A map showing the Sydenham ward of Lewisham Metropolitan Borough as it appeared in 1916.
Originally known as Sippenham,[2] Sydenham began as a small settlement, a few cottages among the woods, whose inhabitants grazed their animals and collected wood. In the 1640s, springs of water in what is now Wells Park were discovered to have medicinal properties, attracting crowds of people to the area. Sydenham grew rapidly in the 19th century after the introduction of the Croydon Canal in 1809 which linked the Grand Surrey Canal to Croydon and a reservoir was constructed in Sydenham. However, the canal was never successful and closed in 1836[3] resulting in it being the first canal to be abandoned by an Act of Parliament. The London & Croydon Railway purchased the canal for £40,250 and quickly converted the alignment for a railway from London Bridge to West Croydon, opening in 1839. After the railway opened potential gas companies began to consider the Sydenham area with the Crystal Palace and District Gas Company having works at Bell Green, which continued production until 1969; a retail park now occupies most of the site.
The Crystal Palace
In 1851 the Great Exhibition in Hyde Park was housed in an immense glass building, called the Crystal Palace. In 1854 the building was bought by a private company, dismantled and re-erected at Penge Peak on Sydenham Hill (now Crystal Palace Park). Exhibitions, concerts, conferences and sporting events were held at the Crystal Palace (until it burned down in 1936), and Sydenham became a fashionable area with many new houses being built. In 1871 the French impressionist painter Camille Pissarro produced The Avenue, Sydenham, a largely still recognisable view on today's Lawrie Park Avenue; the painting is now owned by the National Gallery.
In 1860 the Walter Cobb department store at Lawrie Place, Kirkdale (now known as Cobbs Corner) opened, lasting until the 1980s. In 1872, the Children's Hospital, Sydenham opened. It closed in 1991, its services being now part of the University Hospital Lewisham.[4] In 1884, Upper Sydenham railway station opened on the Crystal Palace and South London Junction Railway linking Crystal Palace to London Victoria via Peckham Rye.[5] The station and the line were poorly used despite new houses being built in the area, as passengers preferred to use other stations near-by, Sydenham Hill (opening in 1863), Crystal Palace (Lower Level) and Sydenham which were on more direct routes. The ill fate of the Crystal Palace in 1936 saw patronage reduced and the route finally closed in 1954.
Sydenham was attacked by enemies during the Second World War. The gas works were a target, but were never damaged. The railway which ran through Upper Sydenham station was damaged, and some homes in the area were destroyed.
Local area
Sydenham is divided into several localities:
Apartment building on Sydenham Hill
Sydenham Hill in the Boroughs of Lewisham and Southwark runs alongside Dulwich and Sydenham Woods on one of the highest points of Greater London being 112 metres above sea level.[6] From here, the City of London skyline is visible. Sydenham Hill has an abandoned railway tunnel from the Crystal Palace and South London Junction Railway located within the Woods. Another railway tunnel (one of the longest in Britain being 1,958 metres) goes beneath on the Chatham Main Line with Sydenham Hill station at the London end serving both Sydenham Hill and the College area of Dulwich.
Upper Sydenham is also located on Sydenham Hill and is a part of the Parish of St Bartholomew. It is diverse both racially and in terms of income; the central section of Kirkdale was Sydenham's original High Street. Renamed "Kirkdale" in 1936, the area now has a small range of shops including Tesco Express, local pubs and off-licences. Sydenham School is located on Dartmouth Road with Forest Hill Library and Forest Hill Pools alongside Thorpewood Avenue. Green Flag awarded Sydenham Wells Park, the location of the once famous Springs is one of the largest parks within the postcode.
Charleville Circus in Upper Sydenham
In the area where West Hill (later renamed Westwood Hill) and Crystal Palace Park Road raise in elevation and eventually meet, many fine villas were built in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Designed in revival architectural styles, fashionable at the time, most of the properties were three or four stories high and large enough to attract more affluent residents. UK Census records suggest that many employed one or more live-in domestic staff. One of the more unusual residential streets, due to its circular arrangement is Charleville Circus,[7] subject of an in-depth One-place study. Upper Sydenham is also the location of the Sydenham Park allotments, the Sydenham electricity sub station which had a major fire in 2008[8] and the Sydenham Hill estate.
