St James's Gardens

St James's Gardens is part of the Norland estate, which was developed from c.1840. The Estate was originally 52 acres of grounds attached to Norland House, its site now No. 130 Holland Park Avenue, the name 'Norlands' appearing in records in 1599. In the early C18th Norland House was purchased by Thomas Greene, whose grandson E B Greene inherited in 1740 but, due to debts, was forced to lease the house and 12 acres as a military academy in 1761. When Greene died in 1791 the estate was bought at auction by Benjamin Vulliamy, whose family held it until 1839. Vulliamy then sold Norland to William Kingdom for development, encouraged by the acceleration of building development in the area, the Ladbroke Estate to the east and the Holland Estate to the south, together with much-improved drainage of the land due to a new sewer built in 1838/9 through the estate to accommodate the Birmingham, Bristol and Thames Junction Railway line. Kingdom assigned the sale of the estate to solicitor Charles Richardson, who then began raising the necessary capital to build 3 miles of sewers approved by the Westminster Commissioner of Sewers and to begin building the estate to designs by Kingdom's architect Robert Cantwell. Building progress did not go smoothly and despite his best efforts Richardson was bankrupt by 1855. However, between 1847-51 thirty-seven houses had been built in St James's Square as a series of terraces of pseudo semi detached houses designed by John Barnett.

In the centre of the gardens the church of St James, designed by Louis Vulliamy, son of Benjamin Vulliamy, had been built in 1844/5 on a site donated by Richardson and costing £4941. The central tower of the church provides the focus for the vista up Addison Avenue, and was erected in 1850, but it was originally planned to have a spire unrealised due to lack of funds. An extension was built to the east end in 1876. The gardens to the east and west of the church were simply laid out with central paths and trees around the edge (OS 1863). In 1928 the garden is described as 'a rectangular area with privet hedge all round. An attractive open space with lawns, etc. and some well-grown trees.' Protected under 1851 Garden Square Act.