Smee Grange Garden

TREASURE DESCRIPTION: An ornamental garden on the north side of a lake which was originally Wallington village mill pond.

Of the many ornamental gardens which existed along the length of the River Wandle this is probably the best preserved and certainly the best documented. The Garden was very fashionable in the 1860s and while it is now much altered, the original layout is still evident and some of the original trees have survived. The best remaining feature is a small area of rockery around a water course and a small stone bridge, both of which are on London Borough of Sutton’s local list of buildings.

The Garden was developed by Alfred Smee FRS (1818-1877), an eye surgeon and scientist who was appointed surgeon to the Bank of England. He published a full account in ‘My Garden its Plan and Culture’ (1872). The Garden is now owned by London Borough of Sutton and is within the Beddington Park conservation area.

These treasures were made as part of The Building Exploratory, Wandle Treasures project. This project was part of the wider Living Wandle Landscape Partnership Scheme, funded by the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund.

 

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