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Telford Park B&B is situated in Telford Avenue on the Telford Park Estate. Telford Park was built between 1878 & 1882 by Sutton & Dudley, a local firm of builders, and designed by the then eminent architect E J Tarver. All the roads in Telford Park (Killieser, Kirkstall & Criffel) are named after estates in Scotland owned by the Kymer-Stewart family, the land owners of the area around Telford Park in the 1800's. Sarah Kymer-Stewart married a man called Charles Telford and the estate and main road in the estate was named after him. Thornton Avenue was named after Henry Thornton who was a great friend of William Wilberforce, who lived locally in Clapham.

Telford Park Lawn Tennis Club was built at the heart of the Park in 1880 and is reputed to be the second oldest lawn tennis club in England - second only to Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Club.

www.telfordparktennisclub.co.uk

The first houses built in Telford Park in 1878 were mainly large double fronted houses with turrets and lots of decoration. The smaller ones were built soon afterwards. Sutton & Dudley put their initials and the date the house was built on most of the houses, and these can clearly be seen above the doors and on the decorations on the outside of the houses. It is interesting to note when the houses were built and how the Park developed.

C A Voysey was a leading Victoria architect who had worked with Norman Shaw, the eminent Victorian architect who was mainly responsible for designing Bedford Park in Chiswick, West London. Bedford Park was built just before Telford Park and Telford Park was planned along similar lines. Indeed when Telford Park was completed Tarver was so pleased with it he immediately moved into a house in Telford Avenue. Voysey was so impressed with Tarver's houses that he moved from Bedford Park to Telford Park. Praise indeed for Tarver's designs.

Allington Lodge stood on the site of what is now 35, 37, 39 & 41 Telford Avenue and was not demolished until after Tarver and Sutton & Dudley had finished their work on the Park. Allington Lodge was offered for a rent of £95 per annum on a 99 year lease from 29^th September 1878 and was described as a large detached house which "contained 18 rooms and cellars on four floors, and detached stabling for two horses, with coach-house etc and rooms over, with front and back gardens extending through to Kirkstall Road." The house was sold for £675.00 and demolished. In it's place two pairs of semi-detached houses were built in 1910 and named Hadden, Warwick, Marlborough and Rutland Lodges. There is a cedar tree in the garden of no 41 that was part of the original garden to Allington Lodge.

In the early 1900's Telford Park became a fashionable place to live, like Bedford Park, particularly for people in the arts and media, as well as professionals and the aristocracy. Streatham High Road was once a popular and thriving High Road which boasted many amenities for the local residents, including the Streatham Hill Theatre. The theatre was opened in 1929 and was once one of the most popular theatres in London with seating for over 2,500.