Tilgate is one of 14 neighbourhoods within the town of

Crawley Crawley () is a large town and borough in West Sussex, England. It is south of London, north of Brighton and Hove, and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Crawley covers an area of and had a population of 106,597 at the time of th ...

in West Sussex, England. The area contains a mixture of privately developed housing, self-build groups and ex-

council housing Public housing in the United Kingdom, also known as council estates, council housing, or social housing, provided the majority of rented accommodation until 2011 when the number of households in private rental housing surpassed the number in so ...

. It is bordered by the districts of

Furnace Green Furnace Green is one of 14 neighbourhoods in Crawley in West Sussex, England, and a local government ward. Furnace Green is located to the east of the town centre. It is bordered by Tilgate to the south west, Three Bridges to the north and Maidenb ...

to the north east,

Southgate Southgate or South Gate may refer to: Places Australia *Southgate, Sylvania *Southgate Arts and Leisure Precinct, an area within Southbank, Victoria Canada *Southgate, Ontario, a township in Grey County * Southgate, Middlesex County, Ontario Ed ...

to the north west and Broadfield to the south west.

History

Tilgate was first mentioned in 13th- and 14th-century tax returns with the inclusion of land owned by William Yllegate (or de illegate). Within the Tilgate forest in the 17th century was a

furnace A furnace is a structure in which heat is produced with the help of combustion. Furnace may also refer to: Appliances Buildings * Furnace (central heating): a furnace , or a heater or boiler , used to generate heat for buildings * Boiler, used t ...

(''Tilgate Furnace''). In the 1860s a large house (''Tilgate Mansion'') and estate was created of 2,185 acres (which included of woodland). The entrance and Tilgate Forest Lodge is near

Three Bridges railway station Three Bridges railway station is located in and named after the village of Three Bridges, which is now a district of Crawley, West Sussex, England. It is at the point where the Arun Valley Line diverges from the Brighton Main Line and Thamesli ...

. The supply ponds for the furnace survived and became ''Tilgate Lake'' within the estate. The estate was associated with the Joliffe family (and later the Nix family of bankers). The estate was sold by auction on 7 September 1939; this included the park and mansion and properties in

Three Bridges Three Bridges may refer to: England *Three Bridges, West Sussex, a neighbourhood within the town of Crawley **Three Bridges F.C., an association football team **Three Bridges railway station **Three Bridges depot, a rail depot * Three Bridges, Linc ...

. The mansion was converted into flats, used by the Canadian Army during the Second World War but later demolished. The lodge house is now a bank in Three Bridges. The estate became '' Tilgate Park''.

Tilgate: Crawley New Town

With the creation of Crawley New Town in 1947 the Tilgate area was proposed as a neighbourhood. Construction began in 1955. A reserved area for housing ''Tilgate East'' was developed as

. Tilgate had a population of 7,130 in 1981.

Tilgate: Crawley

Tilgate is the home of Tilgate Park, a large area of forest run by the Forestry Commission. The forest contains Tilgate Nature Reserve and Wild Breeds Centre, three recreational lakes (Campbells Lake, Silt Lake and Titmus Lake), park areas, Tilgate Golf Course, and several small commercial buildings known as 'huts' which are used by small sports and hobby clubs and businesses. The Thomas Bennett School (opened in 1958) was one of the earliest Comprehensive Schools in England, and by 1967 was the largest

secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...

in England. It was named after Sir Thomas Bennett, chairman of Crawley Development Corporation. There are also two Primary schools within the area, as well as a parade of shops, churches, medical facilities, "The Hoppers" public house and other amenities. The area is one of the quietest in Crawley, as the population is largely made up of older residents. K2, a new leisure centre for Crawley, was opened in November 2005 on land formerly belonging to Thomas Bennett School.

References

* Elrington, C.R (editor) (1987) ''The Victoria History of the County of Sussex'' (Vol IV, Part 3), Oxford University Press. * Gwynne, Peter. (1990) ''A History of Crawley'' (2nd Edition), Philmore.

External links

All About Sussex guide to Tilgate Park

Crawley Borough Council Water Guide

Tilgate Forest Golf Centre
{{Crawley Neighbourhoods in Crawley