Category Archives: Housing

Graham Road

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Road off east side of Streatham Road, north of Lock’s Lane and south of Graham Avenue.

Built in the late 19th century on land previously occupied by The Willows, described by Eric Montague in his book Mitcham Histories : 2 North Mitcham, page 74, as having extensive stabling, farmery, meadows and gardens. The roads Graham Avenue, Elmfield Avenue and Fernlea Road were also built in this land. The address “Graham Road, Willows Estate” was used in this ad from 1900:

Mitcham (best part). – Pretty and conveniently arranged 6 – roomed houses; bath (h. and c.); good garden; within 10 minutes’ walk of Tooting Junction Station; good service of trains to Ludgate-hill and London-bridge; rent £24 per annum, or price (freehold) £350; £300 could remain on mortgage, repayable by easy instalments, which would amount to the same thing as paying rent.

Apply to Nott, Cartwright, and Etches, 13, The Parade, Tooting; 1, Bank Buildings, Balham; or to 39, Graham-road, Willows Estate, Mitcham.

1894 OS Map

1894 OS Map

1911-os-map-graham-road

1911 OS Map

In 1902, the road was made up, and charges to owners was based on the length of the frontage of their properties. This list is from the minutes of the Croydon Rural District Council:

Volume 8
1902 to 1903
Mitcham Parochial
19th June 1902
page 200

The ‘number on plan’ isn’t a house number. The plan referred to isn’t available.

No. on plan Property Owner Frontage
1 House Sydney Moses 18 ft.
2 Three houses Charles Bell 54 ft.
3 Three houses Nott, Cartwright & Etches 54 ft.
4 Two houses Charles Bell 36 ft.
5 House Arthur Mansfield 18 ft.
6 House Charles Bell 18 ft.
7 House Charles Wheeler 18 ft.
8 House Alfred Edger 22 ft.
9 House Miss Annie Fawcett 18 ft.
10 House John Edwin Branch 18 ft.
11 Three houses Charles Bell 54 ft.
12 House Charles Remington 18 ft.
13 House Edward Duncan 18 ft.
14 Two houses Edward Charles 36 ft.
15 Eight houses Edward Cheeseman 134 ft. 6 ins.
16 Seven houses James Willers 121 ft. 6 ins.
17 House and land T.L. Laver 34 ft.
18 Land J. Mounter 24 ft.
19 Land Trustees of Lansbury 296 ft.
20 House and land F.L. Mizen 150 ft.
21 Land H.A. Chappell 188 ft.

The contract for making up the road went to tender, as listed in the council minutes of 18th September 1902, page 394:

Graham Road Tenders

The Council opened and considered the undermentioned tenders received for the making up, forming, kerbing, and metalling of Graham Road, Mitcham:-

Stockwell & Co., Bromley ……… £812 14s.
Adams, T., Wood Green, London …. £621
Free & Sons, Maidenhead ………. £540
Iles, E., Mitcham ……………. £495
Wheeler, W.H., Southwark, S.E. … £441 13s.

Resolved, That the tender of Mr. E. Iles, of Mitcham, be accepted, and that the necessary bond be entered into in accordance of conduct.

From the minutes of the Croydon Rural District Council
Volume IX 1903 – 1904
7th May 1903
page 71

No. 2481, Bennington, J.A., 3 houses, Graham Road, Mitcham

Minutes of meetings held by the Croydon Rural District Council are available on request from the Merton Heritage and Local Studies Centre at Morden Library.

The street directories of 1891 and 1915 list the occupants in the order encountered when walking from Figgs Marsh to Fernlea Road. The house names are in brackets.

1915

SOUTH SIDE

from Figg’s marsh

2 William James Dickisson (Trent House)
William Frederick Laing, auctioneer & estate agent (Trezamble)
James Dalton (Rose Bank)
George R. Waters (Sydmouth)
Andrew George Jones (Jessima)
James Knight (1 Graham villas)
Philip Musk (Rothesay)
John Davey (3 Graham villas)
Alfred Charles Firth (Dulmeney)
Samuel Weldon Myles (The Cottage)
Arthur E. Cooper (Lyndhurst)
12 Rev. Sydney Jackson [chaplain to Holborn Union workhouse & schools] (White Heather)
James Glover (Selby lodge)
Rowland Macbeth (Homeleigh)
Charles Stratton (Mayfair)
James Alfred Bennington (Eversley)
Edward E. Kelly glove cleaner (Melrose)
Alfred Thomas Green (Brambletye)
Thomas Harper (Stalheim)
Harry Wilson (Merok)
Henry Keen (Sundial)
Thomas Brandon (Viva villa)

