Glover's Island (originally called Petersham Ait and also known as Clam Island) is a small island in a tree-lined section of the Thames River, formerly known as Horse Reach on the tidal Thames, between Richmond Lock and Teddington Lock in the Borough of Richmond upon Thames, London, England.
The tree-covered islet [1] has been precisely measured as 0.536 acres (0.217 ha) above mean high water springs. [2]
In 1872 the island, then called Petersham Ait, was bought by a Richmond-based waterman named Joseph Glover for £70 (equivalent to £8,000in 2023); [1] he later advertised it for resale in 1895. Clementine trees were planted on the island in 1897. Sir John Whittaker Ellis, Mayor of Richmond, [1] had a house along the aristocratic row on the place with the highest, definitive Thames Arcadia view. [3] This is on the steep terrace of Richmond Hill above public pleasure gardens. Ellis declined to buy the island at £5,000 (equivalent to £730,000in 2023), so suggested that the Richmond Corporation should be approached. [1] The view itself had been painted by John Wootton in about 1740 as A View From Richmond Hill. An English Arcadia.
The Amenities Committee considered the proposal on 2 April 1895 and decided –
"That while the Committee think it desirable that the Island should be acquired for the Corporation if it could be obtained at a reasonable price, they are of the opinion that in view of the sum now named, it would be useless to enter into any negotiation for its purchase."
Trying again in 1898, Glover caused a furore by putting the islet up for auction and suggesting it could be sold to Pears soap to erect a giant advertising hoarding. [1] Glover used this threat to vex the corporation, offering it to them for £4,000 but although the corporation wanted to buy the island, it was felt that there was no justification in spending such a large sum of money out of its funds. [1]
There then followed a lengthy debate and correspondence in the local press about preserving the view from Richmond Hill and suggestions were made that the purchase should be funded jointly by public subscription and the corporation. [1] By September, only £50 had been given to the public fund; disclosure of Glover's purchase at £70 did not help. [1]
The auction took place on 21 September but the highest bid was only £200. An unnamed resident had offered Glover £1,000 for the island (which he then intended to present to the corporation), but Glover refused to sell. [1]
In 1900 Max Waechter of Terrace House, Richmond Hill, bought it for £1,600 and conveyed it to the council having that body covenant, with intent to bind its successors, it was never to be developed. [1]
In September 1940, after London Zoo was bombed during the Blitz, a colony of Humboldt penguins were temporarily relocated [1] to Clam Island whilst repairs to the Penguin Pool were undertaken.
The London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in southwest London, England, forms part of Outer London and is the only London borough on both sides of the River Thames. It was created in 1965 when three smaller council areas amalgamated under the London Government Act 1963. It is governed by Richmond upon Thames London Borough Council. The population is 198,019 and the major communities are Barnes, East Sheen, Mortlake, Kew, Richmond, Twickenham, Teddington and Hampton.
Richmond is a town in south-west London, 8.2 miles (13.2 km) west-southwest of Charing Cross. It stands on the River Thames, and features many parks and open spaces, including Richmond Park, and many protected conservation areas, which include much of Richmond Hill. A specific Act of Parliament protects the scenic view of the River Thames from Richmond.
This article lists the islands in the River Thames, or at the mouth of a tributary, in England. It excludes human-made islands built as part of the building of forty-five two-gate locks which each accompany a weir, and islets subordinate to and forming part of the overall shape of another. The suffix -ey is common across England and Scotland and cognate with ait and meaning island, a term – as ait or eyot – unusually well-preserved on the Thames. A small minority of list entries are referred to as Island, Ait or Eyot and are vestiges, separated by a depression in the land or high-water-level gully.
Shiplake Lock is a lock and weir situated on the River Thames in England between the villages of Shiplake and Lower Shiplake, Oxfordshire. It is just above the points where the River Loddon joins the Thames and Shiplake Railway Bridge crosses the river. The first pound lock was built by the Thames Navigation Commission in 1773.
Ham is a suburban district in Richmond, south-west London. It has meadows adjoining the River Thames where the Thames Path National Trail also runs. Most of Ham is in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and, chiefly, within the ward of Ham, Petersham and Richmond Riverside; the rest is in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames. The district has modest convenience shops and amenities, including a petrol station and several pubs, but its commerce is subsidiary to the nearby regional-level economic centre of Kingston upon Thames.
