The Croydon Canal is a topic central to the development of Forest Hill. Its inception, realisation and demise overlap with the enclosure of Sydenham Common. The fact that the railway which replaced it doesn’t fit perfectly onto its exact layout is what gives this story some of its most fascinating potential. This way the canal (as an object of the imagination) is easily ‘locatable’ along our own daily routes, yet eccentric in parts. So it is both accessible and intriguing.
The advent of the canal has a phenomenal backstory so it carries with it an image of the zeitgeist important to our understanding of societal transformation, then and now!
Today we are shell-shocked at the pace of change and the canal (although gone) also gives us a framework to talk about a slower pace of life.
We covered a bit of this when we did the nature reserves walk last year as many of them are as a result of the canal and railway developments, but I like this idea. I think we can add this as the “special” route this year.
I walked the route once with the excellent Paul Talling, who wrote books on Derelict London and on Londons Lost Rivers. He does a guided walk along the route of the canal. Paul’s walks are always great fun and I’d highly recommend them- we’ve been doing them for many years. Croydon Canal Walk - London's Lost Rivers - Book and Walking Tours by Paul Talling
“These walks, all led by author Paul Talling, cover lost music venues/dereliction/lost rivers, canals & docks/dead pubs/TV & film locations, lost sports grounds and general social history followed by a few hours in pubs for all the local gossip. Join the mailing list via the website to be informed of ticket releases. ”