114-677: Leatherhead is a town in the Mole Valley district of Surrey , England, about 17 mi (27 km) south of Central London . The settlement grew up beside a ford on the River Mole , from which its name is thought to derive. During the late Anglo-Saxon period, Leatherhead was a royal vill and is first mentioned in the will of Alfred the Great in 880 AD. The first bridge across the Mole may have been constructed in around 1200 and this may have coincided with
228-425: A shout , a type of boat up to 16 metres (52 ft) in length, used to transport produce to market. Several schemes were proposed to make the Mole navigable in the 17th and 18th centuries, but none were enacted. The turnpike road between Epsom and Horsham , which ran through Leatherhead, was authorised by Parliament in 1755. Turnpikes to Guildford and Kingston were opened in 1758 and 1811 respectively and one of
342-448: A 181 ha (450-acre) woodland, is owned and managed by the City of London Corporation and is to the north west of Lower Ashtead; the 54 ha (130-acre) Ashtead Park is to the east of The Village and is owned by Mole Valley District Council. Like many of the villages between Croydon and Guildford, Ashtead is a spring line settlement . It is positioned at the point where the chalk of
456-578: A covered shopping centre with a multistorey car park , was constructed in its place. At the same time a one-way system was created and the High Street was pedestrianised. By September 1981, the scheme was already attracting criticism from local traders and residents, who blamed the traffic alterations for a steep decline in footfall . In January 1983, the County Planning Officer admitted that the "complexity of present routes undoubtedly detracts from
570-524: A four-year term of office. Surrey County Council elections are held in the fourth year of the cycle when there are no district council elections. Most of the district lies within the Mole Valley constituency , the exception being Ashtead which is within the Epsom and Ewell constituency . The council is based at Pippbrook on Reigate Road in Dorking, which was purpose-built for the council and opened in 1984. It
684-703: A garrison town in the Second World War. Troops from the Royal Corps of Signals were billeted in late 1939 and a year later, the first Canadian soldiers began to arrive in the local area. From September 1939, children from Streatham and Dulwich were evacuated to Leatherhead and the Royal School for the Blind was taken over by King's College Hospital . The cottage hospital on Poplar Road opened in May 1940 and by June of that year
798-579: A manufacturing plant at Dorincourt, to the north of the town. The factory moved to Randalls Road in 1953, but it closed in 1981 when the company went into liquidation. A business park opened in its place. The Ex-services Welfare Society purchased Long House on Ermin Way following the end of the First World War. The charity constructed a factory in the grounds to provide employment for disabled veterans, producing electrical items, such as electric blankets . In 1933,
912-466: A mesne lord to the tenant-in-chief, Bishop Odo of Bayeux . Finally there are sporadic mentions in surviving documents of a manor called "Minchin", which may have belonged to Kilburn Priory in Middlesex . For the majority of its history, Thorncroft Manor appears to have remained as a single, intact entity, with the exception of the subinfeudation of Bocketts Farm , which took place before 1300. In 1086,
1026-547: A new drama festival. Leatherhead began to expand at the start of the 20th century and the population grew from in 4,694 in 1901 to 5,491 in 1911. New housing developments were built between 1900 and 1905 in Fairfield, Highlands and Kingston Roads, and Queen Anne's Garden. Later in the decade, houses were constructed in Copthorne, Clinton, Reigate and Woodville Roads, Kingston Avenue and St Nicholas Hill. The first council housing in
1140-466: A point where a continuation of Elm Road would meet the river. The first indication of a bridge at Leatherhead is a local deed dated to 1250, which was witnessed by a "Simon of the Bridge". Later that century, in around 1286, a Peter Dryaw of Fetcham is recorded as mortgaging the annual rent of a house "at the bridge in the town of Ledderede" to Merton College, Oxford . It is possible that the construction of
1254-528: A private hospital not run by the NHS , opened in the old chalk quarry site to the south of the village in September 1984. The nearest hospital with an A&E is Epsom Hospital , 2.1 km (1.3 mi) away. As of 2021, the village has two GP practices, both on Woodfield Lane. Brick and tile manufacture has taken place at Ashtead at several points in the village's history. Clay pits on Ashtead Common were active in
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#17328449224711368-588: A result of enemy bombing during the Battle of Britain and the Blitz , including St Andrew's School , which was almost completely destroyed. In the final year of the war, two V-1 flying bombs landed in the village and a V-2 rocket landed to the south of Ashtead Park in February 1945. The 1944 Greater London Plan placed much of the land surrounding Ashtead in the protected Metropolitan Green Belt , which severely limited
1482-401: A serious fire had destroyed much of Leatherhead, Wimbledon defaulted on the rent and was accused of dismantling several of the manor buildings. From the start of the 15th century, the land was divided between twelve lessees and the manor then disappears from the historical record. Surviving records of Pachenesham Parva from around 1330 suggest that it covered an area of 46 ha (114 acres) on
1596-405: A third tier of local government for their areas. The council has been under Liberal Democrat majority control since 2019. The first elections to the council were held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new arrangements came into effect on 1 April 1974. Political control of the council since 1974 has been as follows: The leaders of
1710-456: Is a village in the Mole Valley district of Surrey , England, approximately 16 mi (26 km) south of central London . Ashtead is on the single-carriageway A24 between Epsom and Leatherhead . The village is on the northern slopes of the North Downs and is in the catchment area of The Rye , a tributary of the River Mole . The earliest archaeological evidence for human activity in
