The Annunciation and St Augustine
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A Brief History of Bellingham Local Area

The name ‘Bellingham’ means “the water-meadow belonging to Beora’s people”. It was the name of the medieval manor in this area, and survived in Bellingham Farm. It was revived in 1892 as the name of a new railway station, then in open country, on the Nunhead and Shortlands Railway.

After the First World War the London County Council began to build large estates on the edge of the built-up area of London to ease overcrowding and assist slum clearance. Downham Estate, close to Bellingham, is a typical example. Because there was plenty of land available, most of the dwellings could be two-storey houses with gardens (rather than flats) interspersed with open spaces and trees. Provision was made for schools, shops, churches, parks and other amenities.

The land for the Bellingham Estate (Bellingham Farm and part of White House Farm) was bought in 1920, and building of the main estate was completed in 1923. Historical names were chosen for the roads. Some were connected with King Alfred, who was thought to have been lord of the manor of Lewisham. Others were the names of old houses, fields, and mills in the area. The inhabitants came from crowded inner London areas, mainly from Deptford and Bermondsey. The extension south of Southend Lane was built between 1936 and 1939. Here more flats were built, for economy, and to meet the pressing need for housing. Source - Bellingham Information Sheet.

A Brief History of Bellingham Estate and The Annunciation &
St. Augustine’s Church

The Bellingham area is first recorded as far back as the year 973 when it was known as Beringahammes Gemaera, but it went through several name changes until 1198 when it became known as Bellingham.
Alfred the Great was Lord of the Manor of Lewisham, one of the subsidiary manors of which was Bellingham. This included most of the land between Catford and Southend on either side of what is now Bromley Road. Alfred settled the estate before he died to his daughter Elfrieda. The manor changed hands many times over the following years and one history book referring to Bellingham and Southend SE6 tells us that it was a quiet country village, surrounded by farmland, until the 1920s.

The river Ravensbourne powered two water mills at Southend, known as Upper and Lower Mills. The Lower Mill, the mill pond of which survives as Peter Pans Pool, in front of Sainsbury’s Homebase, was famous in the early 18th Century for the cutlery which John Ephraim-How made there. Both mills were still functioning as corn mills in the early years of the 20th century. The Bromley Road, which was once a narrow lane bordered with deep ditches, connected to Lewisham. The Forster family, who lived at Southend Hall, dominated Southend in the 19th Century and whose family chapel served the parishioners before St. Johns Church was built in 1926. The Forster family also acquired lands in neighbouring Bellingham. Lord Forster gave the site of Forster Park to Lewisham Borough Council, in memory of his two sons who were killed in the First World War. The railway came to Southend in 1892, but the ordnance survey map of 1916 shows the village still surrounded by fields, allotments and sports grounds.
A member of Churches Together in Bellingham
88 Beckenham Hill Road, London, SE6 3PU
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