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Spa Wood (The Lawns) is an area of ancient woodland in the London Borough of Croydon that was once a part of The Great North Wood and is currently managed by The London Wildlife Trust as a part of The Great North Wood Project.[1] The 15.5-acre site, known as The Lawns, is owned by the Borough of Croydon and includes the woods, a multi-games court and playground.[2]
Originally, there was a chalybeate spring, now lost, that could be found on the grounds that was known to locals for centuries and can be traced back, possibly even to the time of King John. Although the spring is now lost, the history has not been forgotten.
A map of 1800 shows that the area was known as Bewlye Coppice, adjacent to Bewlye Farm[3].
Spa Wood takes its name from a popular mineral spa built on the site in 1831 know as Beulah Spa.[4] The spa gardens, spa house and lodge were built and the grounds contained a circus ring, a rosery, an upper and lower lake, a maze, a camera obscura, a telescope powerful enough to see windsor castle and an orchestra. The buildings were designed by Decimus Burton, architect of London Zoo and the Wellington ArchatHyde Park Corner. The spa was opened by Lady Essex and was visited by Queen Victoria, Kaiser Wilhelm and Charles Dickens, among others. It was regularly used until 1856, two years after the arrival of The Crystal Palace, just around the corner. Soon after, the spa fell into disuse. Now only the lodge remains, which has since been renamed Tivoli Lodge.
In May 1858 the estate was put up for auction and was built upon. A large mansion 'The Lawns' was built sometime later and was demolished after a fire in the 1960s.
51°24′43″N 0°05′35″W / 51.4119°N 0.09299°W / 51.4119; -0.09299
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