Mountsfield Park is a public park in

Catford Catford is a district in south east London, England, and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Lewisham. It is southwest of Lewisham itself, mostly in the Rushey Green (ward), Rushey Green and Catford South Ward (electoral subdiv ...

, near to Hither Green within the London Borough of

Lewisham Lewisham () is an area of southeast London, England, south of Charing Cross. It is the principal area of the London Borough of Lewisham, and was within the Historic counties of England, historic county of Kent until 1889. It is identified i ...

. It opened in 1905 and has been greatly enlarged. The nearest railway stations are

Hither Green Hither Green is a district in south-east London, England, in the London Borough of Lewisham. It forms the southern part of Lewisham, 6.6 miles (10.6 km) south-east of Charing Cross, and on the Prime Meridian. Growing extensively with ...

and Catford Bridge.

History of the park

The core area of the park was originally part of Mountsfield, a substantial house and grounds, built in 1845 for the noted microlepidopterist and

entomologist Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

Henry Tibbats Stainton Henry Tibbats Stainton (13 August 1822 – 2 December 1892) was an England, English entomologist. He served as an editor for two popular entomology periodicals of his period, ''The Entomologist's Annual'' and ''The Entomologist's Weekly Intellig ...

by his father as a wedding gift. The house and some of parkland lying to the south of it were bequeathed for a park by his widow in 1903, with the park opening to the public in August 1905. Over time, the park was substantially enlarged, with land bought from the School Board for London and further allotment land acquired. An area used for a short time as a football ground by

Charlton Athletic FC Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...

was added to the park in 1923/4. A bombed row of houses in George Lane was added after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and a further tranche of land formerly used as playing fields by Catford Boys School in Brownhill Road was added in 1994. The house itself, which stood in the north-east corner of the park, was demolished in 1905, but stables and outbuildings were retained and used as park keepers’ buildings until a fire destroyed them in 1969. A former museum for Stainton’s entomology collections was a tearoom until its demolition in 1981.

Layout and notable features

Today, the park extends to and there are entrances on Stainton Road, Brownhill Road, George Lane and Carswell Road. The biggest gates to the Park are on Carswell Road. Facilities include football pitches, tennis courts, ball court and children’s play area. Because of its size, location and parking, it is often used for large events, including Lewisham Borough Council’s People’s Day event in July, typically attracting crowds of over 30,000. The park also includes a bandstand, community garden, meadow grassland, and Edwardian rose garden, while areas of high ground offer views west over

and towards

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building * ...

. It is considered a key park by the borough and has a park keeper on Saturdays and Mondays.

References

External sources

Lewisham Council Mountsfield Park pageFriends of Mountsfield ParkMountsfield Park archaeological impact assessment by the London Museum, detailing park history and topography
{{Parks and open spaces in London Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Lewisham