Lower Green, Esher

Last updated

Lower Green
Surrey UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Lower Green
Location within Surrey
OS grid reference TQ136656
•  Charing Cross 13 mi (21 km)  NE
District
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town Esher
Postcode district KT10
Dialling code 020
Police Surrey
Fire Surrey
Ambulance South East Coast
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Surrey
51°22′41″N0°22′08″W / 51.378°N 0.369°W / 51.378; -0.369

Lower Green is a residential and commercial area within Esher, in Surrey, England, on the banks of the River Ember and River Mole. The area has many businesses, most of them in the commercial complex comprising Sandown Industrial Complex and Royal Mills.

Contents

For electoral purposes, Lower Green is divided into two wards: Hinchley Wood & Weston Green, and Esher.

DJ at The Big Smoke Brewery LowerGreen BSB IMG E9267.jpg
DJ at The Big Smoke Brewery

History

The Royal Mills

Site of The Royal Mills in Lower Green LowerGreen RoyalMillsSite IMG 8372.jpg
Site of The Royal Mills in Lower Green

The mills were located on the bank of the River Mole and were one of many such mills along the river, as many as 20 were recorded in Domesday Book. [1] The Esher Mills were mentioned in the court rolls of King John of England where a payment from Roger the Miller for an annual sum of 12 broches of eels was recorded in 1199. [2] The mill was originally used for corn milling. [3]

Industrial activity was recorded in the 17th century when a copper wire mill was established in 1649 by two Dutch settlers, Mommer and Demetrus, who acquired the mill. The mill was later purchased by Dockwra's Copper Mill and copper and brass wire were produced until c.1800. [3] [2] Under the ownership of Lord Hotham it became a paper mill, and it is assumed the title 'Royal' came from the production of either banknotes or paper in 'royal' sizes. Later the mill became a linoleum factory until it was burnt down in 1897. [2] In 1902 the mill was acquired and rebuilt by the bookbinders James Burn & Co Ltd, who installed a steam engine. The site was the scene of another fire in 1908, however the company survived and became renowned for spiral binding. [2] [4] In 1939 a hangar was built for Vickers as part of the wartime dispersal of work where the hangar was used for aircraft parts. The hangar was later used by the council from 1969 to 1988. [2] [4] In 1968 salvage work was carried out on the Royal Mills due to heavy flooding that year. [2]

Housing

Small cottages have been seen in Lower Green from maps dating back as far as 1871, with the slow extension of housing emanating west from the Royal Mill. The 1923 Housing Act saw the completion of some council cottages, provisioning of such housing was suspended in 1939 and was restarted in 1949. [2] It was not until the 1950s that the density of housing increased drastically with the building of the houses to the west towards Thames Ditton. Wolsey Grange, the home of the solicitor and church warden Robert Hamilton Few, no longer exists but was prominent on early maps of the area. [2]

Sandown Park

Built in the 1870s with land acquired from J W Spicer of Esher Place, Sandown Park's first meeting was held in 1875. [2]

Esher Place Gate House

Esher Place Gate LowerGreen GateHouse IMG 8410.jpg
Esher Place Gate

In 1929 the Esher Place estate was broken up and sold, part of this included The Gate House which was acquired by Shaftesbury Home for Girls. The Gate House is now private residences. [3]

Railway

In 1838 a line was proposed from Nine Elms to Woking and in the same year a station was opened in Surbiton. London and South Western Railway bought land in Lower Green to circumnavigate Esher town and Ditton Marsh station, now Esher station, was opened in 1846. The station had an exclusive waiting room for the Duchess of Albany for race-day attendances. [3]

Coal Tax Post

Coal Tax Post LowerGreen CoalTaxPost IMG 8427.jpg
Coal Tax Post

Originally set up to pay for the Great fire in 1666 the coal tax posts were established around London to pay for improvements, two of which can be found in Lower Green. One is located on Lower Green Road, TQ 138 657, and the other on Douglas Road, TQ 140 685, was moved in 1861. [4]

Maps

A history of Lower Green can also be seen through the rich cartography of the area. Lower Green can be identified as far back as John Rocque's 1762 map, [5] where the map identifies the Esher Wire Mill on the banks of the River Mole and River Ember. Lower Green Road is also on the map with agricultural land to the north. By 1871 The Six-inch England and Wales Ordnance Survey Maps [6] identify the addition of the London and South Western Railway and Lower Green is clearly marked on the map. The map also identifies the Mill Cottages, The Old Papermills, Papermills Road (now Mill Road), a Boat House, City Post, Wolsey Grange, a Wells, The Grove and Pound Farm.

