The Gardens Square

This area of Peckham was mainly agricultural until the early C18th; residential development took place from the early C19th as road networks to London improved, and accelerated particularly after Peckham Rye Station opened in 1867, attracting the new middle classes. The tall brick terraces that comprise The Gardens were built as select housing around a central garden enclosure between 1870-80, the east and south sides completed by 1875, followed by the west side, and finally the north side by 1880. Prior to this the land had been used for market gardens. The central garden was enclosed in 1875-1880 at which time it was owned by Edwin Newman. It was reserved for the recreational use of those living in the houses of the west, south and east sides of the square and was covenanted to be 'retained in perpetuity as a pleasure ground for the use of the residents entitled to its use'. Those in Nos. 1-17 on the north side of the square had no rights of use as the sites for these houses were not part of the original estate. In 1928 the garden was described as surrounded by a thick privet hedge and had tennis courts and a croquet lawn. The residents of the surrounding houses contributed a guinea for the right to make use of the garden, tenants of houses divided into flats paying half this sum. Its maintenance was undertaken by a Committee of the residents.

Today there are no tennis courts, and the garden is largely lawn with mature trees and shrubbery / hedge around the perimeter to railings. For many years the estate was owned by the Tilt Estate Company, a family run business, which maintained the garden for the use of its tenants. In 2007 Grainger plc acquired the entire shareholding in the Tilt Estate Company and continues to maintain the garden.