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Clapton Pond is a pond and garden at Clapton in the 
Despite the decline of Clapton's prosperity in the 1920s and 1930s, the first half of the 20th century saw Clapton Pond at its most glorious, a perfect setting for the unique buildings situated behind the pond - the 17th-century Bishop Wood's Almshouses, the late 18th-century Pond House and the two mid 18th-century houses.
The pond and gardens have always served as a focal point for the people of Clapton, from the few farmers who worked the land hundreds of years ago, to the multi-cultural community living and working in Clapton in the 21st century, who use it for public events and as a place to relax.
The skeleton of a chicken was found at the bottom of the pond in 2011.
In recent years the Clapton Pond
Clapton Pond Neighbourhood Action Group Webpage
{{authority control Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Hackney Lakes of London Ponds of Europe Clapton, London
London Borough of Hackney
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
.
The name ‘Clapton’ or ‘farm on the hill’ is derived from the Old English words ‘clop’, meaning a lump or hill, and ‘ton’, meaning a farm.
For centuries the land was owned by the Bishops of London, and occupied by tenant farmer
A tenant farmer is a person (farmer or farmworker) who resides on land owned by a landlord. Tenant farming is an agricultural production system in which landowners contribute their land and often a measure of operating capital and management, ...
s who grew hay and food for the City of London.
The villages of Lower and Upper Clapton lay on either side of Clapton Lane, which later became the Lower and Upper Clapton Roads. Lying about halfway between the two villages was Clapton Pond, fed by a natural spring. This would have been used to irrigate the land, and supply water for the farmers and their animals.
By the late 18th century Clapton had become a fashionable place to live, with many fine country houses built for the rich merchants of London. Huguenot
The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...
and Jewish communities also moved into the area, helping to develop Clapton into a prosperous neighbourhood.
In the 19th century Clapton turned from being a sleepy backwater into a bustling London suburb and many of its grand houses were demolished to provide land for new homes. This rapid growth was increased by the opening of Clapton railway station in 1872, and the arrival of the tramways. By the 1890s, the houses on Thistlewaite, Newick, Mildenhall and Millfields Roads had been built, supplying much needed housing for newcomers.
Despite the decline of Clapton's prosperity in the 1920s and 1930s, the first half of the 20th century saw Clapton Pond at its most glorious, a perfect setting for the unique buildings situated behind the pond - the 17th-century Bishop Wood's Almshouses, the late 18th-century Pond House and the two mid 18th-century houses.
The pond and gardens have always served as a focal point for the people of Clapton, from the few farmers who worked the land hundreds of years ago, to the multi-cultural community living and working in Clapton in the 21st century, who use it for public events and as a place to relax.
The skeleton of a chicken was found at the bottom of the pond in 2011.
In recent years the Clapton Pond Neighbourhood Action Group A Neighbourhood Action Group, or NAG, is a UK initiative, set up to deal with key issues identified by a community's first public consultation. The group is coordinated by the police. This may happen in the form of a public meeting, through surveys ...
has been working to renovate the pond.
External links
Clapton Pond Neighbourhood Action Group Webpage
{{authority control Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Hackney Lakes of London Ponds of Europe Clapton, London