1824-563: Is from the Paleolithic and Mesolithic periods. A backed blade made of flint , dating from 50,000 to 12,000 years before present (BP), was found during pipeline excavations in Lower Ashtead, near Barnett Wood Lane and tranchet axes , dating from 15,000 to 5000 BP, have been discovered in Ottways Lane and Glebe Road. During the demolition of Parsons Mead School in 2009, pottery from
1938-527: Is generally agreed to mean "place of ash trees ". Ashtead is a large village in the Mole Valley district of Surrey , approximately 25 km (16 mi) south of central London. It lies on the southern edge of the London Basin and the highest point in the parish is 129.5 m (425 ft) above ordnance datum . Both the Epsom to Leatherhead railway line and the A24 run from northeast to southwest through
2052-656: Is in Leatherhead. Mole Valley Mole Valley is a local government district in Surrey , England. Its council is based in Dorking , and the district's other town is Leatherhead . The largest villages are Ashtead , Fetcham and Great Bookham , in the northern third of the district. Most of the district is on the escarpments of or adjoins the Surrey Hills , a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty , which cover parts of
2166-726: Is the majority of the former Dorking Urban District. The rest of the district is covered by civil parishes : A Legatum Prosperity Index published by the Legatum Institute in October 2016 showed Mole Valley as the second most prosperous council area in the United Kingdom, after the nearby Borough of Waverley . Mole Valley is served by these emergency services: 51°18′57.68″N 0°29′37.31″W / 51.3160222°N 0.4936972°W / 51.3160222; -0.4936972 Ashtead Ashtead / ˈ æ ʃ t ɛ d /
2280-645: Is thought to have been at the junction of Bridge Street, North Street and High Street and the town stocks were probably in the same area. The market appears to have ended in the mid- Elizabethan era , however the annual fair continued and in the late 17th century was held on 8 September, the feast of the Nativity of Mary . The construction of the turnpikes, and later the railways, attracted wealthier residents to Leatherhead. Many of these incomers had accumulated their wealth as entrepreneurs in London and had no previous connection to
2394-512: Is usually thought to derive from the Old English lēode (people) + rida (a riding path or ford that can be ridden), and thus meaning 'a public ford'. Richard Coates has suggested a derivation from the primitive Welsh lēd-rïd (Brittonic *letorito-) meaning 'grey ford', where the lexical field of lēd (grey) can also extend to brown, but this is not widely accepted. Leatherhead is a town in central Surrey , around 17 mi (27 km) south of
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#17328449224712508-512: The 1st Canadian Division was posted to Dorking and Leatherhead, and was responsible for completing the construction of Young Street between Givons Grove and Fetcham. The local unit of the Home Guard , Company F of the 6th Battalion of South Eastern Command, was formed with 200 recruits in May 1940. The training centres for the company included the Drill Hall on Kingston Road and an anti-tank obstacle
2622-618: The Corporation of London ; Ashtead Park , to the east of the centre is a Local Nature Reserve owned by the District Council. In the Domesday Book of 1086, Ashtead is recorded as Stede , which simply means "place". In later documents, the village appears as Estede , Akestede and Aschestede (13th century), Asshstede (1370s), Ashstede (14th century), Asshested (15th century), Asted (1790) and Ashsted (1820). The name
2736-571: The Earls of Surrey , held the manor in the 12th century. In the second half of the 13th century, it passed to the de Montfort family. During the Second Barons' War (1264–1267), Ashtead men are known to have fought on the side of Simon de Montfort . The de Montforts and their descendants continued to own the manor until the death of Baldwin de Freville in 1419, when it passed to his brother-in-law, Sir Roger Aston. Ashtead passed through several generations of
2850-705: The Great Depression . The construction company Longcross had its head office in Ashtead but entered administration in 2015. The Ashtead Group was founded in 1947 as Ashtead Plant and Tool Hire . It was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1986. The company operates internationally and serves customers in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. The A24 single-carriageway road runs through
2964-524: The M25 motorway are the main thoroughfares and relative to London the incidence of car ownership is high. The area hosts hill-focussed sub-laps of the London–Surrey Classic cycling tour each year. The neighbouring districts are Epsom and Ewell , Reigate and Banstead , Crawley , Horsham , Waverley , Guildford , Elmbridge and Kingston upon Thames , the latter being a London borough . The district
3078-451: The Neolithic was found which contained charcoal that was radiocarbon dated to 3775-3659 BP. Bronze Age artefacts discovered in the village include a spearhead and pottery sherds . Ashtead was the site of a major Roman brickworks in the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. The site on Ashtead Common consisted of a corridor villa and kilns adjacent to a series of claypits. A bath house
3192-585: The North Downs and Greensand Ridge , including locally Leith Hill , Polesden Lacey and Box Hill . Denbies Wine Estate , the largest vineyard in the country, is on the hills north-west of Dorking. The Pilgrims' Way footpath runs along the North Downs. There are stations on the London – Worthing and Reading – Gatwick Airport railways, and in the northern third, a commuter stopping-service pattern line, London – Guildford (via Epsom) line. The A24 road and
3306-561: The North Downs dips beneath the London Clay . The chalk is a natural aquifer and numerous wells have been bored into the ground to obtain drinking water. Springs rise at several points along the boundary between the permeable and impermeable ground, some of which feed The Rye and its tributaries, while others feed the ponds on the Common and in the Park. The earliest evidence of human activity