NORTH SIDE

Alex. Cordier (Rosenheath)
Charles Jordan (Linacre)
Mrs Bishop (Bellefontaine)
Alexander Notman (Essen)
George H. Day (Aldwark)
Jesse Ray (Kimberley)
James Arthur Martin (Ivydeane)
Arthur Lewis Peake (Belmont)
Herbert Geogre Littleton (Claremont)
Joseph Geaney (Inisfail)
Frederick V. Whicher (Sherwood)
John Howard Feesey (Elmwood villa)
Walter Hudson Douglas (Roselea)
John Lewis Rooke (Thorstone)
Mrs Scales (St. Arvans)
William Luker (The Glen)
26 Richard James Glyde (Glenmore)
27 William Vickers (Crohamhurst)
28 William Driver (The Nest)
Edward Gurr (Sunnymeade)
Arthur Edward Hayne (St. Cross)
Mitcham Conservative & Unionist Association (Arthur Edward Hayne sec.) (St. Cross)
Henry Ailes Chappell (Oxwycke)

…. here is Fernlea Road ….

1891

NORTH SIDE

Miss Wilson (Montrose)
E. Hitchings (Trezamble)
H.S. Coldicott (The Cottage)
William Baker (Lyndhurst)
W.H. Wood (Oakleigh)
V. Roberts (Selby lodge)
Philip Marshal (Homeleigh)
John Forge (Brambletye)

SOUTH SIDE

50 Joseph Harbord
Dr. W.V. Kemshead (Avondale)
26 Hamilton Lawrence

First World War combatants 2nd Lt. Arthur Gordon Jackson, and his brother Lt Henry Stewart Jackson lived at White Heather, in Graham Road.

Minutes of meetings held by the Croydon Rural District Council are available on request from the Merton Heritage and Local Studies Centre at Morden Library.

1972 Pollards Hill Design Award

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Design Award For Pollards Hill Estate

Mitcham’s Pollards Hill Estate has won a major architectural award for Merton.

The £4 million complex of 562 houses and 288 flats has already aroused great interest among local authorities and architects.

And this week Merton’s Borough Architect, Mr Bernard Ward, revealed that his architects have been given the South East Region Award of the Royal Institute of British Architects.

Mr Ward, Borough Architect of Merton since 1965, regards this as one of the highlights of his career. But it was, he emphasised, a team job from five men in his department.

“I am very pleased. It’s quite an achievement as there are only 13 regions throughout Great Britain to which the Institute make their awards.”

He believes the award has been made on the basis that Pollards Hill houses a large number of families without the architects having to resort to high-rise blocks to do it. Those who have visited the estate since it was completed have been surprised at the spacious surroundings in which so many people can be accommodated.

This was his team’s objective when they first presented their ideas to the council’s Housing Committee four years ago.

Problems

“We wanted to build an estate which was mainly composed of houses and not flats. They said that if this could be done then it would be ideal. So
we went ahead,” explained Mr Ward.

There was plenty of head scratching, thinking and discussing among his staff before the final design was produced.

“A lot of designs hit the waste paper basket before we came up with the right one,” he explained.

Both Mr Ward and his team were aware that the huge tower blocks built by many
local authorities in the past were neither pleasant to look at nor to live in. But there was the council’s long housing waiting list to consider.

Both had to be taken into consideration before the final plans for Pollards Hill were produced.

Once this had been approved, there were few architectural problems.
“The only problem we had was to do the job within the budget for the project,” he said.

Altogether the team worked on the design for four months. They were a good team he said. It was a pity that most of them had now left Merton and gone their separate professional ways in the last two years.

Unique

But the experience they had in the design of one of the first estates where homes have been provided for 100 persons per acre would, he believed, stand them in good stead in their present jobs.

When the first tenant moved in on January 28, 1971, Pollards Hill was regarded, in architectural circles, as almost unique.

Merton Council had managed to house hundreds of families while adding to the quality of the environment. This is not achieved by many local councils in their battle to reduce housing lists.

The estate borders South Lodge-avenue, where previously there had been hundreds of prefabs, built as temporary post-war accommodation for bombed-out families.

Now, the long streamlined honeycomb of houses and flats which stretch up to the borough boundary is an attractive replacement.

The award is to be presented at a special ceremony at Merton Town Hall in October.

Source: Mitcham News & Mercury, 8th September, 1972 page 1