Oakwood Park

From the C12th the area was part of Enfield Chase, where parishioners of Enfield, Edmonton, Mimms and Hadley had commoner's rights for fuel, timber and pasture. The Manors of Enfield and Edmonton Manors surrounding woodland had been given to Geoffrey de Mandeville by William the Conqueror after the Norman Conquest and he is thought to have converted the woodland into a deer hunting park c.1136-40. He became Earl of Essex in the C12th. The de Bohun family, Earls of Hereford, became Lords of the Manor of Enfield and owners of the Chase when the granddaughter of the 1st Earl of Essex married Humphrey de Bohun. In 1419 ownership passed to Henry V, whose father Henry Bolingbroke - the Earl of Derby and son of John of Gaunt who later became Henry IV - had married Mary, younger daughter and co-heir of the late Humphry de Bohun. The land remained royal property of the Duchy of Lancaster for some 400 years.

In 1777 Enfield Chase, 8,351 acres, was enclosed and divided by Act of Parliament with the consent of George III; the fringes of the Chase were assigned to neighbouring parishes and farms and the remaining area divided into lots and leased as farmland. The King retained 3,218 acres and the rest distributed to freeholders of neighbouring parishes. The Parish of Edmonton was allocated 1,231 acres part of which remains as Oakwood Park. The northern part of what is now the public park became property of William Tash, who lived at Broomfield House, Lord of the Manors of Bowes and Dernsford until 1816. The southern part became the property of Mrs Mary Bowles, nee Galliard, a prominent citizen of Edmonton whose name is recalled in a local street. In 1870 Samuel Sugden, a homeopathic chemist, purchased the land and renovated the farmhouse within the estate, renaming it Oak Lodge and added a walled garden, orchard and ice well. Oak Lodge was demolished after WWI.

In 1927 Southgate Urban District Council purchased c.26 hectares at a cost of £17,134 to create a public park here, naming it Oakwood after the Lodge. Facilities provided at the time included a square pond for model yachts, with an island and four corner 'beds', which until recently was one of the park's facilities. Overlooking this is the brick half-timbered pavilion that bears a plaque for the opening of the park in 1929. Tennis courts and a large children's playground were provided, and a pitch and putt course opened in 1964. From 1945, an avenue of scarlet oak trees was gradually planted, added to annually. It was intended that each successive mayor of the borough would add a tree over the years, a practice that continued until recent years. An avenue of poplars was planted to commemorate the coronation of King George VI and a replacement planting programme commenced with funding from the Association of Enfield Rotary Clubs to celebrate its 95th anniversary.

The former yachting pond is now being gradually transformed into a wildlife area by the Friends of Oakwood Park. Original field boundaries can still be seen from when the area was farmland. A single Multi Use Games Area was completed in 2008. Oakwood Park is on undulating land with good views of the surrounding area and includes a pleasant mix of open grassland with wooded areas, including a semi-wild strip that separates the golf course and the recreation ground.