Crofton Park

Coordinates: 51°27′08″N 0°02′00″W / 51.4523°N 0.0333°W / 51.4523; -0.0333

Crofton Park is a mainly residential suburb and electoral ward in the London Borough of Lewisham.

It is the original site of the former agricultural hamlet of Brockley. It is located 5.3 miles (8.5 km) south east of Charing Cross, and is south of Brockley and north of Honor Oak. Major points of interest include the Rivoli Ballroom, the Brockley Jack Theatre and the Arts and Crafts Gothic church of St Hilda.

Crofton Park is bordered by Brockley and Ladywell Cemeteries to the north, and a section of Ladywell Fields to the south east. The area also offers easy access to South East London Green Chain of walks. Nearby, between Honor Oak and Catford, is Blythe Hill Fields, one of a number of hills in south east London and which provide good views of Canary Wharf and the City of London.

History

Before the area was built up in the late 19th century, the principal buildings were Brockley Farm, Brockley Hall and the Brockley Jack public house. The area expanded rapidly in the 1890s with the opening of a new railway line (informally known as the Catford Loop) and railway station which opened in 1892. It was the naming of the station as Crofton Park which gave the area its modern and invented name. Despite this being the historic heart of Brockley, that name had already been used for two earlier railway stations further north - Brockley Station and Brockley Lane Station.