Lower Sydenham & Bell Green is the location of the Sydenham Community Library, formerly run and funded by the local council. Alongside to the library is Home Park and the Home Park estate. The Bridge Leisure Centre is located on Kangley Bridge Road, near to Lower Sydenham railway station and an industrial estate home to Clarkes coach company, many other businesses and the Beckenham and Sydenham Cricket Ground. Bell Green retail park houses the Sydenham Gas Works and a large Sainsbury's superstore, formally part of the Savacentre brand. Other retailers include B&Q, Currys PC World, Next (with Costa Coffee), Aldi and McDonald's among others. The section of Kangley Bridge Road that runs south of Lower Sydenham Station is in the London Borough of Bromley and provides land for local employment.[9]
Commercial area
Sydenham's main commercial area begins on Kirkdale around Cobbs Corner, continuing onto Sydenham Road, often known as "Sydenham High Street". It houses many independent shops, including a bakery, bookshop and several restaurants and chains stores. Furthermore, Sydenham is noted for the number of independent coffee shops.[10] There is a Post Office branch and many estate agents. After recent closures, Natwest remains the only bank with a branch in the High Street. The first ever location of the Morley's chicken chain opened in Sydenham in 1985, and remains in operation today.[11][12]
Since the Transport for London and Lewisham Council funded high street upgrade in 2012–13, there is now a monthly market located within the pocket squares, known as "Queensthorpe Square" and "Venner Square". The 18th century Greyhound pub, demolished by a developer without council permission in 2013,[13] was rebuilt and reopened in 2017.[14] Several new businesses such as a Sainsburys Local opened 2016 and Kinleigh Folkard & Hayward Estate Agents in 2021/22.[14][needs update]
Community
Sydenham has a very active community, with several groups concerning the local area. Sydenham Town is the local website for the area, where residents can also voice their opinions in an on-line form.[15] The Sydenham Society is a Civil society formed in 1972 to represent the local community. It holds local events, works with organisations and authorities as well as campaigning for improvements to the area.[16] Green Flag and Mayor of London Award winner, Sydenham Garden, was formed in 2002. It is a charity which is involved in improving the health of residents in the boroughs of Bromley and Lewisham.[17]
Sydenham with Forest Hill won a bid for the national Portas Pilot competition which provided a grant to improve high streets; extra money was provided from Lewisham Council and private developers.[18] Annually every summer since 2009, the Sydenham Arts Festival is held, where there are workshops, music, family activities etc.[19]
Conservation areas
Mayow Park was originally known as Sydenham Recreational Ground
Sydenham has seven Conservation Areas: Cobbs Corner, Dulwich Village (covering Crescent Wood Road),[20] Halifax Street, Sydenham Hill/Kirkdale, Sydenham Park and Sydenham Thorpes. Sydenham has the highest concentration of conservation areas in the London Borough of Lewisham[21]
Recreation
A number of parks are within the Sydenham postcode. Mayow Park, Lewisham's oldest municipal park[22] and Sydenham Wells Park[23] are both Green Flag Awarded. Other open spaces in Sydenham include Alexandra Recreation Ground,[24] Baxters Field,[25] Home Park[26] and Kirkdale Green.[27] Riverview Walk is a nature conservation area[28] which runs along the River Pool from Catford. Additionally, located along the borders of Sydenham, there are Crystal Palace Park, Dulwich Woods, Southend Park[29] and Sydenham Hill Woods.
Alongside Dulwich and Sydenham Hill Woods is the Dulwich and Sydenham Golf course, dating back to 1893.[30] Located on Lawrie Park Road, there is the Sydenham Tennis Club, while the Beckenham and Sydenham Cricket Ground and the Lewisham Indoor Bowls Centre are both located in the Lower Sydenham industrial estate.
Sydenham Arts
Sydenham Arts is a local charitable organisation,[31] promoting the arts for the local community, which provides free and ticketed cultural events at several festivals through the year.[32][33][34]
St Bartholomew's church, (1827–1832), at the end of Lawrie Park Avenue, featured in Camille Pissarro's painting of 1871: "The Avenue, Sydenham". The building was designed by Lewis Vulliamy.[35]
Park Court, (1936), by Frederick Gibberd, pioneering modernist development of residential flats on the estate on Lawrie Park Road adjacent to the famous Crystal Palace Park.[36]
Cobbs Corner, takes its name from a draper's shop at 291–307 Kirkdale run by Walter Cobb. The shop grew into a large department store catering to the gentry of the area. Interesting imposing dome where you can find the date on the building.
180 and 182 Kirkdale, built in the 1850s in Gothic style, with Tudor doorcases.
168–178 Kirkdale, three pairs of Italianate houses built around 1862. Number 174 was briefly the home of the conductor August Manns.
