Did you know that...
Beddington SM6 was known as Beddintone or Beddinton in the 11th century. The Domesday Book mentions that Robert de Watevile and Miles Crispin were in charge of this settlement. Records show that almost 5,000 people lived here in 1901. The 2011 census records 21,000 residents in this part of South West London. This SM6 area has several landmarks. One of them is the Old Mill that was built in the 18th century or even earlier. The Domesday Book mentions two mills here so the current mill might have been built on the site of one of those two. In the 17th century, the Carew family owned the mill. It changed owners several times. In the 19th century, Wallis & Co owned this flour mill and bakery.
The Beddington Park is sometimes called Carew Manor because it stands on the site of the former manor that belonged to the owners, the Carew family. The manor was built in the 14th century. Nicholas Carew unified the two Beddington estates that are mentioned in the Domesday Book and created Carew Manor in 1381. The medieval manor house hosted the Royal Female Orphanage in the 19th century. Nowadays it houses the Carew Manor School. A recent investigation at the Beddington Park revealed a Tudor style garden that has a small cave, supposedly built in the 16th century by a member of the Carew family, Sir Francis.
It is believed that the first orange trees in the UK were planted by Sir Francis Carew at Beddington Park. The 18th-century orangery within the grounds formed around these trees. Legend has it that Sir Walter Raleigh’s head is buried at Beddington Park. St Mary’s Church is a grade II listed building that dates from the 14th century. BedZED, short for Beddington Zero Energy Development, is the first large scale housing estate designed to produce zero carbon emissions. Architect Bill Dunster designed the project which was lead by the Peabody Trust.