TREASURE DESCRIPTION: A City Farm, open to the public and popular with children, lies beside the Wandle at the north end of the National Trust’s Morden Hall Park.
On land originally part of the Merton Priory estate, the Farm lies in an area known for its calico bleaching fields and textile printing industry during the 18th and 19th Centuries. Phipps Bridge crosses the Wandle here and marks the ancient boundary between Mitcham and Merton. The Farm is a community project which moved to its present site in 1992 and includes typical farm animals including pigs, cows, goats, sheep, chickens, as well as birds, rabbits, and guinea pigs, together with a riding school. The land on both sides of the river preceding the spot is known as Bunces Meadows – a reference to a farmer who grazed his cows here at the beginning of 20th Century.
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.