Memorial to Queen Victoria (1897), baroque-style memorial celebrating Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. Restored for Queen Elizabeth II's Silver Jubilee and designed by Alexander Hennell, a Sydenham resident and architect.
Jews Walk, it is believed that a wealthy Jewish resident planted a row of trees to define the boundary of his walk from the Common. Numbers 2,4 and 6 are classical villas dating from the 1840s. Karl Marx's daughter Eleanor lived on Jews Walk. On 9 September 2008 a blue English Heritage plaque was placed on the house to commemorate this fact.
Halifax Street, beautifully preserved street with houses dating from the 1840s. Of notice are in particular the closeness of the houses, the length of the street and the size of the gardens.
The Kirkdale Building, previously the Sydenham Public Lecture Hall, was built in 1861 by Sydenham resident Henry Dawson.
There are five non-religious primary schools in Sydenham (Alexandra, Adamsrill, Eliot Bank, Haseltine and Kelvin Grove) and three religious schools (St. Michael's, St Philip Neri and St. Bartholomew's Church of England). Sydenham contains two secondary schools, the private Sydenham High School and the state Sydenham School. Both of these schools are exclusively for girls. Forest Hill (for boys) is just outside Sydenham across from Mayow Park. Other secondary schools close by include Harris Bromley (for girls), Harris Crystal Palace, Sedgehill and the private Dulwich College. There are no colleges in Sydenham, but Sydenham and Forest Hill schools have a joint sixth form.
Population
According to the 2011 census, the SE26 postcode area had a population of 28,378, with 13,714 males and 14,664 females.[1]
Famous residents
Sir George Grove English Heritage Blue Plaque at Westwood HillBlue plaque marking the home of Ernest Shackleton at 12 Westwood Hill, SydenhamBurnage Court, Lawrie Park Avenue, Sydenham, complete with 1888 datestone
A-ha – Norwegian pop band lived in Sydenham and recorded early demos at Rendezvous studios on Kirkdale with John Ratcliff.[37][38]
John Logie Baird — inventor of both the first publicly demonstrated colour television system, and the first purely electronic colour television picture tube[41]
Lionel Logue CVO — Australian speech therapist and stage actor who successfully treated, among others, King George VI. He lived in a villa named Beechgrove from 1933 to 1940
The South Circular Road passes close by in Forest Hill. High Street improvements being funded by Transport for London from September 2012 are making the increasingly busy Sydenham Road (A212) more user friendly. So far, Kirkdale to Mayow Road has been completed, with Mayow Road to Kent House Road currently, as of December 2013, being upgraded. The Kent House Road to Bell Green section is still waiting for funding to be found.[69]
Sydenham is approximately 7 miles (11 kilometres) to the south east of Charing Cross. It is also at the centre of many of south London's major shopping districts being 3 mi (5 km) south of Lewisham, 3.2 mi (5.1 km) north west of Bromley and 3+1⁄2 mi (5.6 km) north of Croydon.
Upper Sydenham and Sydenham Hill is located on the large Norwood Ridge formed of London Claygate beds deposits; Sydenham Hill is one of the highest points in London at 367 feet (112 m). Sydenham Hill Wood is a nine-hectare[70] nature reserve located west of Sydenham Hill Road, along with Dulwich and Sydenham Hill Golf course. The hill was once covered by the Great North Wood which covered all of Sydenham, Norwood, Woodside, Gipsy Hill etc. In the 19th Century it was home to the spa and health resort of Sydenham Wells.
The western parts of Sydenham, from Upper Sydenham and Forest Hill towards Crystal Palace Park is a more leafy, suburban area with some parts like the Lawrie Park and Thorpes areas being more affluent than others. Lower Sydenham at the bottom of more gentle slopes being east of Upper Sydenham, south of Forest Hill and west of Bellingham. The River Pool, a 5.1 mi (8.2 km) tributary of the River Ravensbourne straddles the east of Lower Sydenham along the Hayes railway line.
Climate
The nearest Met Office climate station is based in Greenwich Park:
The Beast of Sydenham of 2005, was a large, panther-like black animal, which had been spotted around the area, and attacked a man. The beast was said to be 6 ft in length and 3 ft in height.[80][81]
In March 2022, a crested caracara, named Jester, which escaped London Zoo, was spotted in Mayow Park, Sydenham.[82]
^David Charles, Rose (2016). Oscar Wilde's Elegant Republic: Transformation, Dislocation and Fantasy in fin-de-siècle Paris. Cambridge Scholars. p. 39. ISBN978-1443887632.
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