St John's Wood
St John’s Wood Area Guide St John’s Wood lies within the City of Westminster in the North West London. Once part of the Great Middlesex Forest, the area was one of the first London suburbs to be developed from the early 19th century onwards, mainly with low density “villa” type housing. St. John’s Wood was once part of the Great Forest of Middlesex, its name derived from its mediaeval owners, the Knights of the Order of St John of Jerusalem. After the Reformation and the Dissolution of monastic orders, St John’s Wood became Crown land, and Henry VIII established Royal Hunting Grounds in what became known as Marylebone Park, to the north of which lay St John’s Wood. The area remained in agricultural use until the end of the eighteenth century, when plans for residential development first appeared. Building began in 1809 in Alpha Road, on the southern boundary of St John’s Wood. One of the first London suburbs to be developed, it was a unique pattern of development and mainly planned with a large amount of low density, semi-detached villas, abandoning the familiar terraced house. Although many of the original houses and gardens disappeared during the twentieth century, through bomb damage and the building of new roads, railways and schools, much of the original character of the area remains. In the 1960s, most of St John’s Wood was designated a Conservation Area and its houses listed by English Heritage. It remains a highly desirable residential location, and one of the most expensive areas of London.
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