a newly-formed road.
When it was in the making we saw there pebbles of jasper and
quartzite, also numerous large water-worn, pitted flints with a
specific gravity much exceeding that of ordinary flints. Further
to the north there is an open piece of grass-land with shallow
sand pits. The sand varies in colour, but some of it is highly
ferruginous. Geologists are agreed in thinking that this puzzling
drift on the top of Shooters Hill came from the former Wealden
heights far away to the South, but they differ in regard to the
period of transportation. In Mr. H. B. Woodward’s ‘‘Geology of

GEOLOGY. T

England and Wales”’ it is attributed to the Middle Glacial Age,
but there is a passage in Mr. Jukes-Browne’s ‘‘Building of the
British Isles” which appears to bear on the subject. Quoting the
late Sir Joseph Prestwich, Mr. Jukes-Browne says: ‘‘He gives
good reasons for concluding that at the beginning of the newer
Pliocene Period the central area of the Weald was a plateau rising
to a height of nearly 3,o00ft. above the sea, and that from its
watershed streams ran northward and southward. Those which
ran north swept the debris of the Lower Greensand, Chalk and
Tertiaries on to the lower ground. It is not unlikely, as Prestwich
suggests, that these tracts are portions of broad, fan-like, sub-
aerial deltas, spread out on a plain which then stretched out over
the Thames Valley.”

It will be understood that the pebbles from igneous rocks,
which are found at Shooters Hill, were twice ‘‘derived,” having
been first transported from the north or west of England, where
igneous rocks are at the surface, to the Wealden district, and then
again from the Weald northwards. It is fairly certain that this
drift has preserved Shooters Hill from the denudation which has
gone on all around. There is little doubt that the whole of our
district once had a mantle of at least sooft. of London Clay, and
when this is borne in mind, the following records from borings will
show how great, and yet how inequal, has been the denudation:

New Cross Naval School (Goldsmiths’ Institute) 23 ft.

Brockley, near the Cemetery... soe Be cia S5 1 4
Lower eydennen bag oa ven sth eee TQ2. tes
Beckenham . e oes Bey Pe *RCREE:

The sea in which the tendon Clay was deposited no doubt
extended over Kent, Surrey, Sussex, part of Hampshire, Essex,
Suffolk, part of Norfolk: and over part of the German Ocean,
British Channel, and north western France. The fossils indicate
the prevalence of a warm climate at the time. As the clay was
derived from the decomposition of felspathic rocks, the river or
rivers which brought it to the London Clay-sea must needs have
passed through regions where such rocks are exposed. Sir.
Charles Lyell thought it was a large river which drained a con-
tinent lying to the west or south-west of Britain. Other geologists
have thought that the sediment was brought by several rivers
from land lying to the south.

As we now take leave of the clays, it will be well to say some-
thing as to the distinction between brick-earth, a term frequently
used in ‘‘ superficial” geology, and the Tertiary clays.

Bricks have for years been made at Loampit Hill and Brockley
of London Clay and the clays of the Woolwich beds ; hence people
sometimes speak of such clays as brick-earth. But brick-earth, in
the language of geology, is a superficial deposit of stiff loam,
sometimes clayey and sometimes sandy, which has arisen from
sediment left by the overflowing of rivers. Again, there are in our

8 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

district deposits of ‘‘derived”” London Clay overlying river gravel
of Pleistocene age. This is where the river has left its earlier
‘bed and wandered, perhaps, half-a-mile away. Then a ‘‘hill-wash”
-of London Clay has been brought down by rain-water, and spread
over the river gravel to a thickness, it may be, of several feet.
‘“‘Derived” material, and fossils derived from old beds and
deposited by flowing water on recent formations, are frequently
“*booby-traps” which catch the unwary.

CHAPTER II.

THE SUPERFICIAL GEOLOGY.

N unsophisticated person once remarked that it was
a merciful Providence which ordained that a river
should flow near every large town and city, so that
the inhabitants were supplied with water. This
was making the mountain go to Mahomet. Joking
aside, the existence of the Ravensbourne and its

tributaries must have attracted human beings to our district in
very early times. The contours of the surface suggest that a lake,
or chain of lakelets, once occupied the valley-plain through which
the Ravensbourne and the Pool now flow from between Southend
and Lower Sydenham to the rising ground which commences near
the Obelisk at Lewisham.

It will be convenient to deal first with the Ravensbourne.
The old village of Lewisham stands upon Ravensbourne gravel,
but there is evidence that the locality was frequented by men of
the Stone Age when the gravel was being laid down.

The first Napoleon is credited with the remark that an ‘‘army
marched upon its belly.” Previously to the domestication of
animals, and the rise of agriculture, the needs of the human
stomach were supplied by the wild fruits and roots of the forest,
the fish of the streams, the birds of the air and the beasts of the
field. These would be most plentiful in well-watered localities.
We know that 35 years ago a trout of 2lbs. was taken in the
Ravensbourne at Southend Village. The Thames was a salmon
river within the historical period. The gravels prove that the
Ravensbourne was formerly a river of considerable volume, and
we have no doubt that very ancient Britons once took both salmon
and trout from its waters. Our memory of the stream fifty years
ago is that the present volume of water is only about half as much
as it was then. The diminution in recent times may be accounted
for by the diversion of water from springs and surface water, which
formerly found its way to the river, into sewers.

A reference to the Geological Drift Map will show that just
above Catford Bridge the river-gravel extends over a width of

GEOLOGY. 9

half a mile. Although the Pool now joins the Ravensbourne a
little above Catford Bridge, an earlier point of junction was slightly
to the north of Southend Lane.

Upon many occasions in 1905-6 we inspected excavations for
sewers on different parts of the Sangley Estate, in Bromley Road.
The sections exhibited 4ft. of derived London clay (hill-wash) and
8ft. of river-gravel, containing numerous large water-worn flints,
resting upon undisturbed London clay.

Mr. Hurdin, assistant surveyor to the Forster Estate, kept a
look-out for any animal remains which might be unearthed.
Figures 1 to 3 on
Plate 3 represent
some of them.
No. 1 has been
identified as part
of a_ thigh-bone
of Bos taurus, the
great wild ox
called Urus by
Roman historians,
and which was pro-
bably the ancestor
of the famous wild
cattle still kept
at Chillingham,
Northumberland.
Nos. 2 and 3 are
bones of Bos longt-
frons, the long
faced wild ox, sup-
posed to be the
ancestor of our
smaller black cat-
tle. These bones
were resting on
the clay at the
base of the gravel.
Attention is es-
pecially called to
; the fact that one
—_ condyle of the

PLATE 3. longest bone was

sawn off. Our first

impression was that this afforded evidence that the Urus continued
to exist in Britain at a time when mechanical art was sufficiently
advanced to permit of the construction of a toothed saw of metal,
but we subsequently obtained from Ravensbourne gravel at Hayes
a small saw made from a thin flint-flake by which the operation
might have been performed. Marrow, extracted from the larger

10 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

bones of mammals, has ever been a bonne bouche to primitive
peoples. It was in most cases obtained by the simple process of
smashing off the condyles as in figures Nos. 2 and 3, but the longer
bone fell to the lot of an epicure who preferred to have his marrow
free from splinters of bone. The bones and horn-cores shown in
figures 4 to 8 were dug from the gravel by Mr. A. P. Macklin, of
the Catford and District Natural History Society, when making
an excavation in his garden in Bargery Road. They probably
appertained to one or the other of the above-mentioned extinct
species of ox.

At Bellingham the altitude of the valley-plain is 7oft. The
slope on the arable land to the east rises sharply to 1ooft. At
the top of the ridge which there forms the sky-line a solitary tree is
seen a little to the north of a wood. On walking from the road
towards that tree we found that up to the rooft. contour line on
the Ordnance map the clay is strewn with broken water-worn
flints for which ‘ flood-drift” is a convenient term. Some miles
higher up the valley, torrential flood-waters from the former
Wealden heights, cut into the chalk, and tore out the flints, which
were subsequently fractured and abraded by concussion. Looking
across the flat on the west, which extends nearly to Perry Hill, the
tortuous line of the Pool stream is marked by occasional trees on
its banks. The entire flat is underlain by river-gravel, a proof
that one or the other of the two streams has at different times
occupied it.

At the entrance to Southend Village Whitefoot Lane on the
east and Southend Lane on the west both rise up slopes which
once formed the banks of the Ravensbourne. Many years ago we
were led by reading Huxley's ‘‘ Physiography ” to devote attention
to local superficial geology. Southend Lane then afforded us so
much instruction that we regard it as one of the most interesting
localities in the district. At first we thought it crossed a spur of
undisturbed London Clay, but when we narrowly examined the
banks of the roadside ditches, and those of the fields on either side,
and also the earth turned up by excavations made for posts for
wire-fencing, we found that the clay everywhere contains broken
water-worn flints. The elevations are instructive. At the entrance
to the lane from Southend the elevation is about 75ft. At the
highest point in the lane it rises to 121ft., and at the Lower
Sydenham end it descends again to 7oft. Between the Bromley
Road and the bridge over the railway in the lane, a shallow pit
was opened in 1906 which exposes about 3ft. of stratified gravel,
once the bed of the stream. The highest point commences near
the railway bridge, and extends for more than 1ooyds. This ridge
is the end of a spur which runs out from the high ground at
Beckenham and forms the water-parting. Below the north side
of the lane the end of the spur drops into the plain of the united
valley, and it was here that the junction of the two streams once
occurred. The water-worn flints in the clay at the highest point

GEOLOGY. 11

indicate that flood-waters, if not the actual river, once flowed over
the ridge.

Beyond Southend Village a small tributary, which comes as
a brook through the meadows on the south-east, passes under the
road. It has its rise in a spring which forms a pond in a meadow
towards Plaistow. After the water from it has passed under the
Bromley Road through a pipe it enters a ditch in a meadow
occupied by Mr. Perry, of the Upper Mill. Into the same ditch
the water from another spring is conducted by a drain-pipe, and
Mr. Perry has in-
formed us that in
dry seasons the
volume of water
from the two
springs exceeds
the water brought
down by the main
stream. If, there-
fore, the water from
these two springs
had been diverted
into sewers, as that
of other springs in
the neighbourhood
of Bromley has
been, the upper
Ravensbourne
would have had
no water in dry
seasons.

At the foot of
Bromley Hill the
valley turns to-
wards the west, and
may be followed by
a new road through
the Bromley Park
Estate towards
Ravensbourne rail-
way station. On

PLaTeE 4. the Ladies’ Golf

Ground at Ravens-

bourne there is another shallow pit exhibiting stratified gravel,
near which we once picked up a small flint implement of primitive
type closely resembling many which we have obtained on the
plateau of the North Downs above Otford, Kemsing, etc.- The
figure 18 in Plate 4 is reproduced from a photograph of the
implement referred to. The elevations between Ravensbourne and
Shortlands are noticeable. The valley-plain stands at 8oft.;

.

12 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Bromley Hill, which forms the eastern border of the valley rises
to 200ft.; on the western border at Beckenham the pebble gravel
of the Blackheath beds rises to 180ft. A thickness of at least 120ft.
which once overlaid the valley-plain has therefore been swept away
by the river. The average width of the valley-plain for a length
of one mile is a quarter of a mile. By cubing these dimensions
it will be found that the quantity of material removed per mile has
been 27,878,400 cubic yards, representing as many tons in weight,
and this is exclusive of the quantity removed from the slopes on
either side.

Throughout the valley, from the foot of Bromley Hill to the
foot of Westerham Hill, at Cudham, the eastern side rises more or
less steeply, while the western side presents a gentle slope.

The geological formation is the same on both sides, and
we were at a loss to account for the difference in the inclines until
the discovery of a terrace-gravel, high up on the western slope
opposite Bromley, proved that the river first ran on that side, and
afterwards cut its way towards the eastern side. Its final bed,
while it still remained a river of considerable volume, was close to
the eastern side of the valley. Therefore the deserted western side
has had some thousands of years more weathering, which has
toned down the original steepness of the slope.

In the lower part of the Bromley Recreation Ground, near
Shortlands railway station, there was, until quite recent years, a
small pit exposing the river-gravel, but the local authorities,
influenced by esthetic considerations, have had it filled in, and
turfed over.

In ascending to the highest point of the Recreation Ground
the steepness of the slope will be noticed, and at the top the fine
view of the valley in both directions will be admired. In the road
outside the lower south-eastern corner of the ground there is a
notice board indicating a footpath leading to Pickhurst Green. By
following this, and crossing the railway by a footbridge, a meadow
is entered with a footpath leading up to the top of the valley.
Close to the exit from the footpath is a small disused gravel pit.
The bank at the back of the pit discloses a section made up of
about 4ft. of sandy brick-earth, resting upon a stratum of river-
gravel, about a foot thick, which again was laid down upon the
pebble-gravel of the Blackheath beds. Both sides of the pit
should be examined, and at some seasons it is necessary to
scrape away the herbage and sand to obtain a good view of the
section.

The river-gravel here exposed is 25ft. higher than the valley-
plain, and about a third of a mile. distant from the present
attenuated stream where it runs through the Recreation Ground.

To appreciate the denudation which has occurred since the
river flowed at this high point, it is necessary to bear in mind that
it was then the bottom of a valley. Supposing the banks of that
valley formed a slope similar to the present one, then over the

eee

GEOLOGY. 13

present valley-plain there was at least soft. of earth which has all
been carried off.

Between Bromley and Hayes portions of the valley are of
difficult access, but Hayes Ford, which is on the high road, is an
interesting point.

The old river-gravel there lies in the meadows, etc., on either
side of the road. On the western side a small stream called the
Bourne flows in wet seasons. Another small stream comes down
from the south-east in a ditch passing through meadows. ‘This is
the overflow from the Keston ponds, which are fed by ‘‘ Czsar’s
Pool” on Keston Common. The water from this source passes
under the road through a pipe, and joins that of the Bourne.

The gravel exposed at the large pit near Hayes railway station
is a portion of a very large accumulation in that locality. This
accumulation is attributable to the fact that two rivers formerly
met there. Before tracing their direction, attention must be
directed to the character of the deposit exposed in the pit. If this
had lain in the direct channel of a swiftly flowing stream the
material would have been separated and stratified, whereas it is a
confused mixture of water-worn flints, which vary greatly in size,
rolled Lower Tertiary pebbles, and silt. Some of the flints weigh
as much as 18lbs., and large ones occur high up in the gravel. A

- clear section shows about 1ft. of surface mould and raft. of gravel,

which rests upon about 8ft. of white Thanet sand. Below the
latter is the usual layer of green-coated unworn flints, resting
upon the chalk. The elevation at the pit is about 21oft. About a
quarter of a mile away, at Wickham Court, the Thanet sand is at
the surface at 280ft. Allowing for the 8ft. of that formation still
remaining at the pit we find that 62ft. of it has been carried away,
as well as the whole of the superimposed Woolwich and Blackheath
beds. The present surface elevation of the latter at the top of
Coney Hill, West Wickham Common, near by, is 315ft. De-
ducting 210ft., the elevation at the pit, it is seen that 1osft. has
been removed. Having regard to the surface configuration of the
locality, and the mixed-up nature of the materials forming the
gravel, we think that the two rivers which met here fell into a
small lake-basin, and that from the northern end of that lake the
Ravensbourne issued and formed the valley which extends from
Hayes Village to the foot of Bromley Hill.

The existence of a lake-basin also accounts for the accumula-

_ tion at the Hayes pit of numerous remains of extinct mammals,

etc. Unfortunately the gravel does not contain the mineral matter
necessary to effect perfect fossilisation. Consequently the bones,
tusks and molar teeth which are frequently turned out are friable,
and generally fall into fragments when exposed. In 1905 the
workmen state that they turned out a bone as large as a big man’s
body, which crumbled to fragments. This was probably the femur

‘of a Mammoth, or Woolly Rhinoceros. On the 5th January, 1907,

just as we reached the pit, the men came upon a fine Mammoth’s

i4 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

tusk. Notwithstanding the care which they exercised under our
direction in endeavouring to secure the whole or a large portion of
the tusk intact, the largest fragment we cculd obtain was only
6in. long, 3in. wide and #in. thick, and although this fragment
was immersed in hot size it very soon fell into small pieces. Some
of the figures on Plate 4 are photographs of objects obtained
here. No. g represents the disintegrated plates of a molar tooth
of the Mammoth (Zlephas primigenius), Nos. 10 and 11 are
molars of the great two-horned Woolly Rhinoceros (2. antiquitatis),
No. 12 a molar of the horse (Zguus caballus), Nos. 13 and 14 were
too fragmentary for determination, Nos. 15 and 17 are flint im-
plements. The latter is cut out at the sides of the base to facilitate
attachment to a shaft, which was probably effected by a bandage
of raw hide put on when flexible. Such a band if drawn tight and
beaten down would become quite rigid. No. 16 is an implement
found on arable land higher up the valley on the western side,
nearly opposite Keston Church. From the last-mentioned locality
we also obtained a Neolithic polished implement, 5in. long, 2}in.
wide at the broad end, and tapering to a point at the other end.
Nos. 19 and 20 are two small ‘‘ fabricators”? formed out of Lower
Tertiary pebbles. One of them came from the Hayes pit, and the
other from Norhead’s Farm, which rises like an island in the
middle of the valley on the west side of the Westerham Road at
Biggin Hill, Cudham.

It now remains to describe, briefly, the courses of the two
rivers from the foot of Coney Hill.

The least important of the two came from the direction of
Farley and Chelsham, and passed through Addington, along what
is now the road from that village to Hayes.

The course of the larger river follows the road which passes
Coney Hill Farm, and runs below West Wickham and Hayes
Commons towards Keston Church. On the eastern side of that
road the border of the valley rises steeply, and exhibits old river
terraces at several points. On the same side, near the foot of Fox
Hill, there is a disused gravel pit exhibiting large water-worn
flints. The river here also, as at the Hayes pit, cuts deeply into
the Thanet sands. Nodules of iron pyrites have been found at
this pit which were probably brought from the Gault or Lower
Greensand formation during the planing down of the former
Wealden heights. The arable land on the western slope is strewn
with water-worn flints up to an elevation of 4oft. above the road,
and for a distance of nearly half a mile from it, and here numerous
palzolithic implements, and the cores from which the flint-flakes
were struck, have been found. After passing the foot of Fox Hill
the valley turns towards the west, and after passing through
Purgatory Bottom it runs southerly, parallel with the Westerham
Road, to the foot of Westerham Hill, where it branches off into
several minor terminal valleys.

The Quaggy stream, which falls into the Ravensbourne near

GEOLOGY. 15

Lewisham Bridge, may be dismissed with the remark that it was
once of sufficient magnitude to lay down a considerable tract of
gravel in the neighbourhood of Lee Green.

The stream which formed the valley along which the North
Kent Railway passes from Blackheath Village to Lewisham, and
which we believe continued to flow until the railway was made,
has left small stretches of water which can be seen in the grounds
of ‘‘The Cedars,” adjoining the railway. When the building
estate at Belmont Hill mentioned on page 3 was being laid out
the sections exposed indicated considerable disturbance, probably
due to a hill-slide. On the upper portion of the ground next
Belmont Hill there is an unstratified flood-drift which is shown on
Plate 2. From it Mr. H. Dixon Hewitt, who, until he went to
reside in Norfolk, was Registrar of the Catford and District
Natural History Society, found several flints exhibiting traces of

PLATE 5.

working. They are shown in Plate 5. We saw the originals,
and discussed them fully with Mr. Hewitt at the time, and our
mutual conclusion was that they were Eoliths of the class first
found by Mr. B. Harrison, of Ightham, on the Kentish North
Downs, and brought into prominence by the late Sir Joseph
Prestwich.

The stones are greatly abraded, and were probably brought
by running water from a considerable distance.

It only remains to refer briefly to surface irregularities of the
locality bounded by the Ravensbourne and Pool on the east, and
on the west by the range of London Clay hills extending from
Peckham to Upper Norwood. A marked feature of this tract is
the occurrence of numerous small hills of London Clay. No doubt
it was once part of a wide-spreading plain of that formation. The

16 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

irregularities which now appear are due to subaerial erosion by
streams now long extinct, and by the snows and frosts of winter,
and the rains and droughts of summer. Where the clay has
offered the least resistance it has been removed; where it is harder
it has remained, and thus we have ai undulating surface. Denuda-
tion of this description is ever in process, but so slowly that it
escapes observation. Every fall of rain dissolves out or washes
away a certain amount of earthy matter which ultimately reaches
the sea. It is not lost. There will be in the future, as there has
been in the past, upheavals, and that which the land now loses will
in some distant epoch help to form new islands and continents,
which may peradventure be inhabited by Tennyson’s ‘‘ Crowning
race”
‘Of those that eye to eye shall look
On knowledge; under whose command

Is Earth and Earths, and in their hand
Is Nature like an open book.”

PART, ‘PI.

The history of the Borough.

CHAPTER I.
Earty History To A.D, 1300.

HEN we pass from the records of stone and sand
to those of human origin, in other words pass
from geologic time to the pre-historic and historic
periods, the evidences of early occupation of
Lewisham and the surrounding neighbourhood
are at first but few. Of pre-Roman date very

little has been brought to notice within the borough, if we

except some of the mounds on Blackheath, which are ill-defined,
and to which a period cannot with any certainty be assigned.

In 1803 some funeral urns were discovered in the grounds of
Dartmouth House, on Blackheath, which were pronounced to be
Roman. They were exhibited by the Earl of Dartmouth before

the Society of Antiquaries, and afterwards presented by him to

the British Museum.*

In 1806 some Roman antiquities were found by a labourer as.
he was digging in a gravel pit on Sydenham Common. Amongst
them were fragments of tablets of copper containing part of a
decree of the Emperor Trajan in favour of the veterans of the
auxiliary cohorts serving in Britain. An account of this discovery
was published by Lysons.

The first documentary notice of the place is in a grant made in
A.D. 862, by Aethelberht, of Wessex, to Deightwald, the thegn, of
land at Bromley. In this the bounds of ‘‘ Bromleag” are given in
Saxon, and are stated to run from Ceddanleag to Langanleag
(Langley in Beckenham) and ‘‘ Liofshema,” then to Wonstoc and
Modingahema, &c., &c.t Ina charter by Aethelred, regranting
this land, in A.D. 968, the same bounds are named, but Lewisham
is styled ‘*Leofsuhaema.”{ These early instances, which were
overlooked by Philpot, Hasted, and other historians of the county,
supply the clue to the derivation of the name, of which Professor
~ Skeat has given the following explanation :—

In the forms Liofshema and Leofsuhaema, the -a is only a
case-ending. The phrase ‘“ Léofsuhaema mearc,” as it is found

* Archaeologia, Vol. XV. + Kemble’s Charters, No. 287.
+ Kemble’s Charters, No. 657-

18 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

in charters, means ‘‘the mark or boundary of the inhabitants of
Léofsuham”’; haema being the genitive plural of haeme, a nomina-
tive plural signifying ‘‘ men belonging to a ham or farm-stead.”

Liof is the Kentish spelling of A.S. Zéof. Leof is the modern
English Zzef, which was once an adjective and meant ‘‘dear.”’ In
Liofs-héma, the s cannot be a genitive suffix, as that was —es, but it
is the first letter of a second syllable ; it stands for Ziof-s.

In Zéof-su the second syllable is also incomplete ; it stands for
Léofsu’.

The middle portion of a name is often partially suppressed, as
is Lem’ster for Leominster, and the like. Zeof-sz’ obviously stands
for Léof-suna, the genitive case of Léof-sunu, which was a fairly
common name, occurs in Kentish and Southern Charters and
simply means ‘‘ dear son.”

Thus the obvious sense is ‘‘ Léof-sunu’s home,”’ or a farmstead
in which lived a man named Léof-sunu (lit. dear son).

As for the pronunciation, the modern English Leveson, which
is the modern English form of Leof-sunu, is pronounced Lewson.
So in modern English Lewisham means Leveson’s-home; or,
remembering that the genitive case of sumu (son) did zo¢ end in -s,
but in -a (which now-a-days would disappear) it would more exactly
be represented by ‘‘Lewson-home,” and this by contraction
regularly becomes Lews-ham or even Lusam, as it was phonetically
spelt in the seventeenth century.

Then popular etymology substituted the known name Lewzs, for
the form Lus, which had lost all meaning, and the —zs of Lewis being
now generally plainly heard, the form Lewzs-ham has become fixed.*

One wonders who and what manner of man this Leof-sunu
was, who through all the intervening years has given his name to
the wide tract now known as Lewisham. All we can say is that he
was a Saxon, or perhaps a Jute, and that no doubt, attracted by
the river and the pastures along its banks, he settled here some-
where in the period between A.D. 500 and A.D. 862, probably

* In Hasted’s History of Kent the name Lewisham is stated ‘‘ to be derived
from Zes or Leswes [lzswe, lsu] in Saxon, signifying pastures, and ham, a
town or village,” and this statement has been very generally copied by local
writers. :

The A.S. /@su, a pasture, became /eese in Elizabethan English. It is now
spelt ees, leas, lease and leys. The last spelling suggests that it is a plural,
which is not the case. The word Zea, A.S. leah, a fallow field, is a totally
different word, with a mere accidental resemblance of sound. It is also spelt
ley, lay, leigh, and is common in place-names.

The A.S. Jéswe is the dative case of the form /ésu above. Nevertheless,
it produced the form /easowe or leasow, pronounced /ezzer in Shropshire.

The A.S. /@su would have given us Leesham. The A.S. l@swe would have
given us Zeasow-ham ; the contracted form of which would have been Lesham,
pronounced Lezham or Lezzum. It shows that all that Hasted (or those upon
whom he relied) did was to guess freely without testing the results.

It is necessary to add that some exception was taken to the above
etymology in Notes and Queries, 8 S. xi, 311; but the writer of the note has
since kindly informed me that he wholly withdraws his objection, and that my
solution is certainly correct.—W. W. SKEAT.

EARLY HISTORY TO A.D. 100. 19

nearer the first than the latter date, since by the early part of the
tenth century the name had become shortened down to Lievesham,
and its origin forgotten.

But it is with the year A.D. 918 that the history of Lewisham
really opens, and connects the place with the man all England
delights to honour, Alfred the Great, for in that year Elfrida, the
youngest daughter of Alfred and wife of Count Baldwin of
Flanders, bestowed her lands ‘‘ Lieuesham, Grenevic and Uulwich”
on the Abbey of St. Peter, at Ghent. Considerable speculation has
arisen as to the exact relationship which Elfrida—or Elstrudis as
the name is latinized in the charters—bore to King Alfred, because
in subsequent documents she is styled ‘‘neptis” (or niece). King
Edgar, in 964, calls her ‘‘ daughter of the uncle of King Edward,
my grandfather,” whilst Edward the Confessor in less round-
about fashion, simply styles her ‘‘niece of the foresaid Alfred.”
That she was the daughter of King Alfred seems, however, to
admit of no doubt, and the connection which Alfred had with Kent
by his descent, accounts for his possessions in the County. Alfred’s
great grandfather was Ealhmund, King of Kent, whose son,
Egbert, was chosen to succeed Brihtric in the Kingdom of Wessex,
A.D. 800. Ethelwulf, who succeeded Egbert in 836, married
twice. By his first wife Osburgha, daughter of his cup-bearer
Oslac, he had Alfred and other children. Oslac was by race a Jute,
whose forefathers had received the Isle of Wight from Cerdic, and
probably held possessions in Kent on some of the old Juten lands.
Alfred, the youngest son, succeeded his brothers on the throne in
871, and by his wife, Elswitha, daughter of Ethelred, Earl of the
Gaini, of an old Mercian family, he had Edward the Elder, who
succeeded him, two other sons and three daughters, the youngest
of whom, Elfrida, married Count Baldwin of Flanders, who was
the son of Alfred’s stepmother, Judith.

Elfrida in the charter speaks of Lewisham, Greenwich and
Woolwich, as ‘‘her inheritance.” In her father’s will in A.D. gor,
he left her the ham of Cippenham, which Dr. Drake, in his History
of the Hundred of Blackheath, suggests was Chippenham, in
Wiltshire, but which may have been exchanged for land at
Lewisham, since Cippenham is an old form of Sydenham. It does
not seem necessary to go so far afield to account for the possession
of Lewisham by the Countess of Flanders. It is much more likely
that the greater portion of this part of Kent was looked upon as
belonging to the royal house. Dartford and Chislehurst continued
part of the ancient demesne of the Crown at the time of the
Conquest, and the boundaries would not need to be much enlarged
to have taken in Lewisham as well. On her marriage Elfrida
would, no doubt, have received a portion from her father, and what
more natural than that she should receive property in Kent which
was nearest to her new home, and may have come to her through
her Jutish mother.

Doubt has been cast on the authenticity of many of these early

C2

20 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

charters giving grants of land to religious houses. In the present
case there seems no reason to consider the charter a forgery. As
we shall see, the Abbey of Ghent had great difficulty in retaining
its hold on Lewisham, and if there had been any suspicion that the
charter was spurious, full use would have been made of the doubt.
Of Elfrida we know but little. Her husband, Baldwin the
Second, died on 2nd January, 918, and on the 6th September of
that year she, with the consent of her two sons, Arnulf and Adolf,
gave ‘‘her inheritance, Lieuesham, Grenewic and Uulwich, with
the meadows, pastures and woods”’ to the Abbey of St. Peter, at
Ghent, for the welfare of the souls of her husband, her sons and
herself. She died in June, 929, and was buried with her husband
in the Chapel of St. Lawrence in the Church of St. Peter, where
their sons were also interred, and on her tomb was an epitaph, in
which she is distinctly called the daughter of the noble-minded
King Alfred :—-
“ Clara fui Elfridi generosi filia Regis
Elstrudis proprio nomine dicta meo.”

The Abbey at Ghent was a house of Benedictine Monks, which
was founded about the year A.D. 608, by St. Amand, who
destroyed the Idol of Mercury and built a church which, after
suffering at the hands of the heathen, was rebuilt and dedicated in
honour of St. Peter. Twice in the 9th century was it destroyed,
but rebuilt by the monks, and Elfrida’s son, Count Arnulf, appears
to have added to it in 937. In A.D. 956, King Edwy became
involved in a dispute with Dunstan, Abbot of Glastonbury, who
fled from the Kingdom and took refuge at the Abbey of Ghent.
Two years later the northern part of England rose in revolt and
proclaimed Edgar, the brother of Edwy, king. The rebellion
spread, Dunstan returned and took the part of Edgar, who had
also the help of Odo, Archbishop of Canterbury. Edwy was forced
to submit, and either died by violence or of a broken heart, and
thus Edgar succeeded to the throne. ;

One of his first acts was to appoint Dunstan to the Archbishopric
rendered vacant by Odo’s death. The Archbishop did not forget
the monks of Ghent who had sheltered him in his exile, and in
A.D. 964 he besought Edgar to confirm the gift of Elfrida to the
Abbey. King Edgar’s charter is worded as a deed of gift from
himself, which may indicate that the foreign abbey had already
experienced difficulty in making good its hold :—

‘‘T, Edgar, King and Chief of the English, by divine assistance,
renouncing every low and transitory thing as dross, make known.
to all that I have granted to God and St. Peter, and to the Society
of the Church of Gand, a certain extent of land in a place which the
rustics from ancient custom have denominated Lieuesham, with all
its appurtenances, viz., Greenwich, Woolwich, Mottingham and
Coomb.”’

The monks of Ghent looked upon St. Dunstan as one of their
benefactors, and treasured his gold ring amongst their jewels. -

EARLY HISTORY TO A.D. 1300. 21

But St. Dunstan was not the only Englishman who sought
refuge at Ghent. Ethelred the Unready, son of Edgar, after vainly
attempting to stem the tide of Danish invasion, was forced to flee
with his two sons, Edward and Alured, across to Normandy, and
Edward found a home at St. Peter’s. The Danes had meantime
_over-run the country, murdered Alfege, Archbishop of Canterbury,
and no doubt scattered the little community at Lewisham, some of
whom we can imagine would have reported their losses to the
Abbot. Edward could give but little promise of immediate restitution,
but on the 26th December, 1006, he made a solemn vow on the
relics of the Saints, that should he ever in the mercy of God be
permitted to reign in his father’s kingdom in England, he would
restore to the Abbey its possessions, viz., ‘‘ The Vill of Liefesham
with Groneuuic and Uuluuic,” with their appenages, in houses,
churches, lands, woods, mills, &c. The original charter is still
preserved among the archives of East Flanders. It was not until
A.D. 1042, that Edward came to the Throne, but he was not
unmindful either of his word or of the kindness shown him at
Ghent. In 1044 he gave the Abbot of Ghent a charter confirming
the gift of ‘‘ Leuesham with all its appertenances, viz., Grenwic,
Wulewic, Modingeham and Cumbe.” To these were added certain
dennes in the great forest of Anderida, which then covered all the
south of Kent. The dennes were named Aeshchore, Aeffehaga,
Wingindene, Scarendene, Sandherste. Some of them can be
identified in Cowden parish, and were known locally as the Manor
of Lewisham, according to Dearne’s History of the Weald. At the
same time land in London, called Wermanacre (near St. Dunstan’s-
in-the-East), was also added to the Abbot’s possessions.

The charter gave the Abbot almost regal powers, with the
right to hold courts having jurisdiction over a large number of
causes, and exempted the lands even from the Zrinoda necessttas.
This might give rise to suspicion of forgery, but the charter was
evidently esteemed to be genuine, and was subsequently in large
part confirmed by successive kings.

The Norman conquest would not necessarily have alarmed the
Abbot for the safety of his possessions, Matilda, the wife of the
Conqueror, was descended from Elfrida herself, and St. Peter’s had
therefore a good friend at Court. But the times were turbulent,
‘and a confirmation of possession was a wise precaution. William’s
charter is dated A.D. 1081, and is witnessed by Queen Matilda and
a great array of Bishops and notables. In this charter the property
is described as the Manor of Lewisham, with all its appurtenances,
viz., Greenwich, Woolwich, Mottingham and Coombe, with the
places in the Weald before named and Wermennacres with Werns
in London. The rights and privileges granted by the Confessor’s
charter are also confirmed.

Four years later came the celebrated inquest or survey,
commonly called Domesday, and it is curious to find that notwith-
standing the above confirmations, the property assigned therein to

22 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

the Abbot of Ghent is Lewisham only, although it is probable that a
great part of what we call Greenwich to-day is comprehended
under the description given. Greenwich itself is described as
having been two Manors in the time of King Edward the Confessor,
held by Earl Harold and Brixi respectively, but united after the
Conquest and held by the Bishop of Lisieux of the Bishop of Baieux.
It is practically impossible to reconcile the charters and Domesday,
but the point belongs rather to the history of Greenwich than to
that of Lewisham.

It must be remembered that Domesday Book was primarily a
great valuation record, and that little was entered therein which
had no bearing on the value for taxation purposes of the various
Manors. It is spoken of sometimes as though it were a kind of
eleventh century gazetteer, but it is only this to a very limited
extent. One might be pardoned the wish now that the returns
from which it was compiled had dealt with other matters, but we
must not expect too much from it.

The entry in Domesday respecting Lewisham is as follows :—

“Terra Sancti Petri de Gand. In Grenviz Hundredo. Abbas de
Gand tenet de rege Levesham et de rege Edward tenuit et tunc et
modo pro ii solins se defendit. Terra est xiiii carucarum In
dominio sunt ii carucae et | villani cum ix bordariis habent xvii
carucas. Ibi iii servi et xj molini cum gablo rusticorum vii libras
et xii solidos reddentes. De exitu portus xl solidi. Ibi xxx acrae
prati. De silva 1 porci de pasnagio. Totum manerium Tempore
Regis Edwardi valebat xvj libras et post xij libras modo xxx™
libras.””

‘¢ The Land of St. Peter of Gand. In Greenwich Hundred. The
Abbot of Gand hold Levesham of the King and he held ‘it of King
Edward, and then and now it answers for two sulings. There is
the arable land of fourteen teams. In demesne there are two teams,
and 50 villans with 9 bordars have seventeen teams. There are
three slaves and eleven mills with the gafol of the rustics rendering
eight pounds and twelve shillings. From the outgoings of the
haven forty shillings. There are thirty acres of meadow. Of
wood 50 hogs from the pannage. The whole manor in the time of
King Edward was worth sixteen pounds, and afterwards twelve
pounds. Now thirty pounds.”

This may be paraphrased as follows :—In Greenwich Hundred
(subsequently called Blackheath Hundred) The Abbot of Ghent
holds Levesham of the King, and of King Edward he held it, and
then and now it answers fae two sulings, z.e., the unit of assess-
ment for taxation in Kent; in other counties the unit was known
as a hide, which is generally understood to have been about half a
suling. The Kentish unit was therefore low for taxation purposes.

In the time of King Edward, the area under cultivation was
that workable by fourteen ploughs each with a team of eight oxen.
In the portion of the Manor in the hands of the Abbot himself or
his bailiff, and known as the Demesne, there were at the time of

EARLY HISTORY TO A.D. 1300. 23

taking the survey, two plough teams. The tenants consisted of
fifty: families of the class known as villans and nine known as
bordars, who, between them, had seventeen plough teams. There
were thus 19 teams in A.D. 1085, against the 14 in King Edward’s
days. In other words more land was being placed under cultivation.
The villans and bordars were personally free, but only in a limited
sense to our ideas. The former each held about 30 acres of land,
but they could not quit their holdings without leave, and they were
bound to perform many services‘to the Lord of the Manor, besides
furnishing oxen to drive the ploughs on the demesne. The bordars
‘or cottagers had smaller holdings of some five acres, and were
more akin to farm labourers.

PLATE 6.—VIEW OF A WATER-MILL AT LEWISHAM, 1777.

There were three families of slaves, who performed the menial
work about the Manor Court. There are thus 72 families recorded
in A.D. 1085, or a population of between 300 and 4o0 souls.

Along the banks of the river would have been the 30 acres of
meadow, whilst all around lay the woods, which remained at Syden-
‘ham and Forest Hill until almost within living memory. Their value
is assessed, it will be seen, by the number of swine (50) which the
tenants gave the Lord of the Manor for the privilege of turning
their pigs out into the woods to fatten on the oak and beech mast.
It would be interesting to know if the assessment of wood included
the denes in the Weald near Cowden, which were attached to
Lewisham.

A point of much interest in the Domesday entry, is the
statement that there were eleven mills. The number, considering
the size of the Ravensbourne—for they were all water mills—seems
very large, and it has been suggested that the entry is an error.

24 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

There are, however, at least nine mills named in the 13th Century,
and even to-day there are, or were until recently, six within the
parish of Lewisham. The profits from them were valuable,
amounting, with the gafol, or rent of the country folk, to £8 12s.,
since all corn had to be ground at one of the mills pertaining to the
Manor.

The outgoings of the ‘‘ haven” are given as 4os., from which
we are led to assume that Lewisham was held to stretch as far as
the mouth of the Ravensbourne at Deptford Creek. .

The whole Manor is stated to have been worth £16 in King
Edward’s days, afterwards £12, and in A.D. 1085, 430.

