| Sudbrook | |
|---|---|
 Sudbrook, near Ham Gate and pond, Richmond Park | |
  Sudbrook outfall to the Thames atPetersham, London. | |
| Etymology | South Brook |
| Location | |
| Country | England,United Kingdom |
| County | Greater London |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • location | Dann's Pond,Richmond Park,Greater London |
| • coordinates | 51°25′40.74″N0°16′47.64″W / 51.4279833°N 0.2799000°W /51.4279833; -0.2799000 |
| Mouth | |
• location | Petersham Meadows,River Thames |
• coordinates | 51°26′55.34″N0°18′20.88″W / 51.4487056°N 0.3058000°W /51.4487056; -0.3058000 |
• elevation | 4.5 metresAbove Ordnance Datum |
| Length | 3.8 km (2.4 mi) |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | Latchmere Stream |
Sudbrook and its tributary, theLatchmere stream, are north-flowingstreams in London, England, that drain northernKingston upon Thames and the eastern extreme ofHam following ameander scar in aterrace; the upper part of the Sudbrook drains a narrow vale inRichmond Park's southern corner into thetidal Thames.
The Sudbrook (from 'South brook') rises at the small pond south ofDann's Pond, at about 150 feet (46 m) elevation,[1] in the far south ofRichmond Park, flowingNNW to Ham Gate. It forms a small valley, Ham Dip, and has been dammed and enlarged in two places to form 'Ham Dip Pond' and 'Ham Gate Pond', first mapped in 1861 and 1754 respectively. These were created for the watering of deer.[2] Both saw restoration including de-silting, completed in 2013.[3] It drains the westernescarpment of the hill that, to the east, forms part of the catchment ofBeverley Brook and, to the south, theHogsmill River.
The Sudbrook is joined by the Latchmere stream just beyond Ham Gate Pond. It then flows intoSudbrook Park, Petersham, and isculverted for the remainder of its course, discharging into the tidal River Thames to the east of 'River Lane' where the culvert outfall is protected from tidalbackflow by a flap valve.
Before culverting, the stream used to flow alongside theA307 road in Petersham and was crossed by aford at Sudbrook Lane.[4] The collapse of this culvert in the late 1970s, referred to as thePetersham Hole, caused widespread traffic disruption for over a year.
Latchmere probably combinesOld French 'lache', lazy or slow-moving andOld English 'mere', a lake or pond; it may however relate tolammas land, a type of common land with church associations.
TheLatchmere stream orLatchmere brook started as drainageditches in theCanbury manor to the north-east ofKingston railway station that, historically in low gradient seasonally flooded. Flooding is abated by some drains in its catchment now draining to the Thames or Hogsmill River and by many soakaways for the roof of homes. Some surface water still drains north-east then north, added to by percolation of water in Richmond Park into the very small, hillside Gallows Pond. Exactly 305 metres of the south of the Kings Road forms its abrupt dip in Richmond Park's south-west side. Owing to flood deposition centuries ago of the untamed river Thames, the Thames/Latchmere watershed (divide), from the town northward shifts eastward e.g. is 220m from Richmond Road, as to Latchmere Road.[5][6]
The stream's lower course lines the south of the east side ofHam Common, about 50 metres west of Ham Gate of the Richmond Park, via which it joins the Sudbrook just below Ham Gate Pond which together skirt the west side of the Park against the Common.
FromRoman toSaxon England or later, the north of Kingston town centre formed a series of island fields formed by a branch of the Hogsmill River and a drainage channel linked to this stream.[7][8]
With the increase of urbanisation of Kingston in the early 19th century, residents of Canbury used many of their ditches as open sewers, causing a public nuisance and a health hazard:The stench from this ditch, which is an open one, is always bad, but in summer it is beyond words to describe reported the KingstonBoard of Guardians on 19 June 1866.[9] This and other open sewers were the cause of serious public health problems, and by in the early 1890s a sewerage works served Kingston, on the Thames.[10] However the slow brook, used as or percolating to the main source of water for a few, still caused some fatalinfant diarrhoea anddiphtheria.[11] Public information not to drink from streams, ditches or shallow wells in urban zones was widespread by the early 20th century.
Expansion of residential housing across former agricultural land has resulted in the Latchmere stream being culverted, but its course is revealed during periods of heavy rainfall. Its streets are the subject ofpluvialflood risk management.[5]
| Next confluence upstream | River Thames | Next confluence downstream |
| Hogsmill River (south) | Sudbrook (stream) | River Crane, London (north) |
