You are reading a single comment by @mashton and its replies.
Click here to read the full conversation.
London Fixed Gear and Single-Speed is a community of predominantly fixed gear and single-speed cyclists in and around London, UK.
This site is supported almost exclusively by donations. Please consider donating a small amount regularly.
lynx
@mashton
"Welcome to Old Paradise Gardens
This site is located on an area of land once used from 1703 to 1853 as a Burial ground for the Parish of Lambeth. The land was originally donated to the Parish by Thomas Tenison, Archbishop of Canterbury (1636-1715) to meet an urgent need for burial space. It was extended in 1816 but after becoming full was closed in 1853. A watch house was erected in 1825 on Lambeth High Street far holding the drunk and disorderly but was removed and its site is now marked with a commemorative stone.
By 1980 it was becoming neglected and so the Vestry, a predecessor to Lambeth Council, converted it into a public garden, which was completed in 1884. Gravestones from the original burial space moved to boundary walls, with the original mortuary left standing. It was enlarged when the site of a glass bottle factory in Whitgift Street was purchased tor £700. Since the late 1970s Lambeth High Street Recreation Ground has been re-landscaped with grassy mounds, pergolas, shrubs spring bulbs, and a water feature and playground are also provided to play and relaxation."