South Park had lodges, fine gates, elegant walls and a magnificent balastraded terrace. There was also a bandstand and a number of Edwardian wooden shelters. Everything seemed immaculate, The modern changing rooms and toilets were clean and well looked after. Families flocked to South Park at weekends to enjoy picnics, view the canaries and budgerigars in the aviaries, buy ice creams and drinks from the cafe or use the swings and roundabouts in the playgrounds.

Aviary and Greenhouses. All black & white photos Hammersmith & Fulham Archives

playgrounds

We watched the cricket on a warm summer’s day,  played tennis on one of its many courts and kicked a football during cold winter weekends. And if we stepped out of line there was always a park keeper on hand to yell at us. Hurlingham and Eelbrook may have had better playgrounds but South Park was more attractive and was not as spoilt by dog litter.  

Below) A winter panorama of South Park. Photo taken from Barton House by former resident Steve State

 

South Park was originally going to be called Peterborough Park. It was on land formerly occupied by Southfields Farm Nursery gardens, owned by the Rench family from1711. It then  passed to the Fitch family by inheritance and by sale, in 1865 to Veitch and Sons. It was purchased from local benefactor Charlotte Sullivan in 1901 with a grant from the old London County Council and opened to the public in 1904. Below is a picture of the park shortly after it opened. Notice Peterborough School on the left of the picture.

  The old bandstand

 

 

I visited South park in the autumn of 2007 and was sad to see how run down it had become and how its old lodges and shelters were boarded up. These are the colour photos I took.