[HPforGrownups] Re: Vauxhall Road again

[Shaun Hately]

No: HPFGUIDX 87313

On 19 Dec 2003 at 8:15, Geoff Bannister wrote:

> --- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Shaun Hately" <drednort at a...> 
> wrote:
> 
>  
> > 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:
> This is ringing alarm bells for me! We have agreed that Vauxhall 
> Baptist Church is on what was in 1942 Vauxhall Road between 
> Cottington Street and Opal Street. This about a mile ENE of Vauxhall 
> Cross and thus nowhere near the city end of Wandsworth Road.
> 
> I am beginning to wonder if there was /another/ Wandsworth Road on 
> the east side of Vauxhall which may have become Vauxhall Road and 
> then Kennington Lane.
> 
> A further thought, how clear is the print on your documents - it 
> couldn't be Walworth Road could it? Walworth is an area south of the 
> Elephant and Castle and the current road of that name between the 
> two. The beginning of the road at the Elephant is not more than a 
> quarter of a mile from the end of Kennington Lane aka Vauxhall Road 
> aka (possibly) Voldermort Newsagent Road. 

It is absolutely clear - if you'd like I could scan part of the 
page as a gif file so you can see the reference for yourself - I'm 
not sure I can scan the whole page with my scanner - I might be 
able to, not sure.

If it was only one reference, it could be a simple error - but the 
index also includes the following:

"Vauxhall Road, see Wandsworth Road."

Reading further, the historical situation *MAY BE* as follows. This 
information is rather confusing. My most convenient map of London 
is from 1964 (it's the only street map of London I have in book 
form, so when I refer to modern names, I'm using the names from 
that book - a quick check seems to indicate its still accurate most 
of the time, but I can't be certain some names haven't changed). 
I'm also be going to place an (m) or (h) in brackets after each 
name - (m) means I'm talking about the modern name, (h) means I'm 
talking about an historical name.

OK c.1717, we have a road known as Kingston Road(h). Part of this 
is what is now known as Wandsworth Road(m) [I guess it also 
included roads on the line Lavender Hill(m), St Johns Hill(m), 
Wandsworth High East Hill(m), West Hill(m), Kingston Road(m), 
Roehampton Vale(m), Kingston Vale(m), Kingston Hill(m), down to the 
London Road(m)].

At *some point*, this Kingston Road(h) became the Vauxhall and 
Kingston Road(h). I have no idea *when* this occurred.

However, the Survey of London indicates that both Kennington 
Road(m) and Kenninton Lane(m) were also known as Kingston Road(h) 
at some point in their past - [hopefully at different points!].

In 1825, we have a *definite* instance of Wandsworth Road(m) being 
referred to as Vauxhall Road(h).

We also have the reference on the Vauxhall Society website to the 
Chapel being in Vauxhall Road(h) in 1942.

>From the survey, I am *entirely convinced* that what is now 
Wandsworth Road(m) and Kennington Lane(m) were part of a *single* 
road - that was *DEFINITELY* referred to as the 'Vauxhall and 
Kingston Road(h)'.

>From the survey, I am convinced that Wandsworth Road(m) was, for at 
least a time known as Vauxhall Road(h).

This suggests to me, quite strongly, the real possibility that the 
name 'Vauxhall and Kingston Road'(h) was at some point abbreviated 
to Vauxhall Road(h).

And that would yield a situation where both Wandsworth Road(m) and 
Kennington Lane(m) were known as Vauxhall Road(h).

This would not have been a matter of two separate Vauxhall Roads 
meeting at Vauxhall Cross - rather it would have been a situation 
of both being viewed as part of a single road, and thus sharing a 
single name.

Now - given your knowledge, of the area, I would *surmise* that the 
practice of referring to Wandsworth Road(m) as Vauxhall Road(h) had 
lapsed by the start of the twentieth century - but perhaps the 
Kennington Lane section, might still have been under that name at 
least unofficially - otherwise I can't resolve the information on 
the Baptist Church - as I think you pointed out, it seems unlikely 
a local historical society would make such an elementary mistake as 
misnaming a road.

The Baptist Chapel was built in 1863 and may have acquired its 
'Vauxhall Road' address then, perhaps...

> I think Riddle has been casting Befuddlement Charms on us...... :-)

It's working - I'm beginning to think that we'd be hardpressed to 
find a single road in the area that couldn't have been called 
Vauxhall Road!


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