| Croydon | |
|---|---|
 Croydon Town Hall | |
| Area | |
| • 1911 | 9,012 acres (36.5 km2)[1] |
| • 1931 | 12,617 acres (51.1 km2)[1] |
| • 1961 | 12,672 acres (51.3 km2)[1] |
| Population | |
| • 1911 | 169,551[1] |
| • 1931 | 233,032[1] |
| • 1961 | 252,501[1] |
| Density | |
| • 1911 | 19/acre |
| • 1931 | 18/acre |
| • 1961 | 20/acre |
| History | |
| • Origin | Parish ofCroydon,Surrey |
| • Created | 1889 |
| • Abolished | 1965 |
| • Succeeded by | London Borough of Croydon |
| Status | County borough |
| Government | Croydon Corporation |
| • HQ | Katharine Street, Croydon |
| • Motto | Sanitate Crescimus (May we grow in health) |
 Arms of the county borough corporation | |
TheCounty Borough of Croydon was a local government district in and around the town ofCroydon in north eastSurrey, England from 1889 to 1965. Since 1965 the district has been part of theLondon Borough of Croydon withinGreater London.
Alocal board of health was formed for the parish ofCroydon St John the Baptist in 1849. On 9 March 1883 the town received a charter of incorporation to become amunicipal borough. The borough was granted acommission of the peace and a separate court ofquarter sessions in 1885 and 1889 respectively.[2] Under theLocal Government Act 1888 it became an autonomouscounty borough in 1889. The area of the original borough included part of Norwood andAddiscombe,Bensham, Croham,Coombe, Haling,Norbury,Shirley,Waddon andWoodside.[2]
From 1894 to 1915 it was adjacent toCroydon Rural District to the south, east and west and theCounty of London to the north. The rural district was abolished in 1915, but the county borough was unsuccessful in its attempt to annex the area. The only significant extension of the borough boundaries was in 1925, when theparish ofAddington was absorbed.[3]
The borough rantrams until they became the responsibility of theLondon Passenger Transport Board in 1933. The borough ran its ownfire brigade and ambulance service until it became a London Borough.
In 1954 Croydon Corporation unsuccessfully petitioned the Queen for the grant ofcity status. At the time, Croydon was the only county borough with a population in excess of 200,000 not to be a city.[4]
In 1965 the county borough was abolished and its former area transferred to Greater London to be combined with that ofCoulsdon and Purley Urban District to form theLondon Borough of Croydon.
On incorporation the borough was divided into six wards (Central, East, South, South Norwood, Upper Norwood and West) each returning six councillors. Together with 12aldermen and amayor, these formed the town council.[2] In 1905 a new North ward was formed, and the council was enlarged to 14 aldermen and 42 councillors.[5] By 1918 a new ward of Bensham Manor had been created and on further enlargement in 1925 Addington ward was formed, with the numbers of aldermen and councillors being increased to 18 and 54 respectively.[3]
The wards were reorganised in 1930, with 15 wards each returning three councillors[6] From then until the abolition of the county borough the council consisted of the mayor, 15 aldermen and 45 councillors.
The 1930 wards were:
The wards were slightly reorganised with the creation ofShirley ward from parts of the Addington and East wards by 1955.[7][8][9]
From its incorporation the council was controlled by parties allied to theConservative Party, known as the Coalition Party or Ratepayers Association. The Ratepayers Association was more formally organised as an anti-Labour Party grouping after 1900, and was supported by both the Conservatives and theLiberals, who seldom fielded candidates.[6]
Croydon was constituted a parliamentary constituency in 1885, with the same boundaries as the borough. In 1918 the county borough was divided intoNorth andSouth constituencies. For the general election of 1950 representation increased to three:Croydon North,East andWest. In 1955 the boundaries were altered to createCroydon North East,North West andSouth.[7]
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The municipal borough was granted acoat of arms on 16 October 1886 by theCollege of Arms, and this was inherited by the county borough. With its quartered shield and its complicated design, the coat of arms was in a style typical of grants to municipal corporations byAlbert Woods, thenGarter Principal King of Arms.
Most of the emblems on the shield were related to theArchbishops of Canterbury, who had a palace in Croydon. The threechoughs are associated withThomas Becket and appear in the arms of the city ofCanterbury. The cross crosslets came from the arms of theDiocese of Canterbury. The flory cross bearing three gold discs was taken from the arms of ArchbishopJohn Whitgift. The embattled fesse in the fourth quarter represented a town wall and thus municipal government.
The crest on top of the helm featured a grassy mound andheraldic fountain, for the Croydon Bourne. On either side was a sprig of rye-grass, for the irrigation meadows of Beddington Sewage Farm. The crest also contained a gold crozier, another reference to the archbishops, and a crossed sword and tilting spear for theEast India Company Military Seminary at Addiscombe.
The motto, which was inLatin, wasSanitate Crescamus ("May we grow in health").[10]
Some charges from these arms were used, together with some charges from the coat of arms ofCoulsdon and Purley Urban District, to form the newcoat of arms of the London Borough of Croydon in 1965.
The old coat of arms can still be seen inMitcham Road Cemetery, on the memorial to the victims of the1961 Holtaheia Vickers Viking crash.
Local government districts abolished or transferred by theLondon Government Act 1963 | ||
|---|---|---|
| London | ||
| Essex | ||
| Hertfordshire | ||
| Middlesex,CC | ||
| Kent | ||
| Surrey | ||
| Transfers | Middlesex to Hertfordshire:Potters Bar
| |
51°22′20″N0°05′57″W / 51.3722°N 0.0991°W /51.3722; -0.0991
