Kelsey Park

Kelsey Park is a public park in Beckenham in the borough of Bromley, Greater London. It historically formed the landscaped park of the Kelsey Manor Estate. The river Beck runs through it.

Kelsey Park
Main lake with Heron Island in distance, October 2021
Kelsey Park is located in Greater London
Kelsey Park
Location within Greater London
Kelsey Park is located in England
Kelsey Park
Location within England
TypeUrban park
LocationLondon, England
OS gridTQ 376 689[1]
Coordinates51.402°N 0.023°W / 51.402; -0.023
Area32.25 hectares (79.69 acres)[1]
Established1913[1]
EtymologyKelsey family who owned estate in 15th century[1]
Managed byBromley London Borough Council (in partnership with Friends of Kelsey Park)[1]
StatusOpen year-round
Connecting transportRail: Beckenham Junction[1]
Bus: 162, 352, 358 (to south); 54, 227, 354, 367 (to north)[1]
FacilitiesCafé, toilets, children's play area, tennis courts, mini golf course, tree walk, children's nature walk[1]
WebsiteFriends of Kelsey Park

History
Kelsey Manor (demolished in 1921)

The original mansion was built around 1408 for William Kelshulle and demolished around 1800.[2] A second mansion was built for Richard Bennett around that time and then acquired by Peter Richard Hoare, the elder (a partner in the banking firm C. Hoare & Co) in 1835.[2] Peter Richard Hoare, the elder converted the manor into a rambling Gothic Revival house.[2] The house passed to Peter Richard Hoare, the younger in 1849: he added a chapel, designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott, in 1869.[2] It then passed to Charles Arthur Richard Hoare in 1877.[3][4]

The land adjoining Wickham Road was sold in the 1890s and laid out with large Arts and Crafts movement houses designed by Francis Hooper.[5] The house became a convent for the All Saints Sisters of the Poor in 1895 and then became Kepplestone School for the Daughters of Gentlemen in 1901.[2] Following the death of Charles Arthur Richard Hoare in 1908, Beckenham Urban District Council acquired the estate in 1911.[2]

Kelsey Park was officially opened to the public by Right Honourable John Burns MP, President of the Local Government Board, on 31 May 1913.[6][7][8] The house itself was used by the British Army during the First World War and was demolished in 1921.[2]

Kelsey Park Sports College which was opened in 1968 takes its name from the fact it was built on the historic Kelsey Park Estate; however following Academy conversion in September 2011 it was renamed to Harris Academy Beckenham.[9]

Kelsey Park is managed by Bromley London Borough Council in partnership with Friends of Kelsey Park, a non-profit organisation formed in 1997 that consists of around 600 members and publishes the triannual Kelsey Park Magazine.[1][10]

  • Paths and benches near main open area
    Paths and benches near main open area
  • Ice house near southern end of park, probably dating from the early 19th century
    Ice house near southern end of park, probably dating from the early 19th century[12]
  • Wildlife of Kelsey Park
    Wildlife of Kelsey Park
  • More wildlife of Kelsey Park
    More wildlife of Kelsey Park
  • Water birds of Kelsey Park
    Water birds of Kelsey Park

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kelsey Park.
  1. Kelsey Park. London Gardens Trust.
  2. "Kelsey Estate". Beckenham History. Retrieved 3 February 2014.
  3. "St Barnabas Beckenham". Archived from the original on 6 October 2013. Retrieved 3 February 2014.
  4. Callaghan, A. (2020). History of Kelsey Park. Kelsey Park Magazine, Autumn 2020. pp. 16–17.
  5. Nairn's London, Ian Nairn, 1965
  6. "Beckenham's Kelsey Park prepares to mark 100 years of opening to the public". Bromley Times. 29 May 2013. Retrieved 3 February 2014.
  7. Sheldon, V. (2013). Tom William Thornton and Kelsey Park. Kelsey Park Magazine, Summer 2013. pp. 5–7.
  8. Lindsay, G. (2022). Memories of Kelsey Park and the Thornton family connection. Kelsey Park Magazine, Early Spring 2022. p. 11.
  9. "Beckenham School at centre of Harris Academy row deemed 'satisfactory'". Bromley Times. 14 January 2011. Retrieved 3 February 2014.
  10. Home. Friends of Kelsey Park. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
  11. Historic England. "Kelsey Lodge (1186808)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
  12. Longley, P. (2020). The Kelsey Ice House. Kelsey Park Magazine, Autumn 2020. p. 7.
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