3420-537: The North Downs , south of the town. Leatherhead is at the southern edge of the London Basin , where the permeable upper chalk of the North Downs dips beneath the impermeable London Clay . The difference in properties between the two formations results in a high water table and springs are found at regular intervals along the boundary between them. Several settlements were established along this spring line in Anglo-Saxon and early medieval times, including
3534-514: The Royal Norfolk Regiment was stationed in the village at the start of the war and, from 1941, Canadian soldiers were billeted locally. Land bordering Craddocks Avenue was taken over for war allotments and pigs were reared on vacant building plots on the Overdale estate. In 1940 a company of the Home Guard was formed. In 1940 and 1941, several buildings in Ashtead suffered damage as
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3648-647: The Southern Railway was formed. All railway lines through Leatherhead were electrified in 1925 and the LSWR station was closed in 1927. In the late 1930s, a southward extension of the Chessington branch line was proposed, but the creation of the Metropolitan Green Belt prevented the scheme from being enacted. The construction of the A24 bypass (between Givons Grove and Leatherhead Common) started in 1931 and
3762-542: The Wimbledon -Woking main via a 132 kV substation at Leatherhead. Leatherhead Police Station was on Kingston Road, to the north of the town centre. It closed in 2011. The building was demolished and retirement apartments were built on the site. In 2021, the local police force is Surrey Police and the nearest police station to the town is at Reigate . The headquarters of the Police Federation of England and Wales
3876-590: The tollhouses was sited near to the present Leatherhead Institute. Stagecoaches , which had begun to run through Leatherhead to London in the 1680s, increased in frequency after the building of the turnpikes. By 1838 there were daily coaches to Arundel , Bognor and Worthing , which typically stopped at the Swan Inn in the High Street. With the arrival of the railway at Epsom in 1847, the long-distance coaches were discontinued and horse-drawn omnibuses took over local journeys. The first railway to arrive in Leatherhead
3990-550: The 19th century, local infrastructure and services were overseen by the vestry , but the Local Government Act 1888 transferred many administrative responsibilities to the newly formed Surrey County Council . A parish council was established under the Local Government Act 1894 when the village became part of Epsom Rural District . The parish council was abolished in 1933, when Ashtead became part of Leatherhead Urban District. Ashtead thus became an urban parish . In 1951
4104-562: The 1st, 2nd, 13th and 14th centuries and, in the mid-19th century, there was a brick kiln and drying shed in Newton Wood. In around 1880, the Sparrow brothers opened a works to the north of Barnett Wood Lane and their company was active for around 30 years. Houses were built on the site in the 1950s and part of the old clay pit is now the Floral Pond, adjacent to The Chase. Ashtead Brickworks, to
4218-790: The 20th Battalion of the University and Public Schools Brigade of the Royal Fusiliers were billeted with local residents. The recruits were primarily drawn from the Manchester area and underwent training at Randalls Farm. The Kensington Rifles of the London Regiment were also garrisoned in the town in the month before their deployment to the Western Front in April 1915. Later that year, the first of 63 Belgian refugees arrived in Leatherhead, remaining in
4332-543: The 4th century. Although there is no archaeological evidence of Anglo-Saxon occupation in the village, Ashtead would have been administered as part of the Copthorne Hundred . There may have been a small chapel, likely to have been controlled by a minster at Leatherhead, which was a royal vill . In 1984, an Anglo-Saxon cemetery was discovered on the site of the former Goblin factory in Ermyn Way, Leatherhead (now
4446-649: The Aston family until 1543, when Edward Aston returned the manor to the Crown in exchange for land in Stafford and Derby . During the late 14th century, tile manufacturing was again taking place on Ashtead Common. Records from the Manor of Banstead indicate that a "Henry the Tyler of Asshstede" supplied over 10,000 roof tiles in 1372–3, and in 1384 the same individual also supplied the lord of
4560-514: The Howard family and was inherited by Mary Howard in 1818. Mary Howard was a major benefactor to the village and was responsible for founding St Giles' School. She endowed the almshouses and, together with her husband, Fulk Greville Howard , initiated a major redevelopment of the parish church. In 1825 George Rennie and his brother, John , proposed the construction of The Grand Imperial Ship Canal , between Deptford and Portsmouth , to reduce
4674-510: The Howards and the rector was given land to the south of the village centre in compensation. In around 1850, the 92 ha (227 acres) comprising the remaining core of Little Ashtead manor was sold for development, marking the start of a long period of housebuilding in the village. The railway line through Ashtead was built by the Epsom and Leatherhead Railway Company and opened on 1 February 1859. It
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4788-626: The Manor or by other prominent individuals, including the Stydolf family of Norbury Park . Ashtead is mentioned twice in Samuel Pepys ' diaries. Part of his entry for 25 July 1663 reads: For much of the early modern period , Ashtead was owned by the Howard family. Sir Robert Howard purchased the manor from his cousin Henry Howard, the 6th Duke of Norfolk , in 1680 and is credited with transforming
4902-505: The UDCs of Leatherhead and Dorking with the majority of the Dorking and Horley Rural District. Leatherhead developed at a crossing point of the River Mole at the intersection between the north–south Kingston –Dorking and east–west Epsom–Guildford roads. The original position of the ford is unclear, but it may have been around 90 m (100 yd) upstream of the present Leatherhead Bridge at
