Thornton Heath
| Thornton Heath | |
| Surrey | |
|---|---|
 High Street, Thornton Heath | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TQ315685 |
| Location: | 51°24’1"N, 0°6’31"W |
| Data | |
| Population: | 65,812 (2011) |
| Post town: | Croydon /Thornton Heath |
| Postcode: | CR0, CR7 |
| Dialling code: | 020 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Croydon |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Streatham and Croydon North / Croydon West |
Thornton Heath is an urban village of Surrey, in the north-east of the county and within the metropolitan conurbation. It is a mile and a half north of Croydon’s town centre.
Thornton Heath railway station is on the London Victoria branch of the Brighton Main Line.
History
Until the arrival of the railway in 1862, Thornton Heath was focused on an area a mile and a half south-west of the Whitehorse manor house (now a school), at the locality on the main London–Sussex road known as Thornton Heath Pond in the parish of Croydon St John the Baptist. Between the manor house and pond was an isolated farmhouse. Eventually, it became the site for the railway station and the main expansion hub.
In the 50-year period from 1861 to 1911, Thornton Heath saw a complete transformation from an isolated rural outpost to an integrated metropolitan suburb. In its infancy, a new railway station in the eastern farmlands enabled the immediate area to evolve around a central point. In the late 19th century, the western part of Thornton Heath, which lay directly on the main London–Sussex road, demonstrated a classic form of suburban ribbon development. In the process, it became the final piece in an urban chain linking two major centres, London and Croydon, completing the greatest metropolitan expansion in the world at that time which cost £112 million in today's money.
Churches
- Church of England:
- St Alban’s
- St Paul’s
St Alban's was built in 1889, and was the first church designed by the late Victorian architect Sir Ninian Comper. It is a Grade II listed building.
About the town
Architecturally, Thornton Heath is predominantly Victorian in both its residential and commercial sectors. There are a number of imposing, even grand, buildings surviving from this period.
The Clocktower at the junction of the High Street and Parchmore Road (a site previously called Walker's Green) was built in 1900.
In 2019, there was a contest organised by the Thornton Heath Community Action team for a planned redesign of the central area; it was won by architecture students.[1]
Sport and leisure
Thornton Heath has a leisure centre, opened in 2004.
The railway station is one of the stations used by visitors to Selhurst Park stadium, home of Crystal Palace F.C..
- Football:
- AFC Croydon Athletic
- Wanderers F.C.
- Rugby: Streatham-Croydon RFC, founded in 1871, whose grounds and clubhouse are on Frant Road
There are three parks in Thornton Heath:
- Grangewood Park
- Thornton Heath Recreation Ground
- Trumble Gardens
Media
- 'Thornton Heath Chronicle'.[2]
Outside links
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("Wikimedia Commons" has material about Thornton Heath) |