Northampton Square Gardens ⁸⁸³⁹

Brief Description

Features of Northampton Square Gardens include several mature trees from the original 19th-century layout and a bandstand of similar date.

History

Until c.1805 the site was used as a 'Greenyard', a pound for stray animals. The Northampton Estate was developed as a residential area around the Manor House, which was later demolished in 1896. The district later became overcrowded as London expanded and many houses in the area became workshops and tenements. Northampton Institute was built as a Working Man's College in 1896-98 and later became a polytechnic and then City University in 1966. Only the south-east and south-west sides of Northampton Square still have the original buildings, with a few early C19th houses surrounding the railed central garden, although much bomb damage occurred. The gardens were opened to the public in July 1885 with assistance from MPGA, the layout by Fanny Wilkinson.

Visitor Facilities