Tooting has connections with several figures from the Victorian and Edwardian music hall. For our May monthly meeting, you can here about these stars and what their connections were. We are also promised some recordings for your delectation and delight! Peter Charlton from The British Music hall Society will be addressing us.

We meet at 7.30 on Tuesday 14th May in The United Reform Church, Rookstone Road, Tooting – details here

Merton Priory will be the subject of our next monthly meeting on Tuesday April 9th. John Hawkes from the Merton Priory Trust will be coming along to tell us about the 800 year history of the Priory and future developments. The meeting starts at 7.30 pm and is at The United Reform Church in Rookstone Road, Tooting.(Details here.)

You can read more about the Merton Priory Trust here.

THG Members At Lambeth Palace Library March 22 2019

THG Members At Lambeth Palace Examining Documents About Tooting. 22 March 2019

THG members visited Lambeth Palace Library for an informative tour of the archives, conservation room and Great Hall this month. Located oppositethe Houses of Parliament, the library has amassed a huge collection of books, documents and artefacts over many centuries. Of particular interest to us were documents relating to Tooting and the churches of St. Nicholas and Holy Trinity in Trinity Road.

You can find more about the Lambeth Palace Library here.

Poster For February 2019 THG Meeting

Our next meeting in February will be a talk by John Brown on The Dukes of Bedford:The Tooting Connection. This is a change to our previously advertised talk. The meeting will be on Tuesday 12th February at 7.30pm. Details of our meeting venue and how to get there are here.

Tooting History Group

Christmas Quiz 2018 Answers

1. In how many locations around the world does the Commonwealth War Graves Commission care for memorials and graves?

• 23,000

2. The “Classic”, the “Mayfair” and the “Astoria” are names of former cinemas in Tooting. Which of them, located between Derinton and Lessingham Avenues, is now used by the Tooting Islamic Centre?

• The Mayfair

3. Which style of architecture influenced Frank Dickinson, designer and builder of Little Holland House in Carshalton? Was it

• Arts and Crafts.

4. The Tooting History Group joined with The Friends of Tooting Common to celebrate an anniversary at the Café. What was the anniversary?

• 120 years since it opened.

5. What was the occupation of Mr. Henry Thrale, who occupied Streatham Park with his wife Hester Thrale and entertained Dr. Johnson?

• A brewer in Southwark.

6. Which Tooting Community is associated with “crubeen”, “poteen” and the “wearing of the green”?

• The Irish Community

7. Who donated the drinking fountain on Tooting Bec Common, recently restored to working order by the Tooting Common Heritage project.

• Joseph James Jones.

8. Which of these GLC byelaws did NOT apply to Tooting Commons?

• No person shall in any open space exercise racing pigeons.

9. Which Tooting secondary school did local author Beryl Kingston attend during the war and later teach at:

• Rosa Bassett.

10. What was the land now occupied by Streatham Crematorium in Blackshaw Road previously used for?

• Allotments.

11. The ancient boundary of Tooting Graveney Parish is still marked in some places by original boundary markers. Which date or dates can you find on these boundary markers:

• 1864
• 1882

12. In which year did Women of Tooting first get the vote?

• 1918

So how much do you know about Tooting History? Guests at our recent Christmas Party enjoyed our annual Christmas Quiz. The questions are based on our monthly meetings and other events we held in 2018.  There are 13 possible correct answers which will be posted here early in the New Year.

1. In how many locations around the world does the Commonwealth War Graves Commission care for memorials and graves?

• 230
• 2300
• 23,000

2. The “Classic”, the “Mayfair” and the “Astoria” are names of three former cinemas in Tooting. Which of them, located between Derinton and Lessingham Avenues, is now used by the Tooting Islamic Centre?

3. Which style of architecture influenced Frank Dickinson, designer and builder of Little Holland House in Carshalton? Was it

• Arts and Crafts?
• Post-modernism?
• Rococo?

4. The Tooting History Group joined with The Friends of Tooting Common in August to celebrate an anniversary at the Café on Tooting Common. What was the anniversary?

5. What was the occupation of Mr. Henry Thrale, who occupied Streatham Park with his wife Hester Thrale where they regularly entertained Dr. Johnson? Was he:

• A publisher in Fleet Street?
• A judge in the High Court?
• A brewer in Southwark?

6. Which Tooting Community is associated with “crubeen”, “poteen” and the “wearing of the green”?

7. Who donated the drinking fountain on Tooting Bec Common, recently restored to working order by the Tooting Common Heritage project:

• Alfred Hurley?
• Henry Prince?
• Joseph James Jones?

8. Which of these GLC byelaws did NOT apply to Tooting Commons?

• No person shall in any open space sort rags, bones, refuse, or matters of like, or mend any chair.
• No person shall in any open space shake or beat any carpet, mat, or other thing, or place any clothes or other things for the purpose of drying or bleaching.
• No person shall wilfully break glass, china, or other like thing in any open space.
• No person shall in any open space exercise racing pigeons.

9. Which Tooting secondary school did local author Beryl Kingston attend during the war and later teach at:

• Garratt Green/Burntwood?
• Rosa Bassett?
• Ensham?

10. What was the land now occupied by Streatham Crematorium in Blackshaw Road previously used for?

11. The ancient boundary of Tooting Graveney Parish is still marked in some places by original boundary markers. Which date or dates can you find on these boundary markers:

• 1864
• 1878
• 1882
• 1896

12. In which year did Women of Tooting first get the vote?

Poster For November 2018 Meeting

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission is responsible for millions of graves and memorials all over the world. When was it established? How is it funded? Come to our next meeting on Tuesday 13th November at 7.30pm to hear Fiona Smith from the CWGC talk about it’s work. Did you know that as well as finding the records of military casualties, you can look at the records of 69,000 civilian war dead on the CWGC website here.

Details of our meeting venue and how to get there are here.

We will also be selling our exclusive Tooting History Group Christmas card, which is hot off the press.