5016-414: The appeal of the town to car-borne shoppers." In 2002, BBC News named Leatherhead as having one of the worst High Streets in the country. Five years later, in 2007, the local press reported that the town was "bustling with people, and packed full with an abundance of shops, entertainment facilities and job opportunities." The revival in fortunes was attributed to a variety of community initiatives, including
5130-530: The area. By the start of the Victorian era , they were beginning to influence the local economy. Small, family-based manufacturing firms began to grow, engaged in industries such as brick-making , milling of logs , tanning , shoemaking , malting and brewing . In the 1841 census , 18.5% of the town's inhabitants were employed in agriculture-related trades, but forty years later , the proportion had fallen to 5.4%. Larger-scale industries arrived in Leatherhead in
5244-424: The border with Ashtead. The clubhouse of the golf club suffered a direct hit, but the civilians taking cover in the shelter beneath it were fully protected and survived without injury. In October of the same year, the oil storage tanks next to the waterworks were set alight by an incendiary bomb . The resulting fires could not be extinguished until more than 24 hours later. In March 1941, St Andrew's Catholic School
5358-455: The breakup of the Ashtead Park estate in the 1880s. Housebuilding continued into the 20th century, reaching a peak in the 1930s. Future expansion is now constrained by the Metropolitan Green Belt , which encircles the village. There are two nature reserves in the village: Ashtead Common , to the north west of the centre, forms part of a Site of Special Scientific Interest and is owned by
5472-517: The centre of London. It lies on the southern edge of the London Basin and the highest point in the parish, at Leatherhead Downs, is 135 m (443 ft) above ordnance datum . The High Street runs roughly west to east and was part of the Guildford to Epsom road, which crossed the River Mole at the Town Bridge. The Mole, which passes to the west of the centre, has cut a steep-sided valley through
5586-452: The centre of the village. In October 1985, Ashtead was joined to the UK motorway system, when the M25 motorway was opened between Wisley and Reigate. Route 408 (Epsom – Leatherhead – Cobham) is run by Falcon Buses and Route 479 (Epsom – Leatherhead – Guildford) is run by Arriva Kent & Sussex and Stagecoach. Ashtead railway station is to the northwest of the village centre and is managed by Southern . The main ticket office building
5700-409: The college in Oxford that he had founded in 1264. Merton College remained the lords of the manor until 1904 and the continuity of ownership ensured that an almost complete set of manorial rolls from 1278 onwards has been preserved. In 1497, Richard FitzJames , the Warden of the College , authorised the expenditure of £37 for a new manor house , which was used until the Georgian era . In contrast,
5814-455: The combined population of the Ashtead Common, Park and Village wards was 14,169. Until the late 18th century, villagers obtained drinking water from The Rye or from wells . In 1884, the first piped supply was installed by the Leatherhead and District Water Company and was fed from a borehole at Waterway Road in Leatherhead. The gas main from Epsom was installed in the 1880s, to supply gas for street lighting. The first sewerage system
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#17328449224715928-425: The council since 2012 have been: Following the 2024 election the composition of the council was: The next election is due in 2026. Since the last boundary changes in 2023 the council has comprised 39 councillors representing 13 wards , with each ward electing three councillors. Elections are held three years out of every four, with a third of the council (one councillor for each ward) elected each time for
6042-399: The cultivatable land in the village, were divided into strips of around 1 acre each. The strips were distributed between 52 families and the planting would have been regulated by the manor court. In 1656, 17 of these strips were held by the rector and provided an income for the parish priest. The remainder of the cultivatable land had already been enclosed and was either held by the Lords of
6156-452: The east bank of the River Mole, to the north west of the town centre. The manor appears to have remained intact through the Middle Ages and land was added to the estate as the remainder of Pachesham was broken up. By the early 17th century, the area was known as Randalls Farm and, in 1805, the associated land totalled 182 ha (450 acres). Reforms during the Tudor period replaced the day-to-day administration of towns such as Leatherhead in
6270-424: The end of the First World War and companies with factories in the town included Ronson and Goblin Vacuum Cleaners . Several organisations working with disabled people also opened treatment and training facilities, including The Royal School for the Blind , Queen Elizabeth's Foundation and the Ex-services Welfare Society . Towards the end of the 20th century, manufacturing in Leatherhead had begun to decline and
6384-464: The expansion of the town and the enlargement of the parish church. For much of its history, Leatherhead was primarily an agricultural settlement, with a weekly market being held until the mid- Elizabethan era . The construction of turnpike roads in the mid-18th century and the arrival of the railways in the second half of the 19th century attracted newcomers and began to stimulate the local economy. Large-scale manufacturing industries arrived following
6498-434: The final section opened in May 1934. Young Street (the A246 between Bocketts Farm and Givons Grove) was built by the Corps of Royal Canadian Military Engineers between June 1940 and May 1941. In October 1985, the town was joined to the UK motorway system when the M25 was opened between Wisley and Reigate. The right to hold a weekly market and an annual fair was granted to Leatherhead in 1248 by Henry III . The market place
6612-404: The first bridge coincided with an expansion of the town and the enlargement of the parish church, which took place around 1200. It is not clear to what extent the Mole was used for navigation in the past, but in the early Middle Ages, it is likely that shallow-bottomed craft were able to reach Leatherhead from the Thames for much of the year. In the late 13th century, Thorncroft Manor purchased
