Morden Hall Park

Morden Hall Park
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Location	Morden, London, England
Coordinates
Area	125 acres (51 ha)
Operated by	National Trust
Public transit access	Morden tube station and Morden South railway station

Morden Hall Park is a National Trust park located on the banks of the River Wandle in Morden, south London. It covers over 50ha (125 acres) of parkland with the River Wandle meandering through it spanned by numerous foot bridges. The estate contains Morden Hall itself, Morden Cottage, an old Snuff Mill, and many old farm buildings, some of which are now a garden centre and a city farm. The rose garden has over 2000 roses.

History

File:White Bridge, Morden Hall Park.jpg

White Bridge, Morden Hall Park

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Morden Hall

The estate land was originally owned by Westminster Abbey. There is evidence of an earlier manor-house, but the Hall dates back to the 1770s and contains a variety of natural landscapes, including the parkland of the "Deer Park", meadow and marshland. A number of historic buildings are located in the park, including the Hall itself and preserved watermills where tobacco was once ground into snuff.

The Hall was owned and occupied by the Garth family for generations. It was occupied, as a school, for young gentlemen about 1840, until it was sold by Sir Richard Garth to a tobacco merchant Gilliat Hatfeild (1827–1906) in the 1870s.

The Hall was a military hospital during the First World War.

Gilliat Hatfeild's son, Gilliat Edward Hatfeild (1864–9 February 1941), left the core of the estate (including the house) to the National Trust, when he died. The Hall is now empty, after Whitbread plc decided that the building/location did not fit in with the business plan they had for their Beefeater chain. They still own the lease and continue to pay rent, according to the original lease contract. At least two attempts to sub-lease the property have failed, after limited success.

Gilliat Edward Hatfeild lived at the nearby Morden Cottage which he considered better suited to his life as a bachelor. The formal garden of the cottage is surrounded by an unusual collection of ornamental trees, including one of the oldest yews in England.

Outside of the main park, the remainder of the estate has been swallowed up in housing developments stretching between Morden, South Wimbledon and Collier's Wood and an industrial estate at Deer Park Road.

Access

The main entrance to the park is a short walk from Morden town centre, and car parking is available at the main entrance. The Snuff Mill and Riverside Café are adjacent to the main entrance.

The Tramlink light rail line from Wimbledon to Croydon runs through the northern part of the park, and Phipps Bridge, Belgrave Walk and Morden Road tram stops give access to the park. Both tram stops are a 0.5 mi (0.80 km) walk through the park to the Snuff Mill and Riverside Café. Morden tube station and Morden South railway station are respectively 0.25 mi (0.40 km) and 0.5 mi (0.80 km) walk through the town centre from the main entrance.

References

• aboutbritain.com Morden Hall Park. accessed April 2008
• 'Parishes: Morden', A History of the County of Surrey: Volume 4 (1912), pp. 235–237. Date accessed: 12 April 2008.
• British Pathe News Archive Partially silent 1948 newsreel of film industry party held at Morden Hall.

External links

• National Trust, Morden Hall Park