Description
Fairfield Recreation Ground was provided as a public recreation ground in 1865 but had long existed as a market and meeting place. It continued to be used for livestock trading into the C20th, for example for Kingston Horse Fair from 1866 and a cattle market from 1925. It was also the venue for town celebrations and pageants. Today it is used for sports and informal recreation, a rectangular, largely grassed site that still has its Victorian railings. It is divided north / south by a path flanked by an avenue of mature lime trees, with trees around its perimeter including lime and London plane. Silver maple and cherry are among other trees planted in the park.
Practical Information
| Previously known as | The Fairfield |
|---|---|
| Site location | Fairfield South/Fairfield Road, Kingston |
| Postcode | KT1 2PY |
| What3Words | ///club.stones.tiger |
| Type of Site | Public Park |
| Borough | Kingston |
| Open to Public | Yes |
| Opening Times | unrestricted |
| Facilities | Children's playground, football and cricket pitches, trim trail, toilets |
| Events | Various, including May Merry, normally over May Day Bank Holiday weekend. |
| Public Transport | Rail: Kingston. Bus: K1, K4 |
| Research Updated | 1 April 2012 |
| Last Updated | 18 October 2026 |
Full description
The Fairfield has long been in existence and is shown clearly on the C17th map of Kingston with fields to the east, and houses along the west side towards the river. From early days it was an important market and meeting place. Having become somewhat disreputable by the 1850s, and dangerous after dark, it was enclosed with railings in 1865 in order to preserve it as open space and to provide a public recreation ground, a move largely at the instigation of the Mayor, John Williams. Kingston was an important market town since the granting of its charter by Charles I in 1628 whereby markets were not permitted within a 7 mile radius and after its enclosure Fairfield subsequently replaced Market Place for livestock trading, becoming the site of Kingston Horse Fair from 1866 and the cattle market from 1925. The latter continued until the late 1930s when local farming was dwindling. Town celebrations were regularly held here such as the Kingston Tudor Pageant in 1917 raising money for the war, and in 1935 the Jubilee Fair to celebrate King George's Silver Jubilee. It was used during both world wars, for allotments in WWI when food was short and people were encouraged to grow their own, and in WWII when trenches seating 2,700 people were built at Fairfield in the Munich Crisis of 1938.
Further Information
| Grid Reference | TQ184690 |
|---|---|
| Size in hectares | 2.451 |
| Site Ownership | RB Kingston |
| Site Management | Grounds maintenance contractor: Quadron Services Ltd |
| Dates | 1865 |
| Listed Structures | LBII: Kingston Library and Museum, Stone from King John's Palace in Library courtyard; gate piers to Library |
| On National Heritage List for England (NHLE), Parks & Gardens | No |
| Registered common or village green on Commons Registration Act 1965 | No |
| Protected under London Squares Preservation Act 1931 | No |
| Local Authority | Kingston |
| In Conservation Area | Yes |
| Conservation Area Name | Fairfield/Knight's Park |
| Tree Preservation Order | No |
| Nature Conservation Area | No |
| Green Belt | No |
| Metropolitan Open Land | No |
| Special Policy Area | Yes - Area of Archaeological Significance |
| Other LA Designation | Local Open Space (Public Open Space). Green Corridor along Fairfield South |
Please note the Inventory and its content are provided for your general information only and are subject to change. It is your responsibility to check the accuracy.
Nearby parks and gardens
Cleave's Almshouses were founded in 1668, built at the bequest of William Cleave, who left a legacy of land and money to build the almshouses, ‘for the maintenance of twelve poor people of the parish of honest life and reputation, for ever'. Additional homes were built in 1880, 1910 and 2003, eventually creating a quad surrounding a quiet garden. The almshouses remain among the oldest surviving buildings in Kingston. The London Road frontage has a strip of garden with lawn, flower beds and a line of trees inside the low brick wall to the road, with an internal garden overlooked by the houses.
Kingston War Memorial Gardens was originally set up as an overflow burial ground to the parish churchyard in 1826. It closed in 1855 when the new Kingston Cemetery opened outside the town centre. It was laid out as public garden, with gravestones moved to the perimeter. The War Memorial was unveiled in 1923. Kingston's annual Remembrance Day service takes place in the War Memorial Gardens
St Peter's Church in Norbiton was the first of Gilbert Scott's seven Commissioners Churches, and opened in 1842. A yellow and white brick building in Norman style, St Peter's was not completed according to Scott's original designs due to lack of funds, and he was apparently displeased with it. In c.1869 the chancel and baptistery were added. A photograph of c.1900 shows the church with railings to the road, entrance gateway with overthrow flanked by stone piers, and the churchyard with evergreen and deciduous trees. The churchyard today is bounded by a wall, the railings and gateway no longer in place.
