London borough Merton Region London Sovereign state United Kingdom Phone +44 20 8545 3930 Police Metropolitan | Ceremonial county Greater London Country England Post town LONDON Dialling code 020 | |
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Address Wimbledon Park Rd, Wimbledon, London SM4 5DX, UK Population 11,197 (2011 Census. Ward) | ||
Wimbledon park station 1990 2015 contrasts more
Wimbledon Park is the name of an urban park in Wimbledon and also of the suburb south and east of the park and the Wimbledon Park tube station. The park itself is 27 hectares (67 acres) in area. The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club is immediately to the west of the park. Wimbledon Park should not be confused with the much larger and better known Wimbledon Common, further to the west up the hill.
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The original park comprised part of the grounds of Wimbledon manor house, the seat of the manor of Wimbledon, situated on the hill to the south, near St Mary's Church, Wimbledon the old parish church of Wimbledon. A series of owners enlarged the park northwards and eastwards. By the 19th century it was at its largest extent, and one of the homes of the Earls Spencer, lords of the manor. The park had been landscaped in the 18th century by Capability Brown when the lake was formed by constructing a dam across a brook that flows from the springline near Wimbledon Common down to the River Wandle in Earlsfield.
In 1846, the 4th Earl Spencer sold the estate and house to John Augustus Beaumont a property developer who laid out new roads and sold plots of land for house building. Two roads still bear his name today – Augustus Road and Beaumont Road. Development of the area was slow at first, but continued throughout the second half of the 19th century, gradually nibbling away at the parkland.
The modern park was purchased by the Borough of Wimbledon just before the First World War and is, with its ornamental lake, the grounds of the Wimbledon Club and Wimbledon Golf Course, the only remnant of the former, larger park. Late in the 20th century the London Borough of Merton sold on the Golf Course to the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club, leaving just the public park and the lake in its ownership. Along the park's northern edge lies Horse Close wood, a small patch of old planted woodland, largely consisting of Ash and Oak. The London Underground District line runs to the east of the Park between Southfields tube station and Wimbledon Park station.
Wimbledon Park is home to a wide range of leisure facilities including tennis courts, a bowls pavillion, beach volleyball court and an outdoor and Watersports centre which offer a huge range of activities such as Sailing, Kayaking and Canoeing on the large lake which is park of the park.
The park also contains an athletics stadium with 400m track.
Every November a large fireworks display takes place in Wimbledon Park, organised by Merton Council it is one of the largest and most popular shows in London.