Thames Tributary Ravensbourne - The Quaggy - Eltham Common

Thames Tributary Ravensbourne
The Quaggy continues to flow northwards to join the Ravensbourne

Suburban area with main roads and wetland parks

Post to the north Kidbrooke
Post to the south Mottingham
Post to the east Eltham Town Centre
Post to the west Lee Courtlands
            
Blann Close
Site of Middle Park Farm which was demolished for housing. It had been used as a stud farm. 1973. Deer bones and antlers found

Cuff Crescent
Houses with mock Tudor gables.

Eltham Road
Sutcliffe Park. open grassland, meadow, and wetland. The river Quaggy meanders through the site. It was named after J Sutcliffe, Council Borough Engineer, the site, partly known previously as Harrow Meadow, was radically re-landscaped in 2003 by The Environment Agency, as part of a local flood defence scheme. It had been opened in 1930 and drained to turn a swampy area into a park. in the 1930s, open sections of the river were encased in concrete tunnels (or culverts).   It meandered through the area on the 72 ft contour.  A problem resulting was that during times of heavy rainfall, water would surge through the culverted sections, flooding Lewisham.   Work in the 1970s covered it over and moved it to the north edge of the park,
Well Hall Stream joins the Quaggy in this area and another further east from Eltham Green. 
Harrow Meadow. The eastern part of the Sutcliffe Road site used as the Greenwich Borough Council sports field.  
Yorkshire Grey. Now a Macdonalds. This is an old pub site at the edge of what was Eltham Green, and now on the south circular road.
Quaggy Bridge.  built 1840s after flooding. In 1914 it had one arch and carried gas, water and other mains.  Others buried in the river bed. Notice about bye laws on the south parapet.  Outlet on the south east side.  South of  the bridge the river is in a concrete channel. On the south side of the bridge an outflow can be seen

Eltham Green
A piece of common land. Now severed by Westhorne Avenue and the roundabout. Some houses on the perimeter all c1840.
Drainage ditch used to join Quaggy north east of the road bridge
Victorian horse trough. Transferred here in 1932 from opposite the 'We Anchor in Hope' on Shooters Hill.
1-3 Local List
Eltham Gas Works. Closed in the 1880s when taken over by South Met.

Eltham Palace Road
Houses with mock Tudor gables.
K2 type cast-iron telephone kiosk, designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott in 1927 - by the junction of Eltham Palace Road and The Vista
Sports Clubs to the south Old Brockelians Sports Club
Quaggy Bridge

Middle Park
Royal Deer Park enclosed by 1300. Site of a Stud by owned by Blenkiron in the 1860s. The Middle Park Stakes are held at Newmarket and Caractacus who won the Derby in 1862 was bred here.

Middle Park Avenue
Middle Park Avenue is the pivotal road on the estate. There is a small shopping centre is at the junction of Middle Park Avenue and Kingsground.
Church of St Saviour. Church built 1933 by N.F. Cachemaille-Day in the German 'expressionist' style of the 1920s. One of the first modern style churches in the London area and said to be inspired by a 12th cathedral in France. The brick and concrete interior has a brick pulpit and a concrete statue of Christ by Donald Hastings; and a concrete font.
Middle Park Junior School

Coldharbour

Middle Park
The area is part of the old Eltham Palace estate which was used as farm. In the Old Park area some trees were felled for the Navy. Housing estates built to rehouse tenants from the hutments so that Rochester Road could be built. It became the Middle Park London County Council estate built 1931

Queenscroft Road
Eltham Green School. A massive modern building of 1956 with splayed wings, which broods over the surrounding area.
Descending Forms. On the wall of an outbuilding on the east side. an abstract sculpture by Robert Adams.

Sidcup Road
Colfe's Sports Ground

Westhorne Avenue
Central road section is built higher than the side access roads.
Many houses built to house hutment tenants
Clifton’s Service Station. Though recently altered, this garage of 1936 has kept its corner archways under mock-Tudor gables.
Quaggy Bridge very wide here
Sports grounds to the south Badgers Middle Park Sports Club.

Sources
Egan. Kidbrooke
London Borough of Greenwich. Web site
Lost Hospitals of London. Web site
Nature Conservation in Greenwich
Spurgeon. Discover Eltham
Woolwich Antiquarian Society. Transactions

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