Such is the brief outline given us in Domesday Book, and we
have to fill in the details as best we may. It will be observed that
no church is mentioned. The Commissioners were given no
instructions to include the churches ; they often did so, but the
absence of any statement cannot be taken as implying that no
church existed ; indeed, the Charter of the Confessor includes the
churches of Lewisham and Greenwich in the list of belongings.
Moreover it is unlikely that a religious community, such as the
monks of Ghent, would have neglected to erect some building for
public worship.

It is clear that from the time of William the Conqueror, the
property of the Abbot of Ghent consisted only of Lewisham and
Greenwich, and that he dropped any claim he might have had
under the older charters to Woolwich, Mottingham and Combe.
Possibly the whole of Greenwich was secured to him in place of the
last three named places, but there are no documents to show that
any formal arrangement was made. William Rufus confirmed
the Abbot’s possession of ‘fLiefesham and Grenuich,” and a
similar charter of confirmation was obtained from each succeeding
king.

How necessary this was may be seen from the claimants who
endeavoured to wrest the property from the monks. In the reign
of Henry I, one Gervaise de Cornouailles (or Cornhill), apparently
a Londoner, asserted a claim—on what grounds we are not told,
and amongst the archives of East Flanders are three deeds by
which he renounced his pretensions. The Charter given by Henry I,
possibly in consequence of the above claim, enlarged the previous
gifts by granting the Abbot the sole right of hunting—Free Warren,
as it was called—on his lands, and further gave authority for the
establishment of a market at Greenwich.

But another and more powerful claimant appeared in the
person of Robert de Baunton, son of Walter de Douai, who was
Lord of the Manor of Lee. It is an instructive example of the
turbulent spirit of the time, that in spite of Royal Charters and the
curses of the church on all who broke them, claims such as those
of Robert de Baunton should have been set up and for years
successfully pleaded. .No doubt the Norman, Walter de Douai,
seated at his place in Lee, looked with jealous eyes on the Abbot’s

EARLY HISTORY TO A.D. 1300. 25

possessions, which lay close to his hands. The Abbot, too, was
over the sea, and his representatives—probably only a few monks
and lay brethren—could offer but little resistance, and so Robert,
his son, seized Lewisham and Greenwich and held them in spite of
Abbot and King.

Naturally the Abbot carried the matter before Henry I, and
Robert de Baunton was summoned to appear and answer for his
claim. This, however, he disdained to do, and in default King
Henry adjudged the Manors to be the property of the Abbot of
Ghent, and forbad Robert to molest him. King Stephen also gave
the Abbot a further Charter, declaring that the pretensions advanced
by Robert de Baunton were ill-founded, and Bulls were obtained
from Popes Eugenius III and Alexander III, excommunicating all
who should presume to interfere with the Abbot’s possessions in
Lewisham and Greenwich.

From proceedings which took place later, we learn that Robert
and his friends murmured so loudly against these decrees, and held
the King and Abbot in such ill-will*—by which we may presume
that no artifice within the law, or indeed without, which those
troublous times allowed, went untried—that the Abbot, for the
sake of peace, granted the Manors to Robert and his heirs, for a
yearly rent of £25.

Robert’s daughter and heir, Juliana, married William Paganell,
who founded the Priory of Drax, in Yorkshire, and the Manors
appear to have remained in their hands and those of their son,
Fulke Paganell. The Abbot’s Charter had been taken to Uffeculme
in Devonshire, for greater security, but in the wars betw een
Stephen and the Empress Maud, the Manor House there, with the
Charter, was burnt. Whether the Abbot became aware of this, or
merely regarded his arrangement with Robert de Baunton as a
lease, it is impossible to say ; anyway, he obtained a confirmation
from King John in 1208, and in 1222 he commenced an action in
the King’s Courts to recover possession from William Paganell,
the son of Fulke.

William produced his two freemen, Simon, son of Humphrey
de Grenewiche, and Michael, son of William de Silverton, in
Devonshire, who offered to prove by their bodies in combat, if the
Court should so decide, that their fathers had seen the Charter of
the Abbot, granting Lewisham to Robert de Baunton, and had
ordered them to come-forward with their testimony if ever they
heard talk of it, and they asserted that Robert de Baunton held
Lewisham and Greenwich when Henry | died.

The Abbot was represented by Friars Arn and John, and the
2ist of April was fixed for the trial. The case was, however,
settled peaceably. The Abbot undertook to pay 1o1 silver marks
to William Paganell, who on his part renounced all rights in the

* Drake's Hasted, page 238, from the Coram Rege Roll, Henry III,
No. 2, m. 7, Kent.

26 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Manors, and undertook to annul any Charter that might hereafter
come to light which favoured his claims. The original deed, dated
at Westminster, 27th April, 1222, is preserved amongst the
archives of East Flanders. .

And so at last the Abbot was secure in his possession.
Henry III gave him a further Charter of Confirmation in 1229, and
‘during his long reign, so far as we can tell, nothing occurred to
disturb his tenure.

Evidence of the insecurity of the Abbot of Ghent’s tenure is,
incidentally, to be found in the very large amount of subinfeudation,
which took place within the Manor of Lewisham, and as the making
of these subsidiary manors was prohibited by the statute Quza
Emptores in 1291, we may safely assume that those in Lewisham
were in existence before that date. They consist of the Manors of
Bankers, Brockley, Catford, Bellingham, Shrafholt and Sydenham,
which between them cover at least three-quarters of the total area.

Bankers. —The family of Bonquer, or Banquel became
possessed of land in Lewisham in the reign of Henry III, about the
year 1260, by purchase from the Doget ‘family, and this seems to
have originated the manor since called by their name, corrupted to
Bankers and Bankhurst. The manor is entirely in Lewisham, and
comprises nearly all that portion between Loampit Hill and
Stanstead Road, the parish boundary on the north and west and
the river Ravensbourne on the east, from Lewisham Bridge to
Catford. The Banquels in 1261 purchased

SHRAFHOLT from the Castillon family. This Manor is partly in
Lewisham and partly in Bromley, comprising part of Southend,
Bromley Hill and part of Plaistow.

In addition to the above, the Banquels became Lords of the
Manor of Lee in the reign of Edward III, and the Manor of Lee is
held to include not only the whole of the old parish of that name,
but also that part of Lewisham comprising Mount Pleasant,
Rosenthal, St. Swithun’s (Hither Green), and the Park Hospital.

Brockey belonged to the Maminots in the time of Henry II,
and formed part of the endowment of Begham Abbey. It is
doubtful whether the Lewisham portion was esteemed a Manor,
nearly the whole area being within the Manor of Bankers, but
certain estates in Lewisham paid quit rents to the Lord of the
Manor of Brockley.

CATFORD includes the St. German’s estate in the Brownhill and
adjoining roads, and that in the Stanstead Road. It belonged to
the Abel family in the time of Edward I, and subsequently to the
College of St. Lawrence Pountney, in London.

BELLINGHAM seems to have included the greater part of the
land between Catford and Southend. It became part of the
endowment of the Cistercian Abbey of Stratford Langthorne in
Essex.

SYDENHAM, in medieval times, was the district now known as
Lower Sydenham and Perry Hill. it is doubtful whether this was

EARLY HISTORY TO A.D. 1300. 27

rightly termed a manor, but nearly the whole of the property was
very early alienated by the Abbot of Ghent.

With regard to manorial jurisdiction, the Manor of Lewisham
was paramount over the whole, and persons from the whole
area appear to have attended the Manor Courts. Separate
Courts for Bankers and Shrafholt were held, however, with those
for Lee, and there is also evidence that quit rents were paid by
tenants within the Manor of Bellingham to their own lord.

The quit rents paid to the Lord of the Manor of Lewisham for

the various tenures were :— ae a
For Bankers wig B3cit
», Shratholt ae 17 44
», Bellingham ... go: |x
3. @attord:... se 22 II

The glimpses we have of Lewisham life in the 13th century are
chiefly contained in the Assize Rolls. If these present us with the
worst side of the life of the times, they also give us the customs
which are the foundation of much of the procedure of to-day.

Blackheath, as in after years, appears to have been a
particularly perilous place to cross, several of the cases referring to
murders committed thereon. Thus in 1254, certain malefactors
unknown assaulted Hamo de Cherewood and Roger le Juuene on
the Heath, Roger was slain, and Hamo, as being present, was
attached to answer for the crime, but was not suspected. The law
then required that on the death of a man by violence it was
necessary for the district to prove he was not a Frenchman. This
was not done in the present case, and the Hundred in which the
murder took place was accordingly fined. The township of
Greenwich was also fined for burying the dead man without
holding an inquest and the neighbouring townships of Lee and
Charlton were fined for not aiding in the prosecution of the
murderers.

Another interesting case in the same year was a quarrel,
between Geoffrey le Bidelede and Margery, daughter of Roger
David, on the one hand, and Agnes, daughter of Roger le Biche,
on the other. Geoffrey and Margery between them beat Agnes to
death, and being apprehended they were placed in the prison of
the Prior of Lewisham. Margery effected her escape and fled to
Lewisham Church, and having thus taken sanctuary she was
permitted to abjure the realm before William Scot, the Prior’s
bailiff. Her companion in crime, Geoffrey, was taken to Rochester
Castle, but escaping, he was declared exiled, outlawed and con-
demned to death. For having allowed the felons to escape the
township of Lewisham was fined. ‘The episode took place in that
part of the Manor represented at the Manor Court by Adam de
Catford.

Another case may be taken from the Assize Rolls for 1278.
Matthew de Pontefract and James, son of Henry de Brocole

28 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

(Brockley), met in the township of Lewisham and quarrelled.
Henry struck Matthew with a club so that he died the same night.
Henry fled, was proclaimed and outlawed. His goods, which were
valued at 6s. od., were forfeited. Lewisham was fined for allowing
him to escape and ‘‘Elteham, Ketebroc and Wolwich” for not
joining in the pursuit—which indicates the route of the assassin.

It will be seen from these cases that rough as the times were
and ready as men were to lift up their weapons against one another
the law was so devised that the wrong-doer was not likely to
escape if those responsible for order did their duty. Another
custom—the aim of which was to assist in detecting murder—was
that of attaching the four next neighbours of a man for his death.
The general proceedings for keeping the peace known as the
View of Frankpledge will give us several examples of their working
when we come to the period covered by the early Court Rolls of
the Manor.

CHAPTER II.

THE 14TH AND I5TH CENTURIES.

N order to understand the local life of Lewisham
in the Middle Ages it will be necessary to explain,
if only very briefly, the arrangement of land
within the manor. This may be classed under
four heads—(i) the lord’s demesne; (ii) the land
held by the various classes of tenants; (iii) the

common fields; (iv) the waste. Of these the first-named needs
little explanation: it included the manor house and the gardens
and home farm immediately around it. This at Lewisham is
generally believed to have stood at Rushey Green, although the
site is not now the property of the lord cf the manor. The pound,
an indispensable adjunct, is, however, close at hand, and the land
to the rear of this belongs to the Earl of Dartmouth.

The land held by the various tenants included their houses
with the adjoining crofts, and these were generally grouped
together in the village not far from the church and manor house.
The houses for the most part were built of timber and wattle, and
consisted of a hall open to the rafters of the roof, with a central
fire, the smoke of which found its way out either by a louvre in
the roof, or, in the smaller houses, as best it could. At one end
of the hall, or both ends in the larger houses, were small chambers,
the upper stories of which overhung the lower. The furniture was
of the simplest description: a trestle table with benches in the hall,
and a bedstead with a locker or two in the rooms.

But the chief point in the medizval economy was the old
custom of cultivation in vogue in the fields. Each free tenant

FOURTEENTH AND FIFTEENTH CENTURIES. 29

possessed certain acres of land in addition to the croft in which
his dwelling was placed, but these acres were distributed in strips
in the common fields and were not grouped together as they are
to-day. The fields were cultivated generally in sets of three, in
one of which early crops were raised, in another autumn crops,
whilst the third lay fallow, and in each of these the tenants’ strips
were distributed. Much of the land held by the lord was also
distributed in the same manner, his strips being mingled with
those of the tenants in the common fields. From Lammastide
(1st August) the fences which divided the strips were taken down
and the whole field regarded as common property for grazing, etc.,
until the next ploughing time, the crops being varied each year
for each field. In some manors the fields were managed on a
two-field basis, one arable, the other pasture.

Outside the whole was the waste of heath and uncultivated
land, upon which all holders of land within the manor had the
right of pasture for their cattle and flocks according to the size
of their holdings, and also the right of cutting furze, etc., for fuel.
The soil belonged to the lord, but he could not enclose it if any
damage was done thereby to those who had the ‘right of
common,” as it was called. In Lewisham there were two large
tracts of waste, Blackheath and Westwood at Sydenham.

Our knowledge of Lewisham when the manorial system was
in full working order is derived from the early records of the Court
of the Lord of the Manor and his Rent Rolls. Those which
survive are in the Public Record Office, and no doubt became
part of the public records when the manor came to the crown on
the suppression of the alien priories. The Court Rolls preserved
commence in 1284, the twelfth year of the reign of Edward I, and
they cover parts of the reign of that king, of the reign of
Edward II, a few years of Edward III, and part of the reign of
Henry V. They thus give us a series of peeps at Lewisham for
a period of 140 years, and enable us to see something of the life
and local government of the place. Incidentally they throw much
light on the place names of the parish, so familiar to us to-day
that it comes somewhat as a surprise to find how ancient some
of them are. Could a Lewisham man of the 14th century revisit
the old scenes he would truly recognise nothing, but were he
spoken to of Brockley, Stumps Hill, Court Hill, Eastdown,
Sydenham, Catford, Shroffold, and other places within the
borough, he would soon feel that he was on familiar soil, for the
names were as much household words to him as they are to us
in the 2oth century.

The earliest of the rent rolls is undated, but seems to be of
the time of Edward II. It gives the small money payments
made by the various free tenants in Lewisham in lieu of the
personal service exacted in earlier times, or the rents which were
agreed to on the creation of a new homestead from the waste.
The manor was divided into two ‘‘burghs”—Northburgh, which

30 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

seems to have included the portion from Blackheath to Catford;
and Southburgh, which took in Bellingham, | Southend, and
possibly Sydenham.

But besides the rents, there were still certain services due
to the lord by various hides* of land in the manor, and those
which related to the hay harvest are specially set down as follows:

Hides in ‘‘la Norburgh of Leuesham” which owe services
to the lord of the manor in Cassemede in time of hay harvest, viz.:

Draggeshide ought to bring two men, one iron fork, one
wooden fork, a cart, and give 1d.

Harmakeshide ought to bring four men, one iron fork, one
wooden fork, two rakes and two carts, and give 2d.

Rochulveshide and Alfildehide ought to bring as Harmakes-
hide.

Thurbarneshide does not do these services because it does
suit at the court for the burgh.

Hides in Suthburgh which owe service as above:

Cordeleshide ought to bring four men, one iron fork, one
wooden fork, two rakes, two carts, and give 2d.

Poncheshide ought to bring three men, one iron fork, one
wooden fork, two rakes and two carts, and give 2d.

Copehodeshide, Potteshide and Frerenhide ought to bring as
Cordeleshide.

Cassemede was apparently the name given to the meadow-
lands of the lordship, and we see from the above how the tenants
assisted in getting in the hay. Other hides mentioned are Conge-
dehide, Duehide at Schrafholte, Cassehide, Godeboldeshide; but
the services due from the tenants are not stated. The designa-
tions of the hides probably give us the names of some of the
earliest settlers in Lewisham.

Of the great common-fields of the manor the names of several
have come down to us, and fortunately we can place most of
them :—

Sundermead is the large field of 17 acres where Lewisham
Station now stands, and which is even yet garden ground in part.
In the reign of Edward II there are several entries in the Court
Rolls of fines for services in this field which had not been per-
formed.

Broadfield is the large field of about 80 acres on the eastern
side of the railway, between Catford Bridge and Lower Sydenham,
and is still farm land. It is mentioned in the Rental of the reign
of Edward II.

* The hide varied in different parts of the country, but may be taken as
representing about 120 acres. It was originally the extent of a family’s
holding.

FOURTEENTH AND FIFTEENTH CENTURIES. 31

Southfield, of 42 acres, is now Lewisham Park, with the allot-
ment ground hard by. It is mentioned in the Court Rolls of 1335,
when John Sutor was fined 4d. for allowing his swine to run
therein.

Westfield and Northfield are also named in the Rental of
Edward II’s reign, but their position cannot now be determined.
The former may be identical with Pzckthornes, the great field of
64 acres at Forest Hill, in the centre of which Christ Church now
stands. The field is also mentioned in the same rental. Northfield
may be the great field of nearly 40 acres called Strodes, which is
now the Ladywell and Deptford Cemetery.

Another manor field was Clangors, the ground of about
32 acres at the back of the Pound at Rushey Green.

Certain lands in the manor were charged with providing
ploughshares for the ploughs of the lord. Eighteen of these are
shown as due yearly, valued at gd. each. Other lands owed
**Waldgavel,” or wood rent, the sums being small, e.g., Robert de
Catford, for the third part of Thurbarneshide, paid 2d.; Henry de
Rombergh, for his part of the same hide, 13d.; Richard Copehod,
for his part of Copehodeshide, 14d.; William and Adam Atte
Ford, for their part of Potteshide, 2d.; etc.

The whole rental, excepting the redemption of Waldgavel
and the services due in Cassemede, came to £ 28 os. 8d.

The names of the various mills along. the Ravensbourne in
the early part of the 14th century occur frequently on the manor
rolls :—

Toddelesmill - Now called the Silk Mill, near Lewisham
Station.

Semannesmill - Belonging to the Bridge House, and pro-

; bably that now called Riverdale.

Slagravesmill - This must have been near Ladywell. Sla-
grave is now the Bermondsey Union
Workhouse.

Fordmill - - Probably Catford Mill.

Freremill - - Probably at Bellingham.

Knappemill - |
Livingesmill - Apparently at Southend.
Shrafholtemill -|

Pumfretesmill -

At the time the Court Rolls were written the lord of the
manor was to a large extent supreme within his own manor and
held his court, which took cognisance of almost all matters which
related to the daily life and well-being of the tenants. At the
same time it must be remembered that the whole was governed by
custom—that appeal to what had gone before, to what had always
been done—and consequently much that seems strange, harsh,
and vexatious to us would have been regarded by our predecessors

32 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

as coming in the ordinary course of things. The rolls are the
records of the proceedings held in these courts, and we shall find
that the matters dealt with included trespass, theft, assault,
damage, encroachment, breaking the assize of bread and beer,
z.e., selling under weight and quality, and similar misdemeanours.
At these courts, which as a rule were held once every three weeks,
all transfers of land were recorded and fines for the privilege paid
to the lord. The court also took cognizance of all cases of
nuisance arising out of drains or watercourses being stopped up
or roads left in bad repair, and any attempt to carry gravel or
turf or furze from the common or heath lands was met by the
imposition of a fine. The bailiff of the manor, as representing
the lord, presided over the court, and was assisted by a jury
elected by the tenants, who also elected a headman or ‘‘ Boroughs-
elder” or ‘‘Borsholder,” as he was called, for each division of the
manor, the aletaster, the appraisors or assessors, and other
officials.

It will thus be seen that there was in each manor a very com-
plete system of local government, and that nearly all those who
carried on the work were elected by the people themselves. No
doubt the power possessed by the lord of the manor could have
been exercised in a tyrannical manner, but we have evidence that
in some manors at least the lord was answerable to his own court
and carried out its decrees.

In Lewisham the people had the advantage, if indeed it really
was one, of having an absentee foreign abbot as lord of the
manor, viz., the Abbot of St. Peter at Ghent. His place here was
taken by the prior of the cell or house which, as we have
seen, was established at Lewisham to look after the estates and
collect the revenues. It is more than probable that the compara-
tively mild sway of the prior was overbalanced by the fact that
he had no further interest in the place than that of sending as
much money as he could collect to his foreign master. At the
same time he was willing to make grants of land to free tenants,
and this is evidenced from the fact that out of the 5,773 acres of
the old parish of Lewisham only 396 acres eventually remained
in the hands of the lord of the manor, and this included the
lammas lands.

The courts are frequently called the View of Frankpledge,
the Anglo-Saxon system by which all freemen were pledged for
the good behaviour of one another.

Before giving some specimens of the cases brought before the
courts, it will be of interest to see what light the rolls throw on
the place names of the parish. There are several references to
Blackheath, principally in connection with persons cutting turf
without authority. It is generally alluded to as ‘‘la Blakehethe,”
or the ‘‘Common de la Blakehethe”’ (1301).

At the further end of the parish we have to-day Beckenham
Lane, the summit of which is known as Stumps Hill. This name

FOURTEENTH AND FIFTEENTH CENTURIES. 33

appears as Stompshill, Stombeshill, Stombelhulle, the last being
probably the earliest form and giving the meaning of the name.
It gave its name to a family the members of which frequently
appear in the Court Rolls as Richard de Stombeshull, Ralph
Stombelhulle, etc. (1301).

Forest Hill is represented by Adam atte Forest, Robert atte
Forest, and others, and the name serves to remind us how thickly
wooded the Sydenham Hills must then have been.

Catford appears as a family name in John de Cateford, who
was a leading parishioner in 1320, in which year he was Bors-
holder.

A name which has completely vanished from the parish is that
of Romburgh. A family of de Romburgh flourished in Lewisham
in the 14th century. Romburgh Forest is also mentioned, and
other persons are named as dwelling in Romburgh. In a deed
of the 13th century certain property is mentioned as being bounded
by ‘‘the road which leadeth from Lewisham Church to Romburgh,”
and in another deed certain Romburgh property is spoken of as
adjoining ‘‘Southfield,” which is now Lewisham Park. It would
seem, therefore, that Romburgh is the old name for that part of
the parish where St. Swithun’s, Hither Green, in now situated.

Camps Hill, in Hither Green Lane, appears in these early
records as Kemp’s Hill, probably called from a former owner or
occupier, and not from the fact that a camp or entrenchment
formerly stood there.

Richard de Brocle appears in 1301 presenting the excuse of
Robert atte Forest for non-attendance at the Manor Court, and
in 1312 John de Crey and Adam Ster are summoned for not
building their houses in ‘‘ Brockele.”

The modern Sangley comes to us as Sanguinel, and this form
survived as Sanwell as late as 1820.

The records of the courts held in 1301 are entered rather
fully—we will take that held on the Thursday after Palm Sunday
of that year. First of all come the ‘‘essoins” or excuses for non-
attendance. The list is headed by John Flemyng, which reminds
us of Lewisham’s connection with Flanders. He makes the
‘common excuse,” z.é., illness, or that the roads were bad, or some
other lawful hindrance. His excuse is presented by John atte
Cruche (John at the Cross) and is accepted, and so on with
twenty-six others.

Thomas the Miller accuses Sir Walter the Prior of Leuesham
.of trespass—one of the many proofs that the lord of the manor
could be sued in his own court.

Ralph Stombelhulle (Stumps Hill nowadays) places himself
‘fat the mercy of the lord,” for default in making his appearance
on previous occasions, and is fined 3d.

William le Webbe brings his plaint against Margery de
Norwike for trespass. Margery does not put in an appearance
and is held to be at the lord’s mercy, as the phrase was.

34 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Then come the cases of death amongst the tenants. Richard
Conpart is dead, and his holding is taken into the lord’s hands
‘Cuntil further order be taken,” z.e., until the lawful heir shall be
admitted. Similarly with Isabel of Schratholte’s holding.

On the death of a tenant the custom was for the incoming
tenant to pay a fine, called a ‘‘heriot,” to the lord of the manor,
and at this court a heriot was declared due on the death of one
Simon of Catford, viz., a horse valued at 20s. Afterwards came
John his son and paid the fine.

Questions of weights and measures fill up the work of the
day. Alice Pod, baker, sells ‘‘wastell” bread, z.e., bread of the
finest flour, below the statutory weight, and is fined god. She
was further fined for selling ‘‘Koket,” an inferior kind of bread,
below weight. Matilda Bolthod sells a ‘‘wigge,” another variety
of bread, below the weight demanded by the Assize of Bread, and
also ‘‘Koket,” and for both offences is fined 3s. 2d. and 4od.

Those who brewed and sold ale contrary to the strength and
price prescribed by the Assize of Ale, were presented and fined
various Sums from 3d. upwards. There were 61 cases dealt with
by the court. Apparently ale was sold by anyone who chose to
brew it.

At the next Court held shortly after Easter there was a ‘‘ View
of Frank Pledge,” z.e., the presentments of breaches of the peace
and drawing blood, hue and cry raised, etc.

John Scott draws blood from William Palefrayman, John
Jacob is his pledge. Fine 3d.

William le Webbe draws blood from William Person. Richard
Ingeld is his pledge. Fine 6d.

Adam son of John of Rombergh draws blood from Hubert
of Rombergh-—evidently a family feud. John Jacob will be his
pledge. Fine 4d.

A more serious affray is that in which Robert, John and
William Biwynd are accused of drawing blood from John the
Shepherd of Amice Godson. Fine 18d. The pledges for the
peace were William de la Stonyheelde and Richard Redhed.

Richard Redhed is at the lord’s mercy because he held the
presentment of the Borsholder in contempt.

Peter the son of Richard the Tailor of Sevenoke drew blood
from William son of Adam Atteford. John the Tailor of Leuesham
is his pledge.

The said John levied the hue and cry unjustly against Terri
Cobbe. William le Rideler is his pledge.

Agnes wife of William the Smith levies hue and cry without
cause against the said Terri Cobbe. Her husband will answer for
her.

The above cases show the method of keeping the peace. The
guilty party was ‘‘bound over” (as we should say nowadays), a
neighbour being surety who would be fined if the peace were
broken.

FOURTEENTH AND FIFTEENTH CENTURIES. 35

William le Webbe is reported to have made an encroachment
on the King’s highway at ‘‘le Thrul,” viz., two virgates and a half
long and in breadth two rods and a half, and is given a set time to
remove the same, John Jacob acting as his pledge.

It is also reported to the Court that the highway opposite the
Court of William de Marinis, one of the larger landowners, is in a
bad state of repair and the Court orders the bailif to distrain upon
the said William to repair the same.

This incident shows us that the repair of the roads was not,
as now, the business of the local authorities, but was laid upon the
owner of the adjoining land.

Upon question put John Jacob and Adam Ede, the ‘‘ Borges-
alders” or Headmen of Leuesham, declare that they have made
their presentments as they ought to make them.

The sum of the fines, etc., of the Court came to 71s. 64d., of
which Greenwich should pay 39s. 7d. and Leuesham jos. rod.
The afferatores or assessors of fines were Amis Godson, Adam
Atte Forest, and John Calvel.

At another Court held at Lewisham, in the summer of the
same year (1301), Robert Lord was summoned for digging turf
on the common ‘‘de la Blakeheth”’ and is fined 3d. Jurdan the
Shepherd is also fined a similar amount. Margery Calvel is
indicted because she to the grievous damage of the lord and all
the commonalty was wont to dig on the said common. Margery
claimed an inquisition, which was held and declared her guilty,
whereupon she is fined 3d. Giles of the Hall and Richard Grey
and others are similarly fined.

These instances will show how jealously the common rights
were guarded against unauthorized encroachment, but at the same
time their number indicates a growing disregard.

At the same Court we have the election of certain officers.
Peter Billuk was elected ‘* Borgesalder” of the ‘‘ Southborg” of
Lewisham, Symon le Freend is elected aletaster, and both are
sworn faithfully to do as they ought.

Another group of proceedings relates to the year 1320, when
John de Catford and Peter de Bywyne were ‘‘ Borghesalders.”
William Ede is elected Borghesalder by the whole homage (the
freeholders) and Thomas Ede aletaster. Many are fined for
brewing ale contrary to the assize, including Thomas Brekerop,
John Vayrwyne and William Sanguinel. These and others
mentioned previously will give an idea of the Lewisham names of
the 14th century and will serve to show how many surnames arose.

If the Abbot of Ghent was left in peace during the reign of
Henry III that period of undisputed possession was now to come
to an end, mainly on account of the French wars undertaken by
the Edwards. In 1294 Edward I was engaged in preparing for
war against the French King, and besides obtaining large supplies
from both clergy and laity he seized the lands and goods of the

D2

36 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

alien priories. The monks were allowed 1s. 6d. a week and David
le Graunt was placed in charge of the Priory of Lewisham for the
security of the realm, lest, the lands being on the banks of the
Thames, the aliens might convey intelligence by sea to the enemy.
This was the pretext that was made from time to time, and during
the reigns of Edward II, Edward III and Richard II Lewisham
was frequently taken into the king’s hands, the king acting as
owner and presenting to the vicarage on any vacancy occurring.

It is not surprising, therefore, to find that the Prior of Lewis-
ham, acting for the abbot, let the manor on lease whenever he
could do so. In 1295 Lewisham was leased in this way to Sir
William de Carletone for three years at an annual rent of £90,
which was to be paid to the king if he was at war with France
and to the prior if peace was concluded.

In 1337 the alien priories were seized by reason of the war
with France, but were formally restored in 1361, and in that year
Christo Cossimio, Prior of Lewisham, obtained the King’s licence
to visit Flanders and to take with him two attendants, 1 bow,
20 arrows, 1 pipe of salted beef, 8 bacons, and three barrels of
beer for his use and that of his household.

In 1380, money being required for the French wars, Lewisham
was again taken into the King’s hands, and a survey was made by
which the goods were valued at £27 12s. 6d. and the annual
revenue at 67 marcs. The manor was placed in charge of Sir
Nicholas Brember for life at an annual rent of 80 marcs. He was
an alderman of the City of London and was knighted with William
Walworth when Wat Tyler was slain. After serving as Lord
Mayor he was concerned in plots against the Duke of Gloucester,
and was finally executed with an axe of his own design on
18th February, 1388. His successor in 1399 was John Norbury,
squire and treasurer to the king, and an adherent of Henry IV.

These frequent seizures of their property must have in part
prepared the monks of Ghent for the final catastrophe. In 1414,
when Henry V was getting ready for the campaign in France
which led up to Agincourt, the Commons petitioned him to con-
sider the case of the alien priories by means of which, they urged,
the State was impoverished by money being sent out of the
kingdom to the head houses abroad. They therefore desired the
King to take these possessions of the foreigner once for all into
his own hands.

Henry acceded to the request in a Parliament held at Leicester,
and in spite of the protests of the Abbot of Ghent, Lewisham and
Greenwich, which through some 500 years had been in his
possession, passed away finally, never to return.

Lewisham was not, however, to remain for long part of the
possessions of the Crown. Henry was engaged in founding a
Carthusian priory at Shene, in Surrey, and in 1415 Lewisham and
Greenwich were settled upon that house as part of its endowment,
and for 116 years the Prior of Shene was Lord of the Manor,

FOURTEENTH AND FIFTEENTH CENTURIES, 37

although, following the example of his predecessor, he frequently
leased the property.

The change in ownership did not probably affect the dwellers
in Lewisham to any great extent, and things went on pretty much
as before. The Court Rolls from the 6th to the oth year of King
Henry V give us one more brief insight into the life of the people.
The old division of the manor into Northborow and Southborow
continues, a Borsholder for each being elected at the various
courts, together with an aletaster; those holding these important
offices in 1420 being

Northborow - - Borsholder, Thomas Reed.
Aletaster, Thomas Lanne.
Southborow - - Borsholder, Robert Broke.

Aletaster, John Baly.

The principal case brought before the Manor Court at this
time was the action of Robert Chapman, the Vicar, who had
collected part of his tithe by force. At least that was the con-
tention of John Fox, the bailiff of the Prior of Shene. According
to the story told by the latter, Richard Chapman, on Monday next
after the feast of St. Giles, in the fifth year of King Henry the Fifth,
at Lewisham in a certain field called Holemanneshell, had entered
and vi et armis had carried off eight cocks of corn standing in
sheaves, by which cause the said John was at loss to the value
of 100s. The Vicar appeared in person and denied that he came
vt et armis, but said he was the Vicar of the Church of Lewisham
and that the said corn was his tithe belonging of right to the
vicarage. The bailiff, however, declared them to be the tithe which
being on the demesne lands belonged to the Prior as rector of the
church. John Horwood, the sub-bailiff, was directed to summon a
jury to hear the case, but the matter dragged on until 1431, when
an arrangement was made between Mr. William Frome, then
vicar, and the Prior and Convent of Shene, by which the tithes in
dispute were formally adjudged to the Prior, and the Vicar was
given half the wax offered in the church on Candlemas Day. A
profitable arrangement in 1431, no doubt, but hardly so at the
present day! The demesne lands are nowadays held to be tithe free.

The names of the mills at this period are :—

Lithyngsmill - This, which formerly belonged to the

Banquel family, was probably at the
: Bromley end of the parish.
Fordemylle - - Probably that at Catford.

Cokesmille - -

Newmill — - -

Seemanysmille - Also called Brigesmill, and probably that
belonging to the Bridgehouse Estate.

Grangemill- —_- Belonging to the Abbot of Stratford and

therefore at Bellingham.

38 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

The millers of these mills were all fined for taking excessive
toll for grinding corn, contrary to statute. Fines are also recorded
against those who sold beer by mug instead of by sealed measure.

During the latter part of the 15th century the people of
Lewisham were engaged in building the tower of the Parish
Church, which was commenced about the year 1471. Nearly
every parishioner who had anything to leave mentions it in his
will, and we may therefore assume that the project was a popular
one.

During much of the period through which we have traced the
story of Lewisham, the Court was frequently at Eltham, where
Edward IV considerably enlarged the palace, rebuilding the great
hall and other portions. Henry VII seems to have been rather
partial to Greenwich, and Henry VIII practically deserted Eltham
for the latter. No doubt it was found easier of access by water
from London than the long ride over the wild open country of
Blackheath as it then was. The possessions of the Crown at
Greenwich were, however, of limited extent, and Henry VIII
began to look around for means to extend the property. It is
characteristic that he should at first have endeavoured to oust the
Prior of Shene on a legal quibble. Henry V had granted Lewisham
and Greenwich to Shene, as we have seen, but it was now alleged
that the act of Henry was that of an usurper—being a Lancastrian
—and that Edward IV had resumed possession of any lands so
granted. A jury was therefore called together at Deptford in 1518
to try the Prior’s title to the estates. At the enquiry it was shown
that Lewisham and Greenwich had been given to Shene by
Henry V, and that on the roth July, 1461, Edward IV had
confirmed the gift, and the Prior’s right was therefore unassailable
at law. Amongst the evidence it is interesting to note that it was
recorded that Edward III had seized Lewisham and Greenwich in
1338 by reason of the war with France, and that they had remained
in the hands of Richard II throughout his reign, and in those of
Henry IV and V for the same reason, and were held throughout
as of fee and by right of the Crown of England.

As Prior Joburn was not to be dispossessed by foul means,
Henry proceeded to try and effect an exchange, and in 1531 this
was arranged, Lewisham and Greenwich passing into his hands in
lieu of certain property elsewhere, thus hastening by a few years
what would have occurred at the dissolution of Shene Priory.

The religious changes of the middle of the 16th century made
considerable alterations in the ownership of a large part of the
parish. Bellingham, lying between Catford and Southend, which
belonged to the Cistercian Monastery of Stratford Langthorne, in
Essex, came to the Crown, and in 1547 the College of St. Lawrence
Poultney, in London, was suppressed, by which the Manor of
Catford also came into the royal hands. In the reign therefore of
Edward VI for a brief period the whole of the manorial rights in
the district were reunited under the King as Lord of the Manor.

FOURTEENTH AND FIFTEENTH CENTURIES. 39

This lasted but for a year or two, for in 1548 Catford was granted
to Henry Polstede, of Chileworth, and William More, of Loseley,
both in Surrey, for the sum of £2,034 14s. 10d.; in 1550 Lewis-
ham Manor was granted to John, Earl of Warwick ; and in 1554
Bellingham was conferred on Richard Whetely, to whom a lease
had already been granted by the last Abbot of Stratford.

The Earl of Warwick did not long retain Lewisham but
exchanged it with the king for other property, and it was then, in
1547, given to the king’s uncle, Thomas Lord Seymour of
Sudeley, k.G., Great Admiral of England, in support of his
dignities. Two years later Lord Seymour was beheaded by order
of his brother, the Protector Somerset, on a charge of designing
' to seize the king’s person, and the Manor of Lewisham then
reverted to the Crown.

Queen Mary granted it to Cardinal Pole and the clergy of
England, but on the accession of Queen Elizabeth it again became
Crown property, and was leased to Henry Knolles, Esq., who had
successive leases which came to Sir Francis Knolles, a man much
esteemed by the Queen, who made him Captain of her Guard,
Treasurer of the Household and a Knight of the Garter.

CHAPTER TI.

FROM THE 16TH CENTURY TO THE PRESENT TIME.

HAVE referred in the previous chapter to the
religious changes which, by the dissolution of the
monasteries, altered so greatly the tenure of
much of the land in Lewisham as elsewhere. It
will be fitting that a brief account should be given
of these changes which affected the everyday
outlook of our predecessors. And here we should express our
satisfaction that the same man was Vicar of Lewisham during the
whole period of change, a man of moderate views, full of pity
for the poor, large-hearted and generous if we may judge from his
will. Mr. John Glynn was appointed vicar by Henry VIII in 1546,
and he continued vicar through the reigns of Edward VI, Queen
Mary, and until Elizabeth had been ten years firmly seated on the
throne. Whether we agree with the changes which were made,
or think they went too far or not far enough, changes were
ordered by law, and it must have been greatly to the advantage
of Lewisham that its spiritual head at the time was a man whose
views permitted him to carry them out with as little dislocation
of thought as possible. When he came to Lewisham there were
two endowed chantry priests to assist him. These were sup-

40 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

pressed in the first year of Edward VI, and the revenues seized
into the King’s treasury. The principal change which had hitherto
been made within the parish church itself was the removal of the
various images therein, before which it had been customary to burn
tapers ‘‘for a remembrance unto prayer.” In 1549 the English
Prayer Book was introduced, largely founded on the older Latin
‘services. Meanwhile the extreme Reformers had commenced to
destroy, sell, or steal the valuable plate and vestments which the
requirements of the medizval ritual and the piety of parishioners
had caused to be provided for the services of the church. A
commission was therefore appointed in 1552 which ordered an
inventory to be taken of all the parish church goods, and these
were delivered to the churchwardens for safe keeping. The
intention was to leave sufficient for the proper administration of
divine service and to annex the remainder for the King’s use.
Edward’s death probably prevented this, but to what extent is
uncertain. The inventory for Lewisham was drawn up on the 16th
November, 1552, by Richard Dyngly and Richard Howlett, gentle-
men, the churchwardens. It tells us there were two silver chalices,
one of 23 ounces the other of 14 ounces, altar clothes of yellow and
blue; copes of blue velvet, blue silk and green silk, chasubles
of white satin, red velvet, blue silk, red silk and black; crosses,
candlesticks, censers, etc., of latten, a ‘‘paire of organes,”’ four
great bells of brass in the steeple, and many other items. The
inventory for Lee is equally full. Edward VI died on 6th July,
1553, and in Queen Mary’s reign the old order was reverted to,
when no doubt such of these vestments as remained came again
into use, dying out gradually in Elizabeth’s time, although they
probably lingered as long as Mr. Glynn was vicar. He died in
1568, and in his will he gave little bequests to a very large number
of his poorer parishioners, and left £100 to found a grammar
school. His executors were David Morgan, a city merchant, and
Mr. William Roper, of Wellhall, Eltham, whose wife was
Margaret, the daughter of Sir Thomas More, and who was
regarded as a ‘‘popish recusant.”