In the 1896 Ordnance Survey (OS) map [7] Island Barn can be seen but it was not until 1897 that the water treatment facility becomes visible and much later the reservoir. The maps show that the mill's name changed from Old Paper Mill to Royal Mills and Paper Mill Road changed to Mill Lane. The map also identifies the addition of Mill Mead and several new buildings and detailed views of The Grove and Wolsey Grange.

In 1899 the Railway Clearing House map [8] shows the addition of Sandown racecourse and the station which was at the time named Claremont and Esher - the station had many names over the years. In a map containing Sandown Farm from 1804 you are able to see the topography before the racetrack was built. [9] By 1913 in the OS map [10] Royal Mills becomes Royal Mills Bookbinding and a short stretch of Douglas Road with houses on the south can be seen. There are some new houses on what is now Farm Road and a row of now non-existent Mill Cottages in the Royal Mill Ait, between the Ember and Mole rivers, with additional cottages to the east of Mill Lane.

By 1920 houses can be seen on the east end of Lower Green Road. [11] John Bartholomew & Co.'s 1922 map shows Lower Green cut by the district zoning. [12] By 1934 [13] Farm Road is established and houses are built on the north side of Douglas Road, with 1939 [14] seeing the addition of yet more houses on Farm Road and the completion of the Island Barn Reservoir. [15]

It is not until 1956 in the TQ16 map [16] that you can see the densely populated area in the east of Lower Green which is connected by the extension of Douglas Road into the Woodlands, the addition of the properties built by Esher District Council can also be seen. In 1960 the Lower Green area is shown to include Esher Place and Waynflete Tower. [17]

Locality

Lower Green Recreation Ground LowerGreen Recreation IMG 8595.jpg
Lower Green Recreation Ground
Cobb Green LowerGreen CobbGreen IMG E9255.jpg
Cobb Green

Landmarks

Amenities

Lower End has no high street, but there is a cafe, corner shop and brewery that has a tap room open to the public. [21]

There is a retail restaurant-lined street (A307 High Street) to the south-west, which is a 10-minute walk.

Notable residents

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Mole</span> Tributary of the River Thames in southern England

The River Mole is a tributary of the River Thames in southern England. It rises in West Sussex near Gatwick Airport and flows northwest through Surrey for 80 km to the Thames at Hampton Court Palace. The river gives its name to the Surrey district of Mole Valley.

Esher is a town in the borough of Elmbridge in Surrey, England, to the east of the River Mole.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borough of Elmbridge</span> Local government district in Surrey, England

Elmbridge is a local government district with borough status in Surrey, England. Its council is based in Esher, and other notable towns and villages include Cobham, Walton-on-Thames, Weybridge and Molesey. The borough lies just outside the administrative boundary of Greater London, but is almost entirely within the M25 motorway which encircles London. Many of the borough's urban areas form part of the wider Greater London Built-up Area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thames Ditton</span> Village in Surrey, England

Thames Ditton is a suburban village on the River Thames, in the Elmbridge borough of Surrey, England. Apart from a large inhabited island in the river, it lies on the southern bank, centred 12.2 miles (19.6 km) southwest of Charing Cross in central London. Thames Ditton is just outside Greater London but within the Greater London Urban Area as defined by the Office for National Statistics. Its clustered village centre and shopping area on a winding High Street is surrounded by housing, schools and sports areas. Its riverside faces the Thames Path and Hampton Court Palace Gardens and golf course in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its most commercial area is spread throughout its conservation area and contains restaurants, cafés, shops and businesses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Ember</span> River in north Surrey, England

