Beckenham, Kent
| Beckenham | |
|---|---|
 St George's Church, Beckenham |
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 Beckenham
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| Beckenham shown within Greater London | |
| Area | 13.22 km2 (5.10 sq mi) |
| Population | 56,668 (2011 census) |
| • Density | 4,287/km2 (11,100/sq mi) |
| OS grid reference | TQ3769 |
| London borough | |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BECKENHAM |
| Postcode district | BR3 |
| Post town | LONDON |
| Postcode district | SE20 |
| Dialling code | 020 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| EU Parliament | London |
| UK Parliament | |
| London Assembly | |
Beckenham is a post town and district of London in the London Borough of Bromley, England. It borders Beckenham Place Park and Bellingham in the London Borough of Lewisham (to the north) and is centred 8.4 miles (13.5 km) south east of Charing Cross. Until the coming of the railway in 1857, Beckenham was a small village as with the rest of the borough in Kent with almost most of its land rural and private parkland: a family of entrepreneurs began the building of villas commencing a soar in population from 2,000 to 26,000 (1850–1900). Housing and population growth has continued at a lesser pace since 1900.
The town has areas of commerce and industry, principally the curved network of streets featuring its high street and Langley Park laboratories and is served in transport by three main railway stations — nine within the post town — plus towards its western periphery two Croydon Tramlink stations. In common with much of this largest borough of London, it has a large minority of land which is a mixture of sports grounds, fishing ponds and parks.
The settlement is referred to as Bacheham in the Domesday Book of 1086, and in the Textus Roffensis as Becceham. The name is thought to derive from Beohha's homestead (Beohhan + ham in Old English). The name of the small stream here - the River Beck - is most likely to have been named after the village.
Although early written history tells little of the area, archaeological evidence at Holwood Park, where Stone Age and Bronze Age artifacts have been found, reveals some evidence of early settlers. A Roman camp was sited here, and a Roman road, the London to Lewes Way passed through the district.
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Wikipedia