Holford Gardens

Holford Square was named after the Holford family, members of whom were governors of the New River Company in the C18th and C19th. One-time residents of Holford Square in the C19th included the philosopher Herbert Spencer, the painter and engraver Myles Birket Foster and the engraver Edmund Evans. Foster and Evans had both began as apprentices in the studio of engraver Ebenezer Landells, later one of the founders of 'Punch'. Evans became the engraver of Kate Greenaway's works, and Birket Foster became well known for his watercolours and engravings, among whose admirers was the painter Walter Sickert. Between 1902 and 1903 Vladimir Lenin lodged at No. 30 Holford Square. In 1934 a public bowling green was laid out in the railed central gardens, for the use of which adults were charged 6d an hour. The garden was used as a balloon site in WWII, but in 1941 much of the square was destroyed by a landmine and the buildings were demolished the following year.

The site of Holford Square was levelled in c.1951 and Bevin Court was erected in 1951-54, a Y-shaped block of 130 flats and maisonettes designed by Skinner, Bailey and Lubetkin, set within landscaped areas. This was their third scheme for Finsbury Metropolitan Borough Council. In 1942 Lubetkin, who was an admirer of Lenin, had designed a bust to commemorate his stay at Holford Square. This once stood in the park but was frequently subject to vandalism and as a result Lubetkin reputedly had the memorial buried in the foundations of the new building to prevent its further damage.