The London/Buckinghamshire boundary - Kempton Park

The London/Kingston/Spelthorne boundary continues north west until it reaches Staines Reservoirs Aqueduct and continues to the edge of the reservoir where it meets the boundary with London, Hounslow. The Hounslow/Spelthorne boundary turns south west and crosses the aqueduct and the railway line. It touches the northern edge of Half Moon Covert, crosses a path and continues to follow the northern edge of the race track. It eventually reaches a pond on the Portlane Brook and then turns north west again to the railway line.

Post to the west Kempton Park
Post to the east Marling Park
Post to the south Sunbury Kempton Park

Kempton Park
A Park was developed at Kempton during the 13th and stocked with deer and rabbits and used by Henry VIII. It is the area of this park which was sold to the eventual racecourse owner,
Sites on the Buckinghamshire/Spelthorne side of the boundary

Kempton Park House?
Near the house can be traced the sites of moats which mark the site of the original manor house. This was used by a succession of Kings from Henry III onwards. He obtained it in 1228 and it had a hall, chamber for the king, and the queen and  a chapel. The gatehouse for Westminster Palace was re-erected eere in 1244. It seems to have been demolished in the 14th. 17th manor house was there and rebuilt again in the 19th. Described as very gloomy and was demolished unfinished although a coach house survived into the 1950s. The current house was built soon after.
Barn 16th or 17th.
Kempton Park racecourse. Kempton Park first used in 1878. It had been sold to Henry Hyde in 1872 and he opened the course there. After the Second World War major reconstruction was needed and racing did not begin again until 1947.In the First World War the racecourse was used as a motor depot for a military camp at Sunbury and as a transit depot for military vehicles. The site was used for prisoners of war throughout World War II and their transit was arranged through the main line rail station nearbyLake the result of gravel extraction works. The lake is a Site of Nature Conservation Importance
Half Moon Covert. A Site of Nature Conservation Importance

Sunbury Way
Kempton Park Wood and Reservoirs A mixed deciduous woodland surrounds old waterworks. These partially drained reservoirs and woodlands attract waterfowl.  A consortium called Theme World proposed to build a leisure complex across this site hoping that the retaining or creation of a new lake would defeat local opposition. In 1987 a public inquiry was held and the land was later designated as Green Belt.

Sites on the London, Hounslow side of the boundary

Kempton Park Waterworks.
The Kempton Park works was established in 1897 by the New River and became part of the Metropolitan Water Board in 1903. Pumping was undertaken by two triple expansion engines of 1926-1929 thought to be the biggest ever built in the UK. They each pumped 19m gallons a day and worked until 1980s. The Sir William Prescott has been restored and is now the largest such engine still in working order. It is operated by the Kempton Great Engines Trust.
Kempton Park East Reservoir 1907. Closed in 1980, drained in 1982 and in 1996 had some of the embankments removed. However retains water, supplemented by rainfall and is managed as a nature reserve.
Kempton Park West Reservoir 1907. Also closed and emptied completely.
Railway Line
The Shepperton Line, 1864. Had to loop north in order to avoid Kempton Manor grounds.

Sources
Osborne. Defending London

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