6726-451: The first half of the 20th century. In 1928, the Rayon manufacturing company opened a factory in Ermyn Way, close to the border with Ashtead parish and was replaced ten years later by the manufacturing plant for Goblin Vacuum Cleaners . Also in the 1930s, a silk-making farm and electrical cable factory were established in the town. Following the end of the Second World War, Ronson , the US-based manufacturer of cigarette lighters , opened
6840-428: The hands of the vestry of the parish church. The vestry was charged with appointing a parish constable , maintaining a lock-up and organising a basic fire service. Until 1834, it also administered poor relief and was responsible for building a workhouse on Kingston Road in 1808. During the 19th century, local government reforms gradually removed the duties of running of the town's infrastructure and services from
6954-436: The horse-drawn fire cart was housed at the Leg of Mutton and Cauliflower, but it moved to a site in Agates Lane in 1908. The village Brigade was merged with that of Leatherhead in October 1926. In 2021, the fire authority for the village is Surrey County Council and the statutory fire service is Surrey Fire and Rescue Service . Local ambulance services are run by the South East Coast Ambulance Service . Ashtead Hospital,
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#17328449224717068-624: The land into a Gentleman's country seat . Sir Robert built a new mansion and also enclosed the surrounding park to create a formal garden. The diarist, John Evelyn , visited the house shortly after it was completed in 1684, admiring the paintings by the Italian-born artist Antonio Verrio and remarking upon the "swete park upon the Downe." Celia Fiennes described the brick-built mansion as having "an abundance of pictures" and "very good tapestry hangings". Sir Robert's guests also included Charles II, James II and William III . The turnpike road between Epsom and Horsham, which ran through Ashtead,
7182-406: The land, much of it farmland, was split into eight separate lots . Since the sale coincided with a period of depression in British agriculture , the land sold cheaply. The lot containing Ashtead Park and Home Farm was withdrawn from sale when it failed to meet its reserve price and was acquired by Pantia Ralli in 1889. By 1887 the majority of the farms in Ashtead had been broken up and the land
7296-400: The latter case for the UK headquarters of Esso . The UK head offices of Unilever (on the site of the former CERL) and Hyundai were opened in Leatherhead in 2008 and 2020 respectively. A controversial redevelopment of the road network in the town centre took place in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The project began with the demolition of the Prince of Wales pub in 1979 and the Swan Centre,
7410-521: The location of the offices of Esso ). Excavations uncovered the remains of at least 40 individuals and the artefacts found, including knives, buckles and necklaces, suggest that they were pagan burials. Ashtead appears in the Domesday Book as Stede and was held by the Canons of Bayeux from the Bishop of Bayeux . Its assets were: three hides and one virgate ; 16 ploughs , woodland for seven hogs and four acres (1.6 ha) of meadow . In total, it rendered £12 per year. The de Warenne Family,
7524-423: The manor house in around 1293, which he enclosed with a moat . Excavations of the manor house site (now known as The Mounts) in the mid-20th century provided evidence of several medieval buildings, including a hall, a chapel and a probable stable block. The value of the manor appears to have declined in the mid-14th century and, in 1386, it was let to William Wimbledon for an annual sum of £20. In 1393, one year after
7638-416: The manor of Ashtead with tiles for "The Lord's Kitchen." It is possible that, during the 1290s, the tiles for the building of Pacchesham Manor, Leatherhead, were also manufactured on Ashtead Common. There is no mention of Henry the Tyler after 1400, and it seems likely that the medieval tileworks closed around this time. The area now bordered by Barnett Wood Lane, Agates Lane, Ottways Lane and Harriots Lane,
7752-401: The manor of Pachesham became fragmented as the Middle Ages progressed. By the time of the Domesday Book, it was already divided into two parts, the smaller of which was later referred to as "Pachenesham Parva". No written record of either part of the manor survives from the subsequent 200 years, but in 1286 land belongong to Pachesham was recorded as passing to Eustace de Hacche. De Haache rebuilt
7866-512: The manor was held by Richard fitz Gilbert and it passed through his family (the Clares ) to his granddaughter, Margaret de Clare, who married into the de Montfitchet family of Essex. Her great-grandson, Richard de Montfichet , sold the manor to John de Cheresbure in around 1190 and it was next purchased by Philip Basset and his second wife, Ela, Countess of Warwick in around 1255. In 1266, they granted Thorncroft (which provided an income of £20 per year) to Walter de Merton , who used it to endow
7980-486: The new residents were professionals who commuted to London by train. During the First World War , several hundred men from the 21st Battalion of the Royal Fusiliers were billeted in the village and were responsible for constructing a convalescent hospital at Woodcote Park in Epsom. George V visited the village by train in October 1914 to inspect the troops. By January 1915, there were around 1500 soldiers based in Ashtead. The war memorial at St George's Church
8094-598: The organisation opened a treatment centre at Tyrwhitt House in Oaklawn Road, named after Reginald Tyrwhitt , its president at the time. In 1981, the factory was purchased by Remploy . It continued to manufacture electrical goods, but under the new ownership, its operations expanded to include the assembly and packaging of mechanical equipment. The Remploy factory closed in 2007, with the loss of 43 jobs. The Ex-services Welfare Society, now known as Combat Stress , continues to operate its treatment centre at Tyrwhitt House in north Leatherhead. Large-scale manufacturing in Leatherhead