It is in his bequest for a school that Mr. Glynn claims our
interest. It laid the foundation of what we now called ‘‘Secondary
Education” in Lewisham. WHis successor in the vicarage was
Mr. John Bungay, a nephew of Archbishop Parker, by whose
means a charter was obtained from Queen Elizabeth in 1574 for
founding a Free Grammar School, which, refounded some seventy
years later by the Rev. Abraham Colfe, has proved of incalculable
benefit to many generations of Lewisham’s youth.

Of Lewisham during the reign of Queen Elizabeth we have
but little details. The manor belonged to the Crown, but was
leased to Sir Francis Knolles as before related. The great Queen
came frequently to Greenwich, and on May Day, 1602, went
a-inaying to Sir Richard Bulkley’s at Lewisham. This may have
been the occasion when she lunched under the shade of the oak on

PLATE 7.—Map OF LEWISHAM, 1745.

42 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

the hill between Forest Hill and Brockley, which has ever since
been called Honor Oak; but from its nearness to Greenwich she
doubtless was often in the parish, and there were legends of
her visiting the Earl of Essex at Place House, near Catford Bridge.

The accession of James I brought ultimately another master
to Lewisham. Amongst the followers who accompanied him from
Scotland was John Ramsay, Viscount Haddington, who when a
page attending him at the house of Earl Gowry at Perth on the 5th
August, 1600, was instrumental in discovering and frustrating
the attempt that was made there on the life of the King. Ramsay
was created Viscount Haddington for this service, and in 1620
was further made Baron of Kingston-on-Thames and Earl of
Holderness, and as a special honour he and his heirs male were
to bear the sword of state before the king on the 5th day of
August as a memorial of his act. In 1624 King James announced
to his Council at Westminster that in consideration of the great
services rendered to him by the Earl of Holderness, and at the
- earl’s request, he intended to bestow the Manor of Lewisham upon
Edward and Robert Ramsay; and this he did on 29th June in that
year, the grant apparently to take effect on the expiry of the lease
held by Sir Francis Knolles. Edward and Robert Ramsay con-
veyed the manor to Sir George Ramsay, the brother of the earl
and his heir, who died in 1629, when it descended to his eldest
son, John Ramsay of Winlaton in co. Durham, who sold it on
23rd May, 1640, to Raynald Graham, of Humington in Yorkshire,
citizen and draper of London.

The history of Lewisham during the first half of the 17th
century is largely the history of the vicariate of that remarkable
man, the Rev. Abraham Colfe, who filled the office for nearly fifty
years. The son of the Rev. Richard Colfe, Prebendary of Christ
Church, Canterbury, he was born in that city on 7th August, 1580.
He was educated at the King’s School, Canterbury, and Christ
Church, Oxford, and taking holy orders he came to Lewisham
in 1604 as curate to the saintly Hadrian de Saravia, the friend
and confessor of Richard Hooker. King James had granted the
next presentation to the vicarage to William Beeston, of Canter-
bury, evidently a friend of the family, and when in 1610 Saravia
resigned Lewisham for the rectory of Great Chart, which was
nearer Canterbury, Abraham Colfe was appointed Vicar, being
instituted on 1st May of that year. Most faithfully did he fill
the office, and until his death in 1657 he spent his whole time in
labouring for the spiritual and temporal welfare of his parishioners.

His first great public work was his successful resistance of
the attempt that was made to enclose Westwood or Sydenham
Common. This consisted of about 500 acres, covering the part
of the parish now occupied by Sydenham and Forest Hill. These
common lands—which, such as Blackheath, are now largely used
for recreation—were, in the period with which we are now dealing,
the mainstay of the poorer inhabitants, who not only had pasture

‘Sor “IOOHOS AVWWVUY
HHL AO ONINIMO AHL AO AATOD WVHVAAY ‘AAY AHL AO ONILIVMGNV]E, AHL NI GNOOAY—'S ALVIg

Ad BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

thereon for their cattle, but by cutting furze obtained fuel. It was,
then, with feelings of dismay that Lewisham heard in 1605 that
King James had granted the common of Westwood to Henry
Newport, one of the gentry of the place.

When Henry VIII obtained Lewisham from the Priory of
Shene in 1531 the exchange was ratified by an Act of Parliament,
in which there was a clause that the exchange was not to be
hurtful to any person concerning the right of ‘‘common” which
any might or ought to have therein. The Crown, however, seems
to have considered that Westwood Common was a portion of
the demesne lands of the manor, and thus the trouble came about.

Mr. Colfe has left several notes on the subject, one of which
begins: ‘‘Memorandum, that in y® yeares of our Lord 1614 and
1615 we had many troubles and suites concerning our common
of Westwood being in quantity about 500 acres of ground where-
vnto the Lord of his mercy gave a good issue in y® end. The
occasion was this: Henry Newport of Lewsham gentleman, and
yeoman of y* boiling house to King James, having lived long in
our parish, in y* yeare 1605 begged this common of the King and
made meanes to his Majesty for a lease of it at a yearely rent.”

The inhabitants appear to have taken action at once, and
claimed that they had always had common of pasture for all
manner of cattle without number and at all times (ze., that the
land was not half-year land), and also common of estovers and
shreddings of all trees growing on the said common, and they
produced in proof the recollections of the ‘‘oldest inhabitants.”

‘*Stephen Batt of Croydon of the age of 98 yeares testifieth for
the same comon by the name of Westwood or Sheenewood in his
knowledge 80 yeares agoe and never heard the contrary which testi-
mony was five yeares before the same Acte was made (z.e., 1525).

‘John Heathe of the age of go yeares testifiethe for the same
comon for 75 yeares which was at the time of the Acte made that
it was then in his knowledge a comon and alwaies so was used
and that he never harde the contrary.

‘*Thomas Frenche of Bromley of the age of 80 yeares testifieth
for the same common for 70 yeares. Arnolde Kinge of Beckenham
of the age of 78 yeares testifiethe for the same comon in his know-
ledge for 65 yeares.”’

It will be noticed that the Lewisham folk were careful to call
in the testimony of their neighbours who had no personal interest
in the open land.

Thus attacked Mr. Henry Newport made suit for a com-
mission of enquiry, and Sir Thomas Walsingham, Sir Ralph
Boswell, Henry Heyman, surveyor, and Michael Berisfforde were
appointed ‘‘for the surveying and finding of a parcel of waste
ground in Lewsham in the county of Kent called Westwood to
be the King’s and therein especially to enquire whether it be the
King’s own waste in demesne or whether it be the King’s waste
but yet a comon withall and of what yearly valewe it is.”

aLLi ‘Naduy AAHSAXY AO MAIA—'G ALVId

AG BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

“On the 25th April 1606 the Commissioners did sitt at
Greenwich to enquire and after evidence given to the jurye and
the greater parte of the same jury meaninge to give up their
verdict that Westwood was the king’s waste and yet a comon,
they were dissolved and left for that time, whereby that Com-
mission was expired.

‘‘Since which time the aforesaide Henri Newporte going
about to defeat the inhabitants of Lewsham of their saide Comon
hathe secretly made an inquisition in a remote place and alto-
gether without the knowledge of the saide inhabitants by that
meanes seeking to get some sinister testimony uppon recorde
againste the inhabitants and also to prevent them of geving their
evidence unto the jury as defendaunts of their rights of Comon.”

The following ‘‘Humble Petition of the inhabitants of the
parrishe of Lewsham” was accordingly made :—

‘‘Wherefore the poore inhabitants of Lewsham aforesaide
most humbly praye the Right Honorable the Earl of Salisburye
in respect of his greate wisdom and justice and because he is the
high Stewarde of Lewsham aforesaide that he wil be pleased to
be informed of the sayd Newportes unjust proceedings and to
relieve the poor inhabitants of Lewsham aforesaid that being
above 500 poore housholders with wives and manye children
greately relieved by the sayde Common and would be utterly
undone yf yt should be unjustly taken from then. So shall theese
poore inhabitants be alwayes ready to praye God as nevertheles
for his honours long life and happie dayes with much increase of
honor.”

The case came again before the Court of Exchequer in 1607.
“After dinner, on a Starre Chamber day,” notes Mr. Colfe, ‘‘and
againe y® 9th of November 1608 but either Newport non suited
himself or other error fell out in y* proceedings so y' he obtained
not as yet his purpose.”

But the good people of Lewisham were by no means secure.
Presumably trusting that the Crown lawyers knew what they were
doing, Mr. Newport in 1614 joined two more with him, namely,
Robert Raynes, gent., sergeant of the buckhounds, and Innocent
Lanyer, of Greenwich, one of the King’s musicians, and they
jointly took a lease from the king of 347 acres of land in West-
wood for a term of sixty years, and then, says Mr. Colfe, ‘*began
very much to vexe y® inhabitants.”

Seeing that their rights were now invaded in earnest, the
parishioners, under the leadership of Mr. Colfe, took measures
to defend themselves, and lodged a complaint against Newport
and his co-patentees. After some preliminary proceedings it was
agreed that Mr. John Burnett, one of the principal inhabitants,
who amongst others claimed to have common rights in Westwood,
should be sued as representing the parish. The trial took place
on 14th October, 1614, with a jury of the County of Kent, and

SIXTEENTH CENTURY TO THE PRESENT TIME. 47

judgment was given for the king against the parishioners on the
point in dispute. Mr. Colfe records that John Sherman, of Green-
wich was foreman of the jury, and that Henry Dobbins and Henry
Abbott, of Greenwich, and John Leech, of Deptford, were
members, as though to infer that their judgment was biased for
fear of offending the holders of the lease.

Presently the patentees began to make ditches about the
common and inclosed it, and drove out and killed sundry of the
cattle of the inhabitants. A crisis had arrived, and the Vicar
evidently saw that a final effort must be made. He therefore
called together about a hundred of his parishioners, and, placing
himself at their head, set out for London to make a_ personal
appeal to the King.

Shortly before this (1607) there had been several disturbances

PLate 10.—A View aT LEWISHAM, 1770.

‘n the Midlands on the same subject, and King James gave special
orders to the Commission appointed to enquire into the cause, that
care was to be taken that the poor received no injury by the
encroachments of their richer neighbours. The people of Lewis-
ham may therefore have felt assured of a sympathetic hearing.

Colfe’s own report is in the following words :—‘‘ Wherefore
neer 100 people young and old went through y* City of London,
and a little on this side of Topnam high-crosse petitioned King
James who very graciously heard y® petition and ordered the
Lords of his Privy Counsell should take a course that he might
be no more troubled about it.”

The other side naturally did not take these proceedings with
equanimity, and promptly put in a petition :—

‘Whereas on December 20th 1614 Mr. Abraham Colfe Vicar

48 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

of Lewisham led through the City of London one hundred of his
parishioners to Tottenam High Cross and there petitioned his
Majesty against the privileges granted to our clients in the
common of Westwood, and made many and slanderous accusa-
tions against them thereby filling the ear of his most sacred
Majesty with injurious regard of our clients. And whereas our
clients are desirous to maintain the good esteem of their most
dread sovereign and the peaceable occupation of the lands that
have been granted to them and which they have at much cost
fenced, etc., they desire to be confirmed in their possession.”’

Mr. Colfe appears to have heard of this petition, and being
now thoroughly aroused, he, in the name of the parishioners,
addressed petitions not only to the Earl of Salisbury but to the
Earl of Somerset, Lord High Chamberlain, and to the Archbishop
of Canterbury. This last gives a good picture of the proceedings,
and may, therefore, fitly be quoted here.

‘To y® right reverend father in God the Lord Archbishop of
Canterbury his Grace Primate and Metropolitan of all England
and one of his Majesties most Hon. Privy Councell. The humble
petition of his Majesties poor tenants y* inhabitants of Lewsham
in Kent neere Greenwich.

‘*Most humbly shew to your grace many hundreds of y*
poore distressed inhabitants of Lewsham yt whereas we have time
out of mind quietly enjoyed a wast peece of ground of 500 acres
called ye Comon of Westwood (as we can shew by auncient deeds
since y® 5th or oth yeare of King Henry y* 5th being 196 years
past, by an Act of Parliament reserving y* commons of y® manor
of Lewsham to y® inhabitants, by y* Kings owne records calling
it Westwood lying open and common and by witnesses for 80
yeares as long as man can remember) yet Robert Raynes, Innocent
Lanier and Henry Newport three of his Majesties servants ob-
tained a grant and a lease for 60 yeares from his Majesty of y*
said common upon a rent of 40 markes by y* yeare and y® last
terme impleaded your poor suppliants in y* Court of Exchequer
and gott a verdict and judgment and are now closing y® said
common to y® utter vndoing of above 500 poore people. And
whereas thei had possessed diverse of y* nobles and by them hade
meanes to informe his Majesty that only 2 or 3 had y* chief benefitt
of ye common and not y® poore, we were inforced to goe about
and 100% of vs y® 19 of December with petition to y* Kings
Majestie for his mercifull favore, who most graciously promised we
should have justice and in y® end referred y* consideracon of our
petition to y® Lords of his Privy Councell. We most humbly desire
your grace when our petition shall come to be heard before you
that your grace will afford us your gracious favour for our quiet
enjoying of y® said common, it being as we do solemnly protest a
chief stay and maintenance for pasture of cattell, furses and bushes
for fyering to above 500 poore people and we shall pray to God
for your graces health long life and eternall happiness.”

SIXTEENTH CENTURY TO THE PRESENT TIME. 49

The parishioners also took up the cudgels on behalf of their
leader, who was being subjected to a personal attack at Court.

‘We y®* inhabitants of y* parish of Lewsham in Kent whose
names are under written hearing of the sundry defamations and
vncharitable speeches given out in a petition to y® King’s Majesty
against Abraham Colfe Vicar of our parish, and being desired by
him to testify our knowledge of his behaviour among us doe
solemnly protest before God and witnes this for a truth unto all
those whom it may concerne that the said Abraham Colfe having
lived as a curate and vicar these 10 yeares among us hath not to
our knowledg demeaned himself otherwise than becometh the
minister of God’s Word; for he hath bene very painfull in his
calling, duly preaching once (and for y® great part of the summer
twice every Sabath among us) liberall to y® poore, given to

PLATE 11.—A View AT LEWISHAM, 1770.

hospitality and other good workes, in his life peaceable, not having
had any one suit or controversy in law all this time against any of
us; no way savouring of a factious or sedicious spirit neither in
publick or private speeches or actions; but continually dehorting
us during y* time of our distressed suit about our common both
from reviling them in speeches yt have sought to get away y®
meanes of our living and from performing any outward act y*
might be either offensive to his Majestie of prejudiciall to ye lawes.
of y* realme.”’ ¢

The result of these petitions was that the Privy Council
referred the matter to the Lord Chief Baron and Sir Edward
Bromley, one of the Barons of the Court of Exchequer to endeavour
to mediate between the parishioners and»Newport and his friends.
But the latter demanded £1,000 as compensation, and seeing

E

50 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

that there was no chance of agreement it was arranged that there
should be a new trial, and that Mr. John Eaton, gentleman, of
Lewisham, should be the defendant as representing the parishioners.

The patentees (Newport, Lanier and Raynes) being in possession,
were permitted to hold the ground meanwhile, and the gates and
ditches destroyed by the inhabitants were ordered to be repaired
(from which we may infer that there had been some lively pro-
ceedings at Sydenham), on the other hand they were not to burn
or sell any of the furze growing in or upon the common nor —
‘‘disturbe or interrupt the said inhabitants of the Manor of
Lewisham nor any other his Majestie’s liege people to the use of
all such wayes as have heretofore byn used in through or by or
over the said parcell of ground called Westwood” until the trial
and further order had been given.

Notwithstanding this order, one Henry Benden, the servant of
Mr. Lanier, continued to drive off the cattle of the inhabitants and
hindered the cutting of furze for fuel—a particularly harsh act,
seeing that it was mid-winter. Upon this being represented the
Lord Treasurer and the Chancellor sent an order commanding
the patentees to desist. ‘‘ Yet,” says Mr. Colfe in one of his notes,
‘‘Henry Benden and other of the patentees servants still drove
off the cattell and spoiled some of them to death and would not
let the poore have furzes. Hereupon the 22nd day being Ash
Wednesday, Henry Benden being at church after service I gave
him advise and wished him not to molest the poore in such sort by
driving and hurting their cattel and hindering them of furzes: for
if he should be sent for by a pursevant and committed for his
contempt I thought his master (namely Mr. Lanier) would not
beare him out in it.”

But the end was now in sight. On the 16th of October,
1615, the case came on for hearing before the Barons of the
Exchequer and a jury chosen out of Kent, amongst whom there
was no one belonging to the immediately neighbouring parishes,
and adds Mr. Colfe, ‘‘ The Lord’s holy name for ever for his great
tender mercies be blessed a verdict passed in the behalf of the poore
inhabitants and on the 18th November following judgment was also
granted and a copy both of the order and of y* judgment taken out
under the seale of the Exchequier Chamber w* is kept by us.”’

So ended the controversy, and the people of Lewisham, thanks
to the energy and persistence of their vicar, were left in undisturbed
possession of Westwood Common.

Whilst the troubles over Westwood Common were still
unsettled Mr. Colfe was engaged in another work for the good of
the parish. It will be remembered that his predecessor, John Glynn,
had left money to found a Free School, for which a charter had
been granted by Queen Elizabeth in 1574. In 1612 all the
governors named in that charter were dead save one, Mr. Edmund
Style, and little progress had apparently been made with the
scheme. Mr. Hurpole, the schoolmaster, was present at Colfe’s

‘oSL1 LAOSY ‘WVHSIMA’T SGNVMOL DNIMOOT SHLVAHMOVT AO MALA— ‘ZT ALVI
q G c

E2

52 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

induction to the vicarage, but it is clear that the school was not
on a Satisfactory footing. A fresh body of governors was there-
fore appointed in 1613 by Mr. Style, under the charter, of whom .
Abraham Colfe was one. The years went by and no progress _
could be made, presumably for want of funds, and Colfe then
decided to refound the school and endow it himself. For this
purpose he saved all the money he could devote to the purpose,
buying land in various parts of the parish—mostly at Lower
Sydenham and Catford. In 1634 he approached the Leathersellers’
Company, who already owned some land in the parish at Perry
Hill, and they agreed to become his trustees.

The political and religious horizon had meanwhile become
dark with the clouds of the coming storm, and it is necessary in
order to understand the position of affairs to refer briefly to the
events which were happening in London and the country generally.

In 1633 Laud was advanced to the Archbishopric of Canterbury,
and endeavoured, unfortunately not always in the most tactful
manner, to remedy the state of indiscipline into which the English
Church had fallen. The Puritan movement had been slowly rising
throughout the reign of James I, the Archbishop’s proceedings
were met by the most violent opposition, and on the assembling of
the Long Parliament in 1640 he was impeached of high treason
and committed to the Tower.

One of his orders, which gave offence to the Puritans, was a
direction that the communion tables were to be placed at the
upper end of the chancels and railed in to prevent irreverence. The
order was generally obeyed, but in 1641 the Commons ordered the
removal of the rails.

Amongst the Sloan MSS. in the British Museum is a diary
kept by one Nehemiah Wallington, who lived in the parish of
St. Leonard, Eastcheap, of which Mr. Colfe was also Vicar, and
in this is the following note :—

‘‘Of the exploits that I heere very credably the solgars did in
Kent. At Lusume the gth January, 1641, being Satterday at night
when they were ringing y® belles, the Railes that were about the
Communion Table ware pulled up, and it is not knowen who did
it, nor what became of them, as it is thought they were cast into
the river and so carfied quite away.”

The quarrel between Charles I and Parliament had meanwhile
developed into the Civil War which led by slow steps to the King’s
execution in 1649. No engagement took place near Lewisham,
but the mustering of troops on Blackheath from time to time must
have helped to bring events home to our predecessors, whilst the
frequent orders of the House of Commons in matters pertaining to
religion left few places untouched. Amongst these was a scheme
in 1642 for appointing preaching lecturers in various parishes, the
parochial clergy being required to lend their puJpits. In many
places the appointments were no doubt justified by the want of
zeal on the part of the incumbents, but this can hardly have been

SIXTEENTH CENTURY TO THE PRESENT TIME. 53

the case at Lewisham, since we are told that Colfe preached twice
every Lord’s Day and expounded some portion of Holy Scripture
on Wednesdays, Fridays and Holy Days. Nevertheless, a section
of the parishioners petitioned Parliament for a lecturer, and a
Mr. John Batchelor was appointed. The Vicar and his friends
offered strong opposition to the arrangement, and so much so that
the original petitioners addressed a complaint to the House of
Lords in 1643 and an order was issued to restore Mr. Batchelor to
the lectureship. We hear no more of the matter except that the
‘‘impudent lecturer,” as Colfe calls him, endeavoured to get the
vicar deprived of his vicarage. Nehemiah Wallington mentioned
above addressed a long letter to Mr. Colfe, in which he urged him
to give up the use of the Prayer Book and upbraided him for his
want of sympathy with the lecturer.

That Colfe and the parishioners generally took the Solemn
League and Covenant in 1644 is practically certain, since no
exceptions were allowed and refusal meant deprivation and fine,
but there is no documentary evidence on the subject, all the parish
papers having been burnt in 1830. In 1645 the use of the Book of
Common Prayer was forbidden under heavy penalties. In 1648
Colfe wrote to the Leathersellers saying that the hardness of the
times and other things had obstructed the settling of the work he
intended for the parish, and it was not until four years later that
he was able to complete the buildings for the Grammar School,
which was opened on 1oth June, 1652, on a site granted by
Mr. Raynold Graham, Lord of the Manor, with the consent of the
Court Leet, being then part of Blackheath. To the school was
attached a free library, and a reading school was also set up near
the church where what we should call an elementary education
was given, it being :ntended-that- the most-deserving boys should
go on to the Grammar School and so to the University. A
complete system of education, in fact (see Plate 8, page 43).

Thus did this benefactor-to the parish pass his days until his
death on the 5th December, 1657.

Mr. Raynold Graham, who had purchased the Manor of
Lewisham in 1640, married Susannah, second daughter of Sir
William Washington, of Packington, in Leicestershire, whose
eldest daughter, Elizabeth, had married Colonel William Legge, a
devoted adherent of CharlesJ.. Mr. Graham had no children, and
on the 30th May, 1673, he conveyed the manor to his nephew,
George Legge. Mrs. Graham continued to live in the parish, in
Dartmouth Row, until her death in February, 1699, and sometime
prior to 1695" built* the*first portion of a chapel there for the
residents around, which has since in an enlarged form become the
Church of the Ascension.

The Legges, who thus became the Lords of the Manor, claim
descent from Thomas Legge, Lord Mayor of London in 1346
and 1354. His great grandson, William, went to Ireland, and it
was Edward, the son of this William Legge, who may be said to

54 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

have laid the foundation of the family’s fortune. He accompanied
Sir Walter Raleigh to the West Indies, and on his return to
Ireland he was made Vice-President of Munster. His son William,
commonly known as Colonel Legge, suffered severely for his
espousal of the cause of Charles I, and on the accession of
Charles II, received many marks of royal favour, and amongst
other appointments was Master of the Armoury at Greenwich.

George Legge, his eldest son and heir, who received Lewisham
from his uncle, had a varied life on sea and land. As an Admiral
of the Fleet he was sent to demolish Tangier, and received a
grant of 410,000 for his services. In 1673 he was Governor of
Portsmouth, Master of the Horse, Master of the Ordnance and
Colonel of a regiment of foot, and in 1682 was created Baron
Dartmouth. He was deprived of his appointments by William III,
and committed to the Tower, where he died in 1691.

His tenure of the Lordship of Lewisham was marked by the
grant he obtained in 1682 for a fair to be held twice a year and a
market twice a week on Blackheath. The market house was
erected on the east side of Dartmouth Row, between what is now
known as The Grove and Dartmouth Hill.

His son, William, was made a Privy Councillor by Queen
Anne, and created Viscount Lewisham and Earl of Dartmouth in
1711, the former title being held ever since by the eldest son. He
and his grandson, who succeeded him as second Earl of Dartmouth,
resided much at Blackheath, and entered largely into the local
life. Whitfield was much thought of by the first Earl, and with
Wesley preached frequently upon Blackheath to enormous crowds.

In 1774 the old Parish Church, which had become too small
for the increasing population—it must be remembered that it was
the only place of worship in the whole parish except the little
chapel in Dartmouth Row and a small Presbyterian chapel at
Sydenham—-was in a dangerous state, and an Act of Parliament
was obtained for rebuilding it. In the time of the second Earl of
Dartmouth the fair on Blackheath, which had been in existence
about go years, was discontinued owing to the undesirable
characters it brought together. It had been held on the 12th,
13th and 14th of May, and rith, 12th and 13th October in each
year. Cattle were, however, permitted to be sold on the r2th May
and 11th October, but no booths were allowed to be put up
without the Earl’s permission.

In the steps taken for the defence of the kingdom during the
Napoleonic Wars the neighbourhood took its share. A small
body of Blackheath Yeomanry was formed in 1798, and in the
same year a four-company corps of Lewisham Volunteers was
raised under Lieut.-Colonel John Forster. Of this corps other
officers were Major Mayow Wynell Mayow (of Sydenham), Captain
Abraham Constable (of Mount Pleasant House), Lieutenant Henry
Mills (of the Limes), Ensign Thomas Watson Parker, and others.
This was succeeded in 1803 by the Loyal Lewisham and Lee

‘oLLt ‘LHOVINOO|W AD HLVAHMOVIG AO MaIA—'ST ALVId

56 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Volunteer Infantry under Lieut.-Col. the Right Hon. Charles Long
(of Bromley Hill House). Several officers of the old corps held
‘commissions in the new regiment, and others joined, including
Mr. S. C. Brandram, of Lee. In 1810 a corps of Local Militia was
formed at Blackheath under Lieut.-Colonel Sir T. Maryon Wilson,
Bart. With the final overthrow of Napoleon at Waterloo the
need for these local efforts ceased, and the corps were disbanded.

Up to this period Lewisham maintained its old rural character,
but the population had gradually increased from about 2,000 in
Colfe’s days, with 500 houses, to 4,000 in 1801, with about
700 houses. Of these about 120 were round Sydenham Common,
about 40 at Southend, and over 100 on and around Blackheath.
It was in the time of the fourth Earl of Dartmouth, who succeeded
to the title in 1810 and died in 1853, that the place began to grow
jnto a London suburb. In 1810 an Act of Parliament was obtained
for enclosing all the common and waste ground in the parish,
except Blackheath, together with the Lammas or half-year lands,
containing about 350 acres. This was following the course which
was going on all over the country. The old open field system,
which worked well enough in the Middle Ages, was found to be
inconvenient with the altered conditions and ideas of the 19th
century. One cannot but regret that a portion at least of Sydenham
Common, for which Colfe had striven so strenuously, was not left
as an open space. This has, however, been remedied in recent
years to a small extent by the formation of Wells Park on the
upper slopes of Sydenham Hill.

The opening of the North Kent Railway to Lewisham and
Blackheath in 1849 and of the Mid Kent Line to Ladywell and
Lower Sydenham in 1857, brought a great influx of population,
and consequent- building’ in their train, -whilst the erection of
Hither Green Station on the main line in 1895 has led to a con-
siderable town being built on what was the Earl of St. German’s
estate in that part of the parish. Under the London Government
Act of 1899 Lewisham and Lee were united and formed into a
Metropolitan Borough, and the population is now 152,000.

The old manorial rights and customs have gradually dis-
appeared, or have been transferred to the Police Courts, the
County and Borough Councils, and other bodies, as will be more
fully explained in another chapter, but the Court Leet is still held
yearly at the ‘‘Green Man,” and solemnly elects a jury, with con-
stables, aletasters, common drivers, pound keepers and appraisors,
and duly declares all who have not done ‘‘suit and service”
as amerced in the sum of 1s. It is to be hoped that this relic of
Lewisham of the past may yet long continue, for it carries us back
in an unbroken chain to the local assemblies of the days of
Leof-sunu and of Elfrida. It reminds us of the rise and fall of the
feudal system, the decay of which has led by many steps to the
gradual emancipation of the people as they became fitted for the
change, to their present position as a self-governing community.

PART III.

Hn Ztinerary of the Borough.

CHAPTER I.

From BLACKHEATH TO THE CLOCK TOWER.

HERE are few places that can show a richer record
of historical interest than Blackheath. Its ample
SEO extent, its proximity to London, and the ancient
hk }Oty homes of our kings at Eltham and Greenwich
a Sav. have all combined to make it the meeting ground
yer’ of royalist and rebel alike, the scene of fights
real and mimic, of encampments without number, and pageants
connected with some of the most stirring events in the history of
the country. It will then be a fitting place from which to start on
our itinerary of the Borough of Lewisham, within the bounds of
which the greater part of the Heath lies.

The Hundred of Blackheath, which comprises the seven parishes
in the north-west corner of Kent, is styled the Hundred of Grenviz
or Greenwich in Domesday, but by the time of Edward I the title
had been changed to that of Blackheath. The name has been
variously derived from the colour of the soil—which seems rather
fanciful—and its bleak situation, which is probably the more correct.
It appears in early charters and court rolls as the Common ‘de la
Blake Hethe.” On the Heath are various ill-defined mounds,
which have been designated British, Saxon, Danish and Roman
by various investigators. The mount known as Whitfield’s Mount
has been thought by some to be a British burial place, but the
whole surface of the Heath has been so continually disturbed from
time to time, that it is almost impossible to assign any of the earth-
works with certainty to a particular period.

After crossing Shooters Hill the Roman Road, Watling Street,
passed along what is now called the Old Dover Road, and crossed
_ that part of the Heath now Greenwich Park. Here, along the edge
of the road by Vanbrugh Park, and within the confines of Greenwich
Park, Roman remains have been discovered, including portions of
a villa excavated in 1903 by Mr. Herbert Jones, F.s.A.* The road
probably passed down the slopes to Croom’s Hill (the name savours
of a Celtic origin), and crossed the Ravensbourne near Creek

* See an illustrated account in the ‘‘ Home Counties Magazine” of July, 1903.

58 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Bridge on its way towards London over the marshes, but this is a
point which yet awaits investigation, and, moreover, lies outside
the area of our perambulation.

It has been conjectured that the: Danes encamped on Black-
heath in A.D. 1011, when, after taking Archbishop Alfege prisoner
at Canterbury, they advanced towards London. They more
probably came up the river in their ships, and seizing upon Green-
wich they cruelly murdered the Archbishop there upon his refusal
to allow himself to be ransomed.

The first great. gathering on Blackheath, of which we have
historical evidence, was that connected with the Peasant Revolt in
the time of Richard II, commonly called Wat Tyler’s Rebellion.
Tyler with Jack Straw and John Ball and their Kentish adherents,
to the number of 100,000, after capturing the Castle of Rochester
moved on to Blackheath, where they encamped prior to the descent
on London. The mount on the Heath has been called Wat Tyler’s
Mount, but on what authority, save uncertain tradition, cannot be
determined.

A scene of much magnificence must have been the meeting on
the Heath between Henry IV and the Emperor Manuel Palaeologus,
who came in 1400 to entreat for assistance against the Turks. But
a far more interesting spectacle was that which took place on
Saturday, 23rd November, 1415, on the return of Henry V from
Agincourt. The night previous, coming from Canterbury, he had
slept at Eltham, and on the Saturday morning at 10 o’clock the
Lord Mayor and Aldermen of the City in their red robes and a
great concourse of the citizens in red cloaks with red and white
hoods, came out to Blackheath where they met the King, and with
great acclamations escorted him to the City. There had probably
never before been such a scene of popular enthusiasm. In the
next year the Mayor and citizens again repaired to Blackheath to
meet the Emperor Sigismund, who with a large retinue was
escorted by Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, the Duke of Bedford
and the Duke of Ciarence. Henry himself awaited their arrival at
St. Thomas’s Watering Place. After Henry’s marriage with
Catherine of France he brought her to England to be crowned in
1421, and before entering the City she was lodged for the night at
Eltham, and on the following day she was met on Blackheath by
a numerous company of the citizens in white cloaks with red hoods
and capes, men of every craft in their diverse garments on horse-
back, and minstrels with clarions ‘‘in honour and comfort of the
King and Queen and the glorious and royal sight of strangers that
came with them from over-sea.’’ It was a sadder company that
assembled once more on the Heath the next year to meet the dead
King’s body, and escort it with all honour to its resting-place in
Westminster Abbey.

It was on Blackheath that Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, met
Margaret of Anjou in 1428, and escorted her to his house in Green-
wich, and in 1431 King Henry VI was met here as usual by the

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PLATE 14.—View ON BLACKHEATH, FROM AN ETCHING BY S. PROUT, 1815,

60 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Lord Mayor clothed in red velvet and the Sheriffs and Aldermen in
scarlet cloaks, furred, together with a large company.

The year 1432 saw a curtailment of the Heath by Humphrey,
Duke of Gloucester, who received a license from the King to en-
close 200 acres of land, wood, heather and furze to make a park,
which exists to-day as Greenwich Park, somewhat enlarged by
the addition of other portions of the Heath.

In 1450 Blackheath twice became the rendezvous of those who
supported Jack Cade in the insurrection of that year, first in June
and again after the fight at Sevenoaks, when he was joined by
many adherents from all parts of Kent. There is a considerable
mystery attaching to the rising, as in some hundreds the men
seem to have been summoned by the constables as though in
response to regular authority. Cade himself is styled John
Mortimer in the ‘‘ pardon” which was issued to him. He subse-
quently fled and was killed whilst on the point of being captured
at Heathfield in Sussex. A quarter of his body was sent to Black-
heath as a warning to malcontents in the district. Amongst those
pardoned was Edmund Ryculff, of Lee, the Constable of the
Hundred of Blackheath, several Greenwich men and others of
neighbouring parishes, but no Lewisham names occur in the lists
of pardons. Stow says that on 28th February, 1451, numbers of
the Kentish rebels, ‘‘naked save their shirts,” met Henry VI on
Blackheath, asked mercy on their knees and were pardoned.

Blackheath came in for its share in the Wars of the Roses. In
1452 Henry VI took up his stand on the Heath in order to oppose
the Duke of York, who had encamped on the Brent at Dartford.
Nineteen years later, after the Battle of Tewkesbury, Thomas
Falconberge, known as the Bastard of Falconberge, organized an
expedition to seize London,~and-set King Henry free. He ad-
dressed a letter to the Lord Mayor, urging him to join against the
usurper, and requesting a reply to be sent to him ‘‘at the Blak-
heth.”’ The Londoners, however, were not to be turned from
their allegiance to Edward IV, and after an unsuccessful attempt
on the City, Falconberge retired to Blackheath on the advance of
that King, and finally submitted at Sandwich.

In the time of Henry VII the Cornish Rebels, headed by Lord
Audley, encamped on the Heath, and were attacked on 22nd June,
1497, by the King, who gained a complete victory. Very many
were slain, and must have been buried on the spot, and some of
the hillocks may be of this period. In one of his sermons Bishop
Latimer refers to this fight, and says he remembers buckling on
his father’s armour ‘‘ when he went to Blackheath Field.”

The reign of Henry VIII saw many notable meetings on the
Heath. Perhaps the most imposing was the reception of the
Pope’s legate, Cardinal Campeggio. After staying at Otford he
came to Lewisham on the 2g9th July, 1518, where he dined at
Rushey Green with Mr. William Hatcliffe, one of the Clerks of the
Green Cloth. After dinner about one o’clock he proceeded to

‘
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FROM BLACKHEATH TO THE CLOCK TOWER. 61

Blackheath, where he was met by the Duke of Norfolk with a
numerous train of bishops and others of high rank. Here, in a
tent of cloth of gold, he put on his cardinal’s robes, and rode in
much state into London.

In 1540 Henry VIII here met Anne of Cleves, for whose
passage over the Heath a broad way was cut through the furze.
The Court being so frequently at Greenwich, the Sovereign
frequently used the Heath for exercise, and, as of old, the situation
of the ground made it a convenient place for the assembly of
troops. Edward VI, accompanied by his Court, was often on
the Heath, and Queen Elizabeth here in 1585 reviewed the City
Militia.

During the Civil War there were many musterings of troops
on Blackheath, and it was here that the army was drawn up to
receive Charles II at the Restoration.

John Evelyn in his diary mentions the formation of large
camps on the Heath in 1673 and 1690, and in 1687 he remarks that
on the 16th March he saw a trial of ‘‘ those devilish, murdering,
mischief-doing engines called bombs shot out of the morter-piece
on Black-heath. The distance that they are cast and the destruc-
tion they make where they fall is prodigious.” On the map of 1695
the mount in the centre of the Heath is marked as ‘‘ the mount for
trying mortars,” and if it ts not an ancient tumulus, as some sus-
pect, it may have been thrown up for the purpose which Evelyn
mentions.

In the time of Queen Anne the ‘‘ Palatines,” who flocked to
England, were encamped on the Heath to the number of 7,000,
where they sickened and died in great numbers. They were for-
bidden to enter the City, and were finally shipped off to New York,
Holland and Ireland.

The days of the Georges saw several reviews on the Heath,
one of which was the subject of an engraving by Paul Sanby.

But it is time to turn from these historical reminiscences to the
Heath itself. It is difficult to-day, with the well-defined roads,
asphalte paths, gas lamps, etc., to imagine the Heath as it was in
the times, just referred to, and, indeed, as late as the early part of
the last century. Covered with gorse and bracken, ill-defined roads,
no lights of any kind at night, and with only a few houses here and
there on the very borders, it is no wonder that the place obtained
an unenviable notoriety for its highwaymen, so much so that
associations were formed by the inhabitants for mutual protection.

In attempting to form some idea of the appearance of the
Heath in days gone by, we must first remember that it originally
extended from Blackheath Hill to Shooters Hill, and from Kidbrook
to the slopes overlooking Greenwich, a wide unpopulated waste,
covered with furze and bracken. The first curtailment, so far as
we have evidence, was the enclosure authorised in 1432 of 200
acres, by Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester, to form Greenwich Park.
Later on, enclosures were made on the eastern side of the Heath,

62 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

which resulted by 1695 in nearly the present boundaries at Van-
brugh Terrace and St. Germans Place, whilst on the western side,
at the top of Blackheath Hill, the houses at Dartmouth Row were
built about 1680, so that roughly the Heath had assumed its
present shape by the last-named date. The houses were, how-
ever, almost entirely confined to those in Dartmouth Row, for
St. Germans Place and Montpelier Row are quite a century later,
and those in Vanbrugh Terrace and Shooters Hill Road are later
still, so that in the 18th century there were some four miles of open
heath and country between Woolwich and Lewisham. The maps
of Blackheath of 1695 and 1745 show very clearly how few houses
then existed, and enable us to understand how highway robberies
were possible with little risk to the “ gentlemen of the road.”

