Southgate, London
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Southgate is an area in the London Borough of Enfield. It is a suburban development situated 8.6 miles (13.8 km) north of Charing Cross. Postally, it is in London N14.
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[edit] Local features
Within the area is the famous circular Southgate tube station (which appeared in the film The End of the Affair) and a variety of shops and restaurants. It also has several large green parks such as Grovelands Park with lakes and sports facilities. The latter park backs on to The Priory hospital[1], where celebrities often reside to recover from their personal crises and Augusto Pinochet was treated.
[edit] Nearest places
- Cockfosters and Oakwood to the north
- New Southgate to the south
- Winchmore Hill to the east
- East Barnet to the west
- Osidge to the south-west
- Osidge is sometimes regarded as part of Southgate, though this is technically incorrect; see that article.
Other nearby places include:
Southgate tube station on the Piccadilly Line is the nearest tube station.
[edit] Famous residents
Famous people to originate from Southgate include Leigh Hunt, the English essayist and writer, who was born here in 1784, and Frederick Hitch, one of the men awarded a Victoria Cross for the defence of Rorke's Drift in 1879.
The author Paul Scott was born in Southgate and was educated nearby; author/actor Paul Hocker was also born in the area.
Southgate has connections with many people in the arts and showbusiness. The singer Rachel Stevens from S Club 7, award-winning jazz singer Amy Winehouse, and radio presenter Simon Mayo were born in Southgate. The singer Alberto Remedios lived in Southgate before emigrating. The actor Ron Moody lives in Southgate at the Cherry Tree. Husband and wife singing coaches David and Carrie Grant used to live in Southgate. Also born in Southgate was Turkish Cypriot Kemal Shahin from the reality programme Big Brother 6.
The MP for Southgate, David Burrowes, lives here in his constituency, where he was born. His predecessor, Stephen Twigg, was also born and raised in Southgate.
[edit] Use for TV
Southgate served as the primary location for shooting of the BBC Drama "Anand Family" from 1975 to 1990 when it went off the air.
[edit] Politics
The parliamentary constituency covering the part of Southgate in the London Borough of Enfield is Enfield Southgate (UK Parliament constituency). Until his death in the Brighton bombing in 1984, the constituency was represented by Sir Anthony Berry. In 1997, Michael Portillo, who succeeded Sir Anthony, lost the seat to Stephen Twigg, who after two terms lost in his turn to David Burrowes in May 2005.
[edit] History
Southgate was originally the South Gate of Enfield Chase, the King's hunting grounds. This is reflected in the street names Chase Road (which leads due north from the station to Oakwood, and was formerly the avenue into the Chase) and Chase Side. There was a blue plaque on a building on the site of the south gate, but it was removed when the building was refurbished.
Becoming separate from Edmonton in 1881, Southgate had a population in 1891 of just 10,970. By 1901 the figure had moved up to 14,993, and by 1911 the figure had ballooned to 33,612, aided by the nearby railway station in Palmers Green.
Southgate was predominantly developed in the 1930s: largish semi-detached houses were built on the hilly former estates (Walker, Osidge, Monkfrith, etc.) following increased transport development. In 1933, the North Circular Road was completed through Edmonton and Southgate, and also in 1933, the London Underground Piccadilly Line was extended from Arnos Grove (where it had reached the previous year), through Southgate tube station, on to Enfield West (now known as Oakwood). This unleashed a building boom, and by 1939 the area had become almost fully developed.
By 1951, the population had grown to 73,377 - falling by about 1,000 ten years later as many moved to new towns nearby.
[edit] Status
In 1894 Southgate was created an urban district of Middlesex by the Local Government Act 1894. In 1933 the district gained further status as a municipal borough. The Municipal Borough of Southgate was abolished in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963 and its area was combined with that of the Municipal Borough of Enfield and the Municipal Borough of Edmonton to form the present-day London Borough of Enfield.
[edit] Taverns, Inns and Public Houses
Southgate contains many pubs; some are quite old. The Wagon and Horses in Chase Side is one such pub; it was rebuilt in 1900 and again in 1930. The Rising Sun in Chase Side was rebuilt in 1932.