8208-531: The parish had a population of 9852. On 1 April 1974 the parish was abolished. Mole Valley District Council was created in 1974 by combining the Urban Districts of Dorking and Leatherhead with the Rural District of Dorking. Although Ashtead does not have a parish council today, stakeholder engagement is conducted through a number of bodies, including Ashtead Residents' Association. In the 2011 Census ,
8322-422: The population of the village increased from 906 in 1871 to 1,881 in 1901. Development continued in the first decade of the 20th century and the population had reached 2,921 by 1911. Many of the new homes were in the west of the parish and housebuilding took place along Skinners Lane, Ottways Lane and Oakfield Road. By 1914, new houses had also appeared along Leatherhead Road, Woodfield Road and The Marld. Many of
8436-484: The regional average of 35.1%. The proportion who owned their home with a loan compares to the regional average of 32.5%. The remaining % is made up of rented dwellings (plus a negligible % of households living rent-free). The town gasworks , close to the junction of Kingston Road and Barnett Wood Lane, were built in 1850 by the Leatherhead Gas Company. The first gas was produced in February 1851 and
8550-451: The same year and, in August 1859, the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LBSCR) began to run trains from Leatherhead to London Bridge . The Mole Gap through the North Downs had been identified as a potential railway corridor as early as the 1830s, but the line south from Leatherhead to Dorking was not opened until 1867. The Kingston Road station, which had been laid out as a terminus,
8664-421: The same year. In August 1859, the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LBSCR) began to run trains from Leatherhead to London Bridge , but did not begin stopping at Ashtead until the following year. After the death of Mary Howard in 1877, much of the village was offered for sale. Ashtead Common was purchased by Thomas Lucas, who sold it four years later, in 1889, to the banker Pantia Ralli . The rest of
8778-509: The scope for urban expansion. The northern half of Ashtead Park was threatened with development from the late 1940s and so it was purchased by Surrey County Council in 1957, before being passed to the ownership of the Leatherhead Urban District Council. In 1988, three conservation areas were designated in the village. Since 1997, Ashtead has been part of the parliamentary constituency of Epsom and Ewell . For much of
8892-484: The settlement is in the will of Alfred the Great in 880, in which land at Leodridan was bequeathed to his son, Edward the Elder . By the 10th century, there was a minster church in Leatherhead, and the town was administered as part of the Copthorne Hundred . The medieval history of Leatherhead is complex, since the parish was divided into a number of manors. The town appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Leret and
9006-547: The settlement, broadly parallel to The Rye , a tributary of the River Mole . The historic core of Ashtead is known locally as "The Village" and is focused around the main shopping area along The Street (A24). The residential area to the north west, closer to the railway station , is known as "Lower Ashtead" and incorporates secondary shopping centres on Craddocks Parade and Barnett Wood Lane. There are two protected nature reserves in Ashtead: Ashtead Common ,
9120-453: The town centre) and on Mickleham Downs (about 3 km (2 mi) to the south). Also to the south, the Druid's Grove at Norbury Park may have been used for pre-Christian pagan gatherings. An Anglo-Saxon settlement at Leatherhead was most likely founded on the east side of the River Mole in the second half of the 6th century. A burial ground, dating to the same period, has been identified on
9234-424: The town centre. The Givons Grove estate, to the south of the town, was developed in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Originally a constituent of Thorncroft Manor, it was an area of arable land, known as "Gibbons Farm", named after a prominent local family. In 1919, the estate was bought by the aircraft manufacturer, Humphrey Verdon Roe , whose wife, Marie Stopes , would live at Norbury Park for 20 years from 1938. It
9348-575: The town on Mole Valley District Council (the headquarters of which are in Dorking): Leatherhead is represented by a swan on the crest of the Mole Valley District Council coat of arms . Since 2004, Leatherhead has been twinned with Triel-sur-Seine ( Île-de-France , France). Region-wide, 28% of dwellings were detached houses and 22.6% were apartments. The proportion of households who owned their home outright compares to
9462-544: The town until the end of the war. Concerns that the town's water supply might be poisoned by enemy spies, prompted the authorities to arrange a guard on the waterworks on Guildford Road. Many of the duties were undertaken by the local Scout troop and members of the Boys' Brigade , which was affiliated with St Mary's Church. Many local men joined the Dorking and Leatherhead Battalion of the Volunteer Training Corps , which
9576-471: The town was instead starting to attract service sector employers . The former industrial areas were converted to business parks , which attracted multinational companies, including Esso and Unilever . A controversial redevelopment took place in the town centre in the early 1980s, which included the construction of the Swan Centre. The work, which also included the pedestrianisation of the main shopping area,
9690-565: The town, a development of 59 houses in Poplar Road, was built by Leatherhead UDC in 1921. Preference for rehousing was given to ex-servicemen and their families. In 1925, 90 council houses were constructed in Kingston Road. Private residential developments also occurred around the same time, including the construction of the St Mary's Road estate, on the site of the former Elm Bank mansion, south of