The River Ember is a short river in the north of Surrey, England — a channel of the River Mole which splits in two south of Island Barn Reservoir, between East Molesey and Lower Green, Esher. The Ember, the larger channel, flows in an easterly and then northerly direction around the reservoir, past part of Esher; the Mole flows around the other side past West Molesey. The two rivers then flow side by side approximately north east and merge 400 metres before joining the River Thames at the eastern end of East Molesey opposite Hampton Court Palace on the south side of the last non-tidal reach, which is above Teddington Lock.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Esher and Walton (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1997 onwards

Esher and Walton is a constituency in Surrey represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. Since 2024, it has been represented by Monica Harding of the Liberal Democrats. Prior to this, Dominic Raab of the Conservative Party, who served as deputy prime minister before resigning from that role in April 2023 due to bullying allegations, had served as the MP since 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Esher railway station</span> Railway station in Surrey, England

Esher railway station is a station on the South West Main Line operated by South Western Railway in Surrey, England. The station adjoins the north of Esher with two footpaths skirting Sandown Park Racecourse, the town's commercial area being 300 metres beyond the racecourse entrance. The station is situated between Surbiton and Hersham and is 14 miles 31 chains (23.2 km) from London Waterloo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walton-on-Thames railway station</span> Railway station in Surrey, England

Walton-on-Thames railway station is at the southern edge of the town of Walton-on-Thames in Surrey, England and borders Burwood Park, Hersham. It is 17 miles 6 chains (27.5 km) from London Waterloo and is situated between Hersham and Weybridge.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Molesey</span> District in Surrey, England

Molesey is a suburban district comprising two villages, East Molesey and West Molesey, in the Borough of Elmbridge, Surrey, England, and is situated on the south bank of the River Thames.

Esher Urban District was an urban district in Surrey, England created by merging two urban districts and adding two parishes to the south-west. It existed from 1933 to 1974 and was governed by the elected Esher Urban District Council which shared local government functions with Surrey County Council. Its main building was the large town hall in Esher.

Esher was a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. In the general elections during its 47-year lifetime it was won by three Conservatives successively. In area it shrank in 1974, then regrew in 1983 taking in four sparsely inhabited wards which proved to be temporary, as omitted from the successor seat, Esher and Walton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thames Ditton Island</span>

Three river islands (aits) form a linear group, close to the junction of the two main old streets of Thames Ditton village, in the River Thames in a corner of modern Surrey, on the Kingston reach above Teddington Lock. Thames Ditton Island, the dominant ait, is 350 yards (320 m) long and has 48 houses with gardens ; Boyle Farm Island has one house; Swan Island, between the two, is the smallest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weston Green</span> Village in Surrey, England

Weston Green is a small suburban village and a ward in the Elmbridge borough of Surrey. This area was, until 1901, a part of Thames Ditton with which it remains contiguous and associated. Weston Green is also contiguous with Esher, which provides the village's closest railway station. The village forms a rough triangle of land along the west side of the midsection of the Hampton Court Branch Line next to Thames Ditton railway station and down to Esher railway station, with the split between the two being the part dual-carriageway, the A309.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knight Reservoir</span> Reservoir in Surrey

The Knight Reservoir is a large pumped storage reservoir located in the Borough of Elmbridge in Surrey. It was inaugurated in 1907 and stores up to 2,180 million litres of raw water abstracted from the River Thames prior to its treatment and supply to London and north Surrey. It is located south of the River Thames, west of West Molesey, and between Hurst Road (A3050) and Walton Road (B369). It is adjacent to, and west of, its twin Bessborough Reservoir.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tagg's Island</span> Island in the River Thames in London, England

Tagg's Island is an ait (island) on the River Thames on the reach above Molesey Lock and just above Ash Island, located in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and part of Hampton. The island is roughly 400 metres long by 90 metres wide at its widest point, covering 6 acres. Although close to the Surrey bank near East Molesey, the island is connected to the further Middlesex bank by a single track road bridge, being the only island on the non-tidal Thames accessible by car.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Molesey Heath</span>

Molesey Heath is a 17.8-hectare (44-acre) Local Nature Reserve in Molesey in Surrey. It is owned and managed by Elmbridge Borough Council.

