A History of Carshalton Park and the Grotto

They owned land stretching from the hamlet of Wallington to the parish of Sutton and from Wrythe Green, Hackbridge & Mitcham to Woodcote, Woodmansterne & Banstead.

The Grotto, it's gate adorned with Griffins (the scawen family badge) was built in 1724 to represent the aims & ambitions of the family.

At one time, the inner chamber walls were decorated with shells, set in plaster and a Portland Stone surrounded a circular opening that was once decorated with glass.

A large reservoir, known as the 'hog pit' was constructed in the 1770's after the scawen fortune collapsed.

It was installed to supply water to the two arms of the River Wandle which drove mills situated in Mill Lane.

Other noteworthy historical findings include: A circular bowling green with cement foundations was installed in the 19th Century.

Some of the original floor tiles from the Grotto have survived to this day.

Thomas Sawn II (1702-1776) planned and partly built a mansion in Carshalton Park, towards the north end of the Grotto.

Giacomo Leoni (a Venetian architect) was commissioned to oversee the building of the mansion and redesign the layout of the park. He is the name sake of the Leoni Bridge that sits to the northern edge of lower pond.

Carshalton park spans 9.28 hectares.

The Scawen family, Lords of the Manor of Carshalton throughout the majority of the 18th century, have left a few traces of their ownership.

Locally they owned land stretching from the hamlet of Wallington in the east to the parish of Sutton in the west; from Wrythe Green, Hackbridge and Mitcham in the north to Woodcote, Woodmansterne and Banstead in the south.

In Carshalton itself their principal holdings lay north and south of Mill Lane - then known as Pall Mall; to the north were the lands attached to Samuel Long's House (The Sun public house), probably the original manor house; to the south was Stone Court, known as to the family as the Great House, which remained the Scawen main residence until they departed from Carshalton.

The grounds around the house were ornately laid out.

Standing on the front porch of the Great House one could have looked south across the Leoni Bridge to a tall obelisk on the skyline, which was set in the back yard of the properties on the corner of the High Street and the Square, behind the present Coach and Horses.

This visually connected Stone Court with the Scawen's other major property, that of Carshalton Park.

It is with Carshalton Park, now only a tenth of its original size, that the family are most connected, despite it being a visible sign of their failures.

Thomas Scawen II (1702-1776) planned and partly built a large mansion here, which was to lie at the north end of the Grotto canal.

The Grotto, that most intimate Scawen structure, was built about 1724 to represent Scawen's aims and ambitions, and is an early example of its type.

It was built into a dry valley purposely cut to tap the water baseflow via culverts stretching back over 20m (60ft) south into the hillside.

Although only visible through a protective grill, and now lacking its fine decorative materials the central chamber still retains an air of impressiveness in its bare brick walls and alcoves.

In the centre of the sexpartite vault a central Portland stone surround frames a circular opening once decorated with glass; in the 1770's the local carpenter was instructed to encircle this opening with a palisade.

Within the chamber the walls were decorated with shells set in plaster, but the design or pattern if any is unknown.

The floor was paved in a cube pattern, of which a few loose tiles survive, while the Scawen badge - griffins - adorned the intricate ironwork gate.

After the collapse of the Scawen fortunes in the 1770's a large reservoir, known as the Hog Pit, was constructed to supply water to the two arms of the Wandle which drove mills belonging to the family down Mill Lane.

Finally, a circular bowling green, with a cement bottom, was added in the 19th century.

(from Sutton Council)