The most conspicuous objects on the Heath from the 17th
century onwards must have been the windmills, of which four
appeared to have existed at one time or another. Of these the
oldest was situated at the top of Lewisham Hill, where Holly
Hedge House (the Territorial Force Headquarters) now stands.
This mill is shown on the maps of 1695 and 1745, and in the latter
map another mill is shown a little to the west at the top of Morden
Hill. This is the mill which is apparently shown in the picture
entitled, ‘‘ A view of Blackheath towards Lewisham,” engraved by
J. Couse, who flourished about 1750 (Plate 12). The mills are
mentioned in the parish registers, entries occuring as follows :-—
Burials— 1716, Sept. 15. Mr. Thomas Baizdon, miller on Blackheath.

1722, March 2. Elizabeth, wife of James Marlow, from the Wind-
mill, Blackheath.
1734, Aug. 1. Elizabeth Saxby, from the Windmill.

1737, Oct. 30. William Baizdon, miller from Blackheath.
Baptisms—1738, Nov. 26. Jane, daughter of John Lamer, from Blackheath
Windmill.

1741, Nov. 29. John, son of Wm. Hubbert, from Windmill, Black-
heath.

These two seem to have disappeared by the end of the century,
and others were erected near the centre of the Heath, one where
Mill House now stands, and another close by on the ground now
occupied by Talbot Place. Of these two mills several drawings
were made. The earliest in date was published by Carrington
Bowles in 1770. It is entitled, “‘A view of a Windmill near Black-
heath by moonlight” (Plate 13), and is one of a series of six views
of this neighbourhood, each bearing titles in English and French.
There is a view shewing both mills, etched by S. Prout, R.A., dated
1815 (Plate 14). Another view, also reproduced here, occurs in
‘‘ Blackheath, a poem,” by Noble, published in 1810 (Plate 15). A
sketch made by Sir John Gilbert shows both the mills (a copy of
this is in the possession of Mr. H. T. Wood, of Hollington).

The view by Noble shows very clearly the gorse which then
covered the Heath, and which is said to have been largely destroyed
in 1821, when it was set on fire as an illumination in honour of
Queen Caroline.

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64 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

The immense quantity of gravel which has been taken from
the Heath at various periods has resulted in the surface being con-
siderably broken, not altogether a disadvantage. Part of the
gravel so removed is said to have been used as ballast for the
colliers returning to the Tyne, and it may, we are told, be seen on
the banks of that river, a reminiscence of the days before the
advent of the steamboat. That the diggings were sometimes not
devoid of danger, we are reminded by an entry in the burial register
of 1741, of ‘* John Davies, killed by a fall into the sandpitt, Black-
heath.”

The dangers to which travellers were exposed in crossing the
Heath have been referred to. These appear to have reached such
a pitch in 1753, that the inhabitants of the neighbourhood sub-
scribed to suppress the lawlessness, offering rewards for the
conviction of highwaymen, footpads, and house-breakers. Not-
withstanding this the newspapers of the time are evidence that
matters did not improve, although occasionally the rufhans were
brought to justice. The following from a newspaper of 21st July,
1759, may be taken as a sample :—

‘*Tuesday morning, 17th, about 10 o’clock, a highwayman,
well mounted, robbed three gentlemen’s coaches on Blackheath,
in the last of which was Mr. Morris, etc., from whom he took two
guineas, a purse, and then made off. As soon as he had turned his
back, Mr. Morris ordered the coachman to take the horses off, one
of which he mounted, and the coachman the other, and went in
pursuit. They followed him to Dartford, and found him drinking
in a booth at the camp, where they apprehended him, and brought
him to Mr. Birches, the ‘Green Man,’ on Blackheath. On searching
him they found a brace of pistols, loaded each with a brace of balls,
a hat and a piece of stocking sewed to it for a mask, a watch, eleven
guineas, some silver, a pair of silver buckles, and two Spanish
pieces. He says his name is Sam Walker, alias Jack of the Green,
and that he belonged to the ‘ Blenheim,’ man-of-war. He was
known to have been a post-boy on the Kentish Road. On Tuesday
night he was secured in the cage at Greenwich, and next day com-
mitted to Maidston goal.”

A further association was mooted in 1792, at a meeting of the
inhabitants. Relatives of the late Dr. Bramley, going to Paris in
1816, drove across the Heath with pistol pointed on the driver,
whom they suspected of wishing to land them in the arms of con-
federates lurking in the gorse.

The gradual extension of buildings round the Heath, the
destruction of the gorse, and the better police arrangements of the
1gth century, slowly eliminated the highwayman, and removed the
last remnant of uncomfortable romance from the neighbourhood.

The present area of the Heath is 267 acres, and that of Green-
wich Park 185 acres in addition, the whole of the latter being in
the Parish of Greenwich. The boundary between the two parishes,
starting from the Ravensbourne at the Silk Mills, passes up Morden

FROM BLACKHEATH TO THE CLOCK TOWER. 65

Hill to Lewisham Road, down the centre of which it formerly ran
to the bridge over the Greenwich and Nunhead Railway,* then
turning eastward, along the backs of the houses in Blackheath
Hill it comes out into that road nearly opposite Holy Trinity
Church, and passing up the hill to the Heath keeps just to the
north of the Shooters Hill Road to the corner of Greenwich Park
wall. At this point within the Park formerly stood Montague
House, which was built on land enclosed from the Heath. There
is a view of it on the title page of Noble’s ‘‘ Blackheath.” It was
pulled down in 1815, and the grounds thrown into those of the
Ranger’s Lodge (Chesterfield House). Crossing Shooters Hill
Road at this point the boundary-line keeps to the south of that
road to a point about 170 yards from the eastern boundary of the
Heath (St. Germans Place), and thence turning southwards, cutting

PLATE 16.—THE SEAT OF THE LATE SIR GREGORY PAGE AT BLACKHEATH.

The Paragon in two, it passed through the round pond to the
Blackheath railway.t The boundary between Lewisham and Lee
passes just north of the Blackheath line, through the centre of the
ponds in the grounds of ‘‘The Cedars,” and thence obliquely in the
rear of Cressingham Road and St. Stephen’s Church to the
Quaggy. That between Lee and Kidbrook passes down the centre
~ of Lee Road, Lee Green and Eltham Road.

In the centre of what is now Blackheath Park, and close to
the site of St. Michael’s Church in the Liberty of Kidbrook,
formerly stood the fine mansion of Sir Gregory Page, the grounds

* By a recent rearrangement the boundary is now Lethbridge Road and
Drysdale Road.

t+ The modern boundary leaves The Paragon in Kidbrook, and passes
down Pond Road to the Railway.

66 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

of which took in the entire country from Blackheath to the Eltham
Road. The estate, anciently known as Wricklemarsh, is entered
separately in Domesday Book. After passing through several
hands it was sold to Sir John Morden in 1669, who founded the
college, which bears his name, on a portion of the estate. The
mansion house and the main portion of the park he left to Dame
Susan Morden for her life, and on her death in 1721 it was sold to
Sir Gregory Page, Bart., of Greenwich. He rebuilt the house in a
most magnificent style, and at the time it was considered one of
the finest seats in England. It was built entirely of stone from
designs by John James, and, notwithstanding its size, is stated to
have been erected in the space of eleven months. It cost £90,000.
The centre of the building consisted of a basement, state and attic
storey, with a large Ionic portico on the south front, the ascent to
which was by semi-circular flights of steps. The wings projected
two hundred feet from the north front at right angles, and con-
tained the offices, stables, etc., communicating with the house by
colonnades. The picture gallery contained a very choice collection
of paintings by Reubens, Vandyke, Titian, and other masters.

Sir Gregory died in 1775, leaving no issue, and the estate
passed to his great-nephew, Sir Gregory Turner of Ambrosden,
Bart., who assumed the surname and arms of Page. He sold the
estate fh 1783 to John Cator, Esq., of Stump’s Hill, Beckenham,
for £22,500, who resold the house in lots to be taken down. It
was accordingly dismantled in 1787, and stood in a half-ruined
condition for many years. The Paragon and Montpelier Row were
built on the Blackheath frontage of Wricklemarsh Park. There is
a tradition that the columns of the colonnades in The Paragon and
the stone of some of the houses in Montpelier Row came from the
old house.

Pond Road, Morden Road, Blackheath Park, The Manor Way,
and Part of Weigall Road are on the site of the park, as also the
houses fronting’ Lee Road. The pond from which Pond Road takes
its name, was the piece of ornamental water which stood in the
centre of the avenue of the north front of Wricklemarsh House;
another piece, now drained. stood to the south of the mansion.
The Avenue and Wemyss Road, both in Lewisham Parish, are
more recent formations.

On the map of 1695 the boundary of the Heath varies con-
siderably from that at the present day. At the corner now occupied
by the ‘‘ Princess of Wales” Hotel were two cottages marked
‘Sir John Morden’s two new tenements,” and beyond these no
houses seem to have been erected on this part of the Heath; the
boundary of which appears to have then been where Paragon Place
and The Avenue now stand. Within this triangle (which must
have been subsequently enclosed from the Heath) stood a maze.
The ground at the bottom of the slope, now occupied by the rail-
way, is shown as Sir John Morden’s vineyard and orchard, whilst
at the point where Tranquil Vale and Montpelier Vale meet,

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68 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

‘‘Queen Elizabeth’s Well” is shown. The irregular triangle
bounded by the last-named roads and Royal Parade has been
obviously enclosed from the Heath—probably during the 18th
century—as also the portion now occupied by Lloyd’s Place. The
‘* Three Tuns”’ in Tranquil Vale is mentioned in Lewisham Parish
Registers in 1737, when Richardson Headley, the ‘innkeeper, was
buried. Other. Blackheath hostelries mentioned in the registers
of the same year are the ‘‘ Harrow” and the ‘‘ Crooked Billet.
They were then distinct houses, but whether they are both now
represented by the ‘‘ Hare and Billet” it is difficult to say.

The ground now occupied by the pits in front of Royal Parade
is shown as ‘‘Gilbert’s Piece”’ in 1695, and cpposite the ‘‘ Hare
and Billet”’ was.a portion called ‘‘ Beggars’ Bush,” a cross marking
the meeting of the roads. The part known as Blackheath Vale is
an enclosure from the Heath, and was formerly a gravel pit. As
previously described, the two windmills occupied the site of Mill
House and Talbot Place.

Grote’s Buildings and Eliot Place date from the 18th century,
the former being apparently a little earlier than the latter, the
houses in which appear in the “View of Blackheath by Moonlight,”
published by Carrington Bowles in 1770 (Plate 13). One of the
houses in Eliot Place is dated 1792, and one in Eliot Vale 1805.
Grote’s Buildings are part of the Morden College Estate, and
occupy ground anciently known as Ancock's Hill. The remainder
of this side of the Heath and the southern slope generally, from
Grote’s Buildings to Granville Park and Eliot Hill, is the property
of the Earl of St. Germans.

The Orchard and Aberdeen Terrace enclosures are the property
of the Earl of Dartmouth. Holly Hedge House was originally an
enclosure for a windmill. It was occupied by the Rev. the Hon.
Henry Legge during his long tenure of the Vicarage of Lewisham
(1831 to 1879). Since that time it has become the headquarters of
the 2nd Vol. Batt.. Royal West Kent Regiment (now the 2oth
London Battalion), Of the houses in Dartmouth Row we shall
speak separately.

Granville Park was formed about 1850, and subsequently Eliot
Park. Oakcroft Road has been made within the last few years on
the grounds of the house known as ‘‘ The Knoll.”

No account of Blackheath would be complete without some
reference, however brief, to its place in British sports. Golf, foot-
ball, cricket, all-have flourished here. The Royal Blackheath Golf
Club was the first club formed.in the South of England, and is said
to owe its origin to James I, who brought the game with him from
Scotland. However this may be, it is certain that the club was a
fully-organised body in 1766,'since it possesses a silver club bearing
the inscription, ‘‘ August 16, 1766, the gift of Mr. Henry Foot to”
the Honourable Company of Goffers at Blackheath.” The course
then appears to have been a five-hole one, altered in 1844 to seven
holes. Nowadays the game is sadly restricted, owing to the

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70 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

crowded state of the Heath. An interesting portrait of Mr.
William Innes, Captain in 1776, was painted by Lemuel F.
Abbot, R.A., in 1790. He is attended by a Greenwich pensioner
as a ‘‘caddie.” In Rugby Football Blackheath is entitled to a
place of high honour, and the encouragement both football and
cricket received in the latter half of the 19th century from residents
on and around Blackheath, no doubt largely contributed to the
popularizing of those games amongst the working classes. The
more important clubs nowadays play on private grounds, but the
lover of sport cannot survey Blackheath on a Saturday afternoon
with any other feeling but that of satisfaction.

In the survey of the King’s Manor of Greenwich in 1695, and
the map by Samuel Travers, Esq., the Surveyor-General attached
thereto,* the houses in what is now known as Dartmouth Row, are
shown as ‘‘ The New Buildings,”’ and then numbered eleven, No. 1
occupying the ground between Blackheath Hill and Dartmouth
Hill, Nos. 2 to 8 from Dartmouth Hill to Morden Hill, No. 9 the
site of Dartmouth House (now the Greyladies) and the chapel
adjoining, No. 10 the site of Perceval House, and No. 11, which
was the Market House, at the corner of Dartmouth Place, the
space between Dartmouth Place and Blackheath Hill and the
Heath being occupied by the Bowling Green House, now the
“*Green Man.”

These eleven houses were declared ‘‘ encroachments ” on the
Heath, and to have been erected on pretence of a right to do so
by grants or leases from Mrs, Graham or Lord Dartmouth. Lord
Dartmouth disputed the claim that these houses were in the Manor
of Greenwich, and it is evidence of how uncertainly the boundaries
between Lewisham-and Greenwich were defined at the time, that
the Crown did not proceed in the matter, and Dartmouth Row and
the greater part of Blackheath Hill were ultimately agreed to as
belonging to Lewisham.

The houses on the western side of Dartmouth Row have been
considerably altered, both externally and internally, but some of
them still retain details which place their date at about 1670 or 1680.

On the eastern side of the Row, and at its northern end is the
‘‘Green Man” Hotel, formerly the Bowling Green House—the
ground appears to have been first enclosed in 1629. Evelyn, in his
diary, under date 9th May, 1683, says: ‘I went to Blackheath to
see the new faire, being the first procured by the Lord Dartmouth.
This was the first day, pretended for the sale of cattle, but I think
in truth to enrich the new tavern at the bowling green, erected by
Snape, His Majesty's farrier, a man full of projects. There
appeared nothing but an innumerable assembly ot drinking people
from London, pedlars, etc., and I suppose it is too neere London
to be of any great use to the country.” Evelyn was right, and
after a trial of some go years the fair was practically discontinued.

* Printed in Kimball's ‘‘ Charities of Greenwich.”

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72 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

The ‘‘ Bowling Green” was at one time a place of resort for
persons coming to the Heath, and the Leathersellers’ Company
used to dine there when they came to the annual Visitation at the
Grammar School. The name became changed to the ‘‘Green Man”
towards the end of the 18th century. The house was rebuilt in
1869, when the old green was also built on. Lansdowne Place, at
the back of the hotel, and facing the Heath, is built on a further
enclosure from the Common. Two of the houses appear to be of
a date about the middle of the 18th century, the others were built
about 1855.

The Market House, which stood at the corner of Dartmouth
Place, is shown in the map of 1695, but when it was pulled down
is not recorded.

The best house in the Row is that known as Perceval House,
so named after the Right Hon. Spencer Perceval, who was
assassinated on t1th May, 1812, in the lobby of the House of
Commons, and who at the time was living here. In 1695 it was
occupied by Sir Martin Beckenham. It has now been divided into
two houses called ‘‘ Perceval” and ‘‘ Spencer” respectively.

The Church of the Ascension was founded by Mrs. Susannah
Graham, at some date just prior to 1695, as it is shown on the plan
of that year. The original building appears to have been the
apsidal chancel and a portion of the present nave. The nave was
extended to the road by the Fourth Earl of Dartmouth, about 1834.
During the rebuilding of Lewisham Church, from 1774-7, it was
constituted the Parish Church. A separate ecclesiastical district
was assigned to it in 1883.

Dartmouth House, the last building in the Row, is a plain
brick structure of the late Adams period. It was sold a short time
since by the Earl of Dartmouth to the College of Grey Ladies.

Passing along Dartmouth Row southwards, and leaving Trail’s
Lane or Morden Hill on the right, we come to the southern slopes
of Blackheath, at the top of Lewisham Hill. Of the condition of
the gravel pits in 1823, we have a view by T. M. Baynes, reproduced
in Plate 19, which will be readily recognised. The building of
Aberdeen Terrace has nowadays shut out the view of Lee Church,
and the line of trees along Eliot Hill, down which a horseman is to
be seen riding in the view, was subsequently Froken by the erection
of ‘‘The Knoll.” In the gravel pits was formerly a pump, which has,
however, long disappeared. On the brow of the hill a small space
was for some years railed off for a flagstaff and two cannon, the
property of the local volunteers, but these have also been removed.

The house immediately at the top of Lewisham Hill, on the left,
known as ‘‘The Hermitage,” was rebuilt in the ’70’s. The view from
this spot in 1823, is shown in another drawing by T. M. Baynes
(Plate 20). The old wooden houses on the right were pulled down
in the ’7o’s, and the present brick villas erected in their place,
Princes Road and Blackheath Rise dating from about the same
time.

‘fzg1 ‘SGNVMHLIOS YNIMOOT ‘IT1H, WVHSIMAT Wow

M

alLA—

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ALVId

74 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

The whole of the left hand side of the hill was, prior to 1652,
part of Blackheath, and was granted by the Court Leet and the
Lord of the Manor (Raynold Graham) to the Rev. Abraham Colfe,
as a site for his projected Grammar School. It is described by
Colfe as of about two acres in area, ‘‘ full of great pits and holes,”
and he was authorised to enclose this, provided he left a way one
rod broad into ‘‘ Coneyberry Field.” This way and the field are
now called Walerand Road.

A Grammar School had been founded in 1574 by the Rev. John
Glynn, Vicar of Lewisham, whose executors obtained a charter of
incorporation from Queen Elizabeth. When Mr. Colfe became
Vicar in 1610, this school had languished for want of funds, and he
was instrumental in the appointment of a fresh body of Governors,
of which he was one. Later on he found it necessary to
remodel the scheme and endow the school himself, and appointed
the Worshipful Company of Leathersellers as perpetual Governors,
for which purpose they were specially incorporated by Act of
Parliament in 1664. Mr. Colfe erected the buildings himself, and
the new school was opened on roth June, 1652. Like all old
Foundation Grammar Schools certain free places were reserved for
deserving boys of the poorer classes. These are now allotted as
scholarships. The school was to be conducted on the same lines
as ‘‘ Merchant Taylors, Pauls, and the free school of Eaton.” In
or about 1750, when the Rev. Edward Norton, an old Westminster
boy, was headmaster, the school was enlarged by the addition of
a wooden building on the north side for an additional number of
boarders. This is shown in the view published in 1831 (Plate 22).
In a room over the big schoolroom was for many years
accommodated the Founder’s Library, which was, with additions,
maintained as a Free Library for the Hundred of Blackheath.
Owing to settlements in the walls, this upper room was removed
in 1807, and a wooden tower at the eastern end of the schoolroom
erected, in the lower part of which the library was housed. The
books are now almost entirely out of date, and are not of general
interest, although some are good specimens of early typography.
One contains Archbishop Cranmer’s signature.

In 1890 the whole of the old buildings of the School were
demolished, as the result of a new scheme, dated 15th September,
1887, and new buildings were erected at the cost of the
Leathersellers’ Company. These were added to in 1897 as a
Jubilee gift, the total cost being about £12,000.

In the 18th century the school is spoken of as ‘‘a considerable
boarding school.” This element disappeared in 1880, and it is now
a Day School only.

The ground above and below the school, formerly the
headmaster’s garden, was let on lease for building in 1861. In
the upper portion, between Eliot Park and Walerand Road, was a
spring, which supplied the house with water before the days of
Water Companies and Boards.

PLATE 21.—COLFE’s GRAMMAR SCHOOL, GARDEN FRONT, 1887.

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PLATE 22.—COLFE'’Ss GRAMMAR SCHOOL, 1831.

76 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Dartmouth Terrace, on the opposite side of the hill, was built
about the year 1820.

Facing the foot of Lewisham Hill is Heath Terrace, built in
1854. On the site of the shops adjoining Heath Terrace was
formerly an old wooden house called ‘‘The Manor House,” the
residence of Mr. Bennett, a friend of Charles Dickens, who, of
course, is said to have written at least one of his books whilst on a
visit here. It was the property of the Lord of the Manor.

The advent of the North Kent Railway in 1849 made great
changes in the immediate surroundings. Granville Park was laid
out for building about 1850, and the old ‘‘ Plough” Inn was pulled
down and rebuilt. Views of the old house from paintings are given

PLATE 23.—THE ‘‘ PLOUGH” INN, ABOUT 1820.

in Plates 23 and 24. A small low bridge here spanned the Quaggy
for carts, a wooden plank bridge sufficing for foot passengers
This part is marked the ‘*‘ Water splash,” in Rocque’s map of 1745,
but the name does not occur elsewhere. The Quaggy joins the
Ravensbourne at the rear of the ‘‘ Plough” garden, and runs towards
the Silk Mill. This mill, as we have seen, was previously known
as Armoury Mill, and in medizval times as Toddlesmill, being
mentioned in the Court Rolls of the reign of Edward I, The mill
pond has been filled in, and the site is now laid out as tennis courts.

The greater part of the land in Lewisham Road, from
Lewisham Hill to Morden Hill, is the property of the Lord of the
Manor, and was formerly Lammas, or half-year land, stretching

FROM BLACKHEATH TO THE CLOCK TOWER. 77

from Blackheath down the slopes to the Ravensbourne at the Mill.
The houses are of various dates in the latter half of the 19th century.
Further on, at Lethbridge Road, we reach the site of the Lime
Kilns in Loats Pit. Here a_ vast quantity of chalk has been cut
away, making a steep cliff at the rear of Dartmouth Row, on
Blackheath. It is said that a large amount of the lime required for
rebuilding London after the great fire, was obtained from this spot.
A view, engraved by J. Course. about 1750, is given in Plate 12.

* The ground between the ‘‘ Plough” and Lewisham Bridge was
an open green with trees thereon, called Plough Green, and a species
of fair was held thefe on St. Thomas’s Day, 21st December. It

PLATE 21.—THE ‘‘ PLouGH” INN, ABOUT 1840.

was enclosed in 1810, and built on, from the ‘‘ Plough” to the
‘‘Duke of Cambridge,” which later stood back from the road, the
present house being built on the fore court of its predecessor.

The ‘‘ Roebuck,” on the opposite side of the road, which
formerly stocd some yards nearer London than its modern
representative, was a picturesque wooden house, of which sketches
are given in Plates 25 and 26. It is an old-established hcuse,
although the earliest mention in the Parish Registers is in 1740
‘when ‘‘ Wm. Hart from Mr. Edmonds at the Roebuck was buried
by y* Yew Tree.” potas “

The old house occupied the site of Nos. 40 and 42 High Street,
Nos. 34 to 38 being built’on the site of the garden or bowling

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FROM BLACKH. ATH TO THE CLOCK TOWER. 7

green. Inthe garden was a famous chestnut tree, shown in the
drawing in Plate 26. This is said, according to local tradition, to
have been planted in 1683, and to have been the parent tree of
those in Bushey Park. The stream, which ran through the village,
passed the ‘‘ Roebuck,” and joined the Ravensbourne at Lewisham
Bridge, which at this spot yielded many a good fish to the angler.

Lewisham Bridge is marked in Rocque’s map of 1745 as
‘*Stone Bridge,” see Plate 7. If this is to be taken literally, it
would indicate that one of the medieval high-backed stone bridges
existed at that date, which is not unlikely.

| (Cuon BUCK os ONY, pa |

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PLATE 26.—THE ‘‘ ROEBUCK"™ INN, ABOUT 1830.

In the will of Christian Sprigg, widow, dated 17th August, 1473,
is a bequest of tos. ‘‘to the making of the bridge at the north end
of the town of Lewisham.”

The bridge which occupied this position for the first half of the
tgth century was a red brick bridge, probably of 18th century
date, narrow and sufficiently high to allow of boats going under it.
It had three arches, the centre being the largest, and on either side
were V-shaped refuges. These can be seen in the sketch (Plate 27).
The foot traffic increased considerably with the removal of
Lewisham railway station to its present position from that at the
foot of Granville Park, on the opening of the Mid-Kent Line in
January, 1857, and a wooden plank addition was made to the
southern side of the bridge for the accommodation of foot

‘OIgI ‘AIVA LIdNVO'] SGUVMOL DNIMOOT ‘ADUING WVHSIMAT G1O—'LZ ALVIg

FROM BLACKHEATH TO THE CLOCK TOWER. 81

passengers. Carts could enter the river on the northern side for
watering and drive through. The bridge was replaced in 1872-3.
by the existing iron bridge.

The appearance of this part of the town was considerably
changed by the making of the so-called Mid-Kent Railway in 1857,
and later by the Tonbridge and Sevenoaks portion of the main line
of the South Eastern in 1865. The former bounds the district
called Loampit Vale on the east, and the latter passes directly
through its centre. Passing over Lewisham Bridge, a turning on
the left, now known as Mill Road, leads up to one of the many
mills on the Ravensbourne. It is marked as ‘‘Corn Mill” on
Rocque’s map of 1745. There isa group of cottages of 18th century
date on the right-hand side of the road, before the mill is reached,
formerly known as Botany Bay. The name occurs in the Parish
Registers from 1791 onwards and is said to have arisen from the
character of the then inhabitants.

Retracing our steps to the Bridge, and passing under the
archway of the Mid-Kent line, there are a few 18th century houses
on the left-hand side of the road, and others of the early part of the
1gth century in Elmira «Street and adjoining roads, and the
intervening space has been filled in of more recent years. On the
right-hand side the houses are nearly all of a date from about 1860
onwards, but a few older buildings fringe the highway on either

_ side of the road where the main line of the South Eastern Railway

crosses.

Sundermead, one of the great fields of the Manor, occupied the
ground from Loampit Vale to the river at the Silk Mill. The
railway now runs through it to Lewisham Station and Thurston
Road, Jerrard and Horton Streets are built on part of it. The
name in modern times has been corrupted to ‘‘ Sundry Meadow”

and ‘‘ Thundery Mead.” The works of Messrs. Elliott Brothers are

built on a field called Lock Mead, which was partly in Lewisham

; and partly in Greenwich.

The portion of our route called Loampit Vale is marked on the
map of 1745 by the more undignified title of Loampit Hole. It was
then a well-known locality for a rich loam which seems to have
been worked for a considerable period.

In the early part of the 1gth century, Messrs. John and Henry

Lee held the ground on either side of Loampit Vale, and the slopes
of Loampit Hill up to the parish boundary were converted into
brick fields, until the available material was exhausted. As
_-Loampit Hill is approached there is an outcrop of chalk, and on the
ising ground Mr. Lee built himself a house shown in Plate 28.

This still stands, and was known for many years as Ellerslie House.

The brick fields on the right hand side of the road are now

_ occupied by Elswick Road, Sunninghill Road, etc.

; On the left-hand side of Loampit Hill the loam and chalk have
been cut away to a considerable depth. On a portion of the rising

§ ground Mr. J. E. Lee built another residence, known as Loampit

G

$2 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Hill House. On this property and the chalk pits several roads
have recently been built, with the more or less appropriate names
of Shell Road, Undercliff Road, etc.

At the top of Loampit Hill, the boundary between Lewisham
and Deptford is reached. This runs by the side of the Nunhead
and Greenwich Railway on the right. On the left the boundary
formerly ran along the lane, called in modern times White Post
Lane, at the rear of the gardens of the houses in Tyrwhitt Road,
but by a recent rearrangement the eastern side of Tyrwhitt Road
now forms the boundary.

Having reached the parish boundary on the London Road we
must now retrace our steps to Lewisham Bridge, and start again

PLATE 28.— Mr. LEE’s House, LoAmpit HILL, 1824.

from ‘‘ The Obelisk.” This, by-the-way, is a misnomer. The site
was occupied formerly by a lamp post, which was replaced by
a fountain with lights overhead. This was popularly dubbed ‘‘ The
Obelisk,” and the name has remained.

Down to about the year 1840, the ground on the further side
of the Quaggy from the Plough Bridge to Lee Bridge was farm
land, corn and pasture, with the well- wooded rising ground of
‘‘ Belmont” and ‘‘ The Cedars’’ in the rear. A small stream from
Wricklemarsh, which occupied the valley in which the Blackheath
Railway now runs, after feeding the ponds in the grounds of ‘‘ The
Cedars” emptied itself into the Quaggy. Two or ‘three small villas
were built near Lee Bridge, by the turning to Belmont Hill, and

FROM BLACKHEATH TO THE CLOCK TOWER. 83

about 1840 the High Pavement (with the shops thereon) was
constructed. In 1865 the new ecclesiastical district of St. Stephen
was formed, and the church was built by the Rev. S: Russell
Davies, M.A., from the designs of Sir Gilbert Scott, in the style of
the opening years of the 13th century. From an architectural *
point of view St. Stephen’s is undoubtedly the best church in the
parish. The ground on which it is built was marshy, and this has
hitherto prevented the completion of the building with a tower,
which would no doubt add to the appearance of this part of the
town. The boundary between Lee and Lewisham was formed by
the small stream alluded to above, and passing behind St. Stephen’s
Church came down the southern side of St. Stephen’s Road to the
Quaggy, which from this point forms the boundary between the
two parishes as far as Manor Park. 5

Turning to the western side of the High Street, at the
“‘ Roebuck,” we have Rennell Street and Molesworth Street, which
were originally small villa roads, which sprang up soon after the
opening of Lewisham Railway Station.

At the corner of Rennell Street stood the Lewisham Toll-gate
House. This was set up in 1849, and removed in 1866. :

The small terrace of four shops from the corner of Rennell
Street date from about the same period as that thoroughfare, but
those which follow are part of Old Lewisham. They consisted of
three small wooden houses, long since turned into shops, and three
brick houses of the 18th century, which have shared the same fate.
The centre house (now the ‘‘ Joiners’ Arms”’) is being rebuilt as these
lines are being written.* Three shops, with gables and windows of
mid-Victorian Tudor, come next; they probably occupy the site of
older houses whose memorial is vanished. Adjoining the shops
just mentioned was an older house occupied by the Shoves, father
and son, for more than half-a-century. It was puiled down and
rebuilt in 1907. The double-fronted villa which is the next building
southwards, was converted into a large shop, which has in its turn
been divided into two.

We have now reached the block of buildings which covers the
site of the old ‘Lion and Lamb” Inn and its stables, whiist
opposite us, on the site now occupied by the Bank and other
shops, was Lewisham (or Watch-house) Green, on which stood the
Cage or Lock-up, and the Village Stocks.

The ‘‘ Lion and Lamb ”’ was one of the old Lewisham hostelries,
nearly all of which have been rebuilt in recent years. It is mentioned
in the Parish Registers of 1700, and is no doubt even older. At that
date it was held by the Holmes family,-and it is recorded that Mrs.
Holmes planted a yew tree in the churchyard in memory of her
husband. In 1732 there is the baptism of *‘ Thomas a foundling at
the Lyon and Lamb doore.” One wonders which name was
adopted for him! The house was a long low building of the type

* Others have since been rebuilt at this point.

84 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

often found in country villages, with a porch to the main entrance.
In the 19th century this latter was removed, and the front
considerably modernized (and spoilt). It was pulled down in 1899,
when the present shops (Nos. go and 92) were built on the site, and
the licensed premises
needlessly renamed
‘‘The Salisbury,” were
moved a little north- |
wards to their present
position.

Lewisham (or
Watch-house) Green
included the whole
of the ‘‘island” be-
tween Lewis Grove
and High Street. It
was enclosed in 1810.
The yeomanry are
said to have encamped
there in the early part
of the 1gth century,
during the Napoleon
scare. The Cage and
Stocks stood on the
site now occupied by
the London and Pro-
vincial Bank. Repre- PLATE 29.—THE CAGE, LEWISHAM, ABOUT 1840.
sentations are given in
the accompanying sketches. The last occupants were burnt alive.
It is supposed that they set the straw, given them as bedding, alight
by smoking, the constable who held the key could not be found, and

the unfortunate
men were liter-
ally roasted to
death. The last
occupant of the
Stocks is said
to have been
placed there-
in for abus-
ing ‘* Squire”
Thackeray, one
of the local
Justices, who
was dispen-
sing the law
at the ‘Lion
‘and Lamb”
PLATE 30.—THE StTocKS, LEWISHAM, ABOUT 1840. opposite.

AN ITINERARY THROUGH LEE. 85

CHAPTER II.
An ITINERARY THROUGH LEE.

T will at this point be convenient to turn aside
from the Lewisham High Street to make a sur-
vey of the neighbouring Parish of Lee, which,
with the Parish of Lewisham, makes up the
Metropolitan Borough. The Parish of Lee is a
very ancient one, and the manor prior to the

Conquest was held of King Edward the Confessor by a Saxon
named Aluuin. It was seized by the Conqueror, and with many
others in this county conferred upon his half-brother Odo, Bishop
of Baieux and Earl of Kent, of whom it was held by Walter de
Douai at the time of the Domesday enquiry. It was then assessed
at half a solin— or at one quarter that of Lewisham. In the time
of Edward the Confessor the land under cultivation was that
workable by four plough-teams. In 1085 (the date of the enquiry)
this had not increased, as we are told that in the demesne
there were two plough-teams, whilst eleven villans and two
cottars between them had two also. There were two families of
slaves on the demesne. There were also five acres of meadow,
and for the use of the wood lands the tenants gave ten hogs
yearly, z.e., the wood land was a fifth of that in Lewisham. The
yearly value of the manor used to be £3, but in 1085 it was
1oos. From this statement, then, we gather that, beside the
family of Walter de Douai, there were fifteen households within
the manor or a population say of seventy souls.

The manor passed to Robert de Baunton, son of William
de Douai, who endeavoured, as we have seen, to enlarge his
possessions by seizing Lewisham and Greenwich from the Abbot
of Ghent. His only daughter married William de Paynell, whose
grandson, William Paynell, sold the manor in 1225 to Richard de
Montefichet, by whom it was given as a marriage dower to his
sister Philippa Montefichet, the wife of Hugh de Plaiz. Richard
de Montefichet was one of the barons selected to enforce King
John’s observance of Magna Charta.

About this time a family named Banquel had become land-
- owners in the district, possessing the subsidiary Manor of Shraf-
holt (or Shroffolds) -in LLewisham—the border country so to speak
between the~parishes of Lee, Lewisham, and Bromley. The name
is variously spelt Bonquer, Banquel, Bankwell, and was finally
shortened down to Bankers. Sometime during the reign of
- Edward III the Banquels became possessed also of the Manor
of Lee, so that when Thomas Banquel died in 1361 his possessions
in Lee and the surrounding neighbourhood were considerable.
From the Banquels, Lee and Shrafholt passed to Sir Richard

86 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Stury in the reign of Richard II. He was a person of considerable
influence in Edward III’s reign, and shared with Alice Perrers the
control of the king in his old age. In the next reign he took a
leading part in the politics of the day, and was an active supporter
of the Lollards. His grandson alienated the manor to Richard
Wydeville in 1445. Wydeville was created Baron Rivers in 1447,
and Edward IV, who had married his daughter Elizabeth,
advanced him to the dignity of Earl, making him Constable of
England in 1465.

Earl Rivers was seized by a body of Lancastrians at North-
ampton in 1469, and beheaded by order of the Duke of Clarence
and the Earl of Warwick. His son Anthony was beheaded at
Pontefract in 1483, by order of the Duke of Gloucester, on a
charge of suspected treason, when the title and estates came to

PLaTeE 31.—LEE BRIDGE HOUSE.

Richard his brother, and he, dying in 1491 without issue,
appointed his nephew, Lord Thomas Grey, Marquis of Dorset,
his heir.

His life being threatened by Richard III, the marquis fled to
Brittany, and joined Henry Earl of Richmond on the accession of
the latter to the throne. After the Battle of Bosworth he resumed
possession of Lee and his other property. His son exchanged the
Manor of Lee, with Bankers and Shroffold, with Henry VIII in
1512 for other lands in Leicestershire.

The manor remained with the Crown until the year 1631,
when Charles I granted it to Ralph Freeman, of Aspeden in Hert-
fordshire, Lord Mayor of London in 1633, and he, by will, left

AN ITINERARY THROUGH LEE. 87

the manor to.his grandson, Freeman Sondes, of Lees Court,
Sheldwich, Kent, who, dying young, the property came to his
father, Sir George Sondes, Kt., who was created Earl of Faver-
sham. He left two daughters, and the manor eventually came, in
1709, to Catherine the younger, who married Lewis Watson, Earl
of Rockingham,

The manor remained in the possession of this family until
1798, when Lewis Thomas, second Baron Sondes, sold Lee,
Shroffold and Bankers to Sir Francis Baring, Bart., from whom
they have descended to the present Earl of Northbrook.

The manor Pound formerly stood on the eastern side of Burnt
Ash Road, near Lee Green. At the Court Leet a bailiff, ale-
conner, and hogwarden were chosen. The meetings seem to
have been regularly held until about 1809. In 1841 the jurors ~
were again summoned, but since then the Court has lapsed.
The quit-rents, which represent the money payments in lieu of
personal service of the free tenants amounted to about £40
a year.

With this preliminary sketch of the lords of the Manor of Lee,
we will cross Lee Bridge and proceed by way of Belmont Hill.
Lee Bridge, built in 1792, has been replaced in recent years by an
iron girder bridge. The whole of the roadway here has been
considerably raised to keep it above the level of the Quaggy,
which in times past was wont to overflow its banks and flood the
surrounding country.

Belmont Hill is called Lewisham Lane on Rocque’s map of
1745. In the return of church property made in 1634 to the Arch-
bishop of Canterbury it is styled Lee Lane or Butt Lane. The
land on the right-hand side of the hill and at the lower end of
the left-hand side, as far as Belmont Road, is the property of the
Earl of St. Germans, but from Belmont Road to Boyne Road there
is an estate which is part of the endowment of Morden College.
On this site was one of those mounts dear to the folk of the early
part of the 19th century, from which in those days a very pictur-
esque view could be obtained. In 1830, a house was built on the
spot by Mr. George L. Taylor, Surveyor of the Dockyards, and
called ‘‘Belmont,” which thereupon gave its name to the road.
The house was afterwards occupied by Mr. John Wainewright,
and pulled down in 1907, when Boyne Road and Caterham Road
Were made and the estate built over. The road was formerly a
narrow and somewhat steep country lane, the only houses being
“Lee Grove’ (‘*The Cedars”) and the Rectory, with the church.
The crown of the’ hill was cut down in 1830, and the road
straightened to the lodge gates of ‘‘The Cedars”; subsequently
it was diverted so as to skirt the gardens of that house.

‘‘The Cedars,” formerly known as ‘‘ Lee Grove,” was originally
a small house, where dwelt one Will Prat, who was a well-known
~~ London character and sheriff in 1734, and he died here in 1746.

