Chessington
| Chessington | |
| Surrey | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TQ183641 |
| Location: | 51°21’49"N, 0°17’59"W |
| Data | |
| Post town: | Chessington |
| Postcode: | KT9 |
| Dialling code: | 020 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Kingston |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Kingston and Surbiton |
Chessington is a town in Surrey to the south of Kingston upon Thames. Chessington has become contiguous with some of its neighbours, running into Kingston, Tolworth and Hook
The Hogsmill River runs through Chessington on its short run to the Thames at Kingston, a pleasant stream defying the urban growth beside its banks.
The town's name comes from the Old English Cissan dun ("hill belonging to Cissa").
Churches
- Church of England:
- Independent Evangelical: Chessington Evangelical Church
- Methodist: Chessington Methodist Church
- Roman Catholic: St Catherine of Siena
History
Chessington appears in Domesday Book as Cisedune and Cisendone. It was held partly by Robert de Wateville and partly by Milo (Miles) Crispin. Its domesday assets were: 1½ hides; part of a mill worth 2s, 4 ploughs, woodland worth 30 hogs. It rendered £7.[1]
The mansion at Chessington World of Adventures known today as the Burnt Stub was originally built in 1348. In the English Civil War it became a royalist stronghold and was razed to the ground by Oliver Cromwell's Parliamentary forces giving it its modern name. The site became an inn and was then rebuilt on a grander scale from the eighteenth century by the Vere Barker family in a neo-gothic Victorian style. The grounds were turned into a zoo in 1931 by Reginald Goddard. Chessington Zoo became part of the Tussauds Group in 1978 and is now operated as a Theme park. The mansion remain as part of the park as a haunted house called Hocus Pocus Hall.[2]
Chessington Hall has a place in 18th century literary history, as home of Samuel Crisp, who was a failed playwright and close friend of Fanny Burney. Chessington Road recreation ground was purchased on 16 October 1930 for £1,000.[3]
The former RAF Chessington Hospital, demolished in the 1990s, first opened as RAF Hook around 1938 as a regional barrage balloon depot and was operated by RAF Balloon Command. It became a vital part of Britain's defence against the Luftwaffe during the Second World War and originally featured a number of large barrage balloon sheds as well as extensive garages and workshops for the station's support vehicles.
Chessington World of Adventures
Chessington World of Adventures, formerly called Chessington Zoo, is a zoo and theme park in Chessington. Within the park there is the Burnt Stub Mansion from the English Civil War.
References
- ↑ Surrey Domesday Book
- ↑ Leisure/tourism Geographies: Practices and Geographical Knowledge By David Crouch, 1999, Routledge,ISBN 0415181097
- ↑ Chessington Road recreation ground
