| The Crooked Billet, Penge | |
|---|---|
 The Crooked Billet | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Address | 99 High Street, Penge, London SE20 7DT |
| Town or city | London |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 51°24′58″N0°03′11″W / 51.41599°N 0.05317°W |
The Crooked Billet is a public house at 99 High Street, Penge, London SE20 7DT. It was built in 1827 and is the oldest pub in Penge. [1] It is part of the Craft Union Pub Company. [2]
The name 'Penge' originates from the Celtic word ‘penceat’ which means ‘edge of wood’ in the Brittonic languages. [3] There appears to be Celts living here for many years on what was a luscious common with medieval woodland. [4]
The Crooked Billet was constructed in 1827, rebuilt in 1840 and then extended in 1925. [5]
Outside the original double-fronted house was an ancient oak tree and a wooden seat where locals sat and talked. It became a popular meeting place for many decades to come. Coaches used to stop at the old inn on their way to London to change or refresh the horses, with the coachdriver and passengers stocking up on food and home-brewed ale. [6]
Legend has it that as the hamlet was so heavily wooded, a sign had to be placed on the main road to guide the traveller to the overnight shelter. This sign was a bent or knotted branch and the ‘crooked billet’ led to the pub’s name. The building was badly damaged during the Second World War which meant the top floor had to be removed and rebuilt in the 1950s. [7]
William Hone was an English writer, satirist and bookseller. He wrote about a visit to the pub in 1827. He and a friend ate eggs, bacon and spinach from the pub garden. They sat in a comfortable parlour, with a bow-window view of Penge Common. He said the house affords as good accommodation for man and horse as can be found in any retired spot so near London. His friend sketched an illustration of the pub. [8]
A field behind the Crooked Billet pub was where the first Crystal Palace FC played their home games between 1864-66 after their pitch in Crystal Palace Park became unavailable. [9]
England’s second football captain and second oldest player, Alexander Morten, played on the ground for the club and probably enjoyed some ales in the pub afterwards. [10]
Football Association administrator Charles W. Alcock, who devised the FA Cup and international football, played on the field for the Wanderers F.C.. [11]
The Crooked Billet Ground also hosted cricket with Penge United playing matches there between 1856-58. [12] [13] [14] Sydenham Albion Cricket Club was using the field as their home ground in 1865. After the opening match of their season, "a very excellent lunch was provided on the ground by Mr Matthews, of the Crooked Billet Tavern, Penge." [15]
The Crystal Palace was a cast iron and plate glass structure, originally built in Hyde Park, London, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. The exhibition took place from 1 May to 15 October 1851, and more than 14,000 exhibitors from around the world gathered in its 990,000 square feet (92,000 m2) exhibition space to display examples of technology developed in the Industrial Revolution. Designed by Joseph Paxton, the Great Exhibition building was 1,851 feet (564 m) long, with an interior height of 128 feet (39 m), and was three times the size of St Paul's Cathedral.
Crystal Palace is an area in South London, named after the Crystal Palace Exhibition building which stood in the area from 1854, until it was destroyed by fire in 1936. About 7 miles (11 km) southeast of Charing Cross, it includes one of the highest points in London, at 367 feet (112 m), offering views over the capital.
Penge is a suburb of South East London, England, now in the London Borough of Bromley, 3.5 miles (5.6 km) west of Bromley, 3.7 miles (6.0 km) north east of Croydon and 7.1 miles (11.4 km) south east of Charing Cross.
Sydenham is a district of south-east London, England, which is shared between the London boroughs of Lewisham, Bromley and Southwark. Prior to the creation of the County of London in 1889, Sydenham was located in Kent, bordering Surrey. Historically, the area was very affluent, with the Crystal Palace being relocated to Sydenham Hill in 1854. Today, Sydenham is a diverse area, with a population of 28,378 and borders Forest Hill, Dulwich, Crystal Palace, Penge, Beckenham, Catford and Bellingham.
The London Borough of Bromley is a borough in London, England. It borders the county of Kent, of which it formed part of until 1965. The borough's population in the 2021 census was 329,991. It is named after Bromley, its principal district. Other districts are Penge, Hayes, West Wickham, Chislehurst, Beckenham and Orpington. The local authority is Bromley London Borough Council.
Penge West railway station is located in Penge, a district of the London Borough of Bromley in south London. The station is operated by London Overground, with Overground and Southern trains serving the station. Thameslink and some Southern services pass through the station. It is 7 miles 15 chains down the line from London Bridge, in Travelcard Zone 4.
Crystal Palace Park is a large park in south-east London, Grade II* listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. It was laid out in the 1850s as a pleasure ground, centred around the re-location of The Crystal Palace -- the largest glass building of the time -- from central London to this area on the border of Kent and Surrey; the suburb that grew around the park is known by the same name.
Penge was a civil parish and a local government district located to the southeast of London, England. It included the settlements of Penge, Anerley and part of Crystal Palace. It was part of the London postal district, Metropolitan Police District and, from 1933, the London Passenger Transport Area. In 1965 the urban district was abolished by the London Government Act 1963 and it became part of Greater London, being combined with other districts to form the London Borough of Bromley.
Anerley is an area of south east London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is located 7 miles (11 km) south south-east of Charing Cross, to the south of Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, west of Penge, north of Elmers End and South Norwood.
Lewisham West and Penge is a constituency in Greater London created in 2010 and represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2017 by Ellie Reeves of the Labour Party.
Alexander Morten was a footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He captained the England team in its second official international, played against Scotland on 8 March 1873. He had previously played for the Scotland team in 1870 at representative level, before switching to England three years later.
Penge Common was an area of north east Surrey and north west Kent which now forms part of London, England; covering most of Penge, all of Anerley, and parts of surrounding suburbs including South Norwood. It abutted the Great North Wood and John Rocque's 1745 map of London and its environs showed that Penge Common now included part of that wood.
The Great North Wood was a natural oak woodland that started three miles (4.8 km) south-east of central London and scaled the Norwood Ridge. At its full extent, the wood's boundaries stretched almost as far as Croydon and as far north as Camberwell. It had occasional landownings as large clearings, well-established by the Middle Ages such as the hamlets of Penge and Dulwich.
Crystal Palace F.C. was an amateur football club formed in 1861 who contributed to the development of association football during its formative years. They were founder members of the Football Association in 1863, and competed in the first ever FA Cup competition in 1871–72.
Charles John Chenery was a footballer who played for England in the first international match against Scotland. He also played cricket for Surrey and Northants.
Robert Kennett Kingsford was an English footballer who made one appearance for England in 1874, and was a member of the Wanderers team that won the 1873 FA Cup Final.
Francis Luscombe was a rugby union international who represented England from 1872 to 1876. He also captained his country.
Charles Eastlake Smith was an English amateur footballer who played for the first Crystal Palace and England. By profession, he was an insurance clerk.
The Crooked Billet is a pub at 14–15 Crooked Billet, facing onto Wimbledon Common, Wimbledon, London. The building dates from the early 18th century and became the Crooked Billet during the 1750s. The district of Wimbledon called Crooked Billet may have taken its name from the pub.
Anerley Town Hall is a municipal building in Anerley Road, Anerley, London. It is a locally listed building.