In 1733 it belonged to Mr. John Lucas, and in 1766 to Mr. Thomas

88 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Edlyne. Subsequently it belonged to Miss Boyfield, who planted
the cedar trees. She sold it in 1790 to Mr. Samuel Brandram,
who greatly improved the property, forming the lakes out of the
little stream from Wricklemarsh, and adding to the house, a view
of which in 1838 is given in Plate 32. His son, Mr. Thomas
Brandram, had designed to let the whole estate of fifty-one acres
for building, and made a beginning with the houses in Belmont
Grove. He died in 1855, and the property was purchased by
Mr. John Penn, who re-named the estate ‘‘The Cedars,” and
during his lifetime spent a considerable sum in remodelling
the house and adding to the beauty of the grounds. After his
death in 1878 and to the present day his widow has continued to

2

PLATE 32,--‘‘LEE GROVE” (‘* THE CEDARS”), 1838.

reside there. His son, the late Mr. John Penn, was the second
member of Parliament for the newly-constituted Borough of
Lewisham.

Near the upper lodge gate formerly stood the Rectory house,
which was rebuilt by the rector, the Rev. Abraham Sherman, in
1636, and was pulled down in 1866, when the grounds were
purchased by Mr. Penn to enlarge those of ‘‘The Cedars,” a new
rectory being built at a short distance along the road on glebe
land. A view of the old house is given in Plate 33.

We have now arrived at the parish church of St. Margaret,

STEERER

‘rbgt ‘HOWAHD HSINVG ANV ANOLOAY AaT—'eE ALVIg

90) BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Lee, which formerly stood on the left or northern side of the road
in the old graveyard. -Of the original church little or no descrip-
tion is necessary, as we fortunately possess drawings of it, two
of which are reproduced in Plates 34 and 35. It will be seen that it
was very small, being only 56ft. in length. Within the church were
brasses to Nicholas Ansleye, Sergeant of the Cellar to Queen
Elizabeth, died 1593; to Elizabeth Covhyll, 1513; Henry Byrde,
1545; and Isabell Hatteclyf, wife of Nicholas Ansleye, 1582.
These are preserved in the present church. A tablet to Bryan
Annesley and his family, 1604, is preserved on the base of the old
tower.

This church was taken down in 1813, and another erected
in ‘Strawberry hill Gothic’’ with aisles, to meet the increase in

r

PLaTeE 34.—THE OLD CuHtrcH, LEE, FROM A WATER-COLOUR DRAWING,
ABOUT -i800.

the population, but this again proving insufficient a new church
was built on the opposite side of the road in 1839, and consecrated
on 11th March, 1841. This was subsequently enlarged in 1876,
and a considerable sum has been spent at various times in beauti-
fying the mterior.

Proceeding along Lee Terrace we pass several villas, some of
which were built in and about 1825, and others of somewhat later
date. At the end of Lee Terrace on the north side, and at the
turning down into Blackheath Village, are the buildings of the
Blackheath Proprietary School. This school was started in
January, 1830, by residents at Blackheath, to provide, as a day

AN ITINERARY THROUGH LEE. 91

school, the same type of education commonly associated with the
term ‘‘public school.” For a time the school was very successful,
especially during the principalship of the Rev. E. J. Selwyn, M.A.,
when the numbers reached 274, and several boarding-houses were
started in connection with it. In the days of his successor, the
Rev. J. Kempthorne, m.a., the numbers reached 284, but after-
wards declined, until in 1907 the committee decided to close the
school after 77 years working. During its existence the school
turned out many first-rate men, and its list of*scholars is one of
which any institution might be proud. The honours’ boards are
preserved in the corridor of the Blackheath Concert Hall.

At the end of Lee Terrace we are on Cresswell Hill, and,
turning southward, we have in front of us Lee Road—down which

PeatTeE 35 —THE OLD CniurcH, LEE, FROM AN ENGRAVING, 1809.

runs the boundary between Lee, Charlton and Kidbrook—and Lee
Park. Northwards, at the foot of the hill, is Blackheath Railway
Station, opened in July, 1849. Close to the station is the School
for the Sons of Missionaries, opened in 1857, and the Blackheath
Congregational Church, built in 1853.

What is now known as Lee Park is shown on Rocque’s map
of 1745 as ‘‘Lee Green,” and Lee Road is styled ‘‘Lee Green
Lane.” It was formerly leased to the owner of Dacre House
(which stood in Brandram Road) as a park, but on the death of
Lady Dacre in 1808 it was cut up for building purposes, houses

92 BOROUGH OF LEWI/ISHAM.

being built first at the north-east corner towards Blackheath
Village and afterwards along Lee Road. The avenue diagonally
through the property was converted into the road named Lee
Park, houses being built on either side.

Lee Road was a very rural spot in the early part of the 19th
century, with much broom and furze, which also abounded in Lee
Park. At the south end of Lee Road we arrive at Lee Green
(so-called nowadays). The Green was formerly about two acres
in extent, with a féw cottages and the ‘‘Tiger’s Head” Inn, which
was originally built about 1766. A windmill also existed on the
eastern side. The whole of this part of the parish was much
subject to inundations from the sudden rising of the Quaggy, and
at Christmas, 1830, the water is recorded as having been 7ft. deep
at Lee Green. The Green was a favourite resort for meetings not
always conducted in the quietest manner. It was gradually built
over, Wall’s Place, Eastbourne and Gordon Terraces being built
on part of it. Races were formerly held in Lee Park until the
building operations began, when they were held in the Harrow
meadows (so named from a public-house called the ‘‘ Harrow,”
which formerly stood there).

A short distance along the Eltham Road stood the farm build-
ings of Lee Green Farm, ‘and near the boundary with Eltham the
Lee Toll Gate, which was abolished in 1866. The boundary
between Lee and Eltham passes across the Eltham Road and
through Horne Park southwards, Burnt Ash Road running cent-
rally through this part of the parish. The origin of this name is
obscure. In early documents it is called Brindishe. It may be
derived from the making of charcoal from the wood which
formerly covered the southern part of the parish.

Half-way up Burnt Ash Hill we come to the turning to
Bromley, now known as Baring Road. This leads to Grove Park,
so named from Grove Farm then existing. Burnt Ash Hill itself
continues into Burnt Ash Lane, formerly known as Marvell’s
Lane, so called from its leading to ‘‘The Marvells,” a farm and
piece of woodland at the Bromley end of the parish. The
boundary of the parish on the west is formed for some distance
by a small stream which runs by the side of Shroffield’s Manor in
Lewisham. This stream runs at the rear of the Lee Cemetery and
along the side of Hither Green Lane, and, passing under the
S.E. Railway, joins the Quaggy in Manor Park.

Returning to Lee Green on our way back to Lewisham we
come to the bridge over the Quaggy, which was enlarged about
1825 to allow the water to flow more freely with a view to obviate
the overflowing of the river. Camden Place was built at the same
time, the first of the modern smaller houses. Boone’s Almshouses,
a little further towards London, were built in 1875 on the removal
of the original buildings, to which we shall refer atesontiee Lamp-
mead Road commemorates a field formerly given to Lee Church to
maintain a lamp in the church before the altar. Confiscated at the

a a

Fa ¥

AN ITINERARY THROUGH LEE. 93

Reformation, it was granted to Mr. William Hatcliffe, who again
left it to the Parish Church. Of the building on Lee Park we
have already spoken.

That portion of the High Road between the two ends of the
Old Road was cut through the grounds of ‘‘ Lee Place” in 1826. This
may be regarded as the centre of the parish, and it was. in that
part of the High Road, now called the Old Road, that the larger
houses were formerly grouped.

‘‘Lee Place” stood on the north side of the Old Road, between
that thoroughfare and where the High Road now runs. The latter
is on the site of the gardens and of a piece of ornamental water
therein, probably part of an ancient moat. The house, which was
a red brick mansion of late Tudor date, belonged, in the 17th

PLATE 36.—BOONE’s OLD ALMSHOUSES, HIGH RoaD, LEE.

century, to Mr. Christopher Boone, the founder of the almshouses,
and it remained in the possession of that family until the death of
Mr. Charles Boone in 1819, when it passed to his only daughter,

Lady Drummond. It was tenanted for some years by Mr.

Benjamin Aislabie, who took an active part in parochial life, and
after whom Aislabie Road is named. It was sold in 1824, when it
was pulled down, the new High Road made, and Church Street,
Dacre Street, etc., built on the grounds.

On the south side of the Old Road, at its eastern end, was Lee

94 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

House, which stood on the site of the mansion of Sir Thomas
Fludyer. It was built in 1830 by Sir Francis B. Morland, and was
pulled down about 1886, when the estate of some eight acres was
built over.

Between this house and the Manor House was another house,
of. which Mr. Bonar was a tenant until his removal to Camden
House, Chislehurst, where lie and his wife were murdered by a
valet in 1813.

The Manor House was built by Mr. Thomas Lucas about
1780, and has been at times occupied by the Lords of the Manor.
Amongst the better known tenants of recent times was Mr.
Wolffram, the army coach. In 1902 the house and grounds were
sold by Lord Northbrook to the London County Council for use as
a free library, etc., and public park.

PLATE 37.—THE SEAT OF THE LATE LORD DACRE, LEE.

Pentland House, which adjoins Manor House, is an old red
brick house of the latter part of the 17th century, but the face has
been stuccoed.

Manor Lodge, which stood at right angles to Pentland House,
was the old Manor Farmhouse, and in the rear is Manor Lane,
which formerly led.to the farm. On the western side of the Old
Road was formerly a large house called ‘‘ The Firs”’ (previously Lee
Lodge). This was the seat of the Papillon family, the Sladen
family, and, lastly, of Mr. John Wingfield Larking. Shortly after
his death in 1891, the house was pulled down, and the whole estate
was built over (Abernethy, Rembrandt, Lochaber and Murillo
Roads).

ee

a ae

AN ITINERARY THROUGH LEE, 95

In the High Road, opposite the entrance to the Old Road,
were the almshouses built and endowed by Mr. Christopher Boone
in 1683 (Plate 36). The houses were pulled down in 1877, but the
old chapel, said to have been designed by Sir Christopher Wren,
has been permitted to remain. The Merchant Taylors’ Company,
who are the trustees, purchased the ground in the rear, and erected
a further set of almshouses in 1826. ;

Brandram Road was formerly a country avenue by the side of
the Boone estate, leading up towards Dacre House, which stood
on the right-hand side at the top of the ascent. This house was
occupied by Sir John Lade in 1745, and was afterwards the seat
of Sir Samuel Fludyer, who died here in 1768. His niece, Mary,
married Charles Trevor Roper, 18th Baron Dacre. She died in
1808. After being leased to various tenants, the grounds were
eventually built over. A view of the house is given in Plate 37.
In its later days it was, like so many others, stuccoed over and
spoilt. The view from the house in its prime is said to have been
one of much beauty.

Manor Park, with Northbrook Road, perpetuate the name of
the old Manor Farm, together with that of the owner (the Earl of
Northbrook).

Weardale Road is an enlargement of a pleasant field-path by
the side of the Quaggy, which, crossing over the river by a foot
bridge, entered another field-path in Lewisham Parish, known as
Hokum Pokum, which led towards Lewisham Church. Its route
can still be traced via Dermody Gardens and Ryecroft Road. At
the corner of the road stood a small house, known as ‘‘ Rose
Cottage,” on the site of which the '‘ Rose of Lee” is built, the
adjoining shops being built on the garden. The greater part of
the roads on the opposite side of the road—Belmont Park (at
first named Middleton Road) and Blessington Road—are on the
property of the Merchant Taylors’ Company, and were formed in
the late ‘‘ fifties’? and early ‘‘sixties.’”’ Holy Trinity Church was
opened in 1863.

- At the corner of Eastdown Park is the Lee Baptist Chapel,
which was built in 1854. Adjoining are a few small houses of late
18th century date, followed by the detached villas, known formerly
as Lee Place, which were built about 1812. They were the first
of their kind to be erected in the parish, and were built by Messrs.
John and Henry Lee, of Loampit Hill. Between these houses and
Lee Bridge there were, at the end of the 18th century, a few villas
standing in their own gardens, with the brook and the fields of the
College Farm in the rear. Early in the 19th century small houses
(Albion Place), subsequently turned into shops, were built on the
gardens. Some of these were in their turn rebuilt, and a large
number were removed in 1906-7, when the electric tramways were
Jaid down.

96 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

CHAPTER III.

FROM THE CLocK TOWER TO THE VICARAGE.

E have now returned to Lee Bridge, and will
continue our survey of Lewisham High Street.
The Clock Tower, which stands at the parting
ot the ways, was erected as a memorial of the
Jubilee of Queen Victoria, 1897. The cost was
met partly by subscription and partly from a fund

left by Mr. Michael Whitehall, an old inhabitant. It is in a species

of English Renaissance, but the expense caused the omission of a

series of panels bearing coats of arms, and this detracts much from

its appearance.

®

PLATE 38.—Mr. ALLEN’s House, HIGH STREET, LEWISHAM (NOW NO-« 108).

Next to the old ‘‘ Lion and Lamb” came the stables of the
house which still exists as two shops (Nos. 102 and 104), and can
be readily distinguished from its red brick neighbours. It was a
comfortable residence of the latter part of George III’s time, with
high iron railings in front and a row of white flags leading up to
the entrance door. Here lived for many years Mr. Steele, a
Quaker, and subsequently a Mr. Cresswell. Opposite this house,
in what is now the roadway, were two fine elm trees, which, like

FROM THE CLOCK TOWER TO THE VICARAGE. 97

so many of the trees which were the glory of Lewisham, have
been needlessly removed.

The shops from the turning to the Lewisham Postmen’s Office
to John’s Place (Nos. 108 to 120) occupy the site of an ancient
house, with its gardens, of which a representation from a faded
photograph is given in Plate 38. The house itself occupied the
position now taken by Nos. 108 and 110, and appears to have
been of Elizabethan date, or even older. It was occupied for
many years by Mr. Septimus Allen. A modern Gothic villa,
known as Brooke House, was built about 1840 on the site of
Nos. 112 and 114, the old house was pulled down and a villa (now
No. 108) erected in its stead, whilst a similar villa (now 120) was.
built on a portion of the garden. Brooke House in its turn was

PLATE 39.—SKETCH OF Mr. Wm. ALLEN's House, ON SITE OF AVENUE ROAD-

also demolished, and the intervening space between No. 108 and
No. 120 filled in with the present red brick shops. In front was a
pleasant grove of plane trees, which are, alas, no more. The
stream which ran through the town in days gone by has left a
-good memorial of itself in this part of the High Street in the wide
pieces of green which with a little more care might be made one
of the chief attractions of the borough.

From John’s Place to Fuller’s Place we have the site of a long
low white house and its gardens, tenanted by Mr. William Allen,
father of Mr. Septimus Allen alluded to above, a lawyer of Lincoln’s
Inn Fields. The house itself stood where Avenue Road now runs,
and the green infront, now partly a costermongers’ market, was
known as Allen’s Green, and a favourite place for ‘‘ rounders” by

H

98 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

the village youth of the time. Avenue Road takes its name from
a long avenue of poplar trees which extended towards Fuller’s
Place. The house was pulled down about 1835, when Avenue
Road was formed, the shops from John’s Place to Avenue Road
were. built and named Frederick’s Place, and also Lewisham
Terrace, between Avenue Road and Fuller’s Place. All these
changes marked the increase of population caused by the move of
Londoners towards the suburbs.

On the other side of the road, occupying the site of Clarendon
Road, Albion Road, Bonfield Road and Gilmore Road was College
Farm, part of the endowment of the College of The Holy Trinity
at Greenwich, founded in 1613 by the Earl of Northampton. The

PLATE 40.-—COLLEGE FARM Howusk, 1860.

farm house (Plate 40) stood on the ground now occupied by
Nos. 131 to 135, at the corner of Albion Road. :

In Clarendon Road is St. Mark’s Church, built in 1870.
Lower down the road is the Baptist Church, built in 1873. In
Albion Road is the Wesleyan Church, built in 1867. The first
Wesleyan centre was formed in 1822, in a room near Lewisham
Bridge. In 1838 a small chapel was built in Avenue Road, which
was enlarged in 1863, and is now occupied by the Salvation
Army. é

At the top of College Park is Holly Hedge Terrace, which is

SS ——-

FROM THE CLOCK TOWER TO THE VICARAGE. 99

named after a famous holly hedge which it replaces. Eastward of
this is the ground belonging to Lord Dartmouth, formerly called
Quaggs, and now covered by Dermody Road (named after the
poet) and part of Pascoe and Ennersdale Roads to the river.
Eastdown Park perpetuates the ancient name of the slope om which

it, with Wisteria Road, is built, a name at least as old as the

14th century.

Adjoining College Farm, in the High Street, were two old
houses of the 18th century, now Nos. 137 to 141, marked in plans
of 1793 as “‘ Mr. Evan’s Estate.” Their position, occupying but
little space, hemmed in between the College property and that of
‘“The Limes,” then the property of Lord Eliot, is curious. Of

PLate 41.—TuHeE OLp ‘‘ WHITE Harr” INN, 1870.

‘The Limes’ we shall have more to say, and meanwhile we will
cross the road and continue the story from Fuller’s Place. At the
corner of this lane for many years stood the village smithy (the
chestnut tree, it will be remembered, was down by the ‘‘ Roebuck.”’)
After the smithy, the site was tenanted as a baker’s, but has for
some time now been devoted to secondhand books. The next
house has always been a butcher’s as long as the oldest inhabitant
can remember.

The ‘‘ White Hart,’’ which stood on the site of No. 162, and
of which a representation is given in Plate 41, was another of the
old Lewisham wayside inns, although, curiously enough, there is
no mention of it in the Parish Registers or other documents. The

H2

100 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

house, it will be seen, appears to have been of the 17th century.
The present building occupies the site of the old stabling, in the
forecourt of which were chestnut trees with seats beneath for the
beguilement of the traveller. It was built in 1886.

Nos. 168 and 170 take the place of two weather-boarded
cottages shown in Plate 42, whilst on the site of Nos. 174-6 were
two small cottages with windows which were doubtless intended
to be Gothic, and spoke plainly of the early Victorian period.
The row of small houses, Nos. 180 to 198, now all turned into
shops, belong also to the early years of Queen Victoria. The
modern shops, Nos. 198 to 204, occupy the space of a small

PLATE 42.—OLpD Hovuses NEAR THE ‘‘WHITE Hart” (Now Nos. 168 TO 178).

whitewashed house of the 18th century. Bath House, now
No. 208, is apparently another of the early 19th century villas
which sprang up along the roads leading from London when the
first movement to the suburbs took place.

We have now arrived at the Bridge House Mill, and must
cross the road to the site of ‘‘ The Limes.”’

This spot, sacred to the memory of John Wesley, is now the
site of the shops numbered 169 and 171, which bear a tablet,
‘©The Limes,’ rebuilt 1903.””. The house had been much altered
and added to from time to time, but was apparently originally
built in the 17th century. The house and garden immediately

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FROM THE CLOCK TOWER TO THE VICARAGE. 101

surrounding it belonged to Lord Eliot, and were leased by Mr.
Valentine Sparrow, whose widow died in 1748, Mr. John Wesley
preaching her funeral sermon. He first visited Lewisham in 1746,
and in 1747 speaks of ‘‘ retiring to Mrs. Sparrow’s, at Lewisham.”
Mr. Ebenezer Blackwell, of the old banking firm of Martin, of
the ‘‘ Grasshopper,” in Lombard Street, then took up the lease of
the house, and also purchased the ground now occupied by Limes
Grove and the houses in the High Street to Morley Road. This
part of the property had another house, which stood about a
hundred yards from ‘‘ The Limes,” with a small open green
between it and ‘‘ The Limes’”’ gates.* Mr. Blackwell spent much
time in beautifying the grounds, with a summer-house at the top of
what is now Limes Grove. Mr. Wesley very frequently retired to

PLaTe 43.—‘ THE Limes,” 1835.

““The Limes,” and there wrote many of his sermons and other
works until Mr. Blackwell’s death in 1782. His estate was after-
wards purchased by Mr. Henry Mills, who also purchased from
Lord Eliot the freehold of ‘‘ The Limes,” and obtained permission
from the. Manor Court in 1804 to enclose the small green mentioned
above. He was succeeded by his nephew, Mr. Edward Legh, who
in 1858 built the houses known as Limes Terrace, Nos. 143 to 155,
opened up Limes Grove for building, and also erected (1851-3) the
houses from Limes Grove to Morley Road. Later, in 1867, the
houses Nos. 175 to 185 were built on a further portion of the

* The new Prudential Buildings stand on the site of the house and green.

102 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

garden. In 1894 the whole property was sold by Mr. Legh’s
trustees, when the shops Nos. 161 to 167 were built on the site of
the stables, and the old house itself disappeared. Svc transit, and
the story of this house and its grounds is that of nearly every other
estate, not only in Lewisham but all round London.

An engraving of the house appeared in the ‘‘ Youth’s In-
structor” for 1835, and is here reproduced in Plate 43.

The ground now occupied by Slaithwaite, Morley and Lingards
Roads is the property of the Earl of Dartmouth as Lord of the
Manor, and was known as ‘‘ Forelands,” probably the same as
‘* Porlange” in a survey of the Manor of Lewisham in 1370, the
acreage (10 acres) being also identical.

On the opposite or western side of the High Street on passing
Bath House we come to part of the Bridge House Estates,
which comprise the mill lately known as ‘‘ Riverdale,” with the
land around and the houses in the High Street known as Camden
Place.

The mill is a very ancient one, and there is little doubt it is on
the site of one of those mentioned in Domesday. In 1299 it is
spoken of in the Court Rolls as ‘‘The Mill of London Bridge,”
but subsequently appears to have been known as ‘‘ Semanesmill,”
possibly from the name of a miller. In 1420 it is called variously
‘*Seemanysmill” and ‘‘ Brigesmill.” In Rocque’s map of 1745
it is called a Leather Mill. The present mill house was built by
Mr. John Penn, who succeeded Mr. Henry Wood as tenant in
1828. The whole is now (1908) about to be let for building
purposes.

Set back some little distance from the street is the building
erected in 1823 and known as the Union Chapel. It was the first
meeting place of the Congregational or Independent Church in
Lewisham. The site was formerly occupied by a brewery, a
portion of which was leased in 1798 and fitted up as a chapel,
which was enlarged in 1813. In 1822 a fresh lease was taken and
the present building erected. It was opened on 14th October,
1823, the Rev. Thomas Timpson, author of ‘‘Church History of
Kent,” being the first minister. The original chapel was converted
into a dwelling house and is now No. 218, being the lodge at the
gates of ‘‘ Riverdale.” The Congregational Church worshipped in
this building until 1866, when the present church was opened.
After being used for some time as a school of art a lease of the
building was taken by the Unitarian Church, who at present meet
there pending the erection of another building near the Free
Library.

The house next to the chapel (No. 222) is somewhat older,
and would appear to be of the end of the 18th century.

The four double-fronted villas known as Camden Place were
built about 1820. They are being converted into shops. Next to
them, and occupying the site of Nos. 232 to 236 were two old
houses, pulled down about 1878. In front of these was a large

———

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‘Cota ‘9fz ‘ghz ‘SON MON) O98! LAOAV ‘LAANLS HOE, AH L—“Fh ALvId

104 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

elm tree, which was removed in 1906, when the electric tramways
were laid.

The two houses Nos. 240 and 242, formerity known as
Magnolia House from the fine specimen of that tree which
partly covered the front walls, are among the few remaining
portions of Lewisham of the early part of the 18th century. The
gateways and lamp stand are not inelegant examples of iron work
of the period.

Camden House, No. 246, is a very good specimen of the
suburban house of the 18th century—it may, indeed, date from the
time of William and Mary. It was tenanted in the 19th century
by General Mann, Miss Finch, Mr. John Wood, Mr. James Jay,
Mr. Page and others, and is at present held by Messrs. Antill,
builders. It was originally only two stories high, the portion
above the cornice which runs along the front having been added
probably in the time of George II.

Between Camden House and the house now occupied by
the Conservative Club were three small houses, which were
removed when the Sevenoaks and Tonbridge Railway was made in
1865. One of these was tenanted by a greengrocer and fruiterer,
and as an illustration of the rural character of the place at the
time we are told that as late as 1840 he kept his ducks in the little
stream which then ran in front of the house, wire netting being
placed to prevent them from wandering up and down! Opposite
this, on the site of the railway, was a small farm house called
Yew Tree House.

The Conservative Club House on the south side of the railway
bridge was for many years the residence of Dr. John Brown, one
of the village physicians. It is a good red brick house, probably
of the early part of the 18th century, but the character of the front
has been completely obscured by being cemented—there is scarcely
a house of this date in the place which has escaped this fate. The
general appearance of this part of the street in or about 1860 will
be seen in Plate 44.

Nos. 262 to 266 are built on the site of the stables of
Brooklands House. This last, No. 272, now the Liberal and
Radical Club House, was built about 1820, and was for many
years the residence of the Hadley family, to whom there is a large
monument in the churchyard eastward of the chancel. It was
tenanted by Mr. Henry Wood from 1859 until his death in 1894 in
his ggth year. The property was subsequently sold by the Hadleys,
and Rhyme Road and Whitburn Road were built on the gardens
and meadows. On the eastern side of the High Street was a
four-gabled house, apparently of Elizabethan date, which occupied
the site of the Congregational Church, and was pulled down
in 1847 (Plate 45). ‘

The surrounding ground was for many years at the opening of
the 19th century the once famous nursery garden of Messrs.
Russell and Willmott, afterwards Willmott and Chaundy. Court

”

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POA ere ee

FROM THE CLOCK TOWER TO THE VICARAGE. 105

Hill, which is an ancient name in Lewisham, going back to early
times, and probably at one time the old place of meeting, is
perpetuated in Court Hill Road, which was formed in 1865. The
Congregational Church was built in 1866, and the handsome
Sunday Schools attached in 1880.

At the corner of Hither Green Lane stood the barns, etc., of
the four-gabled house above mentioned, and the site is now in
the market.

The name Hither Green first appears in the Parish Registers
in 1716, and in most of the earliest references is spelt Hether or
Heather Green—which is the most probable origin of the name.
On the other hand, in the early part of the 19th century the lower

PLATE 45.—-OLD GABLED HOUSE ON THE SITE OF THE CONGREGATIONAL
CHURCH.

portion of Hither Green Lane, near Brownhill Road, was known
as ‘* Further Green,” which would indicate ‘‘ hither” or ‘* nearer”
as the origin. Although proof is wanting there seems little doubt
that the ancient name was Romburgh, which is of frequent
occurrence in documents of the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries, but
has now quite disappeared. Hither Green for many years con-
sisted of farm land. There were a few cottages built on a strip
of roadside waste near and opposite the ‘‘ Spotted Cow,” and a
few houses standing in their own grounds. The site of two of
these is now occupied by the Park Hospital, the greater part
of the grounds of which was the original ‘‘ green” enclosed in
:810.

106 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Campshill House—part of the property of Norfolk College,
Greenwich—was built in 1820 by Mr. Henry Lee, and perpetuates
the name of Kemp Hill, a name which appears in rentals and other
documents of the 15th and 16th centuries, and seems to be derived
from a family named Kemp, who were owners or occupiers in the
14th century.

On the site of the houses opposite Lanier Road was a villa
with a duck pond, once the residence of the Spring Rices, whilst
at the corner of George Lane, on other property of Norfolk College,
was a small villa called Highfield Cottage, which was afterwards
rebuilt and known as Beacon Lodge. ‘Ihis in its turn has given
place to shops.

In Duncrievie Road, near Hither Green Railway Station,

PLATE 46.—OweEn’s SHop, 304 HIGH STREET, LEWISHAM, ABOUT 1840.

was North Park Farmhouse, the farm lands extending over the
district now -occupied by Brownhill Road and others adjoining.
The lands on the western side of Hither Green Lane formed
South Park Farm. This part of the district—some 300 acres—
was the property of the Earl of St. Germans (as Lord of the Manor
of Catford), who sold the whole for building purposes. A railway
station on the Main and Dartford Loop Lines was opened at
Hither Green on 1st June, 1895. A large town of some 15,000
inhabitants has now sprung up, and the entire area will shortly

FROM THE CLOCK TOWER TO THE VICARAGE. 107

be covered with houses. In the middle of the 18th century a large
wood of 4o acres, known as Butler’s Gardens, occupied the
ground where the Brownhill Road joins Hither Green Lane. This
portion of Brownhill Road was made in 1883, and building opera-
tions then began.

Further along the lane is the cemetery, originally formed to
meet the needs of Lee, but now belonging to the whole borough,
and at the southern end lies ‘*Shroffold Farm,” which com-
memorates the ancient manor of that name.

Returning to the High Street, to Whitburn Road, we find a
block of shops erected in 19901 on the site of some villas known
as Greenaway Place, part of the Bridge House estates. The
‘¢Castle”’ Inn is parish property, the site having been bequeathed
in 1630 by Mr. Bevil Moulsworth.

From this point to the Vicarage the houses are mostly old,
and probably buildings have occupied the site for some centuries.
Next to the ‘‘Castle” is a building which may be as old as the
latter part of the 17th century—it was formerly a private house
(possibly two houses) but has for many years been converted into
a shop. The adjoining premises are of 18th century date. A little
further southwards is a row of shops, one of which has for many
years been occupied as a butcher's, and is shown with the small
stream in front in Plate 46. It was then occupied by one Owen.
This property is part of the St. Dunstan’s estates, and was
bequeathed by Mirabelle Bennett in 1632. The ‘¢Bull” is an
ancient Lewisham hostelry, mentioned in the Parish Registers of
Elizabeth's time. It was entirely rebuilt in 1907. The shops
between this and the Vicarage replace houses of the time of the
Georges. There were formerly several fine trees on the banks of
the stream in front of these houses which have disappeared one
by one.

The shops on the other side of the road, at the corner of
Hither Green Lane, occupy the site of humbler predecessors of the
early part of the 19th century, which seem to have been built on
land enclosed from the road side.

Ladywell Park was laid out about 1860 on ground that was
formerly a nursery garden. It is part of the Morden College
estates.

A word must be added here respecting Henry Grubb, one of
the eccentric characters of *‘ old Lewisham,” who lived in the house
on the northern side of the * Black Bull,” and died in 1863 at the
age of 87. He lived alone, allowing no one to enter his house,
and by his miserly habits had amassed considerable wealth. For
seventeen years prior to his death he was in the habit of sleeping
in a chair with a loaded blunderbuss in his arms, to protect the
treasure concealed about the house, whilst cobwebs filled the
rooms, many of which had not been opened for thirty or forty
years.

108 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

CHAPTER IV.

THE VICARAGE, LADYWELL, BROCKLEY, AND Honor Oak.

T the corner of Ladywell Road stands the Vicarage
House, and it is tolerably certain that this has
been the position of the Vicarage for a very con-
siderable period. The house which sheltered
Abraham Colfe and his predecessors was doubt-
less a timber-framed dwelling, and this by 1692

had peloran so dilapidated that Dr. George Stanhope, Dean of

Canterbury, who was appointed Vicar in 1689, requested permis-

sion to rebuild it. From the report of the Commission appointed

by the Bishop of Rochester, we gather that they ‘‘found the dimen-
sions of the ground the old vicaridg house then stood on to bee
vpon the flatt twelve square and 2 foote and to contain about

16 or 18 roomes great and small, that it was ruinous and out of

repair and not habitable,” and they recommended that ‘‘it be pulled

down and the new house to be sett some few yards backwards
more from the roade and into the orchard, and to contain upon the
flatt 13 square and go foot and 12 roomes besides cellars.”
Accordingly a faculty was issued to Dr. Stanhope on the
3rd May, 1592, and in his diary, which is in the church safe, he has
left us a complete account of the cost, which he defrayed himself :—

1692 P®* for Serving and Return of the Comm. of View {£00 15 0
1693 For faculty to build, entry &c., and Comm. under

Seal &e. ... 02 17 10
For pulling down the Old House and making goo d
LENCES meer 07 4 0
For clearing rubbish and digging the foundations 03 10 0
To Mr. Moore for Timber cn acy BA 0) 50 KORO
P« for 70,000 Place Bricks ae a = |
10,000 Stock Bricks _... 3 ae - 54 06 oO

and 2,000 Rubbing Bricks..
To Mr. Nich. Goodwin, oF Hamersmith

To Bricklayers in part ... te sae tri in OT TOMS
More to Bricklayers _... sts ie Si ~ 1S SOR a
More for Bricks .. ae - : Pi ~ 23 O:em
More for Timber .. Bre ots) Sep OUR
To Carpenters for work on my ; House = SZ oom
To Sawyers ae ade Acie ie ws soy 4 1 OZ RO
To Plaisterers ... ae of. im Ne + AO 10120
To Stonecutter ... ae tie ae Be x 27005 70
To the Lime Man fat ae - i.) 30v'0o0! te
For Sand and Carriage... Rie Cer - a.) OOO R20
For Laths Nails and Tilepins ... ate as ... 0605 0
For 2700 and half of Tiles a ar ce Key JO2D LEO
To the Joyner... see as 5 .. 48 16 0
To the Blacksmith wee & ane és 2 221040
To the Locksmith = os th ae ico POSLIG TO:
To the Glasier .. < ve 5 <i =: S05 LOO
To the Plumber ... & a wae ae wi (2OSI 2D
To the Painter : 25.05 0

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THE VICARAGE. 109

7

Besides many other Bills mislaid or lost. The totall which [ find summd
up from particulars not to be found amounts to £739 13s. od.

Repairs of Vicaridge Barn to Carpenter... . £18 10 0
Paleing to my garden and yard sac fe <<) AOL O
For making my garden—

For Workmanship . PO. L2o

For Turf, Gravel, Sand, Seeds, Trees, and

Setting and Laying ... so. 4200-6
In 1692, the making of my garden and the tones of that and the yard stood me

in 4114 9g of,

In this year the building the base of my house and the brick wall to the street
stood me in £653 0 o.

1693. In this year the finishing of my house stood me in £315 os. od. The
repairs of my Barn and Stables in £28.

1700. May. Altering the chimney in the little parlour £00 07 4.

1718. Nov. 12. P* to John Finch of Deptford for clay for raising my kitchen
pavemt Zo1 05 0.

1719. Sept. To Mr. Gilham, for wainscotting my Study below stairs
#04 06 o. For other repairs and improvements £06 03 0.

1723. Memorand. That my wife did out of her allowance for the year 1723
pay to the Bills of Bricklayers, Carpenters &c., for the repairs and
improvements of my Vicarage House at Lewisham more than
£70 0 9.

The house thus erected by Dr. Stanhope in 1692 remained
without any material alteration until 1879, when the Rev. the Hon.
A. Legge, on his appointment as Vicar, caused it to be renovated,
and added a drawing-room and other apartments on the garden
side. The Rev. Samuel Bickersteth, during his Vicariate, added
the wing on the left hand side of the house, which was built largely
of bricks from Lewisham House, then being pulled down.

Lewisham House, which stood at the opposite corner of
Ladywell Road, was a large red brick mansion, built or rebuilt in
1680, if we may judge from the date on one of the leaden water
heads. This waterhead also bore the initials of I.L.A., those of
Sir John Lethuillier and Anne, his wife, daughter of Sir Wm. Hooker,
who is the lady referred to by Pepys, in 1665, as “ Our noble fat
brave lady in our parish, that I and my wife admire so.

The house must originally have been a fine specimen of the
domestic architecture of its day, but had been considerably altered
in appearance, and completely spoilt by the substitution of modern
windows, and by being covered with cement. The entrance doors
led into a well-proportioned hall, but the interior had been so much
modernized, that except in the upper rooms little remained of the

_ original fittings. Behind a modern mantelpiece in one of the lower

rooms was discovered the remains of a good fireplace which had
the appearance of being Elizabethan work, and suggested that the
house had been enlarged, rather than rebuilt, by Sir John Lethuillier.
His great grandson, John Greene Lethuillier, sold it in 1776 to Mr.
Sclater, of Rotherhithe. It was subsequently for a time divided
into two, but was purchased in 1812 from Mr. William Curling by
Mr. Thomas Watson Parker, whose son, Mr. George Parker, lived
there until his death in 1889, filling the role of village Squire, and,
with his wife, a generous benefactor to the poor of the parish.

110 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

The house was pulled down in 1894, and its site and that of
the garden is now occupied by some shops, the Fire Station (1898),
Police Station, and the Coroner’s Court.

Here we may turn to the right to visit Ladywell and
Brockley, before completing the story of the High Street.

PLATE 47.—LEWISHAM HOUSE.

‘“Ladywell” has a medieval ring about it which speaks of holy
wells and pilgrims to the shrine of Our Lady. Unfortunately we
have found no evidence of a holy well here in the middle ages, and
neither on Rocque’s map of 1745, nor Andrew, Drury & Herbert’s
map of 1769 does the name appear, nor are any houses shown,
save the Bridge House Farm. The first appearance of the name in
the Parish Registers is on the 7th May, 1793, when one Hester
Grubb, was buried from Ladywell. No further entry occurs until
1860, when ‘‘ Ladywell Lane” is mentioned, and then no further
entry until 1809. In 1810 it appears as ‘‘ Lady’s Well.” Hasted

“TIAMACV I —'Sf ALVTd

112 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

does not refer to this well in his History of Kent (1778), but
Lysons, in his History of the Environs of London (1796--1811), says:
‘¢ Between Lewisham and Brockley is a well of the same quality as
those at Tunbridge. A woman attends to serve the water, which
is delivered gratis to inhabitants of the parish. The spring is the
property of !.ord Dartmouth.” This well was situated about
half-way up the hill leading to the Cemetery, in a portion of
ground enclosed from the waste, on which two small cottages were
built. The well known as ‘‘ Ladywell’’ was not far from the
western bank of the Ravensbourne, and the site is now covered by

i

PLATE 49.—LADYWELL BRIDGE, 1810.

the arches of the roadway which crosses the Mid-Kent line. The
coping stones of this well are preserved in the garden of the
Lewisham Swimming Baths.

From the late date at which the name first appears, we can
come to no other conclusion but that it is a pretty but fanciful title,
and has no connection with the Patron Saint of Lewisham Parish:
Church. *

Turning into Ladywell Road from the Vicarage, there formerly
existed at the end of the Vicarage wall three old houses of Georgian
date. These were demolished about 1890. Opposite to them was.
a row of small tenements, the backs of which formed the fruit wall

* The whole question was discussed by Mr. C. A. Bradford, F.S.A., in the-
‘* Home Counties Magazine,” for July, 1903.

*

LADYWELL. 113

cf the gardens of Lewisham House. The site of these is now
occupied by the Coroner’s Court and adjacent buildings. The
Lewisham Public Swimming Baths were built in 1884, on a part of
the Glebe, formerly known as Church field, as also the Parish
Church Hall in 1891. The pathway to the church ran through this
meadow, and was railed in when the Hall was built and the
Ladywell Recreation Ground formed.

The small houses on the northern side of the road, together
with Church Grove, were built in 1857.