9804-472: The transit time from the capital to the south coast from 12 days to 24 hours and to avoid hostile waters in the event of war. The canal would have run across Ashtead Common, along the course of The Rye. The two common fields were enclosed in 1838, bringing to an end the open-field system in the manor. The land was divided into forty rectangular fields, each of around 4 ha (10 acres), which were leased to local farmers. The glebe strips were taken over by
9918-490: The vestry. The Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 placed the workhouse in the care of a board of guardians at Epsom and the Local Government Act 1888 transferred many administrative responsibilities to the newly formed Surrey County Council . The Leatherhead Urban District Council (UDC) was formed six years later and in 1903 the county council was placed in charge of the town's National schools . The Local Government Act 1972 created Mole Valley District Council , by combining
10032-451: The village is from the Stone Age . At several points in its history, including during the early Roman period , Ashtead has been a centre for brick and tile manufacture. From medieval times until the late 19th century, Ashtead was primarily an agricultural settlement. Residential development was catalysed by the opening of the railway line between Epsom and Leatherhead in 1859 and by
10146-631: The villages of Ashtead , Fetcham and Effingham , which are linked to Leatherhead by the Guildford to Epsom road. The earliest evidence of human activity in Leatherhead comes from the Iron Age . Flints , a probable well and two pits were discovered in 2012 during building work on Garlands Road and the finds suggest that the site was also used in the early Roman period . Traces of Iron Age field systems and settlement activity have been observed at Hawks Hill, Fetcham (about 1 km (0.62 mi) southwest of
10260-592: The west of the Sparrow Works, was established in 1896 and closed in 1909. Ashtead Potters Ltd was established in the village in 1923 by Sir Lawrence Weaver and Kathleen Purcell, Lady Weaver. The firm was based in the Victoria Works in West Hill and produced a wide range of products in a variety of styles. The clay was delivered by train to Ashtead station. The company ceased trading in 1935 after sales fell during
10374-494: The west side at Hawks Hill. A second cemetery was discovered in 1984 on the site of the former Goblin factory in Ermyn Way (now the location of the offices of Esso ). Excavations uncovered the remains of at least 40 individuals and the artefacts found, including knives, buckles and necklaces, suggest that they were pagan burials. From the mid-9th century, Leatherhead was the centre of a royal vill , which encompassed Ashtead , Fetcham and Bookham . The first known reference to
10488-422: Was almost completely destroyed by a bomb. During the second period of bombing, in the summer of 1944, 16 V-1 flying bombs landed in the Leatherhead area, including one at Thorncroft Manor. Leatherhead is in the Epsom and Ewell parliamentary constituency . Councillors are elected to Surrey County Council every four years. The town is part of the 'Leatherhead and Fetcham East' ward. Five councillors represent
10602-475: Was also provided for the use of the workers. The complex was excavated in the 1920s and it is now protected by scheduled monument status. Bricks and tiles produced in Ashtead were most likely transported via a short branch road to Stane Street , the Roman road that runs to the south east of the village centre. Remains of a building close to St Giles' Church, suggest that Roman occupation of Ashtead continued into
10716-431: Was authorised by Parliament in 1755. By the end of the century, stagecoaches were passing through the village several times a day, although it is unlikely that many stopped to pick up passengers and local residents probably walked or rode to Epsom if they wished to use them. For the first seven decades of the 19th century, Ashtead remained a predominantly farming community. The manor continued to be owned by members of
10830-408: Was built by the Epsom and Leatherhead Railway Company. The line, which terminated at a station in Kingston Road, opened on 1 February 1859. Initially all trains were operated by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) and, for the first two months, only ran as far as Epsom . The completion of the line through Worcester Park enabled these services to be extended to London Waterloo from April of
10944-399: Was built in the grounds of a large Victorian house, called Pippbrook House, which had served as the headquarters of the old Dorking Urban District Council from 1931 and then as Mole Valley District Council's headquarters until the new building opened. The former Leatherhead Urban District, which included Ashtead , Fetcham , Great Bookham and Little Bookham , is an unparished area , as
11058-482: Was closed and two new adjacent stations (either side of the present Station Approach) were opened. The LBSCR station, which was closer to the town centre, was initially the only one connected to the line to Dorking. It was designed by C. H. Driver in a fine Gothic Revival style and is the station that survives today. The LSWR built its station as a terminus, but its line was extended westwards to Bookham in 1885. The two railway companies were amalgamated in 1923, when
11172-534: Was completed in 1900 and electricity reached Ashtead in the same year. In the early 19th century a constable was employed by the vestry and the Leg of Mutton and Cauliflower public house doubled as the village prison, where the accused could be held before trial. Policing in the village became the responsibility of the Surrey Constabulary on its creation in 1851. Ashtead Fire Brigade was founded in 1901. At first
11286-412: Was constructed as a single-track line and, on opening, Ashtead railway station had only one platform and trains only stopped by request . Initially all services were operated by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) and, for the first two months, only ran as far as Epsom . The completion of the line through Worcester Park enabled these trains to be extended to London Waterloo from April of
11400-514: Was created in 1884, when a stream-driven pumping station was constructed in Waterways Road. The works, designed by John William Grover , were capable of lifting 90,000 litres (20,000 imp gal) per hour to a reservoir on Reigate Road. A second diesel-powered station was constructed alongside the first in 1935 and was later converted to electric power . The steam-powered works were demolished in 1992. An electricity generating station