Opposite the Southgate Club on Chase Side stood a pub called The Gate, which was closed in August 1909. The landlord, A. Butcher, took the sign with him to the Fishmonger's Arms in Winchmore Hill Road - which apparently read "This gate hangs well, and hinders none. Refresh and pay - then travel on." (The sign no longer exists; though the Fishmonger's Arms was rebuilt in the 1930s.)
In the middle of the 18th century, The Crown on Chase Side was a centre of 'much sport'. A caption in a framed picture of a dog discovered by author Herbert W. Newby reads:
Mr. Earl of the 'Crown Inn', Southgate, Nr London, will produce a retriever puppy not over six months old for £10 or £20 that will perform more tricks than any other dog of nine months old in England. He is a beautiful dog, and very large for his age.
The building was originally a wooden two-storey building with a brick gable-end facing the highway. It was rebuilt in 1895 but has since been demolished. The JD Wetherspoon pub The New Crown occupies a site nearly opposite.
[edit] Education
[edit] College
Southgate College’s campus is situated beside the town’s shopping centre and within approx 200m walk of the Piccadilly Line tube station. It is a cosmopolitan college with over 11,000 students of all ages studying on full- and part-time courses ranging from basic skills through to A levels, GCSEs, Access to HE, HNC/HND and foundation degrees (www.southgate.ac.uk/higher). Southgate College has outcentres in Edmonton Green, Enfield and Potters Bar and is in partnership with organisations like Learndirect (www.southgate.ac.uk/learndirect) and Middlesex University.
The College is a CoVE (Centre of Vocational Excellence) in ICT and Business Network Support (www.southgate.ac.uk/cove), and a CISCO Network Academy. Its wide range of EFL courses are accredited by the British Council (www.southgate.ac.uk/international).
The College has a highly successful football team which is prominent in the local press due to its success rate in national and local competitions. Within the last two years the College has substantially invested in new facilities to many areas including fully re-equipped Motor Vehicle workshops opened by the Chief Executive of the Institute of the Motor Industry in May 2006 (www.southgate.ac.uk/mv) and its public restaurant (www.southgate.ac.uk/restaurant).
Southgate College prides itself on its commitment to equal opportunities and its continuous effort and success in improving the quality of the institution as a whole.
[edit] Southgate Symphony Orchestra
Formed in 1961 by a group of enthusiasts in New Barnet under the conductorship of Terry Hawes, Southgate College Symphony Orchestra continued as an evening class within Southgate College until July 2005, having become semi-autonomous in 1997. In the summer of 2005, the Orchestra became independent of Southgate College and renamed itself Southgate Symphony Orchestra. An amateur orchestra, it take players of Grade 6 standard and above, playing concerts around Enfield. Previous performances have included music by Beethoven, Dvořák, and Weber.
[edit] Religious Facility
[edit] Synagogues
There are five synagogues with Southgate in their name, but only one is actually in Southgate: Cockfosters and North Southgate, which is often referred to just as "Southgate Synagogue". Palmers Green and Southgate Synagogue is in Palmers Green. These two are part of the United Synagogue, also included, but independent, is the Southgate Adeni Synagogue.
Southgate and District Reform Synagogue has now moved to Whetstone while retaining its name. Southgate Progressive Synagogue is in Oakwood.
[edit] Churches
Christ Church stands near Southgate Green. This was built on the site of Weld Chapel, which was demolished in 1861. The clock on the church was placed there to celebrate Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee.
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[edit] External links
- Southgate College
- St Paul's Primary School
- The Northern Convalescent Fever Hospital, Winchmore Hill
- Southgate Cricket Club
- Southgate Hockey Club
- Southgate Compton Cricket Club
- Southgate Adelaide Hockey Club
- Enfield Borough Police History
- Southgate Symphony Orchestra
[edit] Bibliography
Herbert W. Newby, Old Southgate. T. Grove, 1949.