Up to about the year 1830, the bridge over the Ravensbourne

r
|

PLATE 50.—LADYWELL BRIDGE, 1857.

was for foot passengers only. A reproduction of a pen and ink
sketch of this bridge is given in Plate 49. Horses and carts drove
through the river which was usually shallow at this point. In 1830
the first portion of the present brick bridge was built, and on the
making of the Mid-Kent Railway in 1857, it was widened, and
further arches constructed to carry the roadway over the line. It
was then that the old well finally disappeared. On the northern
side of the bridge is the turning to Vicar’s Hill, which, with the
roads adjacent, is the Vicar’s glebe. This remained pasture land
until about 1882, when Algernon Road was formed on the site of
the Lewisham Cricket Club ground, and building was commenced
in the other roads. ‘‘ Vicar’s Hill” is the name by which the
ground has been known at least as far back as Elizabeth’s days,
the term Hilly Fields being quite modern.

114 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Ladywell Village consisted of a cluster of small cottages at the
foot of the hill, on the ground now occupied by the shops between
Ladywell Road and Gillian Street. They were built on land
enclosed from the waste, and probably dated from about 1810.
They were removed in 1885. Mercy Terrace and the houses, etc.,
round the Railway Station, followed the opening of the line in 1857.
The remainder of Ladywell Village on the south side of the road
consists of small cottages of a date about 1830-40.

A word should here be said concerning the Ladywell Recreation
Ground, which is some 51 acres in extent, and consists of several
meadows by the side of the river Ravensbourne, between Ladywell
and Catford. A movement was started about 1888 for a recreation
ground for Lewisham, owing to the extensive building which had
taken place, and this site was finally chosen in preference to that of
the Rosenthal Estate then in the market. The ground was
purchased in 1889 by the London County Council, and cost
421,880, of which Lewisham contributed half. The fields which
make up the first portion of the ground, from Ladywell to Medusa
Road, were purchased from the Lord of the Manor,-and are the
‘meadows of the lordship,” which also comprised the land where
Malyons Road is built, and that on the other bank of the river
behind the Workhouse and Infirmary. These fields, there is little
doubt, are the ‘‘ 30 acres of meadow’”’ mentioned in Domesday.

The Hilly Fields Recreation Ground of 45 acres on the
summit of Vicar’s Hill, was acquired in 1896, at a cost of £44,872,
towards which Greenwich contributed £7,000, Lewisham £2,800,
the Lewisham Parochial Charities £2,500, and £9,000 was
collected in the surrounding district, the balance being met by the
London County Council. This neighbourhood is therefore well
provided with open space for recreation.

On the left or southern side of the Ladywell Road was an
estate named Slagrave Farm, consisting of some 35 acres (the
fields were named Dissington, Foxborough Hill, etc.) The farm
was sold in 1894 to the Guardians of the Poor of the Parish of
Bermondsey, who have built thereon a ‘‘ Home of Rest” for their
aged poor.

Further along the road, and on the same side of the way, was
the Bridge House Farm, another of the estates of that Corporation.
It has belonged to them from medieval times. The old farm house
and buildings were demolished in 1895, and the whole estate laid
out for building small houses. The area is roughly indicated by
Chudleigh Road.

At the top of Ladywell Road is the Lewisham Cemetery,
formed in 1856 and opened in 1858, the parish churchyard being
full. On Rocque’s map, 1745, part of the site is marked as
** Brockley Wood,” whilst on the Tithe Map, 1845, the whole area
of 30 acres (which then belonged to the Earl of Dartmouth) is
styled ‘‘Great Field.” Its earlier name appears to have been
Strodes or Shrouds, and it was Lammas or half-year land.

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116 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

At the Cemetery we enter that part of the Borough known as
Brockley. The district bearing this name is partly in Lewisham
and partly in Deptford, and has been so from time immemorial.
Although it is styled a ‘‘ manor,” no record exists of the holding of
any Manor Court, and the inhabitants of the Lewisham portion
appear to have attended the Court of that Manor. The Manor of
Bankers claimed jurisdiction over a large portion of the area, and
the owners of Brockley paid quit rent of 4s. 8d. yearly to the Lord
of that Manor. In the reign of Henry II, Brockley was held by
Wakelin de Maminot, by whom it was granted to Michael de
Turnham, who, however, sold it to Juliana, wife of Wakelin, to
found a religious house. Meanwhile the Premonstratensians had
settled at Ottham, in Sussex, and to them Brockley was given as a
more convenient spot. Whether they ever removed to Brockley is
doubtful, since Begham, in Sussex, was shortly afterwards conferred
upon them, and there they built their Abbey, and dwelt until the
days of Henry VIII.

King John, in 1208, confirmed them in their possessions of
** Brokele,”’ and they continued to hold the property until 1526,
when, with other small religious houses, the Abbey was suppressed.
Brockley was then settled by Cardinal Wolseley on his new College
at Oxford, but on his attainder in 1529, it came with his other
estates to the Crown.

The portions in Deptford were then separated from those in
Lewisham, and ultimately descended to the Wickhams, Drakes,
and Tyrwhitt-Drakes, after whom some of the roads are named.
The Lewisham portion (284 acres of land and 120 acres of wood)
was granted away by the Crown, and came in 1579 into the hands
of Brian Annesley, of Lee, who purchased it for £800 from Sir
Roger Manwood, Baron of the Exchequer. In Annesley’s will it is
styled ‘‘ Forest Place, now called Brockley Farm House in the
hamlet of Brockley, in the parish of Lewisham,” and he left it to his
second daughter, Lady Christian, wife of Lord Sandys. It after-
wards came to her younger sister, Cordelia, who married Sir
William Harvey (Baron Kidbrook), and was sold by them to
Edward Montague, who was created Baron Montague, of
Boughton, in 1621. The trustees of his great grandson, John,
Duke of Montague, sold Brockley in 1717, to James Craggs, Esq.,
senior, Postmaster General. At his death in 1721, his property
passed to his three daughters, and, eventually, through the second
daughter, Elizabeth, to Edward Eliot, of St. Germans, who was
created Baron Eliot in 1784, and whose descendants were advanced
in the peerage as Earls of St. Germans.

On the maps of the country round Lewisham in the 18th century
(Rocque’s, 1745, and others), Brockley appears as consisting of the
house now known as Brockley Hall, a few houses opposite to this,
and a little further down Brockley Road—about the junction with
Stondon Park—was Brockley Farmhouse, the buildings of which
extended northwards. A lane ran nearly on the site of Crofton

E
a
‘
‘

BROCKLEY AND HONOR OAK. 117

Park Road, and. came: out into Brockley Road, not far from the
farm. The remainder was open country, with woods stretching
over the whole of Honor Oak, from the borders of Surrey down to
Brockley Road and up Brockley Hill. The woods have long since
disappeared, and streets are fast covering the fields.

Adelaide Road is built on part of the Bridge House estates, the
trustees of which gave the site for St. Cyprian’s Church, built in
1901. Ivy Lane, which bounds the northern side of the Cemetery,
is an ancient right of way which appears on the maps of 1745. The
history of the site of the Cemetery has already been given (page 114).

PLATE 52.—THE ‘‘ BROCKLEY JACK" INN.

Further along the Brockley Road is Crofton Park Station, on the
Nunhead and Shortlands Railway, which has given its name (a
modern one) to the surrounding roads.

A word must be said of the ‘Brockley Jack,” once an old-world,
wayside, wooden hostelry, which is said to have been frequented by
Dick Turpin and other highwaymen, and, since in those days there
was scarcely a house in Brockley Lane (as it was then called) from
Stanstead (Stonystreet) Lane to New Cross, it must have been an
ideal spot as a rendezvous. In the Enclosure Award of 1810 it is
styled the ‘‘ Brockley Castle,” and then stood on Brockley Green,
which was enclosed by the Act of Parliament of that year.

Honor Oak is marked in Rocque’s map of 1745 as ‘‘ Oak of
Arnon,” probably due to a fault in the local pronunciation of that

118 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

date. The name has of late years been associated with the visit of
‘Queen Elizabeth, who, on May Day, 1602, came a-maying to Sir
Richard Buckley’s, at Lewisham. The tradition is that the great
queen dined under the shade of an oak tree on the summit of the
hill either on this or some other occasion. The story is not
improbable, seeing the proximity to Greenwich, where the Court
was frequently in residence, but it must in truth be confessed that
there is no direct evidence which can be brought in support. The
name, Oak of Honour, is, however, at least as old as 1612, as it
then occurs as one of the bounds of Lewisham Manor. The view
from the hill, which is 300 feet high, is very extensive, and must
have been of great beauty before the long lines of streets began to
cover the surrounding landscape. As the result of a strong
remonstrance against the enclosing of what is claimed as an historic
site, the summit of the hill was purchased in 1905, and is maintained
by the Borough of Camberwell as an open space, a fresh oak tree
being planted to keep in remembrance the story of the name. On
the eastern slope of the hill is the Church of St. Augustine, which
was built in 1874. This is now for administrative purposes in the
Parish of Camberwell. By a rearrangement of boundaries that
portion of Lewisham from Honor Oak Park to Ivydale Road,
Nunhead, was exchanged with Camberwell for a somewhat similar
area south of Forest Hill Road, bounded on the west by Wood
Vale and Sydenham Hill. Historically, however, Honor Oak must
be claimed as within the bounds of Lewisham.

CHAPTER NV.

Tue PARISH CHURCH TO RUSHEY GREEN.

E must now turn back, through Ladywell to Lewis-
ham High Street, to the building and site around
which the parochial life of the parish has centred
for at least a thousand years—the Parish Church.
It is the story of no splendid fane, with ‘‘ storied
aisles and windows richly dight,” that we have to

tell, and yet, simple to insignificance as the building was through-

out the greater part of its history, it can tell us of the devotion of
many a generation for the worship of Almighty God, whilst in the
churchyard sleep countless numbers of our predecessors from

Saxon times almost to the present day.

When a church was first erected here it is not possible to say.

As we have seen, the district was settled, with a name, in the gth

century, and in 918 became the property of the Abbey of St. Peter,

and when in 964 the grant was confirmed by King Edgar, the
words, speaking of Lewisham, Greenwich, etc., ‘‘ with their

THE PARISH CHURCH TO RUSHEY GREEN. 119

churches, churchyards, etc.,” were inserted. This may have been
mere phraseology, but it is highly probable that a church did exist
at the time, and was no doubt built soon after the grant of a.p. 918,
when the Abbot of Ghent would have sent over a representative to
take charge of his new possessions.

There is no mention of a church in Domesday Book, but the
Commissioners were not specially charged to report as to the
existence of churches, and frequently omit them in cases where
they are known to have been built prior to the Conquest. It is
most improbable that a population of 300 or 400 would have existed
without a building for worship.

At this period the church would have been what we call to-day
a rectory, the parish priest receiving the whole of the tithe. A
custom sprang up of appropriating a parish church to some
religious house, for the support of the latter, whereby the whole
of the tithe was transferred to the favoured monastery, which not
infrequently made but scanty provision for the spiritual needs of
the places from whence they drew their revenues. The evil grew
at length to such a-pass, that the Lateran Council in 1179 decreed
that in all such cases the religious house which held the tithes
should be bound to appoint a cleric as its vicar, to serve the parish,
with an adequate salary.

The ultimate result of the system was not of course foreseen.
When the monastic houses were suppressed by Henry VIII, that
portion (much the larger as a rule, although not so in Lewisham)
of the tithe held by the monasteries was not returned to the
parochial clergy, but passed with the other property into lay hands.
The old parish churches of England thus carry with them to-day
the story of their former owners, and if the incumbent is a ‘‘ vicar”
we know at once that the church formerly belonged to a religious
house, and the ‘‘ rector” to-day in such cases is a layman, e.g.,
at Lewisham the Earl of Dartmouth.

Acting on the above-mentioned decree, the Bishop of Rochester,
in the reign of Henry II, appropriated the Church of Lewisham to
the Abbey of St. Peter at Ghent, the Abbey undertaking to appoint
a vicar, and the list of vicars is almost complete from that time
onwards.

The early church would have been very small, and, judging by
examples in other places, we may imagine a building with a nave
30 or 4o feet long by 20 feet wide, with a small chancel at the
eastern end. As time went on an aisle was added on the south
side, also with a chancel or chapel to the east, and there would
have been a bell turret on the western gable. The whole building
was probably not larger than the Parish Church Hall. In 1471,
when the Wars of the Roses were dying down, a movement was
started here, as in many other places, to build a bell tower. One
William Sprig’s name occurs first on the list, and in that year he
bequeathed his houses in Greenwich towards the Building Fund.
His example was followed by nearly every one in the parish who

120 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

had anything to give, and the bequests cover the period from 1471
to 1498. In that year a Robert Cheseman, who owned Sydenham,
desired his executors to ‘‘ glaze the grete new wyndowe in the
belfraye with the picture of the passion of our Lord,” and in 1512
the little newel stairway, or ‘‘ vice,” was built, William Batt giving
26s. 8d. towards it. This tower still stands, and was carefully
repaired in 1907.

When the tower was finished the parishioners commenced to
furnish it with bells. In 1517 John Francis left £3 6s. Sd.—a
large sum in those days—to buy a bell. Other bequests also occur
for the same purpose, Thomas Gryme, husbondman, in 1529 leaving
6s. 8d. ‘‘ to the belles of Leuysham,” and in 1552, when an inven-
tory of the church goods was taken, there were ‘‘ four great bells
of brass"’ in the steeple. There is now a ring of eight, varying in
dates from 1766 (No. 7) to 1819. No. 5, which was cast in 1777,
has the lines :-—

‘* Ye people all who hear me ring,
Be faithful to your God and King.”

To return to the old church. From a description printed in
1790, we learn that the entrance then, as now, was by a large
porch descending one step, and into the church two steps more,
thus the floor was level with the vaults under the present church.
The church consisted, as we have said above, of a nave and south
aisle, each with a separate roof, and at the east end was a large
central pillar, from which sprang the arches of the roof and aisle.
The ceiling was painted, rudely representing clouds, stars, etc.
The floor was paved with small square tiles. In the body of the
church were four rows of pews: the two middle rows joined, the
side rows being separated by an aisle or passage-way round the
church. The pulpit and reading-desk were against the north wall.
Such is the picture drawn for us by one who had seen the building,
and many a village church will help us to imagine fairly correctly
what the church was like.

From the Parish Registers we gather that as late as 1759, the
aisles were known as the ‘‘ men’s aisle’’ and the ‘‘ women’s aisle”’
respectively, recalling the time when the sexes were separated in
church, and the custom may have obtained even at that date, since
it lingers yet in part in some country places.

In medieval times the chancel at the east end of the south
aisle was dedicated to the Holy Trinity, and two chantries (sup-
pressed by Edward VI) were founded therein, one by Richard
Walker, citizen and grocer of London, in 1494, and the other by
Roger Fitz, of Rushey Green, in 1504. In this chancel was an
image of St. John Baptist... In the high chancel, z.e., that at the
east end of the nave, was an image of the Patron Saint, St. Mary,
and there was another image of her in a little niche in a pillar in
the nave. Arother image was that of the unfortunate king,
Henry VI, who was regarded as a saint by the people, and images
of him were set up in several churches. As his father, the gallant

Pe aw

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THE PARISH CHURCH TO RUSHEY GREEN. : 121

Henry V, had conferred Lewisham on the Priory of Shene, we
have a possible reason for his image in the church here. All these
images had lights burning before them, the gifts of pious persons,
and having thus been ‘‘ superstitiously abused ” as the phrase was,
were removed in the reign of Edward VI, under whose injunctions
only two lights were to remain, viz., those on the high altar.

Of the church in the 17th century we have little account. In
1641, during the vicariate of Abraham Colfe, it was visited by the
Puritan soldiery, who pulled up the altar rails and threw them in
the river. By 1773 the church had fallen into disrepair, and many
cracks appearing in the great central column above mentioned, due
no doubt to burials, a committee was formed, under the Earl of
Dartmouth, to consider the condition of the building. The archi-
tects consulted recommended the raising of the floor, and the
taking down of the interior arches, and other alterations, and it
was finally decided to rebuild the church entirely, save the tower.
An Act of Parliament was obtained in 1774, and the plans of Mr.
John Gibson were approved. Tenders were invited, which varied
from 45,150 to £44,086, and this latter, that of Oliver Burton & Co.,
was accepted. The money was obtained by a system of annuities
secured on the sums received for letting the vaults and the pews
in the galleries, The new church was finished in 1777, the first
service being held on the 7th September of that year. The work
included the raising of the tower by the addition of the present
upper storey.

On 26th December, 1830, the overheating of the flues set fire
to the woodwork, burning some of the pews and portions of the
gallery, and most unfortunately destroying a large part of the
Parish Registers and papers.

In 1881, during the vicariate of the Rev. The Hon. Augustus
Legge, now Bishop of Lichfield, an extensive scheme of rearrange-
ment was carried out. The Earl of Dartmouth replaced the small
eastern apse by a chancel, with north and south chapels, and Mr.
George Parker, of Lewisham House, refitted the nave. The whole
was carried out from the designs of Sir Arthur Blomfield.

Leaving the parish church we turn to the houses on the other
or eastern side of the street, and retrace our steps to the corner of
Ladywell Park. Here the block of villas at the southern corner,
now turned into offices and shops, was built in 1860, and those at
the northern corner in 1863, on the nursery ground which extended
over the area at present covered by Ladywell Park. Next we
_have a small square cottage, and southward of that come two
houses, probably of the latter part of the 17th century, which
for many years have been occupied as a butcher’s and grocer’s
respectively. They still form a picturesque little group in the
modern street.

The next house (No. 295), formerly known as Streete House,
is parish property, standing on ground bequeathed to the parish in
1626 by Mr. Humphrey Streete.

‘ogg! ‘SCYVMHLAOS HONAHD HSINVd IHL WOVI LAAYLS HDI AHL AO MAIA—'ES ALVTG

THE PARISH CHURCH TO RUSHEY GREEN. 123

The adjoining shops (Nos. 297 to 301) are built upon the fore-
courts of what were originally small private houses of the early
part of the 19th century. The frontage now occupied by Nos. 303
to 307 was formerly occupied by a row of small cottages, which
were pulled down about 1875. They will be seen, together with the
Streete House, etc., in Plate 55

A more recent disappearance has been the house shown in
Plate 54, known some sixty years ago as *‘ Pilcher’s,” and lately

fe )

PLATE 54.—Mr. PILCHER’S HOUSE (LATELY WEATHERLEY’S), NO. 313 HIGH
STREET, 1860.

occupied by Mr. Weatherley, which was pulled down in 1g06. The
two next houses are of the 18th century, one with a modern shop
on the forecourt.

The house at present known as the ‘‘ Coach and Horses ” was
formerly a hay and straw dealer’s.

Two small cottages come next, and then the St. Mary’s National

124 | BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Schools. The “Reading School founded by Mr. Colfe seems to
have occupied the place of an elementary school for boys for
many years. In 1699 Dean Stanhope and his wife started a school
for girls, to which they left a small endowment. In 1833 new
schools for both boys and girls were established, on the National
System, on land belonging to the Earl of Dartmouth, who, in
1856, conveyed the site and buildings to the Vicar for the above
purpose. The buildings have been enlarged from time to time by
subscription.

Opposite St. Mary’s Schools, and adjoining the churchyard,
stood, until 1907, a weather-boarded timber frame house of the

PLATE 55.—COTTAGES OPPOSITE ST. Mary's CHURCH (NOW NOS. 303 TO 309)-

18th century, known as Church House. It was not parish property,
but its site and name suggest that it occupied the position of the
medieval church house, a building which seems to have existed
in every parish, where various parochial property was kept, ales
were brewed, and persons coming from outlying hamlets to church
could rest themselves. The church house of medizval days dis-
appeared in the times which followed the Reformation, and has
been resuscitated in recent years in the Parochial Hall.

THE PARISH CHURCH TO RUSHEY GREEN. 125

Adjoining the wooden house referred to is a brick house of the
19th century, and further south come some houses of the 18th
century, much altered in outward appearance, one the “Jolly
Farmers,” having been rebuilt in recent times.

Next to these last is Sion House, a large brick fronted and
cemented house, with the rear portion weather boarded. This
house was formerly known as the ‘‘George.”” In 1588 it was the
property of Mr. Peter Manning, of Downe in Kent, who sold it in
that year to Mr. Humphrey Streete, citizen and merchant tailor of
London. Mr. Streete left a rent charge of 20s. a year to the poor
of Lewisham on this house, which is still paid. The ‘‘ George”
Inn was removed from hence to its present position at the corner
of George Lane some time in the 18th century. There formerly
existed in the parish church a Guild of our Lady and St. George,
_and this house may have been originally connected therewith. It
has been purchased by the Unitarians, who intend erecting a church
on the site of the stables.

The Lewisham Free Library, which comes next to Sion
House, was opened in 1900. It stands on the site of a house known
as Cliffe Villa.

In his will Mr. Colfe records that out of consideration of the
great poverty of the parish and the inability of most to relieve the
poor, he desired that in 1662 three almspeople were to be chosen,
and subsequently two more, making five in all. They were to be
threescore years old, past hard bodily labour, and able to say with-
out book the Lord’s Prayer, the Christian’s Belief, and the Ten
‘Commandments. They were to have 3d. a day allowed to them,
and every second year a gown of black or dark-coloured cloth with
a badge bearing the words ‘‘ Lewisham in Kent” on the breast.
He further desired that in 1662 £210 should be laid out in building
three almshouses of flint and well burnt brick, and during the
succeeding years two more houses for the other almspeople. Every
house was to have a chimney, one room below of fourteen or
fifteen feet long and twelve feet broad and a little buttery, and
_ each of them a good loft or room above with convenient stairs to
- go up to it. They were to be joined together and built on two
sides of the yard of a house he had purchased, together with a
little brick room with a window, where the five almspeople were to
meet daily for prayer. Little garden plots were to be laid out for
each, sixteen feet broad. The gate next the street was to havea
good lock carefully locked every night, and every almsbody was to
have a key to that lock, but yet not suffered to go out in the night
without leave of the master of the reading school, who was
apparently to exercise a general supervision.

Mr. Colfe died in 1657, and the Leathersellers’ Company, as
his trustees, proceeded to give effect to his wishes. At a meeting
of the Court held on 7th July, 1663, it was resolved that as the
arrangements detailed by the Founder for building the almshouses
gradually would prove expensive, the whole of the houses: should

126 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

be built forthwith. The exact arrangement of the houses round
two sides of a yard, as detailed above, was evidently not considered
advisable, and as the Governors added a sixth house themselves, a
plan was approved with the little chapel in the centre and three
houses on either side, as we see them to-day.

Over the chapel door is a shield containing the Arms of the
Founder together with those of the Leathersellers’ Company.
There is also the following inscription :—

AN'O DECIMO SEXTO CAROLI 2” AN’0Q; D.N.J. 1664 1HE GIFT OF
MR. ABRAHAM COLFE LATE VICAR OF THIS PARISH WHEREOF THE
COMPANY OF LEATHERSELLERS IN LONDON, ARE, ACCORDING TO
THE DESIRE OF HIS WILL, BY ACT OF PARLIAMENT, APPOINTED
GOVERNORS; AND BY THE SAID COMPANY THE SAME GIFT IS
ENLARGED.

The designs for the almshouses were prepared by a Mr. Peter
Mills, to whom in 1665 a sum of £5 Ios. was paid for drawing
‘“several platformes [z.e., plans] for the said building.” The
building was entrusted to Mr. Botsford, carpenter, and a sum of
Ios. was expended in 1663 ‘‘ fora platforme of the Alms Howses’’
for his use. The cost of the actual building is entered in the
Leathersellers’ accounts as follows :—

1663-4. Payd unto Mr. Botsford, carpenter, in parte of what is
agreed for building of Mr. Calfes Almeshowses ie #170

Item, spentt at severall meetings of the Committee about

the said Almes Howses and treating with severall workmen
about building them oe 51s

Item, payd vnto certaine paricenee, of Grecaeaeh aa

Lewisham that came from thense about the saide worke for
theire paines and time attending therevppon ... og Eig 40s

1664-5 Paid Mr Botsford the carpenter in further parte of what
is agreed for building Mr Calfes Almes Howses ... £85
1665-6 Paid Mr Botsford ponies Pee for Pelee Alms-
houses.. ; £65

1667-8 Paid vnto Mr WwW ‘lliams eee of the readiug seubell
which was by him laid out for the reading deske ‘and seats
about the chappell at Lewisham.. a 4c s ie 47S

The total cost of the building was therefore a little over £330-
One of the first occupants, and so named in Mr. Colfe’s will, was
his old and trusty servant, Christian Padmore, and she continued
to live therein until her death in 1667-8, when there is an entry in.
the accounts :—

Paid by order of Court unto Margaret Smith sister of
Christian Padmore towards her buriall... aa aa ap 10S

In 1700 Matthew Jennings, the tailor, was paid 17s. for
making ‘‘ five gownes and a coat for Lewisham Almes people,”
no doubt according to the Founder’s directions. About this time

‘“SASNOHSWITY SAATOD—'9¢ ALVIdg

128 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

items begin to appear which indicate that reparations were
needed :—

1701-2 Paid Joseph Rawbone his bill for ripping and new
laying 30 square and 69 feet of plain tiling and for *
repairing the tops of Chymneys, Hearths, and eG
ing at the Almeshouses the last year... 424 19 3
Paid Major George Heath his bill for stnbees w os
done at Lewisham Almes Houses last year 530 Liga
Paid Lettice Good for Bloigiers work done at Lame
ham Almeshouses last year . Son eae We te tf

we

Other items occur occasionally as follows :—

1726-27 Toa carpenter for work at the Alms Houses erm Si 18), 9)
For glasiers work at the chappell sae ny, nee 15 0
1730-31 Paid the Carpenters for pales at the Alms houses ... £4 19 0

1755-50 Repairs at the Almshouses

Mr. Baker, bricklayer 6.3756
,, Corbett, carpenter 12) 2a
5, Saint, glasier Bri ie heas

Nothing further seems to have been required until 1790-91,
when evidently extensive work had to be undertaken, since a sum
of £205 was paid to Messrs, Corbett & Co., carpenters and brick-
layers, ‘‘ for repairing almshouses at Lewisham as per estimate of
Richard Norris,” the latter receiving a payment as surveyor of £10.

It will not be necessary to follow all the repairs executed
during the 19th century, but it may be recorded that in the course
of some work done about 1860 the two oval windows in the chapel
were bricked up. They still appear as retaining their glass in
photographs of 1856.

During the last few years at least £200 was spent upon cpa
buildings in order to try and keep them standing, but at last,
1905, the sanitary authorities stepped in and ordered them to fe
closed. Estimates of the work required to put the houses into
thorough repair, together with a sum to clear off past liabilities,
amounted to £870, and it seemed as though the old almshouses
must disappear. <A strong wish was expressed locally that some-
thing should be done to save these picturesque remnants of the
fast- ‘vanishing Lewisham of the past, and a public enquiry was
held. After considering the matter the Leathersellers’ Company
offered to be responsible for £470 if the remainder could be pro-
vided by the people of Lewisham. Of the £400 thus required
£200 was forthcoming from certain funds known as Herbage
Rents, and the remaining 4200 was raised by subscription. The
work of reparation was carried out by Messrs. A. J. Staines & Co.,
under the superintendence of Horace Porter, Esq., surveyor to the
Leathersellers’ Company, who is to be congratulated on having
so admirably preserved the ancient appearance of the buildings.

The property fronting the High Street, from and including the
ground where the almshouses are built to about half the frontage
of the Infirmary, was purchased at various dates by the Rev.

Ghent

we ee

THE PARISH CHURCH TO RUSHEY GREEN. 129

Abraham Colfe for the purpose of establishing his almshouses and
reading school, and to form part of the endowment of his educa-
tional schemes. On the ground now occupied by the almshouses
was a house and tanyard, which had belonged to Jasper Valentine,
Mrs. Colfe’s former husband. This house was held of the Manor
of Brockley. Where the villas Nos. 380 to 386 High Street stand

PLATE 57.—Mr. WoopuHam's Hovse, HIGH STREET (NOW No. 394).

was a house built by Mr. Michael Frisby in 1628, on ground which
also belonged to Jasper Valentine. The house on this side was
afterwards known as Yew Tree House, and subsequently as Dart-
mouth House, and was demolished in 1861. The present villas
were erected in 1871.

130 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

The house immediately south of the preceding is described by
Mr. Colfe as ‘‘a house and tan yard”; it was also part of the
Valentine property, and was held of the Manor of Bankers and
Shroffolds. This house was rebuilt at the end of the 18th century,
and was latterly known as ‘‘ The Jasmines.” Together with the
remaining part of the Colfe property adjoining it to the south, it
was acquired in 1890 by the Lewisham Guardians for the enlarged
Infirmary, and a house for the medical officer was built on the site.

The site of the carriage entrance to the Infirmary, the’ In-
firmary Office and part of the Infirmary frontage, was occupied by
two old plastered houses—one known as ‘‘ Woodham’s” in 1845,
from the-name of the occupier—and by Mr. Colfe’s Reading School.
A view of Woodham’s house in given in Plate 57.

The Reading School was founded by the Rev. Abraham Colfe
about the*year 1652. It possibly preceded the opening of the
Grammar School. It was intended to be what is now called a
‘‘primary school,” but included the rudiments of Latin, and the
Founder’s intention was that it should be a stepping stone for boys
“of good wit” to the Grammar School, and thence to the Uni-
versities. Thirty-one boys were to be freely instructed, the master
being permitted to take others on his own terms. The school seems
to have been conducted as desired by the Founder during the 17th
century, and there are records of boys passing up to the Grammar
School, but the system fell into decay in the latter half of the 18th
century, and on the establishment of the Elementary Schools, sub-
sequent to 1870, the school was closed. The site was granted for
the Grammar School for Girls, but was sold in 1889 to the Guardians
of the Lewisham Union for the Infirmary buildings.

The Lewisham Infirmary and Workhouse have also absorbed
the site of an interesting row of houses known as Exchequer Place,
which extended from the Reading School up to, but not including,
the site of the office of the Relieving Officer. The houses, which
probably dated from about the year. 1700, were in two blocks,
with an ancient timber house in the centre, as wiil be seen from
Plate 58.

No. 392 High Street is on the site of the house nearest to the
reader in Plate 58, and to some extent reproduces the appearance
of its predecessor. This little row of houses was one of the most
picturesque in the village, and one cannot but regret that the
necessary enlargement of the Workhouse entailed its removal.

When the first Workhouse was erected in Lewisham we have
no record. The altered condition of things in the middle of the
16th century, made some systematic provision for the poor essential.
This was at first met from the ‘‘poor men’s box” in the parish
church, but it was soon found that the State would have to make
the care of the poor a compulsory matter, and in 1601 the basis of
the present poor law system was laid. The early records of the
Overseers for Lewisham were destroyed in the fire at Lewisham
Church in 1831, except one book now at the Town Hall, which

“t)

THE PARISH CHURCH TO RUSHEY GREEN. 131

contains particulars of poor rates from 1764 to 1769. From this
we gather that the average rate for the poor was ts. 6d. per
annum in those years, and that a rate of 6d. in the £ produced
4184 7s.

The Workhouse in the early part of last century was situated
nearly opposite the ‘‘George” Inn. The first portion of the present
building was erected in 1821, and it was considerably enlarged in
1884.

Until the year 1884 the site from the Workhouse to Thackeray’s
Almshouses was occupied by a house known as “The Priory,” with its
gardens and adjoining grounds, which extended in the rear to the
present Recreation Ground (Plate 64.) The house, of which portions

PLATE 58.—EXCHEQUER PLACE, HiGi STREET, LEWISHAM.

still remain in the present shops, notably No. 418, which was the
entrance hall, was a sham Gothic structure of the early part of the
1gth century, and must not be confused with the medizval Priory,
which stood on the other side of the road nearer Catford.

Amongst those who have occupied the house, mention must
be made of Mr. John Thackeray, who in 1840 built and endowed
the six almshouses called by his name. He died in 1851, and is
commemorated by his almshouses, and a large monument in the
Parish Church, now placed on the wall over the western arch.

The property was sold in 1884-5, when Albacore Crescent,

Kz

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MAIA—‘6G ALVId

a hot

THE PARISH CHURCH TO RUSHEY GREEN. 1338

Medusa Road, Blagdon Street and Felday Road were formed on
the site of the gardens.

Next to the Almshouses is a house, now converted into a shop,
on the site of the old Workhouse.

From this point to Hawstead Road the frontage was occupied
by the house known as ‘‘ Springfield,” with its stabling, etc. The
house remains converted into shops (Nos. 20 and 22 Rushey Green).
Another villa, part of the same property, occupied the site of
Bradgate Road, and the grounds extended in the rear to the
Mid-Kent Railway. They were laid out for building about the
same time as the Priory Estate, under the title of ‘‘ Springfield
Park”; Bradgate Road, Holbeach Road, NelgarJe Road, Silvermere
Road, Brookdale Road and Springfield Park Crescent being, for
the most part, built thereon.

It was at ‘‘Springfield” that the rivulet commenced which
formerly flowed down the side of the High Street, and passed into
the Ravensbourne at Lewisham Bridge, near the ‘‘ Roebuck ” Inn.
Along its banks were many fine elm trees, and the appearance of
the High Street is stated by those who remembered it in the days
referred to, as more like a road through a park. In 1855, when the
main sewer was being constructed, the water was drained off. The
space formerly occupied by the stream was then fenced in, and
planted, and it is these plantings which still give a distinctive air
to the High Street. They are one of the assets of the Borough,
and the local authorities might do more to make them a really
attractive feature of the place. It is to be hoped that any attempt
to curtail them will be rigorously opposed.

At the corner of Hawstead Road is the Grammar School for
Girls, which is built on a part of the gardens of ‘‘ Springfield,”
purchased with the proceeds of the sale of the ground granted out
of the Colfe Estates The school owes its origin largely to the
Rev. Joseph Prendergast, p.p., Headmaster of Colfe’s Grammar
School, who left a sum of about 45,coo for the purpose. This
was augmented from various other local educational charities, and
the buildings were erected in 1890. They were enlarged by the
London County Council in 1907.

It will now be necessary to take a survey of the eastern side
of the High street, from the St. Mary’s National Schools. The foot-
path by the side of these schools is an ancient right of way, and
led eastward over Kemps Hill, Ryecroft, and Hocum Pocum to
Lee High Road.

Lewisham Park, with the ground at present (1908) used as
allotment gardens, is the property of the Earl of Dartmouth, as
Lord of the Manor, and originally formed part of the great
‘* Southfield ” of the Manor. The name was perpetuated in the
villas erected at the southern corner near Mount Pleasant Road
(Nos. 359 and 361). The earliest mention of the field is in a grant
about the year 1260, by one William le Plummer, of Leueseham, te
John, called ‘‘Ferdebin,” of all his land in the field called

134 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

‘*Suthfeld” in Leueseham, adjoining the land of the Prior of
Leueseham, and in an extent of the Manor of Lewisham in 1370, it
is recorded that ‘‘in the same manor there are in Suthfeld 4o acres
of arable land of the value of 3d. per acre.” The land was ‘‘half-
year” land, z.e.,it was open for the benefit of the freeholders of the
manor yearly, from Lammas to ploughing time. These rights were
ended by the Lewisham Enclosure Act of 1810. Under the name of
Lewisham Park it was laid out for building about 1840, the houses
being well set back from the high road, and the whole centre of the
field left an open space, with houses built on the outer circle. If
other landowners would follow this excellent example, there would
be less danger of overcrowding and insanitary areas.

PLATE 60.—ViEW OF MounT PLEASANT HOvSE, 1825.

In some pleadings of the time of James I, it is recorded that a
right of way was claimed through Southfield, and this is no doubt
the footpath mentioned above.

Continuing along the High Street, and passing No. 361, we
come to Mount Pleasant. There formerly stood an old red brick
house on the site of No. 363, which, in its later stage, was used as
a home for boys of the Parish of St. George, Southwark. Mount
Pleasant House itself stood on the brow of the hill, with the
gardens stretching down the slope and farm buildings in the rear,
near where Fordyce Road now enters George Lane. The orchard
occupied the ground between Fordyce Road and Littlewood Road.

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fyaqy

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THE PARISH CHURCH TO RUSHEY GREEN. 135

At ‘‘Mount Pleasant” lived Mr. Abraham Constable; and a view of
the house in 1825 is given in Plate 60. It originally consisted of a
ground and first floor, but a second floor was added as shown in the
drawing. Mr. Constable is said to have been the last man in
Lewisham to wear a queue. The house was subsequently tenanted
by Mr. Richard Constable, and from 1852 to 1859 by the Rev. John
Holdsworth Morgan as a school. It was pulled down about 1860,
and Mount Pleasant Road subsequently formed through the centre
of the estate.

At the corner of George Lane stood another villa known as
‘‘The Maples,” a view of which about 1830 is shown in Plate 61.

PLATE 61.—‘‘ THE MAPLES,” CORNER OF GEORGE LANE, ABOUT 1830.

The pond in the front disappeared in later years. The house was
occupied by Mr. Thomas Tanner, and later by Mr. Castendick,
Mr. (Sir) John Aird, and others. It was pulled down in 1890, and
Roxley Road was built on the site, together with the shops Nos.
389 to 4o1 in the High Street.

George Lane, so named from the ‘ George” Inn, which now
stands at the south-east corner, is a comparatively modern road.
It is not shown on the maps of 1745 (Rocque and others), and may

136 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

originally have been either a footway or farm track. A few of the
houses at the south-western end of the road are of early Victorian
date, and the two houses which form the buildings of Catford
Collegiate School were built in the ‘ fifties,” the remainder of the
houses in’ the road being of modern date; those on the northern
side are built on the grounds of Mount Pleasant House.

On the brow of the hill, on the southern side of the road, stood

“Mountsfield,” the residence of the late Mr. Henry Stainton, the
eminent entomologist. The grounds were purchased in 1905, and
formed into a public recreation ground, enlarged by the addition of
adjoining land which had been previously purchased by the London
School Board, the whole forming a park of about 14 acres. The
house was pulled down, with the exception of outbuildings utilized
as refreshment rooms. There is an extensive view from the
grounds, with the Hilly Fields, Forest Hill, and the Crystal Palace
hills on the horizon.

The ‘‘ George ” Inn, which now occupies the corner of George
Lane, was removed hither from Sion House, near the church
{g.v.) sometime in the 18th century. The buildings were the
homestead of a large farm belonging to the Stoddard family, which
extended over the fields in the rear. They are of about mid-
eighteenth century date.

Next to the ‘‘George,” southwards, was a group of
18th century weather-boarded cottages, which, with two brick
houses of slightly later date which had been inserted in the group,
formed a picturesque ‘‘bit” of old Lewisham. They have during the
past few years been altered considerably, some having shop fronts
built on the fore-courts, and others rebuilt altogether (Plate 59).

The ‘‘George” Inn on the eastern side of the road, and
Thackeray’s Almshouses on the western side, form the commence-
ment of that part of the parish known as Rushey Green, a name
which, like so many others, has become unintelligible to the
‘*modern”’ on account of the buildings which now cover the
ground. The old form of the name was ‘‘ Rishotetes Grene,” as it
appears in the will of Richard Howchenson, in 1500, and ‘‘ Rushet
Green,” in 1544, in the will of Isabella Fleming. Ina rental of the
Manor of Lewisham, temp. Edward II, Walter de Castello and
William the Smith, atte Russchete, paid 5s. for land called
Russcheteslond in Brodefeld. The name was _ subsequently
shortened into ‘‘ Rush Green,” but the form ‘‘ Rushy Green” is
used in the 17th century. The greater part of the ground seems to
have been marshy, with small water courses, and the name was no
doubt quite descriptive of the locality from the Pound to Catford,
and some distance along the Bromley Road.

