Merton Park is a suburb in the

London Borough of Merton The London Borough of Merton () is a borough in Southwest London, England. The borough was formed under the London Government Act 1963 in 1965 by the merger of the Municipal Borough of Mitcham, the Municipal Borough of Wimbledon and the Merton ...

. It is situated between

Colliers Wood Colliers Wood is an area in south west London, England, in the London Borough of Merton. It is a mostly residential area, but has a busy high street around Colliers Wood tube station on London Underground's Northern line. The high street is part ...

Morden Morden is a district and town in south London, England, within the London Borough of Merton, in the ceremonial county of Greater London. It adjoins Merton Park and Wimbledon to the north, Mitcham to the east, Sutton to the south and Worcester ...

South Wimbledon South Wimbledon is an area of Wimbledon in south-west London in the London Borough of Merton, England. History Toponymy It is marked on an Ordnance Survey map of 1876 as New Wimbledon and on a 1907 map as South Wimbledon. The name is derived fr ...

and Raynes Park. It is 11 miles (11.7 km) southwest of Charing Cross. The area is part of the historic

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...

of Merton in West Surrey.

History

Until the last quarter of the 19th century, the parish of Merton was mainly rural. The area now known as Merton Park was farm land owned by

City A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

merchant John Innes who was the local "

lord of the manor Lord of the Manor is a title that, in Anglo-Saxon England, referred to the landholder of a rural estate. The lord enjoyed manorial rights (the rights to establish and occupy a residence, known as the manor house and demesne) as well as seig ...

". The rapid development of Wimbledon to the north encouraged Innes to develop his land for housing. He took as his model the garden suburbs (particularly Bedford Park in Chiswick) and developed the tree-lined roads of detached and semi-detached houses for which the area is known. The northern section of Merton Park each side of Kingston Road (A238) is now a conservation area. The southern section, roughly from Circle Gardens southwards, was developed in the 1920s and 1930s, stimulated by the opening of the

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The ...

station at

. Housing here was developed on a smaller scale and is not as distinguished, nor is the area designated for conservation.

Geography

The approximate boundaries of the Merton Park area can be considered to be Kingston Road ( A238) to the north, Dorset Road ( B285) and Morden Road (

A24 A24 is an American independent entertainment company that specializes in film and television production, as well as film distribution. It is based in New York City. A24 was founded in 2012 by Daniel Katz, David Fenkel and John Hodges. Pr ...

) to the east, Martin Way to the south and Cannon Hill Lane to the west. Additionally, the area north of Kingston Road between Merton Hall Road, Avebury Road and Kingswood Road is often included. This definition of the area does not correspond directly with the Local Government

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

of the same name which for administrative convenience includes areas as far south as

Morden South railway station Morden South railway station is in Morden in the London Borough of Merton. The station is served by Thameslink trains on the Sutton Loop Line. It is in Travelcard Zone 4. The station is very close to the Bait-ul-Futuh Mosque. History Parliame ...

. The area contains two state schools: Merton Park Primary and

Rutlish School Rutlish School is a state comprehensive school for boys, formerly a grammar school with the same name originally located on Rutlish Road, Merton Park, and relocated in 1957 on nearby Watery Lane, Merton Park, in southwest London. History The sc ...

(boys) and is almost entirely residential in character without shops or pubs except a bar at the Old Rutlishians ('Old Ruts') playing field and clubhouse in Poplar Road. The area's public transport consists mostly of buses with its only train station being

South Merton Railway Station South Merton railway station is located in Morden, the administrative centre of the London Borough of Merton in South London. The station is served by Thameslink trains on the Sutton Loop Line. It is in Travelcard Zone 4. History Parliamentary ...

. The

Tramlink London Trams, previously Tramlink and Croydon Tramlink, is a light rail tram system serving Croydon and surrounding areas in South London, England. It began operation in 2000, the first tram system in the London region since 1952. It is manage ...

stop for Merton Park, Merton Park tram stop is not actually situated inside the area. The area is not served by the London Underground however it is close to the stations of, Wimbledon (

District line The District line is a London Underground line running from in the east and Edgware Road in the west to in west London, where it splits into multiple branches. One branch runs to in south-west London and a short branch, with a limited serv ...

(

Northern line The Northern line is a London Underground line that runs from North London to South London. It is printed in black on the Tube map. The Northern line is unique on the Underground network in having two different routes through central London, tw ...

) and

(

). The area is centred on the historic parish church, St Mary's. The church was founded in the 12th century by the Augustinian order of the nearby

Merton Priory Merton Priory was an English Augustinian priory founded in 1114 by Gilbert Norman, Sheriff of Surrey under King Henry I (1100–1135). It was situated within the manor of Merton in the county of Surrey, in what is today the Colliers Wood area ...

of which only the Western Gate remains. Parks in the area include: * John Innes Park & Recreation Ground * Mostyn Gardens * Kendor Gardens * Church Lane Playing fields

Notable people

John Dimmer, recipient of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

in 1914, lived here. In the arts, folk singer

Sandy Denny Alexandra Elene MacLean Denny (6 January 1947 – 21 April 1978) was an English singer who was lead singer of the British folk rock band Fairport Convention. She has been described as "the pre-eminent British folk rock singer". After briefly w ...

was born here.

Ronnie Wood Ronald David Wood (born 1 June 1947) is an English rock musician, best known as an official member of the Rolling Stones since 1975, as well as a member of Faces and the Jeff Beck Group. Wood began his career in 1964, playing guitar with a ...

from the Rolling Stones lived on Mostyn Road with his wife Jo and their children after they moved back to the UK from America in 1986. They left the area in 1991.

References

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/time-and-place-jo-wood-crgj2r9dmnz

External links

St. Mary the Virgin, MertonMerton Park Ward Residents AssociationLove Merton Park
{{London Districts Areas of London Districts of the London Borough of Merton

History

Geography

Notable people

See also

References

External links