Category Archives: Local history

Lavender Hill’s mystery weathervane

Perched on the turret roof of what’s now Dexter’s estate agents at the junction of Lavender Hill and Latchmere Road is a little-noticed weathervane. Once widespread and fashionable, and still quite a feature in the City of London where gilded … Continue reading

Posted in Curiosities, Local history, Street by street | 1 Comment

The complex past & intriguing future of the Boots site on Falcon Lane

Falcon Lane doesn’t really feel like the rest of Clapham Junction. Rather than dense Victorian streets, it has more of an “out-of-town retail park” vibe, with car parks and single storey warehouse buildings. The buildings that house Asda, Lidl, and … Continue reading

Posted in Local history, Retail, Street by street, Transport | 7 Comments

Exhibition and play on John Archer, the first Black Mayor in London – this Friday at Battersea Arts Centre

We’ve previously written in some detail about the impressive life story of John Archer – Mayor of Battersea back in 1013, Britain’s first Black mayor, and someone with an interesting and unusual life story. And this Friday sees the opening … Continue reading

Posted in Local history, Politics | Leave a comment

A new start for this rather sad cluster of empty buildings on Wandsworth Road?

The junction of Wandsworth Road, North Street and Silverthorne Road has seen happier days. Dilapidated buildings, broken windows, peeling paint, and an air of abandonment, suggest the world has moved on from this little bit of our neighbourhood- in marked … Continue reading

Posted in Business, Environment, Housing, Local history, Planning, Street by street | 8 Comments

John Archer, Battersea’s groundbreaking mayor, may be honoured with a statue on Lavender Hill

It’s surprising how little we talk about John Archer. Born in Liverpool, he and his Canadian wife moved to Battersea in 1890 when he was about 30. He was clearly an industrious gentleman, with myriad jobs over the years including … Continue reading

Posted in Local history, Politics | 2 Comments

A couple of vintage signs on Lavender Hill

Building works have exposed a couple of original signs on lavender Hill – Duke’s Dry Cleaners (which has been undergoing internal works for a while) recently had th esign removed, top reveal the long-lost R&J Cleaners.  This hand-painted sign looks … Continue reading

Posted in Curiosities, Environment, Local history | Leave a comment

Is major redevelopment ahead at Asda on Lavender Hill – and at Clapham Junction station?…

Update: The proposed Sainsbury’s / Asda merger was blocked by the Government’s competition watchdog.  It’s likely that the impact in places like Clapham Junction was one of the key reasons behind this!  But the changes at the station are very … Continue reading

Posted in Business, Environment, Local history, Planning, Politics, Retail, Transport | 3 Comments