In the 16th century there stood here ‘‘ Rushy Green Place,”
the Lewisham seat of Roger Fitz, Esq., of Tavistock, but the
exact site is unknown. His wife was the Isabella Fleming
mentioned above, who was daughter of John Harvey, of Thurley,
in Bedfordshire, by Annis, daughter of Sir John Paston. She had

- ve

———— se

a a a ee

THE PARISH CHURCH TO RUSHEY GREEN. 137

previously married John Leigh, of Addington, in Surrey, and after
Roger Fitz’s death, re-married William Hattecliff, and lastly a
Mr. Flemyng. The house must have been of some size, since
during Mr. Hattecliff’s lifetime he entertained Cardinal Campeggio
on his way to London in 1518. Isabella Fleming died in 1544, and
in her will left 20s. towards mending the highway before her house
at ‘*Rushet Green,” and amongst other things her kirtle of
‘€crymison satton,” to make a vestment for the church, and her
damask jacket of white and green to make an altar cloth.

a

PLATE 62.—THE ‘‘ELM TREE” INN, NEAR THE Pounp, HiGH STREET.

The shops and houses from No. 17 Rushey Green to the
Wesleyan Church, occupy the frontage of the estate known as
‘‘ Rosenthal,” formerly the residence of Mr. Alexander Rowland,
of Macassar Oil fame. The Wesleyan Church and the adjoining
villas stand on the site of the house. The estate was sold about
1888, when Davenport Road and Rosenthal Road were formed.

The public footpath between the Wesleyan Church and the
Pound formerly led over what were known as the ‘* Pound Fields,”
now covered in part by Farley Road.

The Pound, one of the most ancient institutions of the place,
still remains, but of late years beasts found straying within the
Manor have seldom been incarcerated therein, being dealt with by
the police, although four ‘‘Pound keepers and Common drivers”
are annually chosen at the Court Leet of the Manor. The ground
behind the Pound, on which Farley Road and part of Honley Road
is built, still belongs to the Lord of the Manor. Beyond the Pound,
and built on a strip of land enclosed from the waste, was a small

138 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.
inn known as the ‘‘ Elm Tree,” and a few cottages. These were
all removed when Honley Road was formed.

From Honley Road to Brownhill Road is the site of ‘‘ The
Priory Farm,” the house of which stood about midway between
Ringstead. Road and Brownhill Road. A view of the house is
given in Plate 63. The house is said to have occupied the site of
the ancient Priory, and to have been built of the old material, but

PLATE 63.—‘‘ THE Priory FARM” (NoW NOs. 113 TO 133 RUSHEY GREEN).

there is some doubt as to the accuracy of this tradition, seeing that
the ground is not part of the property. of the Lord of the Manor,
and was held of the Manor of Shroffolds. On the other hand, so
much of the demesne lands have been alienated at various times,
that it is quite possible this site may have been granted away during
the period that the Manor was in the hands of the Crown in the
16th century. The farmhouse as shown in the engraving was of
the latter part of the 17th century, and was partly surrounded by
a moat, which is indicative of an ancient site. It was pulled down
about 1877, and Ringstead Road (which runs through where the
farm buildings and barns stood to the north of the house), and the
Catford end ‘of Brownhill Road, were formed on the farm lands in
that year. Plassey, Bowness "and Jutland Roads are built ona
field known as ‘‘ Hobley Field.”

A name which occurs in many documents of the 16th century
is ‘*Clangors.” This is the hill to which Carswell Road leads,
behind the Brownhill Road end of Laleham Road.

From Brownhill Road to Sangley Road there have been houses

4

THE PARISH CHURCH TO RUSHEY GREEN. 139

for many years—several are shown as existing on the maps of
1745, etc. The majority of these were small cottages, interspersed
with villas, but they have all been rebuilt of recent years. No. 127
still remains (1908) as a specimen of the weather-boarded houses of
the 18th century, but much altered. The public house known as
the ‘‘Black Horse and Harrow,’ first appears in the Parish
Registers for the year 1700, under the name of the ‘‘ Harrow,
Rushy Green,’’ when it was held by one William Balthire.

Turning to the western side of the High Road we have already
traced its story as far as Bradgate Road. From this point to the
turning to Catford Bridge the ground is shown in Rocque’s map
(1745) as unoccupied by buildings except a block opposite ‘‘ The

PLATE 64.—THE Lawn View OF “THE PRIORY,” ABOUT 1835.

’

Priory Farm.” These were probably the old wooden cottages
formerly standing at the corner of Willow Walk. The change in
. this part of Rushey Green is due to the enclosure of the common
lands in 1810, when the open part of the green (about 10 acres)
was enclosed, the portion now occupied by the Fire Station, Town
Hall, and Hatcliffe’s Almshouses being allotted to the parish as
compensation for loss of any common rights the parish, as such,
claimed. The various cottages and shops now existing date from
‘this time, but a considerable number have recently been rebuilt.
The three houses at the corner of Holbeach Road (formerly ‘‘ The
Retreat ’’), known as James Place, were built in 1830.

140 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

CHAPTER VI.
CATFORD, PERRY HILL AND Forest HILL.

r- has ATFORD is an ancient place name, which goes
back in documents as far as the reign of Edward I,
and is probably still older, as it was even then
giving its name to a family of ‘‘de Cateforde.” At
what period the Abbot of Ghent alienated the lands
round Catford is uncertain—it was certainly prior
to the reign of Edward I—but in the 13thcentury,
Sir John Abel, who belonged to the family of Abel, of Erith, owned
a considerable property in the district, together with the family of
De Castello. Nicholas de Castello, Clerk of the Exchequer, in
1300 sold about 160 acres to Anthony Bek, Bishop of Durham, and
the Bishop seems to have also acquired the Abel’s lands, so that
at his death in 1311, amongst his possessions were lands and rents
at Catford and Romburgh, in Lewisham, for which he paid quit
rent to the Abbot of Ghent of 23s. 4d. and a plough share at
Michaelmas.

This property coming to the Crown on the Bishop’s death,
Edward III, in 1331, granted Catford to Sir William de Montacute,
as areward for having apprehended Roger Mortimer, Earl of March.
In the same year Sir William, and Katherine his wife, purchased
about 4oo acres of land in Lewisham, and these, together with the
Manor of Catford, they bestowed in 1338 on the College of
St. Lawrence Poultney, in London, and the College continued in
possession until its suppression in 1548. In that year Catford was
granted with other lands to Henry Polsted, of Chileworth, and
William More, of Loseley, in Surrey, for £2,034 14s. 1od. Henry
Polsted’s son, Richard, dying without issue, the property came to
Francis Polsted, his cousin, who in 1578 sold it to Brian Annesley,
of Lee, another cousin, and from him it has descended to the
Earl of St. Germans in the same manner as Brockley. Catford,
historically, includes the St. Germans Estate at Hither Green (g.v.)
and that in the Stanstead Road.

The connection which lasted for more than 2co years between
Catford and the College of St. Lawrence Poultney on Pountney
Hill, in the City of London, is commemorated by the dedication of
the church opposite the Town Hall, which was so named in honour
of St. Lawrence. It was built in 1886.

The building now known as the Town Hall was erected in
1874 by the Lewisham District Board of Works for its offices. It
is built on land which was the property of the parish, being a part
of the Rushey Green, and cost £9,784. Considerable additions
were made in 1900. It is intended to be in the Gothic style of the
13th century, but the details are open to criticism. However,
taken together with St. Laurence’s Church and the new shops on

~~ Snider —tigs

HA

CATFORD. 141

the eastern side of the road, the group of buildings makes a
dignified appearance as befits the civil centre of the Borough.

The Hatcliffe Almshouses are so named from Mr. William
Hatcliffe, of the Inner Temple and of Greenwich, who died in 1620,
and left the income from certain property in Greenwich to be
divided, one half to the poor of Greenwich, and the other half
between Lee and Lewisham. The Lewisham portion of the income
amounts to about 4170 a year. In 1857 a new scheme for its
management was approved, and five of the almshouses were
erected in that year, a sixth being built by subscription, which was
endowed by Mr. Thomas Watson Parker. Two additional houses
were added in 1880.

Between the almshouses and the river were two houses, one
of which, formerly known as ‘‘ Elmwood,” is now the Catford
Conservative Clubhouse—the original portion of which is of
Georgian date. On the site of the other house are the shops in
Catford Road, and Nelgarde Road and Doggett Road are partly
built on the garden.

All this portionof the parish—and doubtless all Rushey Green
was liable to inundation from the River Ravensbourne whenever
there were heavy rains. This was especially the case in medieval
times when the river Was a stronger and deeper stream than it is
at present, and there are several bequests in wills to making a
causeway at Catford, ze., one of those raised paths with stones
laid on the top, which are to be seen in many country places, a
reminder of the time when the roads were not so well cared for as
they are nowadays. These bequests are of interest and may be
recorded here :—

**To the makyng of the nu waye betwene Syppenham and
Leuesham Church.”’ William Feyrewyn, 1494.

““T gif to the causey at Catforde 6s. 8d." Thomas Gryme,
husbondeman, 1529.

‘*To the causey 4od.”’ Denys Batt, alias Gryme, late the
wyff of Thomas Batt, alias Gryme, 1529.

‘*Towards y* makyng of a causey be twen Catford and Catford
Brige 6s. 8d.” Robert Rogers 1530.

**To the causey at Catford Bridge 8d.” Joone Jhonson, 1532.

At Catford was one of the many mills on the Ravensbourne,
probably one of the eleven recorded in Domesday, and known in
the 13th and 14th centuries as Fordmill. It stood on the western
side of the river, on the left hand side of the road going towards
Catford Hill, but was removed a few years since (Plate 65). The
roadway was considerably raised when the Mid-Kent Railway
bridge was built.

Beyond the bridge the road leads up the slope now called
Catford Hill, towards Perry Hill and Sydenham, and the site of
Place House—of these parts we shall have more to say later. At
the foot of Catford Hill on the right is Stanstead Road, which is

142 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

an old thoroughfare leading to Forest Hill. In the 17th century
it was known as Stanyhurst Lane, from which Stanstead has
obviously been derived. On Rocque’s map (1745) it is curiously
corrupted into Steucers Lane. It was then a country lane with no
houses, and it was only during the latter half of the last century
that buildings began to cover the fields, at first on the northern or
right hand side on the property of the Earl of St. Germans, and
later on the southern side. The Cranston, Kemble and Colfe
Roads are built on part of the Colfe estates, on a field known as
Great Ozey lands, purchased in 1655 by Mr. Colfe from Mr. George
Edmund, who then owned the Manor of Sydenham.

Stanstead Road seems to have formed the southern boundary
of the Manor of Bankers, the eastern boundary of which to

PLATE 65.—CATFORD BRIDGE, ABOUT 1835.

Lewisham Bridge was the River Ravensbourne. Beyond Kemble
Road, the area ‘of about 64 acres now covered by the parallelogram
formed by Stanstead Road, Sunderland Road, Westbourne Road
and Perry Vale, was anciently the great field of the Manor of
Lewisham, called Pikethorne, being ihc or half-year land. It
is mentioned in the Rental of the reign of Edward ie and in more
recent times in the Inclosure Award ‘of 1810.

At the entrance to Stanstead Road is St. Dunstan’s College,
the largest Secondary Public School for Boys in the neighbourhood.
It owes its origin to the various bequests which had been made to
the Parish of St. Dunstan-in-the-East, in the City of London. By

CATFORD. 143

a scheme settled by the Court of Chancery in 1867, and amended
by another scheme in 1883, a large part of the income was allocated
for educational purposes, and the College buildings were erected at
a cost of £45,000, on land which had been part of the Charities’
estates. The school was opened in 1888, accommodation being
provided for 400 day boys and 4o boarders, with a headmaster’s
residence and several acres for playing fields. The boarding
element was afterwards dropped and the College is now a day
school only. The school is built on a field which was bequeathed
to St. Dunstan’s Parish in 1632 by Mirabelle Bennett.

Standing back from the road at some distance, and near the
junction of Catford Hill and Perry Hill, stood the large house
known as Place House, which was accounted the Manor House of

PLATE 66.—PLACE House, CATFORD, ABOUT 1810.

Sydenham. A view of the remains of this house as they then
existed, was published in 1791, a reproduction of which forms
. Plate 67. From the description which accompanied this print, it
would appear that there was a local tradition that the house was
built by Queen Elizabeth about the year 1580, and was presented
by her to her favourite, the Earl of Essex, and that she frequently
honoured him here with visits, on which occasions his wife, the
Countess of Rutland, was concealed in a secret chamber, the only
entrance to which was by a false door from the wainscot of the
Earl’s study, covered by a full length portrait of the Queen. The
apartment was still in 1791 known as the Countess’s Room.

144 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

In one of the windows were the following lines cut with a

diamond :—
Longus et invito pectore sedit amor.
And long has love possess’d my breast in
defiance of all my resolution.

Synce my Love seseth shyning
All my Hopes are in declyning
Synce my day by night is banyst
All my joy’ are fled and vanyst
Beware I say’d of Lady Wife
Foresee the end before the fall
Thrice happy is the man and bleast
Who warned is by others thrall.

PLATE 67.— PLACE House, CATFORD, 1791.

The lines were of course assigned to the Queen, and indicaied
the strength of her resentment at his deception.

How much truth there is in the story it is now almost im-
possible to say. Early in the reign of James I the property was
in the possession of the Edmonds family, and in 1641 it came to
George, Abraham, and Robert Edmonds as coheirs in gavelkind.
Robert sold his: portion to his brothers, and the estate and house
were divided between them. The house was inconveniently divided,
rooms belonging to one share being over those belonging to
another. That portion which belonged to Abraham Edmonds was
finally purchased in 1765 by Mr. Richard Brooke, and is that
shown in the picture. The other part was purchased by Mr..
Jonathan Sabin, and was pulled down.

PERRY GILL. 145

Mr. Brooke, who was concerned in the India trade, fitted up
two rooms in the Chinese style, with large screens decorated with
grotesque figures, forming a curious combination of Eastern finery
with Elizabethan wainscot.

This part of the house in 1810 became the property of Mr.
John Forster, of Southend, and was pulled down (Plate 66). Not
a vestige now remains, and the site is covered by Creeland Grove.

The name Perry, z.e., the place where the pear trees grow, is
found in very many parishes in the South of England. Here, in
Lewisham, it is of early date, occurring in a rental of the manor of
the time of Edward I], in which it is recorded that amongst the pay-
ments made by Sir John Abel was 14d. for land he had bought of
Gerard atte Pirie. In 1473 Cicely Lamkyn mentions her house
and gardens in ‘‘Perystrete,’’ and in the Parish Registers of the
18th century there is evidence of two hamlets, one called ‘‘ Perry
Street” (now Perry Hill), the other known as ‘‘ Perry Slough”
(now Perry Vale), which latter was apparently marshy ground on
the confines of the forest.

From the maps of the 18th century it may be gathered that
the roadways—perhaps trackways would be a more appropriate
description—in this part of the parish were Stanyhurst (Stanstead)
Lane on the north, a lane now Vancouver Road, with a connecting
lane now Blyth Vale, but marked on the Ordnance Maps of 1870
as ‘Stoney Street”; a lane now’ Woolstone Road, which Mr.
Colfe, in his will dated 1657, calls ‘‘Green Lane,’’ which led to
Perry Slough; Perry Street Hill (now Perry Hill), and a lane now
called Perry Rise, which in Rocque’s Map of 1745 is marked as
“*Glover’s Lane.” These last led down to Sydenham or Bell Green,
a piece of open common, enclosed in 1810, and now covered by
the houses near the gas-works.

Commencing at the Catford end of Perry Hill, on the eastern
side, the houses are of various dates within the last thirty or forty
years as far as Castlands Road. This road is an ancient right-of-
way leading across the river to Castle-lands, part of Broadmead,
one of the great fields of the manor. At the corner of Castlands ©
Road is Orchard House, on a small estate, shown on plans of 1723
as then belonging to Thomas Dyer, Esq. Beyond this, as far as
the foot of the hill, is the estate of the Leathersellers’ Company,
anciently known as ‘‘ Brongers,” probably from Walter Bronger,
who held land here in the time of Henry VII. The old house,
“*Brongers,” has recently been pulled down, but the farmhouse,
now known as Perry Hill Farm, still maintains the appearance
of a small 18th century homestead. In 1723 it was known as
Clowders Farm. The house now styled ‘‘Clare Lodge” had not
then been built, the site being styled on plans as ‘‘The New
Orchard,” but it must have beer erected shortly afterwards. The
fields stretching down the hill were known as ‘‘Tanner’s” and
‘*Annable’s” respectively, the latter being that next the road, whilst
the land between them and the river was styled ‘‘ Rowland’s.”

L

146 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

On the western side of the road, and opposite ‘‘ Annable’s,”’ is
a field, also belonging to the Leathersellers, called ‘‘ Priestfield,”
which, in the 15th century, belonged to the Walter Bronger above
mentioned. Stretching up the slope are the grounds of the house
now named The Manor House. In a view published in 1838, and
reproduced in Plate 68, it is called Perry Hill House. The house
appears to be of early Georgian date with later additions. In 1723
the estate belonged to Mr. Richard Brooke, and in the early part
of the 19th century the house was the residence of the Rev. P. A.
French, m.a., of Sydenham. It now belongs to A. W. Marriott,
Esq.

PLaTe 68.—PeRRY HILL House (MANOR Howse), 1838.

The house latterly known as Perry Hill House came next to
The Manor House. It was pulled down about tgoo, and a row of
small villas erected on the site. The footpath, which here runs to
Woolston Road, is an old right-of-way leading by the side of
two meadows known as Upper and Lower Hawkes, now nursery
ground. They belong to the Leathersellers’ Company. The ground
next to this footway is marked in plans of 1723 as ‘‘ The White
Hart.” This may possibly be the old house still standing thereon,
now called Ratcliffe Cottage. Another old house near the foot-
path, in which Charles Mackay is said to have lived, has been
pulled down. Next to Ratcliffe Cottage is ‘“‘Ivy Wall,” an old

PERRY HILL AND FOREST HILL. 147

house much added to; and beyond this was another house, now
removed, which was once the residence of the father of Professor
W. W. Skeat.

An 18th century house opposite Castlands Road has been an
inn, with the sign of the ‘‘Two Brewers,” for many years. It
occurs in the Parish Registers of 1807. The cottages which occupy
the slope of the hill are built on ground formerly known as
‘‘ Beechfield,” the property of the Leathersellers’ Company. A few
older cottages at the bottom of the hill were formerly known as
Sabin’s Cottages, from the owner of part of Place House. The
new shops at the corner of Woolston Road are built on a field
known in 1723 as ‘‘Herbert’s Croft.” St. George’s Church was
built in 1880, at the sole cost of Mr. George Parker, of Lewisham
House.

At Perry Slough (Perry Vale), in 1802, died the unfortunate
Irish poet, Thomas Dermody. His tomb may be seen in the centre
of the river portion of St. Mary’s Churchyard.

On Rocque’s Map, 1745, the land under cultivation is shown
as extending as far as Perry Slough (Perry Vale) and near where
Dacres Road now runs. All beyond this was wild open forest,
and had been so from time immemorial, hardly a house existing
west of a line represented by the railway. A country track from
Perry Slough led over ‘‘ Crow Green,” which occupied about the
position of Forest Hill Railway Station, and westwards over the
hills to Dulwich. This is represented to-day by the London Road.

The district was known from early times simply as ‘* The
Forest,” and those who dwelt there were styled, ‘*John atte
Forest,” ‘‘ William atte Forest,” etc. In the Rental of the Manor
of Lewisham, about 1320, Adam and Robert atte Forest are shown
as paying 33d. for their tenement, which formerly belonged to one
Martin Syward, and they further paid 3s. for land ‘‘at the Forest.”
They were probably free tenants holding small farms on the out-
skirts of the manor. The name, Forest Hill, does not occur in the
Parish Registers until the year 1797, which is further evidence of
_ the paucity of inhabitants.

The Enclosure Act of 1810 made a considerable difference to
this part of the parish. The forest land, then mostly scrub, was
allotted to the various freeholders of the manor, and enclosed ;
roads were speedily made and building began, but it was the
coming of the railway which contributed most to the change. The
commencement of this enterprise, however, was the Croydon Canal,
which was projected in 1800, and opened in 1809. This started at
New Cross and passed through Brockley, Honor Oak, Forest Hill,
Sydenham, and thence through Norwood to Selhurst and Croydon.
The rise through Forest Hill necessitated some twenty-five locks,
and reservoirs were formed at Sydenham and Norwood.

Aftera precarious existence of twenty-seven years, the canal
was closed in 1836, having been purchased for 40,000 by the
Croydon and London Railway, which was laid for the most part

L2

148 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

along its course. Portions of the canal remained as late as 1870 at
the rear. of the houses on the western side of Devonshire Road,
and east of the line near where Dacres Road now runs.

The new Croydon line, which was thus opened in 1839, joined
the Greenwich railway (which had been opened in 1836) at Corbett’s
Tane. There were stations at ‘‘ Dartmouth Arms” (now Forest
Hill) and at Sydenham, Penge, etc. From 1845 to 1847 the rail-
way was worked by atmospheric pressure, an iron tube being laid
between the rails, and the air pumped out, when the pressure drove
a piston connected with the carriages forward. The system proved
a failure, and was discontinued in 1847.

CHAPTER VII.

SYDENHAM.

ROCEEDING along London Road to the summit
of the hill, we come to the boundary between Kent
and Surrey, on the further side of which lies the
Horniman Museum and Park. The boundary of
the old Parish of Lewisham passed along the
western side of Eliot Bank and Sydenham Hill
to the gates of the Crystal Palace; the modern

boundary of the borough is Wood Vale and Sydenham Hill. .

The name Sydenham was formerly Sippenham or Cypenham,
and as such occurs down to the middle of the 18th century, after
which the modern form gradually came into use. The greater part
of the district, now known as Upper Sydenham, was open common
land called Westwood, a name which is at least as old as the time
of Edward I. Although styled a ‘‘manor” in later documents, it
is doubtful if the term was strictly applicable to Sydenham, for the
whole of Westwood was esteemed part of the common land of the
Manor of Lewisham. Many free tenants of the manor, however,
held small portions of land in ‘‘Sypenham,” according to the
Rental zemp. Edward II, and there seems to have been a fringe
of cottages and other houses along the Sydenham Road, from Bell
Green to Peak Hill, from very early times.

In 1442 Sir John Welles, Grocer and Alderman of the City of
London, left his ‘‘ manor of Sippenham in the parish of Leuesham
in Kent to be sold for pious and charitable uses, saving an annuity
of 40s. to William Osborn.” (‘‘ Husting’s Wills.”)

In the reign of Henry VII, Robert Cheseman, a member of an
old Lewisham family, possessed the ‘‘ Manor” of Syppenham, and
had also a lease of the Manor of Lewisham from the Prior of
Shene. In his will, dated 1498, he left Syppenham and Perystreet
to his wife for her life, with remainder to John Cheseman, his son.

tie ieee A

Ue eee

+e:

deities

SYDENHAM. 149

The latter’s daughter and heir, Joan, married William Ford, and
they sold the manor to Richard Howlet, of Lewisham, whose
daughter, Rachel, became possessed of it under his will, dated
8th September, 1560. At his death an inquisition was held, which
declared all his lands in Sypenham to be gavelkind lands. Rachel
Howlet married Robert Edmonds, and on her death in 1609 the
property came to her three sons, George, Robert, and Abraham,
as coheirs in gavelkind. Portions of the estate were sold at
various periods. Some of the lands were purchased by the Rev.
Abraham Colfe to endow the Grammar School. The fate of the
manor house, known as Place House, has been already narrated
(page 144). The whole of the property was probably situated more
round Perystreet than in the district we now know as Sydenham.

At this period Westwood (now Upper Sydenham) was. well
wooded, and an order of Queen Elizabeth, dated 28th October,

Piate 69.—THE DWELLING OF ALEXANDER ROBERTS AT SYDENHAM WELLS.

1559, reserved the wood for shipbuilding. Sydenham may there-
fore claim a share in the glories of the British Navy of that
stirring petiod.

In the middle of the 17th century the solitudes of Upper
Sydenham were broken by the discovery of the medicinal character
of the springs, which gushed forth in the hollow now occupied by
Wells Park. Our knowledge respecting these springs is principally
derived from a treatise on them by John Peter, physician, printed
in 1681. From his account it would appear that in the year 1648
a poor woman, suffering from disease, was cured by the waters,
which thereupon became famous. Previous to this date the
inhabitants had noticed that the water which trickled down the
hillside was frequented by multitudes of pigeons. Wells were sub-

150 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

sequently dug and built round, and the water was delivered gratis
to any who desired.

In 1651 the numbers who flocked to drink the waters excited
the suspicion of the Commonwealth Government, and a declaration
was published ‘‘to all that come to drink the waters at Lewisham
to behave themselves peaceably at their utmost peril,” a party of
horse being ordered to attend to prevent tumult. Dr. Peter, in
his treatise, complains of the rabble of Londoners and others
weekly frequenting the wells on Sundays, and not content with the
natural water, proceeded to drink upon it ‘‘an excess quantity of
brandy or other strong liquors, thereby many of them becoming
greatly prejudiced in their health (to add to their folly and crime)
have not been ashamed to impute their indisposition to this water.”

The wells continued to exist down to the inclosure of West-
wood Common, but ceased to be regarded with favour as a
fashionable resort.

Rocque’s Map of 1745 shows Sydenham as a fringe of cottages
and houses along the road from Sydenham Green (now Bell Green)
to Pigg Hill (now Peak Hill). From this latter point was West-
wood Common, a roadway across which followed the lines of the
present Kirkdale and Sydenham Hill Road, another roadway
followed the lines of the present West Hill, whilst a third existed
on the site of the road now known as Sydenham Hill. The wells
lay in the bottom now occupied by Wells Park, the slopes to the
north, now occupied by St. Mary’s Oratory, being shown as
‘*Hutton Comb Hill,” continuing northwards into ‘‘ Hambrick
Hill”

The Act of 1810 authorised the enclosure of the whole of this
open common and its division amongst the freeholders of the
manor who had common rights. A very large part has now been
built over, but most opportunely the Lewisham District Board of
Works urged the London County Council to purchase the site of
the wells, and nearly eighteen acres were acquired at a cost of
47,210, of which Lewisham contributed half. The grounds cost
another £45,000 to lay out, and were opened on Whit-Monday, 1go1.

The site of at least one of the wells (there were about twelve
of them) is marked by the font in St. Philip’s Church. Even now,
in spite of the surrounding houses, one can form some idea of the
picturesqueness of the place in its wild state. The views from
West Hill across the Wells Park, with the groups of fir trees in
the grounds of the Oratory, and along the crest of the hills above
Upper Sydenham Station, form a pleasing memento of the old
common, and it is to be hoped that private owners will combine
with the local authorities to preserve the appearance of the district
as much as possible.

At the top of West Hill are the gates of the Crystal Palace
grounds, which, however, lie entirely outside the borough.

St. Bartholomew’s Church, which stands on the lower slope of
West Hill, is interesting as the church of the first ecclesiastical

SYDENHAM. 151

district to be created within the ancient civil Parish of Lewisham.
It was built in 1832, and enlarged in 1858.

Descending West Hill we come to the ground west of
Sydenham Station, known in the 18th and early 19th century as
Pigg Hill, which has now been softened into Peak Hill. The name
reminds us of the early custom of turning the swine into the forest
to feed on the acorns and beech mast, the toll for which here was
50 hogs paid yearly to the Lord of the Manor, as noted in
Domesday. Sydenham Park occupies the site of the large
reservoir which was formed to feed the Croydon Canal from 1809
to 1836.

There are still a few old houses left in Sydenham Road, but

, odngdt a: , J {i o 2 4 t cass |

rye

PLATE 70.—THE ‘‘GREYHOUND” INN, SYDENHAM, WITH THE CANAL,
IN 1818.

they are rapidly disappearing. The ‘‘ Dolphin” Inn, near Mayow
Road, is mentioned in the Parish Registers for 1st July, 1733, when
‘Stephen son of,Richard Peke from Sipenham, y* Dolphin,” was
buried, whilst on the sotithern side of the road is another old
hostelry, the ‘‘ Golden Lion,” from which one, John Robinson, was
buried on the 24th May, 1746. The “Greyhound” Inn, at Peak
Hill, is also an old house. A pencil sketch of it in 1810 is in the
British Museum. (Add. MS. 32360, fol. 233). (Plate 70).

The site of Christ Church is marked in Rocque’s map (1745)
as ‘‘ Dissenters’ Meeting.” The house of Alexander Lindsay, of
Sydenham Causeway, had been licensed in 1707 by Bishop Sprat,
for the use of Presbyterians, being the first recognised place of

152 ' BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

worship in the parish for those who had separated from the Church
of England. A chapel was afterwards erected on this site about
1760, of which Dr. John Williams, author of a concordance of the
Greek Testament, an enquiry concerning the discovery of America,
and other works, was minister from 1767 to 1794. It was then
leased to Hugh French, Esq., M.D., who converted it into a chapel-
of-ease to the Parish Church, his son, the Rev. Pinkstan Arundel
French, being incumbent for many years.

The house now occupied by Lady Grove, widow of Sir George
Grove, is one of the few remaining 18th century houses of the dis-
trict, and a good specimen of a weather-boarded house of its date.

The Free Library, which was built in 1904, stands at the
corner of Home Park, one of the open spaces provided by the

PLaTE 71.—ViEW ON THE SYDENHAM CANAL.

Lewisham Borough Council. The park, 8 acres in extent, was
acquired in 1901, part of the purchase money being provided by the
County Council. It is formed out of a portion of the grounds of a
house known as Home Park Lodge.

The ground between Sydenham Road_and Perry Vale remained
farm land down to about 1870, and has been opened up for building
at various dates during the last 25 and 30 years. In the Mayow
Road, which practically bisects it, is the Sydenham and Forest Hill
Recreation Ground, an open space of 174 acres, acquired and
maintained by the Lewisham. Borough Council, which contains
several fine old trees. The house and grounds of Mr. Mayow
Adams occupied the site of Earlsthorpe Road and adjacent roads,

SYDENHAM. 153

whilst in front of the house where the shops in Sydenham Road
now stand was a pleasant green. The house was an old one,
dating from about 1660, but modernized. In 1723 the land here-
abouts belonged to Mr. Edward Hodsdon, but towards the end of
the century it had passed to Major Mayow Wynell Mayow.

On the maps of the 18th century the part now known as Bell
Green is marked as ‘‘Sydenham Green,” and shown as an open
space. The name ‘‘Bell Green” appears in the Parish Registers at
the end of the 18th century, but its origin is uncertain.. The
tradition that there was a bell tower here to give notice of visitors
to Place House is absurdly fanciful. The opening of the Crystal
Palace Gas Works revolutionized the neighbourhood, bringing
in their train not only the gas-holders and other buildings of the
industry, but many streets of houses of the working classes. It
is in fact the manufacturing district of the Borough.

The Pool River, which joins the Ravensbourne midway

- between this spot and Catford, is here crossed by a bridge leading

into Southend Lane. An old bridge known as ‘‘Kengley Bridge,” a
little lower down the stream, is now in the grounds of the Gas
Works. In Southend Lane, on the nerthern side, is Firhill House,
which, with the land around, is part of the educational endowments

_ administered by the Leathersellers’ Company. A porticn known as

“*Riddlesdown,” containing 15 acres, was purchased by the Rev.
Abraham Colfe in 1631.

The lane leads into Southend, the remaining hamlet within
the parish, which still retains much of the appearance of a country
village, with its mill pond and wooded slopes.

CHAPTER VIII.

SANGLEY, BELLINGHAM AND SOUTHEND.

NSTEAD of entering Southend from Lower
Sydenham, it will be more convenient to retrace
our steps to the Town Hall, and proceed by way
of the Bromley Road. On the right hand, or
eastern side of the road, is Sangley, anciently
known as Sanguinel or Sanguels, an old home-

stead. The name occurs in the Court Rolls of the time of

Edward II. In 1495, in-the will of Thomas Causton, of Becken-

ham, he leaves his land called Sanguells, in Lewisham, to his

son William, and in 1545, there is the will of Stephen Batt, of

‘‘Sangues.” In 1627 occurs the burial of Thomas Coomes, of

Sanguels Farm. The name seems to have been changed to Sangley

early in the rgth century. Part of the old house of timber remained

until a few years ago, when it was rebuilt, but the old kitchens

154 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

still exist. The farm lands are now being built over. The road
now known as Sangley Road was tormerly styled Cockshed Lane,
and led to a farm of that name, which may possibly have been a
moderr form of Crokestede, which occurs in medizval documents
as a place name in the parish.

Beyond Sangley, and still on the eastern side of the road, is
another farm known as White House, which is shown on
Rocque’s map of 1745.

All this portion of the Borough on either side of the road forms
the old Manor of Bellingham. At what period it was alienated by
the Abbot of Ghent is unknown, but it became part of the
possessions of the Cistercian Monastery of Stratford Langthorne,
at West Ham, Essex, founded in 1134 by William de Montfichet.
It was confirmed to them by Henry II, and in an award dated 1218
concerning tithes, it is stated to consist of two hides. At the
dissolution it came to the Crown, and was granted in 1554 to
Richard Whetely, whose grandson sold it to John Leigh, and he in
1598 sold it to James Altham. From him it descended to Charles
Tryon, who in 1724 sold it to Thomas Inwen, whose only daughter,
Sarah (Lady Falkland), having no children, bequeathed it to Mr.
Francis Motley Austen, of Sevenoaks. The Austens exchanged
Bellingham for other property with the Forsters. The old Manor
House was largely rebuilt early in the 19th century by Mr. Robert
Saunders, and is now styled Park House. The old Manor Farm
still exists by the banks of the Ravensbourne, and is probably as
old as the early part of the 17th century.

Whitefoot Lane leading to Shroffold Farm and Hither Green
is not shown on Rocque’s map of 1745, and is presumably of later
date. The name, which seems to be derived from a belt of wood-
land known as Whitefoot Shaw, first occurs towards the end of
the 18th century.

At the corner of Whitefoot Lane is ‘‘ The Hall,” one of the
residences of H. W. Forster, Esq., M.p., who is the largest land-
owner in the Borough, holding over 1,000 acres.

The houses in Southend Village are now nearly all modern,
but they stand on old sites. The ‘‘ Tiger’s Head” was anciently
known as Randall’s House. It was the residence of the How’s,
who worked the mill hard by. Subsequently it was tenanted by
Mr. Richard Chillingworth, who appears to have turned it into an
inn. It was a house of early 18th century date, but has recently
been rebuilt. Neither it nor the ‘‘Green Man” appear in the
Parish Registers, but a ‘‘ King’s Arms, Southend,” is mentioned in
1739, and the ‘‘ George, Southend,” occurs frequently from 1713
onwards. The ‘‘King’s Arms” was the old red brick house in the
High Road near Bellingham Farm.

The Ravensbourne enters the Borough of Lewisham a little to
the south of Southend, in the grounds of Bromley Hill House. In
deeds of the reign of Henry VII it is styled the ‘‘ Randisbourne.”
At Southend there are two mills, now both corn mills, but that in

SANGLEY, BELLINGHAM AND SOUTHEND. 155

the village was rendered famous as a cutlery mill in the
18th century, by John and Ephraim How. The former died in
1736, and is buried in Lewisham Churchyard, near the tower. His
tomb states that ‘‘the art of cutlery was improv’d and carry’d on to
the greatest perfection ” by the above-named father and son.

The road from Southend to Beckenham passes round the end
of the mill pond, and here was a small green until the enclosure of
1810. The roadway ascends gently to the boundary between
Lewisham and Beckenham. The hill is still known as Stumps
Hill, one of the oldest place names in the Borough, for under the
form of Stumbleshill we find it in the Court Rolls as early as the
time of Edward I. Beckenham Place House is just within the
Parish of Beckenham, but a portion of the park is in Lewisham.

PLATE 72.—VIEW AT SOUTHEND, 1770.

This property was acquired from Viscount Bolingbroke in 1773 by
John Cator, Esq., who rebuilt the house and made many improve-
ments in the grounds, including the alteration of the High Road to
its present position from that of the Avenue within the park, which
is the old site.

At the junction of Beckenham Lane with the Bromley Road is
Flower Hall, formerly known as Elm Cottage. About 1750 it was
bought by Mr. Francis Flower, after whom it has been named. It
subsequently became part of the Forster estates, and was the
residence of Captain Henry Forster, R.A. The house, which was
of considerable age, was practically rebuilt and much enlarged
about 40 years since.

Along the road to Bromley, nearly opposite the second mill,
was the residence of Mr. John Knapp, shown on Rocque’s map

156 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

(1745), which was pulled down many years ago. Nearer Bromley
is Holloway Farm, on the property of the Earl of Northbrook.
The farmhouse is now on the eastern side of the road, but was
formerly on the western side, a portion of the old house forming
part of the gate house of Bromley Hill Place.. The farm was held
for nearly 200 years by the Valentine family, members of which
occupied many parochial offices and entered largely into the life of
the place.

A large part of Bromley Hill Place, including the house, is in
the Borough of Lewisham. It was the seat of the Rt. Hon. Sir
Charles Long, G.c.B., who was created Baron Farnborough in
1826. He added much to the house and improved the grounds,
and there entertained George IV, William IV, and Queen Adelaide.
The estate is now being opened up for building.

All this portion of the Borough is in the Manor of Shroffolds,
which commences at the ‘‘ Tiger’s Head,” in Southend, takes in
part of Beckenham Place, Bromley Hill Place, part of Plaistow, and
the lands of Shroffold and Holloway Farms, which are the property
of the Earl of Northbrook, as Lord of the Manor.

Here, at the top of Bromley Hill, we take our leave of the
Borough of Lewisham, tired it may be by the length of our journey,
but interested, let us hope, in the story of its past and of its growth.
The rush of modern life has left us but few relics of bygone days,
but the preceding pages will have shown, however imperfectly, that
beneath the dull monotony of modern streets and villas, almost
every foot of ground has its own story, which is intertwined with
that of the Borough of which it is a part.

er ed

Ott ca So.

PART IV.

Our Local Authorities.

By A. W. Hiscox,
Sometime Mayor of the Borough.

=>

7 Aaa HE man in the street is generally supposed to have
, & (gis) an opinion about most things, and he usually

A °
believes he could govern far better than any
persons in office, from Town Councillor up to
Prime Minister. Yet, how few people can give
a fair idea of the organization for governing the
town they live in, or, if they do know in general terms what
governing bodies rule in the locality, can describe how they came
to take their present-day form, and why.

Unless local government is to be more and more officialized,
the old English idea of self-government will have to be widely
revived in practice. That is to say the people themselves, as a
whole, not only a small section, must learn what takes place
under the powers that be, and they must then express their own
views, as occasion demands, on the methods and the work done
by those in authority for the community, which is represented by
them.

