Kew Green is a large open space in Kew in west London. Owned by the Crown Estate, it is leased to the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is roughly triangular in shape, and its open grassland, framed with broadleaf trees, extends to about thirty acres. Kew Green is overlooked by a mixture of period townhouses, historic buildings and commercial establishments. In the 1730s, Kew Green was a venue for cricket matches.
History and description
Most of the older houses in Kew are built round the Green and along the eastern side of the Kew Road looking towards Kew Gardens. The Green itself is a big triangular space. It is mentioned in a Parliamentary Survey of Richmond taken in 1649, and is there described as 'a piece of common or uninclosed ground called Kew Green, lying within the Township of Kew, conteyning about 20 acres.' An 18th-century view, taken from a meadow to the east, shows Kew Bridge on the right, a small irregular lake with an island to the left. A road led to the western point of the Green, where the palace was visible, a windmill behind it; and trees, the trunks engirdled by seats, grew opposite the square-built church which stood isolated on the Green. Some land at the end of the Green was enclosed by George IV, and a meadow east of the bridge was made common land, as part of a design, never carried out, of building a new palace at Kew in place of the Dutch House. In the early 19th century Sir Richard Phillips described the Green as 'a triangular area of about 30 acres bounded by dwelling-houses,' and another description of a slightly later date speaks of the 'well-built houses and noble trees' surrounding it. Kew Green was a venue for cricket in the 1730s. It was used for the second in a tri-series of single wicket matches in June 1730 when a Kent team led by Edwin Stead played Brentford for a £50 stake. On Thursday, 27 July, the Whitehall Evening Post reported a "great cricket match" attended by the Prince of Wales. On Monday, 4 September 1732 it was the venue for London versus Middlesex. There are no records of senior matches there after 1732 but Kew Green is still used for junior cricket today as the home of Kew Cricket Club. Today the eastern and southwestern sides of the Green are residential; the northern side is largely residential, with a few pubs, restaurants, and the Herbarium Library; and a small number of commercial and retail buildings cluster in the southeast corner. To the north of the Green is Kew Bridge, carrying the busy South Circular Road, which in turn runs across the Green, dividing it into a large western part and a smaller eastern part. At the south end is St Anne's Church, Kew's parish church. At the west end of the Green is Elizabeth Gate, one of the two main entrances into Kew Gardens. Near the northeast corner is Kew Pond, originally thought to have been a natural pond fed from a creek of the tidal Thames. During high tides sluice gates are opened to allow river water to fill the pond via an underground channel. The pond is concreted, rectangular in shape and contains an important reed bed habitat which is vital for conservation and resident water birds. The pond is managed in partnership with the Friends of Kew Pond.
Buildings
Kew Green is also a street address. The odd-numbered buildings face the west side, and the even-numbered buildings face the east. On the west side, Numbers 9–11, 17–25, 29–33, 49–51 and 55 Kew Green are all Grade II listed, as are Numbers 57–73, 77, and 83. On the east side, Numbers 2–4, 18–22, 52–56, 62–64, 90, and 96–106 Kew Green are all Grade II listed. Also Grade II listed are some lamp standards, a Victorian sewer vent, a K6 red telephone box, and the cross-shaped war memorial near the church, all on the west side of Kew Green. The Coach and Horses public house is at 8, Kew Green. Another public house, the Greyhound, is at 82, Kew Green. 79, Kew Green is also a public house, but has changed its name; for many years it was known as the Rose and Crown, but in 2013 it became the Cricketers. 85, Kew Green was once the King's Arms public house, but it has now become an Italian restaurant. From 1964 until it folded in 1997, the Caxton Name PlateManufacturing Company was based at 110, Kew Green. The company's name is still visible on the exterior of the building. At the back of Caxton House facing Westerley Ware is the Victorian mortuary building. 50, Kew Green was the original home of Kew's main primary school, the Queen's Church of England School, founded in 1824 as the King's School. The building was rebuilt in 1887. In 1969 the school moved to new premises in Cumberland Road and the Victorian schoolhouse was demolished. To preserve its legacy, there is an embroidery of the original building in the pew cushions of St Anne's Church. 22, Kew Green was the home of the painter Arthur Hughes; and 49, Kew Green was the home of William Jackson Hooker and later of his son Joseph Dalton Hooker, both directors of Kew Gardens, and both now buried in St Anne's churchyard. Both properties have blue plaques.
