The history of the South East suburbs of London in words and pictures.
       

Why Suburbs Happen by Len Reilly Danson Estate Downham Estate The Welling Years, c. 1929 - 1940 by Ivy Trott Thamesmead Search Ideal Homes: Suburbia in Focus Coronation Party, Greenwich Market, Greenwich, 2nd June 1953 Suburbs A - Z How to Contribute to Ideal Homes Cator Estate Blackheath: The Story of a Suburb by Neil Rhind Progress Estate - A Girl's Story Norwood - From Common to Suburb A History of Suburban Streatham by Plumstead, 1800 – 1900: The Building of a London Suburb by Barbara Ludlow New Cross: Kenneth Wright Recalls Biggin Hill Suburbs in Bromley Suburbs in Bexley Suburbs in Greenwich Suburbs in Lambeth Suburbs in Lewisham Suburbs in Southwark Progress Estate

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Ideal Homes: Suburbia in Focus is a joint project of the London Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark and the University of Greenwich

  

Ideal Homes: Suburbia in Focus cover logo

Using a generous selection of old photos, old maps, and historic documents from the rich and unique archive and local history collections of Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich, Lambeth, Lewisham, and Southwark, Ideal Homes explores the origins and significance of suburbia as revealed through the history of South London.

Green belt, playing fields, garden gnomes, and "The Good Life" - these are some of the images summoned up by the word "suburb". But suburbia is much more than that. Ideal Homes uses the local history collections of these six varied London boroughs to show how and why suburbs developed. Here you can find out when villages and settlements were swallowed up by the city, how suburbs have changed over the last two hundred years, and what it has been like to live in the suburbs of London.

The many old pictures included on Ideal Homes will prove valuable to students of house history and family history as well as local history. From the resources of our archives we have created a visually exciting and imaginative experience, generating interest in an undervalued and misunderstood quarter of London. There is more to suburbia than meets the eye.

Ideal Homes includes old photographs and maps of Abbey Wood, Bankside, Beckenham, Bellingham, Belvedere, Bermondsey, Bexley, Bexleyheath, Bickley, Biggin Hill, Blackfen, Blackheath, Borough, Bostall, Brixton, Brockley, Bromley, Camberwell, Catford, Charlton, Chislehurst, Clapham, Cray Valley, Crayford, Crystal Palace, Cudham, Deptford, Downe, Downham, Dulwich, Eltham, Erith, Farnborough, Foots Cray, Forest Hill, Greenwich, Greenwich Peninsula, Grove Park, Hayes, Herne, Hill, Hither Green, Kennington, Keston, Kidbrooke, Ladywell, Lambeth, Lee, Lewisham, Mottingham, New Cross, New Eltham, North Cray, Northumberland Heath, Norwood, Nunhead, Orpington, Peckham, Penge, Petts Wood, Plumstead, Progress Estate, Rotherhithe, Shooters Hill, Sidcup, Slade Green, Southend Village, Stockwell, Streatham, Sydenham, Thamesmead, Tulse Hill, Vauxhall, Walworth, Welling, West Wickham, and Woolwich.
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This website is under continuous development. Designed and Produced by the University of Greenwich. For more information please contact J.M.Balshaw.
Copyright notice: Most images on this site are owned by their respective borough, and most images are available for purchase.
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