I like Penge. There are many examples of Victorialand and its buildings are far more interesting than neighbouring South Norwood. Crystal Palace up the hill is the jewel in the crown of the area in that respect and Penge comes a distant second but if you look hard enough you will find beauty in the buildings.
Ok, in a lot of ways it has that feel of neglect that is so prevalent in South London towns: year on year of underfunding from local councils mean that high streets are drab places, grey buildings crumbling and paint peeling from walls; bad choices from those aforementioned councils mean that the high streets are filled to bursting point with fast food shops and hairdressers which only bring litter, indigestion and bad haircuts. Moreover bad architecture choices from the 1950s and 60s blot the landscape wherever you look. Penge has all of this but it also has charm in places and I hae photographed a few of them.
These are:
- The Watermen's Almshouses on the High St. is its jewel in the crown. Built c.1840 by the Company of Watermen and Lightermen of the City of London for retired company Freemen and their widows, this was used for this purpose right up to 1973 when the almspeople were moved to a new site in Hastings, and the original buildings were converted into private homes. Gorgeous place to live in; local estate agents must be licking their lips when it comes to selling one of these homes.
Watermen had the job of ferrying people across the Thames in the days when there was only a single bridge, while lightermen were pilots taking goods from large ocean going ships into port, using small boats or lighters.
As the number of bridges across the Thames increased, the prospects of the watermen grew worse and the demand for accommodation for those who had fallen on hard times grew
- St John the Evangelist Church, St John's Road, Penge. The land was donated by the same man who donated the land for Watermen's Almshouses, which it neighbours. It was opened in 1850.
- Cottages at King William IV Gdns
Hover over each thumbnail image for details on picture and click on each to open a bigger picture.
These photos are available as signed prints. Please e-mail for details. Same photos shown in various stages of manipulation.
I'd be grateful if the photos are not used without prior permission. Please e-mail any request for usage or to obtain any photo without the copyright wording.
- Paul Page (2009)
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Penge
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Penge
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Recommended Reading/Viewing
B O O K S
The London Underworld in the Victorian Period: v. 1: Authentic First-person Accounts by Beggars, Thieves and Prostitutes
Shackleton [2002]
(Movie Dvd with Kenneth Branagh)
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