The Tideway is the part of the River Thames in England which is subject to tides. This stretch of water is downstream from Teddington Lock. The Tideway comprises the upper Thames Estuary including the Pool of London.
The A307 road runs 13.2 miles (21.2 km) through SW London and NW Surrey. It is primary at the north-east end; the remainder is non-primary, generally superseded in the mid-twentieth century in two stages by newer alignments of the Portsmouth Road, the Kingston bypass and Esher bypass of the A3, which runs along a slightly oblique axis.
Molesey Lock is a lock on the River Thames in England at East Molesey, Surrey on the right bank.
Richmond Hill in Richmond and Petersham, London, is a hill that begins gently in the north and north-east side of Richmond town and through its former fields, orchards and vineyard to a point just within Richmond Park, the deer park emparked and enclosed by Charles I.
Romney Lock is a lock on the River Thames in England near Windsor and Eton, about half a mile downstream of Windsor Bridge. It is on the Windsor side of the river next to a boatyard and adjoins Romney Island, a long strip-shaped ait in the middle of the river. The first lock was built by the Thames Navigation Commission in 1798.
Sunbury Lock Ait is the ait (island) in the River Thames in England adjacent to Sunbury Lock between Walton-on-Thames, and Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey. It is unpopulated, but accessible by a footbridge over the lock cut from a wide section of the Thames Path towpath on the southern bank as well as walkways on the lock gates. Thirdly, a walkway links to Wheatley's Ait upstream, across the weir, but this is closed to the public. The quite long, thin island is inaccessible from Sunbury-on-Thames where it faces a long section of public riverbank, a few private conservation area Victorian terraces with moorings and two pubs also with moorings.
Firework Ait is an islet in the River Thames in England on the reach above Romney Lock known as the Windsor and Eton reach, Berkshire. It is the smallest island on the Thames with an official map-published name.
Oliver's Island is a tree-covered 0.9-acre (0.36 ha) ait, in the River Thames in England. It is in the London Borough of Hounslow, on the Tideway, facing Kew and Strand-on-the-Green in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, and is owned by the Port of London Authority.
Corporation Island is a small island on the River Thames in London. The island is between Richmond Bridge and Richmond Railway Bridge, where it forms part of the celebrated view from the Richmond waterfront. Its name seems to derive from its owners, the Corporation of Richmond, now the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is uninhabited and heavily wooded, and was formerly known as Richmond Ait.
Buck Ait is an island in the River Thames in Oxfordshire, England. It is on the reach above Shiplake Lock near Sonning.
Rod Eyot or Rod Ait is an island in the River Thames in England near Henley-on-Thames on the reach above Hambledon Lock. It is close to Mill Meadows and the River and Rowing Museum.
Benn's Island, previously named Church Eyot, Kember's Eyot and sometimes referred to as Benn's Ait, is a private 0.1-acre (0.040 ha) ait (island) on the River Thames south-west of London. It is among a string of narrow islands above Molesey Lock and due to its clubhouse and size — the second-smallest named island on the Thames — it has deep foundation pilings to raise the building more than 1 m above the water line.
Wick House is a Grade II listed house in Petersham, London, located near the corner of Nightingale Lane and Richmond Hill. The painter Sir Joshua Reynolds commissioned the house from Sir William Chambers and it was completed in 1772.
Sudbrook and its tributary, the Latchmere stream, are north-flowing streams in London, England, that drain northern Kingston upon Thames and the eastern extreme of Ham following a meander scar in a terrace; the upper part of the Sudbrook drains a narrow vale in Richmond Park's southern corner into the tidal Thames.
Sudbrook Park in Petersham was developed by John Campbell, 2nd Duke of Argyll in the early 18th century. Sudbrook House, designed for Argyll by James Gibbs and now Grade I listed by Historic England, is considered a fine example of Palladian architecture. The house and its surrounding park have been the home of the Richmond Golf Club since 1891.
"Richmond Libraries’ Local Studies Collection"
51°27′00″N00°18′20″W / 51.45000°N 0.30556°W
