Napsbury Park is a residential development in

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

, England. It is located to the north of London, at Junction 22 of the

M25 motorway The M25 or London Orbital Motorway is a major road encircling most of Greater London. The motorway is one of the most important roads in the UK and one of the busiest. Margaret Thatcher opened the final section in 1986, making the M25 the lon ...

and Junction 6 of the M1 motorway. It is protected by a

Conservation Area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

. It is near

St Albans St Albans () is a cathedral city in Hertfordshire, England, east of Hemel Hempstead and west of Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Hatfield, north-west of London, south-west of Welwyn Garden City and south-east of Luton. St Albans was the first major ...

and is part of the St Albans District. It falls within the Parish Council area of London Colney.

Early history

Prehistoric Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...

or Roman activity is indicated by cropmarks to the east of the railway in Napsbury hospital grounds; and again on the north side of the hospital. Documentary evidence suggests the existence of a lost medieval settlement. Early Napsbury is mentioned in the Domesday Book, when it was called Absa and owned by Cedric, a vassall of Archbishop Stigand: it had a house called Tylehouse which was associated with tile and

brick A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...

workings. It is known that there were people settled there with tofts, smallholdings or farms, since tithes were payable in the 14th century. The house on the Napsbury estate was later owned by Sir Nicholas Bacon, father of Sir Francis Bacon.

Napsbury Hospital

The site became occupied by the Middlesex County Asylum in 1905. This facility, which became the Napsbury Hospital, continued to operate on the site until its official closure in 1998.

Redevelopment

After the closure of the hospital, Crest Nicholson acquired the site and built the current residential development around the existing wood and parkland areas. Now consisting of approximately 500 residences spread over newly built detached, terraced and townhouses also apartments converted from the original buildings. Features include multi-use tennis courts, cricket and sports pitches, a sports pavilion building and footpaths throughout the extensive woodland. There is currently planning permission for the first commercial and retail units on the site, which will build upon the settlement's village status.St Albans City - www.stalbans.gov.uk

Transport

Bus

The 658 bus directly serves Napsbury Park and connects the estate with St Albans, London Colney,

Shenley Shenley is a village and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England, between Barnet and St Albans. The village is located 14 miles from Central London. History The history of Shenley stretches back a thousand years or more – it is mentioned in ...

and Borehamwood. The nearby bus stop at London Colney High Street is called upon by * the 602 bus which connects to St Albans, Watford,

Radlett Radlett is a village in Hertfordshire, England, between Elstree and St Albans on Watling Street, with a population of 8,042. It is in the council district of Hertsmere in the south of the county, and is covered by two wards; Aldenham East and ...

and Hatfield * the 84 bus which connects with St Albans, Potters Bar and

Barnet Barnet may refer to: People *Barnet (surname) * Barnet (given name) Places United Kingdom *Chipping Barnet or High Barnet, commonly known as Barnet, one of three focal towns of the borough below. *East Barnet, a district of the borough below; an ...

Rail

Napsbury railway station Napsbury railway station was built by the Midland Railway in 1905 on its line to St Pancras station. It was never more than an island platform between the slow lines, with a siding serving the Middlesex County Asylum at Napsbury, and closed in ...

was built by the Midland Railway in 1905 on its line to St Pancras station. Consisting of an island platform between the slow lines, with a siding serving the Middlesex County Asylum at Napsbury, it closed in 1959.

Radlett railway station Radlett railway station is on the Midland Main Line in England, serving the village of Radlett, Hertfordshire. It is down the line from London St Pancras and is situated between to the south and to the north. Its three-letter station code is ...

is still open.

References

{{Reflist, 33em

External links

Residents association website
Grade II listed parks and gardens in Hertfordshire Hamlets in Hertfordshire City of St Albans