North Cray is a village in south-east

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, within the

London Borough of Bexley The London Borough of Bexley () is a London boroughs, London borough in south-east London, forming part of Outer London. It has a population of 248,287. The main settlements are Sidcup, Erith, Bexleyheath, Crayford, Welling and Old Bexley. The ...

. It is south-east of

Charing Cross Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Clockwise from north these are: the east side of Trafalgar Square leading to St Martin's Place and then Charing Cross Road; the Strand leading to the City; ...

. It lies on the

River Cray The River Cray is the largest tributary of the Darent. It is the prime river of outer, south-east Greater London, rising in Priory Gardens, Orpington, where rainwater percolates through the chalk bedrock of the Downs to form a pond where the ...

, east of

Sidcup Sidcup is an area of south-east London, England, primarily in the London Borough of Bexley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, bordering the London Boroughs of London Borough of Bromley, Bromley and Royal Borough of Greenwich, Greenwich. Before ...

and south of

Bexley Bexley is an area of south-eastern Greater London, England and part of the London Borough of Bexley. It is sometimes known as Bexley Village or Old Bexley to differentiate the area from the wider borough. It is located east-southeast of Char ...

, and is in the Cray Meadows

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...

, which also includes

Foots Cray Foots Cray is an area of South East London, England, within the London Borough of Bexley, Greater London. Prior to 1965 it was in the historic county of Kent. It is located south-east of Sidcup. History It took its name from Godwin Fot, a ...

History

Early history

North Cray was previously a

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...

in the

Hundred of Ruxley Ruxley (previously Rokesley, and in the Domesday Book Helmestrei) was an ancient hundred, a land division in the north west of the county of Kent, England. Its area has been mostly absorbed by the growth of London; with its name currently referr ...

Sutton-at-Hone Sutton-at-Hone is a village in the civil parish of Sutton-at-Hone and Hawley in the Borough of Dartford in Kent, England. It is located 3.5 miles south of Dartford & 3.6 miles north east of Swanley. History The place-name 'Sutton-at-Hone' is f ...

Lathe. The settlement

Ruxley Ruxley is a small settlement in southeast London, England, with no present formal boundaries. It is located southeast by east of Charing Cross,Nicholson Greater London Street Atlas Comprehensive Edition p.186 (2003) shows borough district b ...

had its own parish but it was abolished in 1557 and the area was absorbed into North Cray parish.

Modern history

North Cray was within Kent until the creation of

Greater London Greater may refer to: *Greatness, the state of being great *Greater than, in inequality (mathematics), inequality *Greater (film), ''Greater'' (film), a 2016 American film *Greater (flamingo), the oldest flamingo on record *Greater (song), "Greate ...

in 1965. From 1894 to 1934 North Cray was within the

Bromley Rural District Bromley was a rural district in north-west Kent, England from 1894 to 1934. Its area now forms part of the London Borough of Bromley in Greater London. It did not include the main settlement of the same name, which constituted the Municipal Boro ...

, then it was in the

Chislehurst and Sidcup Urban District Chislehurst and Sidcup Urban District was a local government district and civil parish in north west Kent, England from 1934 to 1965. It was formed in 1934 from the former area of Chislehurst Urban District, Sidcup Urban District and part of B ...

from 1934 to 1965; then finally the London Borough of Bexley from 1965 which remains today.

Transport

The nearest

National Rail National Rail (NR) is the trading name licensed for use by the Rail Delivery Group, an unincorporated association whose membership consists of the passenger train operating companies (TOCs) of England, Scotland, and Wales. The TOCs run the p ...

station to North Cray is Albany Park. North Cray is served by one Transport for London Bus route, the 492 bus route.

Notable people

North Cray briefly became the centre of international attention in August 1822 when

Robert Stewart, Viscount Castlereagh Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry, (18 June 1769 – 12 August 1822), usually known as Lord Castlereagh, derived from the courtesy title Viscount Castlereagh ( ) by which he was styled from 1796 to 1821, was an Anglo-Irish politician ...

, the

Foreign Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen as ...

, committed suicide at his country home

Loring Hall Loring Hall is a private mental health care facility in North Cray, London Borough of Bexley. Formerly known as Wollet Hall or Woollet Hall, it is a Grade II listed building. History The present building was constructed in 1760 on the site of ...

. Other notable people associated with the area include geologist

Joshua Trimmer Joshua Trimmer (11 July 1795 – 16 September 1857) was an English geologist born at North Cray in Kent. He was the son of Joshua Kirby Trimmer of Brentford, and grandson of Sarah Trimmer (1741–1810), author of the ''Story of the Robins'' (1786) ...

, colonial administrator

Harry Ord Sir Harry St. George Ord (17 June 1819 – 20 August 1885) was a British colonial administrator who served as Governor of Bermuda between 1861 and 1864, Governor of the Straits Settlements between 1867 and 1873, and Governor of Western Australi ...

, and cricketer John Gosling, all of whom were born in North Cray.

Neighbouring areas

References

Districts of the London Borough of Bexley Sidcup Areas of London Former civil parishes in the London Borough of Bromley Former civil parishes in the London Borough of Bexley Villages in London {{London-geo-stub