11514-426: Was created on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 , covering three former districts which were all abolished at the same time: The new district was named after the River Mole , which flows through the area. Mole Valley District Council provides district-level services. County-level services are provided by Surrey County Council . Parts of the district are covered by civil parishes , which form
11628-549: Was dedicated in 1920. The inter-war years saw the most rapid period of residential development, stimulated in part by the final breakup of the Ashtead Park estate, following the death of Pantia Ralli in 1924. The electrification of the railway line in 1925 also made the village more attractive to potential homeowners. The population increased from 3,226 in 1921 to 9,336 in 1939. In September 1939, children were evacuated to Ashtead from Streatham and Dulwich . A unit of
11742-459: Was formed with the intention to defend the local area in the event of invasion. In October 1914, a Red Cross Hospital opened on Bull Hill. By March 1915 it had 33 beds and was fully occupied. It closed in February 1919. Elsewhere in the town, the Forty Foot recreation ground was used to grow wheat and Venthams, a local firm of coachbuilders , began to manufacture munitions . Leatherhead was again
11856-589: Was formerly a separate manor called Little Ashtead, which was held by Merton Priory in the Middle Ages. Following the Dissolution of the Monasteries in the mid-16th century, the area was known as Prior's Farm. Documents surviving from the mid-17th century, detail the organisation of the manor during the reign of Charles II : Two common fields, together totalling 194 ha (479 acres) and representing around 30% of
11970-400: Was held by Osbern de Ow as a mesne lord to William I . Its Domesday assets were one church, belonging to Ewell , and 40 acres (160,000 m) of land. It was valued at an annual income of £1. To the south was the manor of Thorncroft, which was held by Richard son of Gilbert as tenant-in-chief . To the north was the manor of Pachesham, subdivided into two parts, each of which was held by
12084-407: Was in the hands of eight major owners and many smaller ones. New houses began to be built on the east side of Woodfield Lane and to the north of Barnett Wood Lane. The area west of the station (including Links Road and Ashtead Woods Road) had been marked out for housing by 1894, but construction was delayed by difficulties in securing access over the railway. Elsewhere building work was also slow and
12198-492: Was installed at the east end of the High Street, close to the Leatherhead Institute. The Home Guard company was disbanded four years later, once the threat of invasion had passed. Leatherhead experienced two main periods of bombing during the war. The first wave of attacks took place from late 1940 until early 1941. During the first raid, early in the morning on 27 August 1940, 20 high-explosive bombs were dropped along
12312-575: Was opened in Bridge Street in 1902. Initially it was capable of generating 75 kW of power, but by the time of its closure in 1941, its installed capacity was 2.2 MW. Under the Electricity (Supply) Act 1926 , Leatherhead was connected to the National Grid , initially to a 33 kV supply ring , which linked the town to Croydon , Epsom, Dorking and Reigate. In 1939, the ring was connected to
12426-538: Was primarily used for street lighting, but was also supplied to some private houses. Until the railway was opened in 1859, coal was delivered by road from Epsom. In 1911, the Leatherhead company acquired that of Cobham and, from 1929, also supplied gas to Woking via a connection at Effingham Junction . In 1936, the company was acquired by the Wandsworth Gas Company and the Leatherhead gasworks closed two years later. The first public water supply in Leatherhead
12540-597: Was rebuilt in 2013. It is served by trains to London Victoria via Sutton , to London Waterloo via Wimbledon , to Horsham via Dorking and Guildford via Bookham . The Thames Down Link long-distance footpath between Kingston upon Thames and Box Hill runs through Ashtead Park. The first school in Ashtead was established by the Howard family in 1815 and was located close to the almshouses in Park Lane. On opening it catered for around 60 children, but numbers had grown to around 100 by 1850. St Giles' Infant School
12654-518: Was short lived and, as the 20th century progressed, the town started to attract service sector industries . Among the research institutes formerly based in the town, Leatherhead Food Research was founded in 1919 and the Central Electricity Research Laboratories (CERL) opened in 1950. Both organisations left the town in the early 2000s. The Ronson and Goblin factories closed in the early 1980s and their sites were redeveloped, in
12768-411: Was sold to a consortium of developers in 1927, who divided the land into plots for housing. Similarly in 1935, Yarm Court was sold and the estate developed for housing. Following the end of the Second World War, new housing was constructed to the north of the town centre, along Cleeve, Kingston and Copthorne Roads, to replace properties damaged by bombing. At the start of the First World War, members of
12882-542: Was treating 78 members of the British Expeditionary Force , who had been evacuated from Dunkirk . The Goblin factory in Ermyn Way was used to make munitions, including mine sinkers, shell fuses and camouflage netting. From the outbreak of war, the defence of Leatherhead was coordinated by the XII Corps of Eastern Command , reinforced from July 1940 by VII Corps GHQ Mobile Reserve. The 3rd Infantry Brigade of
12996-515: Was widely blamed for a decline in the local retail economy. In 2002, the BBC identified Leatherhead as having one of the worst High Streets in England, but in 2007, the local press described the town centre as "bustling". The origins and meaning of the name 'Leatherhead' are uncertain. Early spellings include Leodridan (880), Leret (1086), Lereda (1156), Ledreda (1160) and Leddrede (1195). The name
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