[HPforGrownups] Re: Vauxhall Road again

[Shaun Hately]

No: HPFGUIDX 87297

On 18 Dec 2003 at 22:30, Geoff Bannister wrote:

> Geoff:
> I'm sorry to keep banging on about this matter but I have certain 
> reservations aboutt he information which Shaun turned up. To justify 
> my interest, I have stated before that I lived in Wandsworth from 
> 1949-94 ecept for 1971-73 when I lived in Wimbeldon (3 miles away) 
> when first married.

> My other point is that I have documentary evidence that Wandsworth 
> Road was so named as early as 1906 is not earlier. I am going to try 
> to find out when Wandsworth Road railway station was opened -  
> sometime in the mid-19th century - and whether that was always its 
> name. I have emailed the central reference library at Wandsworth - 
> one of the best municipal reference sources in London to ask whether 
> thay have any information on Wandsworth Road being named Vauxhall 
> Road. I currently await an answer.

Shaun:
Cool.

You are entitled to have reservations - I do myself, and if you go 
back to my earlier posts, I believe I said I would welcome people 
closer to the general area who could do better research than I can. 
I expressed my own doubts at times.

Having said that, I don't really think there can be much dispute 
that Wandsworth Road was once called Vauxhall Road - I could 
certainly accept that the name hasn't been used recently - that bit 
is mostly speculation on my part based on the description of the 
Vauxhall Baptist Chapel being in Vauxhall Road.

But I would be *incredibly* surprised if Wandsworth Road was never 
named Vauxhall Road - because the source I have on that is 
*incredibly* detailed.

The Survey of London I have consulted consists of at least 30 
volumes, typically around 200-250 pages per volume. It was 
published by the London County Council, who I would hope know 
London well (-8

And it is unambiguous about Wandsworth Road being known as Vauxhall 
Road.  

"Wandsorth Road was sometimes known as Vauxhall Road." (p.37, 
Volume XXVI)

That reference refers to events of 1825 - considerably earlier than 
the period we're referencing.

I think there are two questions here - both when did the name 
officially change, and when did people stop using it - and that 
second bit seems to me slightly tricky - because it seems to me a 
long lived business might continue using a name of a street long 
after anyone else did.

Geoff: 
> The oddity is that it would be most unusual to have /two/ Vauxhall 
> Roads from different directions meeting at Vauxhall Cross. Wandsworth 
> Road comes from the south-west while the present Kennington Lane 
> comes in from the east. For both to have the same name would be very 
> confusing.

Shaun:
Want to make it even more confusing - I have seen an 1859 map of 
London which names Kennington Road as Vauxhall Road as well!

> Geoff:
> Being picky, Tom Riddle would have more directly walked straight down 
> Lansdowne Way (or more accurately up it) crossing South Lambeth Road 
> and then across Clapham Road into Stockwell Park Road. Binfield Road 
> would bring him too far south (by a couple of hundred yards) to the 
> main crossing which would involve more awkward crossings of the roads.

Shaun:
The map in the 1956 survey (which is incredible - it shows every 
single *BUILDING* individually - it even has a submap showing every 
building of the orphanage - as well as a photo of the orphanage) 
leads me to believe the route I described would have been easier - 
but it doesn't show crossings.

Geoff: 
> Returning to my main point, as I said a few days ago, the evidence of 
> the Vauxhall Baptist Church confirming the east end of Kennington 
> Lane to be Vauxhall Road as late as 1942 strengthens my feel that, 
> assuming Riddle picked up the book at the shop named on the label, 
> then oit was along this stretch of road, fairly near for a fit young 
> person used to walking reasonable distances (as we were in them there 
> far-off days of yore...).

Shaun:
I'm still inclined to favour the Kennington Lane area from the 
Vauxhall Baptist Chapel information myself - but this book is quite 
unambiguous about Wandsworth Road having been the Vauxhall Road - 
and Kennington Lane having been either part of the Vauxhall Road 
(or if you go back even further part of the Vauxhall and Kingston 
Road).

Incidentally the survey does include a short entry on the Vauxhall 
Baptist Church - definitely between Cottington Street and Opal 
Street.

Geoff: 
> As an aside, apart from the rather vague Chepstow link I think Shaun
> (?) mentioned, I wonder why JKR decided that Tom had to have a book 
> from Vauxhall Road apart from a desire to irritate those 
> perfectionists among us who want a large "X marks the spot" on the 
> map?

Shaun:
I don't really care if my conjectures are right or wrong - this is 
fun.

Next step is to get the survey for the area where Diagon Alley is, 
and see if I can squeeze it in somehow (-8.


Yours Without Wax, Dreadnought
Shaun Hately | www.alphalink.com.au/~drednort/thelab.html
(ISTJ)       | drednort at alphalink.com.au | ICQ: 6898200 
"You know the very powerful and the very stupid have one
thing in common. They don't alter their views to fit the 
facts. They alter the facts to fit the views. Which can be 
uncomfortable if you happen to be one of the facts that 
need altering." The Doctor - Doctor Who: The Face of Evil
Where am I: Frankston, Victoria, Australia