The Oaks Bake House and the Flamingo named after the owner

*Historical* This is the pleasingly large chimney of the old Bake House in Oaks Park catching the winter sun. The unusual square chimney pots once vented the steam derived from baking bread for a large country house. 🗝 The Bake House was built in around 1889, during the time of Harry Berkeley James. It was […]

The forgotten spot in Carshalton where England’s famous landscape artist John Constable once painted

There’s no plaque commemorating the spot, but by the corner of an old walled garden by Oaks Park was the location of a Smithy (a blacksmiths workshop). It was here that John Constable painted White Horse, a famous piece of art now in New York. The Smithy was located at the junction of Fairlawn Road […]

The Grotto in a Greenhouse

The London Borough of Sutton is lucky enough to be able to boast of three, yes three, historic Grottoes. These are Victorian oddities designed to enthral and entertain guests. In Carshalton Park there’s a Grotto nearly 300 years old, and one of the oldest in the country. There’s one at St.Philomena’s (though strictly speaking that’s […]