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| Honor Oak | |
|---|---|
 Shops along Honor Oak Park | |
  Honor Oak Location withinGreater London | |
| OS grid reference | TQ355745 |
| • Charing Cross | 5 mi (8.0 km) NW |
| London borough | |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LONDON |
| Postcode district | SE23, SE22 |
| Dialling code | 020 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| London Assembly | |
| 51°27′02″N0°03′06″W / 51.4506°N 0.0516°W /51.4506; -0.0516 | |
Honor Oak is an inner suburban area principally of theLondon Borough of Lewisham, with part in theLondon Borough of Southwark. It is named after the oak tree onOne Tree Hill thatElizabeth I is reputed to have picnicked under.
One Tree Hill is the central feature of Honor Oak's landscape. It is at the northern end of a string of hills stretching from Croydon, previously part of theGreat North Wood. A legend tells that on 1 May 1602,Elizabeth I picnicked withSir Richard Bulkeley of Beaumaris in theLewisham area by an oak tree at the summit of a hill.[1][2] The tree came to be known as the Oak of Honor. The tree surrounded by railings is an oak, and was planted in 1905 as a successor to the historic one.[3] In addition to its connection withQueen Elizabeth I, the hill is reputedly the site of the final defeat of QueenBoudica by the Romans in 61AD, whileDick Turpin allegedly used it as a lookout post.[4]
A new development of exclusive houses was started in the 1780s on what is now Honor Oak Road. This gave rise to both Honor Oak andForest Hill, London communities.[5] These localities have drifted about a mile apart North and South respectively since, aided by the arrival of a canal and then railways.
Between 1809 and 1836, a canal ran through Honor Oak as part of its route fromNew Cross toCroydon. It also went viaForest Hill andSydenham. The canal was replaced by a railway line after 1836, and this now forms part of the line betweenLondon Bridge andCroydon.Honor Oak Park railway station opened in 1886 on this line.Honor Oak railway station was opened in 1862 but closed in 1958 as part of the closure of theCrystal Palace and South London Junction Railway, originally built to take passengers toThe Crystal Palace. The remains of the embankment of this line can still be seen, forming part of Brenchley Gardens.[6]
Thebeacon at the summit of One Tree Hill was erected to commemorate the Silver Jubilee of King George V in 1935. It was subsequently used for theCoronation ofQueen Elizabeth II, her silver and golden jubilees and also at the Millennium. Beacons on the same site were used to give warning of invasion by theSpanish and later theFrench. The Hill was also the site ofWatson's General Telegraph, a relay system established in 1841 linking London with shipping in theEnglish Channel[7]
Honor Oak & Forest Hill Golf Club (now defunct) was founded in 1893. The club disappeared at the time of WW2.[8] This area is nowCamberwell New Cemetery.
In 1896, One Tree Hill was due to become part of a golf club, but there were riots and demonstrations by local people. This fell through, and later it was bought byMetropolitan Borough of Camberwell and made into a public open space by 1905.
DuringWorld War I a gun emplacement was erected on the hill to counter the threat of raids byZeppelinairships.
One part of the open space eventually became a nine-hole golf course called the Aquarius Golf Club.[9] It lies on top of the cavernous Honor Oak Reservoir, constructed between 1901 and 1909. When it was completed the reservoir was the largest brick built underground reservoir in the world[10] and even today remains one of the largest inEurope.[11] The reservoir now forms part of the Southern extension of theThames Water Ring Main.
Thesouthern road bridge, which crosses the railway by thestation, has relief sculpture parapets which were one of the first commissions forWilliam Mitchell.[12]
In 2010Honor Oak Park railway station became part of theLondon Overground extension, providing residents with direct links intoShoreditch andHighbury and Islington. As with neighbouring Forest Hill, Honor Oak is becoming increasingly desirable as a peaceful, leafy suburb with good transport links into the centre of town, and slightly lower-than-average property prices.
The ArchitectWalter Segal worked with Lewisham council in the 1980's in 2 self build schemes in the area, phase 2 is Walters Way (phase 1 Segal Close is a little further away towards Catford). Buildings are featured in this websiteCelebration of Walter Segal buildings.
Honor Oak enjoys a number of well regarded restaurants, cafes, and pubs.
These include the Babur Gourmet Indian Restaurant, described as "one of the best Indian restaurants in London" byThe Independent newspaper,[13] the Sardinian restaurant, Le Querce,[14] Amrutha, avegan restaurant,[15] and a sourdough pizza restaurant, Miss Margherita.
The high street has four cafes: The Oak Cafe, Two Spoons,[16] (which also opens as a cocktail bar in the evening), Early Hours (which is also a florist) and Daydreamer.
Localpublic houses areThe Chandos,The General Napier,The Honor Oak andThe Brockley Jack.
On the eastern side of One Tree Hill is a large allotment site called "One Tree Hill Allotment Society", with views over towards Lewisham and Bromley. The site having over 100 plots and fairly long waiting list. Popular Open Day in September and occasional other public events.
Sir John Cowan (1774–1842), chandler andLord Mayor of London (1837–1838), lived on Honor Oak Road.[5] In the year of her accession 1837,Queen Victoria visited theCity of London; he received a baronetcy in recognition of the hospitality she was shown.[17]
Irish-born political activistJim Connell (1852–1929), author ofThe Red Flag, lived at 22a Stondon Park (which is on the border ofCrofton Park and Honor Oak) from 1915–1929.[18] He wrote the anthem while on a train journey to his home inNew Cross in December 1889.[19]
Engineer and astronomerEdwin Clark (1814–1894) lived at Observatory House on the corner of Honor Oak Park and Honor Oak Road from 1857–1879. He is principally known for his hydraulic boat lifts.Robert Stephenson left him money in his will which he used to build a telescope on his house. Only the gates survive now.[20]
PoetWalter de la Mare lived at what is now 61 Bovill Road from 1877–c.1887.[21]
Leslie Paul (1905–1985), founder of theWoodcraft Folk and author ofAngry Young Man, lived on Bovill Road.[22]
FootballersIan Wright andDavid Rocastle both grew up in the area, living on the Honor Oak Estate.[23]
The comedianSpike Milligan (1918–2002) lived at 22 Gabriel Street and 50 Riseldine Road after coming to England from India in the 1930s.
Desmond Dekker (1941–2006) lived at flat 4, Dunoon Gardens, Devonshire Road in the 1980s and 1990s.[24]
Other famous residents have included include actorTimothy Spall andsinger Gabrielle.
Districts closest to Honor Oak | |
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