Stockwell is a district located in the SW9 postcode area of South London, England. It is now part of the London Borough of Lambeth. Before 1889, it was part of Surrey.

It was developed in the nineteenth century as architecturally elegant upper middle class suburb, some of the buildings of which remain. However, in the twentieth century, much architecturally unattractive social housing for low-income tenants was developed in the area.

Like neighbouring South Lambeth, it contains one of the United Kingdom's biggest Portuguese communities which is known as 'Little Portugal'.

History

thumb|A map showing the Stockwell ward of Lambeth Metropolitan Borough as it appeared in 1916

The name Stockwell is likely to have originated from a local well, with "stoc" being Old English for a tree trunk or post. From the thirteenth to the start of the nineteenth century, Stockwell was a rural manor at the edge of London. It included market gardens and John Tradescant's botanical garden – commemorated in Tradescant Road, which was built over it in 1880, and in a memorial outside St Stephen's church.

In the nineteenth century it developed as architecturally elegant middle-class suburb. Remnants of its nineteenth-century architecture remain in its side and back streets, notably in the Stockwell Park Conservation Area, mostly built between 1825 and 1840 and centred on Stockwell Park Road, Stockwell Park Crescent, Durand Gardens, and Albert Square.

Before the creation of the County of London in 1889, Stockwell was part of Surrey. In the twentieth century, its social and architectural constitution were mixed. The area immediately around Stockwell tube station was extensively rebuilt following the Second World War, and the original domed tube station was replaced first in the 1920s, then again with the opening of the Victoria line in 1971. In the twentieth century much architecturally unattractive social housing for low-income tenants was developed in the area: the main estates are Lansdowne Green, Stockwell Park, Studley, Spurgeon, Mursell, and Stockwell Gardens. Its only twentieth-century building of architectural interest in the area is Stockwell Bus Garage.

Politics

Stockwell is currently covered by two wards in the London Borough of Lambeth: Stockwell East, returning two councillors, and Stockwell West and Larkhall, returning three councillors. At parliamentary level it is in the Vauxhall and Camberwell Green constituency, represented by Labour MP Florence Eshalomi.

From 1979 to 1982, future Labour MP and New Labour minister Peter Mandelson was a ward councillor.

Places of interest

  • Stockwell Bus Garage
  • London Deep Level Shelters
  • Stockwell War Memorial Clocktower
  • Jean Charles de Menezes Memorial
  • former Annie McCall Hospital, Jeffries Road
  • Stockwell skateboard park

Schools

There are three schools in Stockwell ward Allen Edwards and Stockwell Primary School - and also a campus of Lambeth College. In the Stockwell area (on Clapham Road) there is also Platanos College, a secondary school, Lansdowne School and numerous primary schools including Van Gogh Primary.

Churches

Afro-Caribbean communities have influenced the Christianity in the area, in which they have several congregations, some of which share churches with traditional Anglican and Catholic congregations. One of the many Afro-Caribbean churches is C.A.C. Stockwell.

Population of Stockwell

Stockwell and neighbouring South Lambeth are home to one of the UK's biggest Portuguese communities that is known as 'Little Portugal'. Most of Stockwell's Portuguese originate from Madeira and Lisbon. They have established many cafes, bakeries, delicatessens, restaurants, and associations.

Stockwell is also home to many people of Caribbean and West African origin. They have established cafes, grocers, barbers' shops, and salons.thumb|Stockwell war memorial and shelter

Notable residents

  • Lilian Bayliss, theatre and opera director
  • David Bowie, musician
  • Adam Buxton, comedian
  • Nathaniel Clyne, footballer
  • Joe Cornish, comedian
  • Jerry Dammers, musician and founder of The Specials
  • Paul Davis, Arsenal footballer
  • Kenneth Erskine, serial killer dubbed the 'Stockwell Strangler' who in 1986 killed seven elderly victims, three of whom were from Stockwell
  • Vincent van Gogh, artist
  • Joan Littlewood, theatre director
  • Joanna Lumley, actress of the Lumley family
  • Peter Stanley Lyons, choral musician and educator, and his father Harold Leslie Lyons, sommelier at London's Savoy Hotel and Dorchester Hotel
  • John Major, UK Prime Minister
  • Roots Manuva, musician
  • Roger Moore, actor
  • Jim Murphy, Scottish Labour Party leader
  • Arthur Rackham, book illustrator
  • Gary Raymond, actor
  • Dot Rotten, musician
  • Will Self, journalist
  • Violette Szabo, SOE agent
  • Edward Thomas, poet
  • Hero Fiennes Tiffin, actor of the Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes family

