St John's Wood Church Grounds is a disused graveyard which is now a public park in

St. John's Wood St John's Wood is a district in the City of Westminster, London, lying 2.5 miles (4 km) northwest of Charing Cross. Traditionally the northern part of the ancient parish and Metropolitan Borough of Marylebone, it extends east to west from ...

in London. It is a Site of Borough Importance for Nature Conservation, Grade 1, and the only Local Nature Reserve in the

City of Westminster The City of Westminster is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and London boroughs, borough in Inner London. It is the site of the United Kingdom's Houses of Parliament and much of the British government. It occupies a large area of cent ...

. Since 2004 it has received the

Green Flag Award The Green Flag Award is an international accreditation given to publicly accessible parks and open spaces, managed under licence from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, a UK Government department, by Keep Britain Tidy, ...

for excellent green spaces. It is owned and managed by Westminster Council.

History

St. John's Wood was part of the

Great Forest of Middlesex The Forest of Middlesex was an ancient woodland covering much of the county of Middlesex, England, that was north of the City of London and now forms the northern part of Greater London. A path was cut through the forest for the creation of Watlin ...

in the medieval period. From 1323 the land was owned by the Knights of the Order of St. John, after whom the area is named, but at the Dissolution of the Monasteries it passed to the Crown. In the 1732 the site was sold to Henry Samuel Eyre, and in the 18th century it was agricultural land on two fields called Great Garden Field and Willow Tree Field. The area began to be developed in the 19th century, and

St John's Wood Church St John's Wood Church is a Church of England parish church in St John's Wood, London. The church is located on Lord's Roundabout, between Lord's Cricket Ground and Regent's Park, and has a Grade II* listing. The parish is in the Archdeaconry of ...

and burial ground were consecrated in 1814. The burial ground was closed in 1855, and converted to a public garden in 1886. There are thought to be around 50,000 graves, including those of the artist

John Sell Cotman John Sell Cotman (16 May 1782 – 24 July 1842) was an English marine and landscape painter, etcher, illustrator, author and a leading member of the Norwich School of painters. Born in Norwich, the son of a silk merchant and lace dealer, Cot ...

and the prophetess Joanna Southcott.

The grounds

The site has formal flower beds, a wildlife area and a children's playground. The wildlife area has hedges, a meadow and woodland in an area mixed with gravestones, and it is a good site for butterflies. It is located opposite

Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and ...

between St John's Wood High Street and Wellington Road.

References

External links

* * * {{LNRs in Greater London Local nature reserves in Greater London Parks and open spaces in the City of Westminster St John's Wood