South Norwood Country Park

South Norwood Country Park is a park in South Norwood, close to Elmers End station, mainly in the London Borough of Croydon. It is a 47 hectare (116 acre) green space which opened in 1989. The park is a mix of countryside and parkland, and land formerly used for sewage farms serving the growing London population.

Croydon Sports Arena, the home of Croydon F.C., is on the south-eastern edge of the park. There is also a car park and visitor centre, and a duck pond similar to the one at South Norwood Lake.

The site that is now known as South Norwood Country Park has undergone many changes in its long and chequered history, from the days of the Great North Wood to ancient moated house, sewage farm, farming, the war years, civil defence, allotments, wasteland, highways, refuse dump and now the Country Park.

A scientific dig was carried out in 1972 by Lillian Thornhill on behalf of the Croydon Natural History and Scientific Society in an attempt to ascertain the age of the double-sided moat shown on the Thomas Morley estate map of 1736 with the name La Motes. On an earlier estate map of Peter Burrell, the land is indicated as adjoining Sturts Land and is given the name Lame Oates which is obviously a phonetic corruption of La Motes.

Deeds of 1467 relate to a mortgage transaction at Leweland between Richard at Cherte and Stephan and John Fabian of London. Going further back in time, there is a gap in the available records until one reaches the end of the 13th century when further evidence indicates the existence of a 13th - 14th century house of some importance having existed on the site, with the principal owner being Lord Robert de Retford.

He was one of the King's itinerant judges, known to be active as such between the years 1295-1318. The low lying position of the land with streams flowing through it leads one to consider whether a natural phenomena, like the floods of 1315 to 1317 had anything to do with the failure of the house to survive.

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