Stockwell shooting

On 22 July 2005, following the 21 July 2005 London bombings, Stockwell gained notoriety as the scene of the shooting by police of an innocent Brazilian electrician, Jean Charles de Menezes, on a tube train.

Locale

Nearest places

  • Brixton
  • Vauxhall
  • Kennington
  • Clapham
  • Battersea
  • Nine Elms
  • South Lambeth
  • Camberwell
  • Elephant and Castle

Transport

London Underground

Stockwell tube station is served by the Victoria and Northern London Underground lines.

thumb|Stockwell Station|215x215pxTo the south, the Victoria line terminates one stop away at Brixton. The Northern line terminates in the south at Morden, which provides Stockwell with a direct link to Clapham and South Wimbledon.

To the north, the Victoria line runs through Central London towards Walthamstow Central, stopping at several key stations including Victoria, Oxford Circus, King's Cross St Pancras and Tottenham Hale. The Northern Line carries passengers northwards towards Kennington and Camden Town. Most trains from Stockwell run through the City of London via Elephant & Castle, Bank and Moorgate. Some trains run on the Charing Cross Branch via Waterloo, Charing Cross and Tottenham Court Road. Beyond Camden Town, the Northern line links Stockwell directly to Edgware and High Barnet in north London.

Other nearby stations include Brixton (Victoria line) or Clapham North (Northern line) to the south of Stockwell, and Vauxhall (Victoria line) or Oval (Northern line) to the north.

In 2017, there were 11.7 million entries and exits at Stockwell tube station.

National Rail & London Overground

There is no National Rail station in Stockwell, but several stations can be found in the locale:

The A23, A202, A203 and A3 are managed by Transport for London (TfL).

Most other roads are residential.

Pollution

Pollution around Stockwell has been a concern for local health professionals and authorities since the mid-2000s, largely owing to the number of arterial routes in the neighbourhood.

A 2010 study found that, in Stockwell, 7 deaths each year could be attributed to exposure to particulate matter (PM2.5), compared to 139 in the London Borough of Lambeth as a whole in the same year (2008). Road traffic is a primary source of air pollution in Lambeth.

In 2016, Clapham Road south of Stockwell was identified by the local authority as an area of concern when it came to tackling air quality in the Borough, as this section of road is "exceeding EU limits for the gas Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2)." Lambeth monitor air quality on Clapham Road in Stockwell using diffusion tubes. Since the introduction of the Oval STN, the pollution in the adjacent part of Clapham Road has got worse.

Buses & coaches

London Buses routes 2, 50, 88, 155, 196, 333, 345, P5, N2 and N155 serve Stockwell.

Some National Express coaches pass through Stockwell, with some services towards Gatwick Airport, Worthing, Bognor Regis and Eastbourne stopping in the area.

Cycling

Cycle Superhighway 7 (CS7) follows Clapham Road through Stockwell, largely on cycle lanes to segregate cyclists from other road traffic. The signed cycle route carries cyclists from Colliers Wood and Tooting Bec in the south, through Stockwell, to Oval, Elephant & Castle and the City of London. The route runs non-stop from Stockwell to all its destinations, but the route is not entirely traffic-free.

Just to the north of Stockwell, Cycle Superhighway 5 (CS5) terminates in a junction with CS7, linking Victoria and Millbank to Stockwell using a cycle track, separating cyclists from other road traffic.

Quietway 5 (Q5) runs on residential streets in the north of Stockwell, offering a slower but quieter signposted route direct to Clapham or Waterloo.

With two Cycle Superhighways in the locale, many junctions in the area are equipped with cycling infrastructure. Santander Cycles, a bike-sharing system in London, operates in Stockwell.

References

  • Stockwell News News, features and history relating to Stockwell
  • About Stockwell ward on Lambeth Council website.