References

  1. ↑ Anderson, Ian G (1948). History of Esher. Wolsey Press.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Mitchell, Anthony. (1995). Esher : a pictorial history. Chichester: Phillmore. ISBN   0-85033-961-8. OCLC   36060071.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Hutchins, Lisa. (2001). Esher and Claygate past. London [England]: Historical Publications. ISBN   0-948667-66-4. OCLC   50014504.
  4. 1 2 3 Tarplee, Peter. (1998). A guide to the industrial history of the borough of Elmbridge. Surrey Industrial History Group. Guildford: Surrey Industrial History Group. ISBN   0-9523918-6-4. OCLC   1000982567.
  5. ↑ "A topographical map of the county of Surrey [cartographic material] : in which is expressed all the roads, lanes, churches, noblemen and gentlemen's seats, &c. &c". nla.gov.au. Archived from the original on 23 January 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  6. ↑ "View: Surrey XII (includes: East Molesey; Esher; Thames Ditton; Walton upon Thames.) - Ordnance Survey Six-inch England and Wales, 1842-1952". maps.nls.uk. Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  7. ↑ "View: Surrey XII.6 (East Molesey; Esher; Thames Ditton; Walton Upon Thames) - Ordnance Survey 25 inch England and Wales, 1841-1952". maps.nls.uk. Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  8. ↑ "Harvard Image Delivery Service". iiif.lib.harvard.edu. Archived from the original on 27 June 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  9. ↑ Wright, Colin. "Hampton Court 20". www.bl.uk. Archived from the original on 16 January 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  10. ↑ "View: Surrey XII.6 (East Molesey; Esher; Thames Ditton; Walton Upon Thames) - Ordnance Survey 25 inch England and Wales, 1841-1952". maps.nls.uk. Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  11. ↑ "View: Middlesex XXV.SE (includes: East Molesey; Long Ditton; Surbiton; Thames Ditton; ... - Ordnance Survey Six-inch England and Wales, 1842-1952". maps.nls.uk. Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  12. ↑ "London. - David Rumsey Historical Map Collection". www.davidrumsey.com. Archived from the original on 23 January 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  13. ↑ "View: Surrey XII.6 (East Molesey; Esher; Thames Ditton; Walton Upon Thames) - Ordnance Survey 25 inch England and Wales, 1841-1952". maps.nls.uk. Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  14. ↑ "View: Surrey XII.6 (East Molesey; Esher; Thames Ditton; Walton Upon Thames) - Ordnance Survey 25 inch England and Wales, 1841-1952". maps.nls.uk. Archived from the original on 13 August 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  15. ↑ "View: Surrey XII.6 (East Molesey; Esher; Thames Ditton; Walton Upon Thames) - Ordnance Survey 25 inch England and Wales, 1841-1952". maps.nls.uk. Archived from the original on 13 August 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  16. ↑ "View: TQ16 (includes: Esher; Kingston Upon Thames; London; Sunbury; Surbiton; Walton-O... - Ordnance Survey 1:25,000 maps of Great Britain, 1937-1961". maps.nls.uk. Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  17. ↑ "View: One-inch Seventh Series, Great Britain: Sheet 170 - London SW - Ordnance Survey One-inch to the mile maps of Great Britain, Seventh Series, 1952-1961". maps.nls.uk. Archived from the original on 29 October 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  18. ↑ "THE OLD COTTAGE". Historic England. Archived from the original on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  19. ↑ "Esher Place Gatehouse, Lower Green Esher". Lower Green Esher. 18 November 2019. Archived from the original on 27 March 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  20. ↑ "Coal Tax Post, Lower Green Esher". Lower Green Esher. 11 November 2019. Archived from the original on 27 March 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  21. ↑ "Business Directory". Lower Green Esher. 30 March 2020. Archived from the original on 20 April 2020. Retrieved 2 April 2020.
  22. ↑ Prater, Violet (30 June 2016). My Life from the Beginning. Authorhouse. ISBN   978-1-5246-3673-9.
  23. ↑ "Big Smoke Brew Co". Big Smoke Brew Co. Archived from the original on 14 May 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  24. ↑ "Lower Green Community Centre". Lower Green Community Centre. Archived from the original on 18 June 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
  25. ↑ "Latest News -". www.embersportsclub.org.uk. Archived from the original on 19 September 2020. Retrieved 1 April 2020.

Map of Lower Green, Esher

Lower Green, Esher
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.