Honor Oak Park

Oak is an inner suburban area principally of the London Borough of Lewisham, with part in the Southwark. On 1 May 1602, Elizabeth I picnicked with Sir Richard Bulkeley of Beaumaris in the Lewisham area by an oak tree at the summit of a hill. The tree came to be known as the Oak of Honor. The tree surrounded by railings is an oak, planted c1905 and a successor to the historic one. The beacon at the summit was erected to commemorate the Silver Jubilee of King George VI in 1935. It was subsequently used for the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, her silver and golden jubilees and also at the Millennium. Beacons on the same site were used to give warning of invasion by the Spanish and later the French. The Hill was also the site of Watson's General Telegraph, a relay system established in 1841 linking London with shipping in the English Channel
In 1896 the open space was due to become part of a golf club, but there were riots and demonstrations by local people. This fell through, and later it was bought by Metropolitan Borough of Camberwell and made into a public open space by 1905. During World War I a gun emplacement was erected on the hill to counter the threat of raids by Zeppelin airships. Beneath one part of the open space that did become the Aquarias Golf Club lies the cavernous Honor Oak Reservoir constructed between 1901 and 1909. When it was completed it was the largest brick built underground reservoir in the world[1] and is still the largest in Europe.[2]
Between 1809 and 1836, a canal ran through Honor Oak as part of its route from New Cross to Croydon. It also went via Forest Hill and Sydenham. The canal was replaced by a railway line after 1836, and this now forms part of the line between London Bridge and Croydon. Honor Oak Park railway station opened in 1886 is on this line. Honor Oak railway station was opened in 1862 but closed in 1958 as part of the closure of the Crystal Palace and South London Junction Railway, originally built to take passengers to The Crystal Palace. The remains of the embankment of this line can still be seen, forming part of Brenchley Gardens. In 2010 Honor Oak Park railway station became part of the London Overground extension, providing residents with direct links into Shoreditch and Highbury and Islington. As with neighbouring Forest Hill, Honor Oak is becoming increasingly desirable as a peaceful, leafy suburb with good transport links into the centre of town, and slightly lower-than-average property prices.
[edit]Amenities and entertainment

Honor Oak enjoys a number of well regarded restaurants and gastro pubs. The Babur Indian Restaurant has two AA Rosettes and has been described as "one of the best Indian restaurants in London" by The Independent newspaper.[3] The area has a highly rated Italian restaurant, Le Querce (translation from the Italian "The Oaks"), and there is a Spanish Tapas restaurant on the high street. The Honor Oak is the reincarnation of the old St Germans public house and, as with many of the pubs on neighbouring Lordship Lane, Southwark, has been given a "Gastro Pub" style facelift. The Chandos is a more traditional south London pub. In August 2011 a delicatessen opened on the high street, replacing a stall that had previously run every weekend next to the station.
[edit]Famous residents

Political activist Jim Connell (1852–1929), author of 'The Red Flag', lived in Stondon Park Road (which is on the border of Crofton Park and Honor Oak). He wrote the anthem while on a train journey to his home in December 1889. The comedian Spike Milligan (1918–2002), lived at 22 Gabriel Street, Honor Oak, and 50 Riseldine Road (which is on the border of Crofton Park and Honor Oak) after coming to England from India in the 1930s. Other famous residents include actor Timothy Spall and singer Gabrielle.
[edit]Nearest places

Forest Hill, London
East Dulwich
Crofton Park
Brockley
Nunhead

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