Local government in Lewisham, as in other parts of London,
has been in the hands of so many different bodies, that probably
few people in the past cared to spend the necessary time to find
out what they were and what were their functions. Though some-
what simplified in recent years, the task is still no easy one, and
the authorities controlling Lewisham, and supplying its needs
municipally, are more numerous than most people suspect.

Imagine a visitor entering our Borough by tram from London.
Coming into Lewisham, via Loampit Hill, and travelling along the
High Street or High Road, Lee, the rider benefits by the provision
of electric transit made by the County Council, while the streets he
passes through are paved, cleaned and lighted by the Borough
Council. If he goes along the High Street he sees a Public
Library, with lending department, reading rooms, etc., maintained
by the Borough Council, and, further on, a big institution, which
inhabitants as a rule avoid, and which, under the name of Work-
house, supplies a home to some hundreds of men and women
unable to support themselves. The latter is controlled by the Union
Guardians, as is also the next large building, the well-known,

\ op

X

158 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

excellent Infirmary, which for want of a general hospital anywhere
near, often opens its doors to accident cases and gives surgical
help.

Up the hill, on the other hand, a glimpse is had through the
side roads of another huge building, a home of the healing art,
where infectious cases, such as scarlet fever, diphtheria, etc., are
dealt with. This Hospital is controlled by a centralized authority,
viz., the Metropolitan Asylums Board.

He will find that the streets are patrolled by police, who are
not under either of the above authorities, while the water supply
is managed by the newly-constituted Metropolitan Water Board.
The parks and open spaces are most of them maintained by the
London County Council, but some by the Borough Council, and
the schools, as perhaps everybody knows, are now in the hands of
the County Council.

A stranger to London government would naturally ask how
it is that there are so many authorities working, to a large extent,
over the same area, but not related to one another, or under any
organized control.

A Century AGo.

Going back a century we find that Lewisham, though a large
parish in acreage, was inhabited in 1801 by only 4,007 persons,
who lived in 686 houses. It covered 5,774 acres, with a circum-
ference of 16 to 17 miles, and it was entirely severed from London
by stretches of country very sparsely inhabited. Its government
was of a simple kind, which had taken its rise, nobody knows how,
like that of most country places. There was a Vestry, that is to
say, an assembly of the whole parish, which met in the vestry or
other accessible place; there were Justices of the Peace of the
County having jurisdiction in this area, who, amongst other
powers, appointed the Overseers; and there was the Lord of the
Manor, possessing considerable manorial rights, who presided
over the Court Leet. All the work of local government was
done by these three authorities. Broadly one may say that the
poor were provided for by the Overseers; the management of the
land and the business of the parish were conducted by the Lord of
the Manor and the Court Leet, who also administered justice in
minor matters; and the Justices of the Peace, who appointed the
Overseers, were administrators of justice in the area, and had
considerable powers of control as well. The Justices of the Peace,
for instance, suppressed the Sydenham Fair in 1766, declaring it to
be a public nuisance.

The Court Leet still retains many of its old powers, though it
-seldom exercises them, for while it even now has authority to fine
persons for certain light offences, the amount being limited to one
penny or some such trifling sum, it would not be worth while to
collect it. The Pound, still to be seen in the main road, and now
seldom used, is controlled by the Lord of the Manor.

OUR LOCAL AUTHORITIES. 159

In 1814 an Act of George III, gave authority to the Vestry to
appoint persons with power to assess and collect money for the
relief of the poor. In addition to the elected members were the
Churchwardens and Overseers ex-officio, and this body went by
the name of the Guardians of the Parish. This was the authority
for making assessments of properties in the parish and for collecting
rates, and was only abolished when its powers were transferred to
the Borough Council in 1goo. The preamble of the Act of 1814
commences, ‘‘ Whereas the poor within the Parish of Lewisham in
the County of Kent are very numerous, and are maintained and
supported at a great expense,” and then goes on to relate how the
new body will have power to take over the Poorhouse, or Work-
house, which was then in a decayed state, and not sufficient in
size, for the purpose of enlarging or rebuilding it.

THE Union GUARDIANS.

This state of things continued until the appointment of the
Union Guardians, under the Act of 1834. Since the commence-
ment of the century the number of inhabited houses in the parish
had nearly trebled, and the population was about 10,000, but the
rapid increase of later years had not commenced. Throughout the
country the cost of the Poor Law work was so great, and so many
abuses existed, that, under the Poor Law Amendment Act, the
Poor Law Commissioners (now, after further changes, known as
the Local Government Board) were empowered to unite certain
parishes to form a ‘‘Union,” for the administration of the Laws for
the Relief of the Poor. In this way in 1836 seven parishes were
united, of which Lewisham was one, to form Lewisham Union, and
a Union Workhouse was afterwards built. Only Lewisham, Lee,
and Eltham are now left in the Union, which still is the second
largest of the Metropolitan Unions, and contains 10,795 acres.
The Guardians of the Poor of the Lewisham Union were constituted
under the above-named Act, and practically remain the same now,
except that the number of members has been increased from time
to time. The number of Guardians now is twenty-nine, all of
whom are directly elected, no ex-officio Guardians having been
appointed since 1894.

They are elected by the various wards of the Union as follows:
Church Ward (Lee), two; Manor Ward (Lee), one; South Ward
(Lee), one; Blackheath Ward, two; Lewisham Village Ward,
three ; Lewisham Park Ward, two; Brockley Ward, two; Catford
Ward, five; Forest Hill Ward, four; Sydenham Ward, five;
Parish of Eltham, two.

The work of the Union Guardians involves a large expenditure
of public money, and is in every way most important to the com-
munity. It is not only a large concern, looked at from a business
point of view, but the methods adopted may have a very con-
siderable influence for good or evil. The number of Statutes

160 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

affecting the Guardians’ work amounts to between four and five
hundred, starting from the time of Queen Elizabeth, so that
members must very largely look to officials for guidance on
technical points.

The work done by the Guardians includes all that relates to
the relief of the poor, either in establishments built for their recep-
tion or by means of out-relief; the removal of lunatics; the
maintenance of schools and homes for the children of the poor ;
maintenance and schooling of the blind, deaf and dumb of poor
parents; giving assistance to poor persons emigrating; apprentice-
ship of poor children; the provision of a register office for births
and deaths; appointment of vaccination officer. About thirty or
forty institutions have cases sent to them by the Lewisham Union.
In addition to the many Statutes already mentioned, the Guardians
have to work under the orders of the Local Government Board,
which are equivalent to law, and of which there are about 120 in
force at the present time.

Lewisham Workhouse, including the Lunatic Wards, is now
certified to hold 641, the original premises having been purchased
from the Local Guardians in 1880 for £7,500, to which additional
lands were soon after added at a cost of £15,000, and new
buildings and fittings for £45,960. New Casual Wards have also
been added at a cost of over £4,000.

The Infirmary is a modern one, built in 1894, and is of the
best of its kind, both in regard to the building itself and its equip-
ment. The total loans incurred for land, building and fittings
amount to 468,300. From the first the Infirmary has been a
very efficient and much-appreciated institution. There being no
general hospital in the Borough, accident cases, and cases requiring
surgical skill, are often taken there in addition to the sick from the
Workhouse. A separate building for the temporary accommoda-
tion of the insane was added in 1899, at a loan expenditure
of £3,700. There is room for 4o1 inmates in the Infirmary, in-
cluding the insane.

Besides the two large institutions just referred to, the
Guardians are part owners in the Residential Schools at Anerley,
and the grounds attached thereto, the other partners being the
Guardians of the Wandsworth Union. Lewisham had during
1906-7 a weekly average of 173 children in these schools, and as
long as the partnership lasts, Lewisham ratepayers must pay their
share of the upkeep. Recently some ‘‘ scattered homes” in rented
houses have been tried. Opinion is divided as to their success,
and as the Guardians were opposed to the extra cost, while they
were still paying for places at Anerley, the ‘‘ homes” have been
closed. The annual cost per head of the children at Anerley,
belonging to Lewisham, is 432 12s. rod.

In connection with the Guardians’ expenditure it should be
remembered that there is a Common Poor Fund, to which all parts
of London contribute, and certain matters of local expenditure are

OUR LOCAL AUTHORITIES. 161

borne by it. Thus, the poorer neighbourhoods benefit by the larger
contributions of the richer. The amount paid by the Lewisham
Guardians to the fund for the year ended March, 1907, amounted
to £8,537. On the other hand the Guardians get back from the
fund a much larger amount.

THE LocaL GOVERNMENT BOARD.

No one can have anything to do with Poor Law Work, or read
about Guardians’ Work, without hearing of the Local Government
Board. The work of this body is an instance of government by
officials, more after the style of some continental methods in
comparison with our usual lack of central control and freedom from
officialism. By the Act of 1834, Poor Law Commissioners were
appointed for the central control of the relief of the poor, and they
were empowered to issue general orders and regulations. Some
years later, with added powers, they were reconstituted the Poor
Law Board, and in 1871 were re-organised into the Local
‘Government Board, with supervision of other local matters added
to their Poor Law Work. The President is a Minister of Cabinet
rank, and one of the Secretaries must have a seat in Parliament.
The Board has a large staff, including Secretaries, General
Inspectors, Medical Inspectors, District Auditors, Solicitors,
Architects, Surveyors, Analysts, Clerks, &c.

The orders of the Board are as binding as Acts of Parliament,
and, as has been before pointed out, are very numerous. Though
they do not meet in our midst, their influence is felt, and no large
capital expenditure can be made without the Guardians first
obtaining their consent, while they have a voice in the appointment
and dismissal of the chief officers of the Workhouse and Infirmary,
and in fixing the amount of their salaries. They also make
recommendations to the Guardians, if occasion arises, as to the
carrying out of their work, even to the extent of insisting upon
additional accommodation being built.

METROPOLITAN ASYLUMS BOARD.

The Metropolitan Asylums Board having a large hospital at
Hither Green, to which numbers of patients for scarlet fever,
diphtheria, etc., are taken from Lewisham and the surrounding
districts, the management of it may be looked upon as a matter of
local concern. The Body of Management, however, meets in
London, and controls all such hospitals within the County of
London, as well as performing other important duties. The
Metropolitan Asylums Board was constituted by an Act of 1867,
and was empowered to provide asylums for the reception and relief
of the sick, insane or infirm. They also provide hospitals for cases
of small pox. The Poor Law Board defined the district and
prescribed the number of members, viz., 54, elected by Boards of

M

162 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Guardians, and 17 others, nominated by the Local Government
Board. They have independent control of their own expenditure,
may borrow money for land, buildings, etc., and they obtain the
money they need by precepts served upon the Union Guardians.
In 1869 further powers were given them to enable them to purchase,
or hire, and fit up ships for training boys for sea service. The
amount contributed by Lewisham Union to the Asylums Board for
the year ended March, 1907, was £27,383.

District BOARD OF WORKS.

Whilst from 1834 onwards, as we have seen, there has been a
constantly growing organization to deal with Poor Law work,
there were a great many other matters in the districts adjoining the
City of London requiring organized management. The first solid
attempt to systematise this work was the passing of the Metropolis
Management Act of 1855, which established the Metropolitan
Board of Works as a London Authority. Connected with this
body there was in Lewisham the Lewisham Board of Works,
consisting of 21 members, elected by the Vestry to represent
Lewisham Parish and 6 for Penge. Their duties included the
drainage of the district, lighting, watering, maintenance of
highways, cleansing, and the removal of nuisances, scavenging,
etc. They had to see to the carrying out of the Building Act, Sale
of Food and Drugs Act, and laying out new roads. They licensed
cowhouses and slaughterhouses, inspected bakehouses, insisted
upon the supply of water to dwellings, carried on the work of the
Notification of Diseases Act, and the disinfection of infected houses,
and had the management of certain recreation grounds. Their
accounts were annually audited, and a statement had to be prepared
and published with a printed report every year, in June, at a price
not exceeding 2d. This body was abolished by the Act of 1899,
which gave over the work to the Borough Councils.

THE BorouGH COUNCIL.

The work of the Borough Council, though a newer body than
the Guardians, affects all residents much more directly, and is very
extensive. Literally, from the cradle to the grave, they have to
deal with matters affecting the welfare of the inhabitants. They
carry out the law for insisting upon the milk sold being of a
standard quality, and they have control of the burial grounds,
while they constantly give evidence of their work in street cleansing
and lighting, dust collecting, the provision and maintenance of
baths and wash-houses, the building and controlling public libraries,
and in many other matters.

By the Local Government Act of 1899, they became the Rating
Authority in the place of the Local Guardians, and had the power

OUR LOCAL AUTHORITIES. 163

given them to prepare the Assessment lists of all the properties in

the Borough. By the Act establishing Borough Councils in 1899, .
a certain amount of system was introduced into our local

government. The old Vestry was abolished, as were also those

bodies elected by them, viz., the District Board of Works, the

Parochial Guardians, the Commissioners for Baths and Wash-houses,

the Public Libraries’ Commissioners, and the Burial Boards. The

duties of all these bodies, together with other work, were thrown

upon the Borough Council.

An appeal, however, can be made from the Rating and
Assessment Committee of the Borough Council to the Union
Assessment Committee Meeting at the Guardians’ Offices, and con-
sisting ot representatives of the Guardians and Councillors.

The total rateable value of the Borough, after certain al-
lowances are made, is the sum upon which the London County
Council, the Police Commissioners, and the Asylums Board base
their precepts, consequently the London County Council are in-
terested in seeing that no Assessments Committee unduly lowers-
the rateable value of the property in its area. The rateable value
of Lewisham has increased from £752,462 in 1899, the year before
the Borough Council came into existence, to 41,072,532 in 1907,
this increase being largely due to the rapid house-building that has
gone on, and the growth in value of business property.

The area ruled over by the Borough Council is not co-
terminous, unfortunately, with the Lewisham Union or the
Parliamentary Borough of Lewisham, so that confusion some-
times arises on that account. It is third in size of the London
Boroughs, only Wandsworth and Woolwich being larger. It
contains 6,991 acres, and extends from Blackheath to Upper
Sydenham, touching the Boroughs of Woolwich, Greenwich,
Deptford and Camberwell within the County of London, and the
Borough of Bromley in Kent.

It has forty-two Councillors, elected by the voters, in ten
wards: three wards in Lee, Blackheath, Brockley, Lewisham
Village, Lewisham Park, Catford, Forest Hill, and Sydenham.
The election takes place triennially, and one of the first duties after
election is to appoint Aldermen, either from amongst themselves
or from outside. There are seven Aldermen altogether, and their
term of office is for six years, three retiring at the end of one
triennial period, and four three years later. The Mayor, like the
Aldermen, may be a Councillor, or may be chosen from outside,
and is elected for one year only, but may be re-elected. At the
Annual Meeting on November oth the election of the Mayor must
take place.

By the Act of 1899 Lee was combined with Lewisham to form
the Borough, and in 1904 the civil parishes of Lee and Lewisham
were also united. The same rate is made and levied throughout
the whole Borough.

M2

164 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

The wards of the Borough are as given below, with their
population in 1896, the date of the census which was used for the
purposes of limiting the- size of the wards and apportioning the
number of members of the Council. The population of each ward
in 1907 is also given, and it will be seen at a glance what growth
has taken place, and how badly proportioned the representation
is when the wards are compared one with the other. The Local
Government Board will probably be asked to make an order for
re-arranging the wards, or possibly for enlarging the Council at
some future date.

BorouGH oF LEWISHAM.

1907.
Ward 1900. Number of Population as
: Population, 1896. | Members. Estimated by the
| Medical Officer.
|
Blackheath as 7,619 3 6,880 |
Lewisham Village 11,034 3 14,995
Lewisham Park ... 9,116 3 17,464 |
Brockley ... se 73392 3 11,777
Catford... sae 10,891 6 34,033
Forest Hill 7: 13,945 6 18,374 |
Sydenham aa 23,216 9 28,962 }
Church °.. A: | 6,971
Manor aa oes . 16,749 9 7,433
South | 5,643
Totals... 99,962 | 42 152,532

It will be noticed that the population of the whole area has
increased over 50% in eleven years, the addition being equal to
the population of a large provincial town.

Lonpon County COUNCIL.

A great change in London government took*place in 1889,
when, in accordance with the Act of the preceding year, the London
County Council took over the powers and duties of the Metro-
politan Board of Works. The London County Council then be-
came the authority for the main drainage of London, took over the
control of the Fire Brigade, and have since had a large number
of other duties put upon them. Carrying out the Housing and
Health Acts, and the control of Lunatic Asylums, taken over from
the County Justices, form part of their work, and in 1892 they
became the authority for Technical Education in the County.
More recently, in 1903, the whole of the work formerly done
by the School Board was handed over to the London County
Council, together with the control and maintenance of the Volun-

OUR LOCAL AUTHORITIES. 165

tary Schools, or, as they are now called, Non-Provided Schools.
In addition to the Elementary Education, they had to continue
the Technical Education work, and powers were also given them
to deal with Secondary Schools. This last work is being carried
out by subsidising some of the Secondary Schools already in
existence, and by building and maintaining schools of their
own, while their Scholarship Scheme provides for the transfer of
a large number of children from the Elementary to Secondary
Schools. -There are eighteen London County Council Provided
Schools in the Borough supplying nearly 20,000 school seats, and
fourteen Non-Provided Schools with over 4,000 seats. The Council
Schools are being added to shortly, and there is a new Non-Pro-
vided School contemplated in the High Street connected with the
Roman Catholics. There are also excellent Public Secondary
Schools: Colfe’s Grammar School, St. Dunstan’s College, and a
new school on the Hilly Fields established by the Council, all for
boys; and for girls, the Blackheath High School, the Lewisham
Grammar School, the Sydenham Secondary School, and Manor
Mount School, Forest Hill.

Lewisham is represented by two Councillors, but owing to its
rapid growth it is now proposed to increase the number to four.

‘

METROPOLITAN POLICE.

In provincial towns the police force is generally controlled by
a Watch Committee of the Town Council, but in London, outside
the City boundaries, where the Corporation controls the police, the
force is governed from the Home Office. The area for the Metro-
politan Police work was first fixed by the Metropolitan Police Act
of 1829, when certain parts of Middlesex, Kent and Surrey (not
including the City of London) were constituted. A further Act ten
years later provided for the addition of any further parts of the
Central Criminal Court district being added by an order in Council,
so that any place situated not more than fifteen miles in a straight
line from Charing Cross may be placed under the supervision of
the Metropolitan Police. The district at present contains 688
square miles. The Police Acts provide for the necessary money
for maintenance, etc., being obtained from the local rating
authorities by warrants for sums payable out of the poor rates.
The amount must not exceed a rate of gd. in the 4, and Parlia-
ment bears one-quarter of the total cost. There are fourteen
police-court divisions, with a court to each, Lewisham Borough
being included in the Greenwich Division.

METROPOLITAN WATER BOARD.

Until quite recently the Borough was supplied with water by
two distinct companies, the Kent Water Works in the eastern and

166 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

larger portion of the area, and the Lambeth Water Works in the
western portion. After many attempts at buying out the Water
Companies, an Act was at last passed establishing a Water Board
for London and a large area around it, and we now have to pay
our rate to this body, which was established by the Metropolis
Water Act of 1902, and took over the Companies’ undertakings in
1904. In still more remote times water was obtained from the
streams and wells, Lady Well being a notable example, and it is of
interest to note that the first supply by means of pipes took place
in 1809, in the Parish of St. Mary, under the Kent Waterworks Act.

The Lambeth Company, by an Act of 1848, was authorised to
supply a portion of Lewisham to the west of the Ravensbourne,
and in 1894 the Southwark and Vauxhall Company was empowered
to supply a small portion of Lewisham, which was cut off from the
Lambeth Company by the London, Chatham and Dover Railway.
Lee has been supplied by the Kent Company under the Act of 1809.

LocaL CHARITIES.

Lewisham, like nearly all old towns, has been endowed from
time to time with charitable bequests, left for the benefit of the
poor. These, by a scheme of the Charity Commissioners, are
managed by a body called the Trustees of the Lewisham Parochial
Charities. The Vicar of Lewisham and the Churchwardens are
ex-officio members, together with a number of elected members now
appointed by the Borough Council, The charities include monies
for the maintenance of certain almshouses, for educational purposes,
and for gifts of money and kind to poor persons at Christmas and
Easter annually. The Trustees meet at the Town Hall.

JustTIcES OF THE PEACE.

Justices of the Peace formerly had considerable powers, which
have nearly all been given to newer authorities as they have been
established from time to time—the Guardians, District Board,
Stipendiary Magistrates, etc. Those having authority in this dis-
trict are appointed to the Blackheath Division, and, like those in
other parts of the country, receive their appointment from the
Lord Chancellor. One of the most important duties now left to
them is that connected with licensing houses for the sale of in-
toxicating drinks.

REGISTRATION OF BIRTHS AND DEATHS AND MARRIAGES.

Though not looked upon as the work of the Guardians, the
registration of births and deaths so far concerns them that by an
Act of 1836, they have to form all necessary districts within their

rar

OUR LOCAL AUTHORITIES. 167

Union, appoint the Superintendent Registrar and Registrars, and
provide a Register Office, where the registers are kept. The
Register Office for Lewisham is at the Union Workhouse, and the
Superintendent Registrar is the Clerk to the Guardians. No fees
are payable to Registrars for recording births or deaths unless they
are required to visit the residence for the purpose. The register of
marriages for the district is also kept at the offices in the
Workhouse.

LuNATICS AND ASYLUMS.

To get a house licensed as a private asylum, one would not
have to go to any local authority previously mentioned. By the
Lunacy Act of 1845, eleven Commissioners of Lunacy are appointed
by the Lord Chancellor, of whom three are medical men and three
barristers, who are paid for their work. They have the power of
granting licences for private asylums and houses, and of register-
ing hospitals not under public control. The County Asylums are
governed by the London County Council, and Lewisham patients
may be sent to either of the following: Barming Heath, Cane
Hill, Banstead, Hanwell and Bexley Heath. The Imbecile Asylums
are at Caterham and Darenth.

In giving this bare outline of the work done by the Local
Governing Bodies, one is reminded that changes are again in
contemplation, and the organisation of the government of this huge
aggregation of towns, the metropolis of the Empire, is passing
through a critical period of evolution. The desire for efficiency
with the necessity for huge business undertakings which exists,
induces many proposals from various quarters which would give
more power to officialism. On the other hand the purely local
bodies are strongly against any alteration which will transfer
powers from them to the Central London Authority, or make them
merely a part of an organisation controlled by the larger Authority,
instead of being solely answerable to the electors. Suggestions
are being made for abolishing the Guardians entirely, and for
providing that their work shall be done by the London County
Council and the Borough Councils, while it is proposed that the
work of the Metropolitan Asylums Board shall be divided up, and
that body done away with. Other proposals have been put forward
for establishing a much larger body than the present London
County Council, to take under its management, not merely the
present metropolitan area, but also those districts around, which
are sometimes spoken of as Greater London.

Certainly the government of London needs simplifying and
organizing, and those who undertake the work will have to consider
how far voluntary workers can be relied upon for carrying out the
multifarious duties required to be done. On the Continent the
practice of paying for the services of the Mayor and some other
members of the town authority gives the principal power to the

168 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

officials, though it has the advantage, especially in Germany, of
securing men who make a thorough study of municipal work, who
depend for their promotion upon the success of their work, and
have therefore, in many cases practically and successfully carried
out ideas which to us appear very advanced, if not even Socialistic.
The solution in London may perhaps be found in a combination of
skilled officials with the democratically-elected bodies more fully
organised.

General Fnodexr.

ABEL, Sir John 140, 145 \
Aberdeen Terrace 68
Albacore Crescent 131
Albion Place 95
Aletasters 37, 56
Alfred the Great 19
Algernon Road 113
Alien Priories seized 36
Allen, Septimus 97

», William 97
Allen's Green 97
Almshouses, Boone's 93, 95

+3 Colfe’s 125-8

af Hatcliffe’s 139-141

“a Merchant Taylors’ 95
ae Thackeray's 131

Anderida, Forest of 21
Avenue Road 97, 98

BALDWIN, Count of Flanders 19
Bankers, Manor of 26, 85, 130
Banquel Family 85
Baring Family 87

», Road 92
Bath House 100
Baunton, Robert de 24
Beckenham Place 155
Bell Green, Sydenham 145, 150, 153
Bellingham 10, 26, 38, 39, 154
Belmont Grove 88

a Hill 3, 87

Bennett, Mirabelle 107, 142
Blackheath 5, 32
= Dangers of 27, 64

oy Digging on 35, 64

i Fair on 54, 70

ee Former extent 61, 66

= Incidents in History of
57-61

Fe Market on 54, 72

* Mills on 62

ar Montpelier Row 66
” Paragon, 66

A Park 66
“ Railway opened 91
fe Rise 72

Sports on 68
Blagdon Street 133
Blessington Road, Lee 95
Boone Family 93
Almshouses 93, 95

Borough Council 162
Borsholders 32, 35, 37
Bowness Road 138
Bradgate Road 133, 139
Brandram Road, 95
Brick Earth 7
Bridge, Kengley 153

bs Ladywell 113

cA Lee 82, 87

* Lewisham 79

“ Plough 82

House Estates 102, 114, 117

Broadfield, Broadmead 30, 145
Brockley 33, 116

53 Farm 116

an Hall 116

59 Jack 117

a Manor 26, 116, 129
Bromley Hill 5, 11, 156

a5 Hill Place 156

x Recreation Ground 12
Brooke House 97
Brooklands, 104
Brongers 145
Brownhill Road 105, 107, 138
Bulkley, Sir Richard 40
Burnt Ash (Brindish) 92
Butler’s Gardens 107

CaGE, The 83, 84
Camden House 104

35 Place, Lee 92

ae Lewisham 102

Camps Hill (Kemps Hill) 33, 106, 133
Castlands Road 145
Causeway at Catford, 141
Catford 9, 26, 33, 38, 39, 140

er Place House 42
Cator, John 66, 155
Cedars, The, Lee 87, 88
Cemetery 107, 114
Chalk Pits 77, 81
Charities, Local 166
Cheseman Family 148
Christ Church, Sydenham 151
Church Grove 113

»» House 124
Clangors 31, 138
Clare Lodge, Perry Hill 145
Clarendon Road 98
Clock Tower 96
Clowder's Farm 145

170 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

Cockshed Lane 154
Colfe, Rev. Abraham 40, 42-53
», Grammar School 40, 43, 50,

97+ 53) 74) 133
.y Library 74

» Road 142
College Park 98
7 Farm 98
Commonwealth, Lewisham in time
of 52, 53
Congregational Church 102, 105
aS aA Ae Blackheath
gI

Conservative Club, Catford 141
», Lewisham 104

Constable, Abraham 135

Cornhill, Gervaise de 24

Coroner’s Court 110

Councillors, Borough 163

Creeland Grove 145

Cresswell Hill g1

Cricket on Blackheath 70

Crofton Park 117

Croydon Canal 147, 151

Crystal Palace 150

DacrE House g1, 95
3, street 93

Dacres Road 147
Dartmouth House 17, 70, 129

” Row 53, 70

= Terrace 76
Dermody, Thomas 99, 147
Devonshire Road 148
Dickens, Charles 76
District Board of Works 162
Doggett Road 141
Domesday Book 21-24
Douai, Walter de 24
Dyer, Thomas 145

EAsTDOWN Park 95, 99
Edgar, King 20
Edmond's Family 144, 149
Education (see Schools)
Edward the Confessor, Vow of 21
Elfrida (Elstrudis), Daughter of King
Alfred 19
Eliot Bank 148
a batk 7a
5, Place 68
Elizabeth, Queen 4o, 118
Ellerslie House 81
Elliott's Works 81
Elmira Street 81
Elmwood, Catford 141
Elswick Road 81
Eltham Road 92

Enclosure of Commons Act, 1810 56,
147, 150

Ennersdale Road gg

Exchequer Place 130, 131

FARLEY Road 137
Felday Road 133
Fire Station tro
Firs, The, Lee 94
Fishing 8, 79
Fitz Family 136
Flint Implements 11, 15
Flower Hall 155
Football on Biackheath 70
Fordyce Road, 134
Forelands 102
Forest Hill 33, 147
Forster, John 145

+ Henry 155

o H. W., M.P. 154
Fossils 9
Frankpledge 28, 32
Frederick's Place 98
Frisby, Michael 129
Fuller's Place 97
Further Green 105

GEOLOGY 1-16

George Lane 135

Ghent, St. Peter's Abbey at 19
Glover's Lane 145

Glynn, John, Vicar 39, 74
Golf on Blackheath 68
Graham, Raynold 42, 53
Granville Park 68, 7
Greenaway Place 107
Grote’s Buildings 68
Grove, Sir George 152
Grubb, Henry 107

HADLEY Family 104
Hawkes, Field 146
Hawstead Road 133
Hayes 13
Heath Terrace 76
Hides in Lewisham 30
High Pavement 83

», Street in 18th Century 133
Hither Green 33, 56, 105
Hocum Pocum 133
Holbeach Road 139 :
Holloway Farm 156
Holly Hedge House 68

on Terrace 98

Holy Trinity, Lee 95
Honley Road 137
Honor Oak 42, 117
Horton Street 81
How, Ephraim 155

1» John 155

GENERAL IN. DEX. 171

INFIRMARY 130, 160

Inns :—
Black Horse and Harrow 139
Black Bull 107
Bowling Green 72
Brockley Jack 117
Castle 107
Coach and Horses 123
Crooked Billet 68
Dolphin 151
Duke of Cambridge 77
Elm Tree 137-8
George 125, 136
Golden Lion 151
Greyhound 151
Hare and Billet 68
Harrow 68

Ay Lee 92
Joiners’ Arms 83
Jolly Farmers 125
King s Arms, Southend 154
Lion and Lamb 83
Plough 76
Princess of Wales 66
Roebuck 77
Rose of Lee 95
Salisbury 84
Spotted Cow 105
Tiger's Head, Lee 92
+ 4, Southend 154

Two Brewers 147
White Hart 99

JERRARD Street 81
John’s Place 97
Jutland Road 138

KEMBLE Road 142

Kemps Hill (see Camps Hill)
Keston 14

Knapp, John 155

LADYWELL 110-2
rn Park 107, 121
5 Village 114
Lampmead Road 92
Lanier Road 106
Larking, John W. 94
Leathersellers’ Company 52;
146, 147) 153
Lee, John and Henry 81, 95
Lee Baptist Chapel 95
,, Church 90
,, ‘Green 92
»» Manor of $5

*3 33) SaOUSe 94
», Park gI

», Place 93, 95

5, Road 92

», Terrace go

1455

Lee United to Lewisham 163

Legge Family (Earls of Dartmouth)
53-56

Lethieullier, Sir John 109

Lewisham Bridge 79

Ao Church 118-121

a“? Early Assize Cases 27
Fe Early Surnames 34, 35
.¥ Green 83, 84

ce Hill 72

¥ House 109

3. Manor 32, 39) 42; 53

” Northburgh and South-
burgh in 30, 37
- Origin and meaning of 17
” Park 33, 133
; Volunteers 54
Library Free, 125
5A », Sydenham 192
Limes, The 54, 100, 101
», Grove and Villas 101
» Kilns 77 +
Lingards Road to2
Littlewood Road 134
Loampit Hill 5, 81
a Vale 81
Lock Mead 81
Local Government Board 161
London County Council 164
.. St. Lawrence Poultney in
38, 140
,, Road, Forest Hill 147
Lunatic Asylum 166

MAGNOLIA House 104
Mammoth, Remains of 13
Manor House, Perry Hill 146
,, Road, Lee 95
Manors in Lewisham 26
,, Land arrangement within 25
,, Courts and Rolls 29, 33-35
» Customs of 30, 56
Maples, The 135
Marvells, The 92
Mayow Road 152
Medusa Road 133
Metropolitan Asylums Board 161
Mills onthe Ravensbourne 23, 315 37>
76, 81, 102, 141, 154
Molesworth Street 83
Morden Hill (Trail’s Lane) 72
More, Sir Thomas 40
Morley Road 102
Mount Pleasant 54, 134-5
Mountsfield 136

NELGARDE Road 141

Northbrook, Earl of 87, 95, 156
9 Road 95

North Park Farm 106

172 BOROUGH OF LEWISHAM.

‘OBELISK, The 82
Old Road, Lee 93
Orchard, The 68

PaGE, Sir Gregory 65
Papal Bulls 25
Papillon Family 94
Park Hospital 105
Parker, Archbishop 40

= George 109

os Thomas Watson 109, 141
Pascoe Road 99
Peak (Pigg) Hill 150, 151
Penn, John 88
Pentland House, Lee 94
Perry Hill 145

a », Farm 145

AS ,, House 146

9) Rise 145

», Slough 145, 147

9, Wale 145
Pickthornes, Field 31, 142
Pilcher’s House 123
Plassey Road 138
Plough Green 77
Police 165

», Station 110
Pool, River 8, 9, 153
Population in time of Domesday 23

3 in later times 56

Porlange 102
Pound, The 28, 137, 158
Presbyterian Chapel 151
Priestfield, Perry Hill 146
Prendergast, Rev. Joseph 133
Prior of Lewisham 36
Priory, The 131

ie Farm 138 ‘

QUAGGS 99
Quaggy, The 14, 15, 76, 83, 92

RaAILWays Opened 56, 76, 81, 91, 106,
113, 147, 148.
Ramsay, John, Earl of Holderness 42
Ravensbourne River 141, 154
=p Valley 8
Recreation Grounds 114
Hilly Fields 114

9 A Home Park 152
” An Honor Oak 118
” ” Ladywell 114

” oo Mountsfield 136
” ” Sydenham and

Forest Hill 152
Rectory House, Lee 88
Rennell Street 83
Reformation, changes at 40
Registrar of Births, &c. 166
Ringstead Road 138

Romburgh 33
Roman Antiquities 17, 57
Roper, Road 57

F Wm. 40

», Margaret 40
Rosenthal 137
Roxley Road 135
Rushey Green 45, 136-9
¥% 5, Place 136
Ryecroft 133

ST. AvuGuSTINE’s Church, Honor
Oak 118
St. Bartholomew's Church, Syden-
ham 150
St. Dunstan, Archbishop 20
St. Dunstan’s College 142-3
i o> Estates 107
St. George's, Perry Hill 147
St. Germans Estate 106, 116
St. Johns Station 3
St. Laurence’s Church 140
St. Mark’s Church 98
St. Mary’ Parish Church 24, 118;
Bells 120; Chantries in 120; In-
ventory of Goods 1552, 40; Images
in 120; Fire at 121; Rebuilt 54;
Tower 38, 119, 120.
St. Stephen's Church 83
Sangley, Sanguinell, Sangwell 9, 33,
153
Schools :—
Colfe’s Grammar School 40, 43, 50,
525 531 745133
Colfe’s Reading School 130
County Council 163, 165
Catford Collegiate 136
Grammar School for Girls 130, 133
Proprietary, Blackheath go
St. Dunstan's, Catford 142
Sons of Missionaries 91
St. Mary’s National 124
Shell Road 82
Shene, Priory of 36
Shooters Hill 6
Shove Family 83
Shroffield, Shratholt, Shroffold Manor
26, 107, 130, 156
Shrouds, Field 114
Sion House 125
Skeat, Professor W. W. 15, 147
Slagrave Farm 114
Slaithwaite Road 102
Southend 8, 10, 154-5 ‘
Southfield 31, 33, 133
Springfield 133
a Park 133
Spring Rice Family 106
Stanhope, Dr. George 108
Stanstead Road 141-2, 145

GENERAL INDEX. 173

Stocks, The 83, 84
Stratford Langthorne Monastery 38,
154 ;
Streete House 121
Strodes,, Field 114
Stumps Hill 32, 33, 155
Sunderland Road 142
Sundermead go, 81
Sunninghill Road 81
Swimming Baths 113
Sydenham, Syppenham 10, 19, 26, 54
a Common 42-50, 56, 148-
153
" Hill 148
+3 Park 151
” Wells 149

THACKERAY, John 131
Thundery Mead, see Sundermead
Thurston Road 81
Toll Gate, Lee 92
a », Lewisham 83
Town Hall 140
Tyrwhitt Road 82

UNDERCLIFF Road 81

Union Guardians 159
Unitarian Church 102, 125
Urns found at Blackheath 17

VALENTINE, Jasper 129
a Family 156
Vancouver Road 145
Vestry, The 158, 163
Vicarage House 108-9

Vicars of Lewisham 37, 39, 40, 42,
108, 109

Vicar's Hill 113

Volunteers 54, 68

WALDGAVEL 31
Walerand Road 74
Wards of the Borough 164
Water Board 165
Weardale Road, Lee 95
Weatherley’s House 123
Wells at Sydenham 149

»» Park 150
Wesley, Rev. John 100
Wesleyan Churches 98, 137
West Hill, Sydenham 151

», Wickham 13

»» Wood (Sydenham) Common

44-50

Westbourne Road 142
Whitburn Road 107
Whitefoot Lane 6, 10, 154
White House Farm 154
William the Conqueror 21
Willmott’s Nursery 104
Willow Walk 139
Wisteria Road 99
Wood, Henry 104
Woodham’'s House 129, 130
Woolstone Road 145, 146
Workhouse 130, 131, 160

YEOMANRY, Blackheath 54
Yew Tree House 129

Lewisham Antiquarian Society.

The following publications are still in print, and may be obtained of
CHARLES NORTH, Printer to the above Society, at the Blackheath Press,
London, S.E.:—

I. The Registers of St. Margaret's, Lee, 1579-1754, with extracts from
Wills, etc. Edited by LELAND L. DuNCAN and ARTHUR
O. BARRON. Eight Shillings, post free.

II]. The Monumental Inscriptions in the Church and Churchyard of
St. Mary, Lewisham. Edited by HERBERT C. KirBy and
LELAND L. Duncan. Eight Shillings, post free.

III. A Calendar of all the Wills relating to the County of Kent, proved
in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, 1384-1559. Edited
by LELAND L. DuNCAN, F.s.A. Interleaved. Ten Shillings
and Sixpence, post free.

IV. The Parish Registers of St. Mary’s, Lewisham, 1558-1750, being
such portions as were saved from the fire of 1830. Edited
by LELAND L. DuNCAN, F.s.A. One Guinea, post free.

V. De Luci the Loyal, founder of Lesness Abbey. By Wi tiam E.
BALL, LL.D. One Shilling, post free.

VI. The Parish Church of St. Mary, Lewisham, with some account of
the Vicars and Curates of Lewisham. By LrELaNnpD L.
DuNCAN, F.S.A. Illustrated. Four Shillings, post free.

VII. A Short History of Colfe’s Grammar School, Lewisham Hill. By
LELAND L. Duncan, F.S.A. Demy 8vo., paper cover,
Sixpence.

VIII. The Registers of All Saints, Orpington, 1560-1754. Edited by
HERBERT C. KirBy. One Guinea, post free.

CHARLES NORTH, PRINTER AND PUBLISHER, THE BLACKHEATH Press,
Lonpon, S.E.

BRITISH
MUSEUM

= “DEC. 21

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