West Humble


Post to the north Mickleham
Post to the east Burford Bridge



Adlers Lane
Ancient lane running at a diagonal between Chapel Lane and what is now the A24 which ran through what was once the centre of a medieval village. It has been suggested that this is part of the original Pilgrims Way. It was built up with modern up market housing since the 1940s. It terminates at a gate leading into Gravel Pit Plantation. The lane used to continue across the railway to the main road.  There is now no trace of the lane east of the railway.  Adler is the name of a house here.
Gravel Pit Plantation. This was planted with trees until the 1920s

Bradley Lane
The lane is now set up as the entrance to the Denbies Wine Estate, with car parks, signage, etc. It passes through fields which are now vineyards. The section leading to a junction with the A24 has now been diverted southwards.
Bradley Farm. Bradley farm is now the visitors’ centre of the Denbies wine estate. The farmhouse itself is used for B&B accommodation. It was once a pig and cattle farm.
Denbies Wine Estate visitors' centre. This is double courtyard building which acts as an entrance to the estate. It includes a working winery installed as an exhibition with a commentary as well as wine cellars, a cinema, art gallery, lecture room, two restaurants and a shop.  The vineyard itself is the largest in the UK and one of the largest privately owned vineyards in Northern Europe. It covers 265 acres and can produce up to 400,000 bottles annually.
Railway Bridge – this carries the Leatherhead to Dorking railway.
Bradley Farm Cottages. These are adjacent to the railway bridge.
Fields – in the farm fields here wartime tanks were buried by the Canadian Army here in 1944.  At least two of these have been dug up.

Burney Road
Road with up market housing built up mainly since the Second World War. The road is named for Fanny Burney, whose Camilla Lacey house stood to the north.

Camilla Drive
Archway at the Crabtree Lane junction. It dates from 1923. It has or had the word ‘Leladene’ set above it. It was built by Victor Freeman in memory of his wife Lela.
Plaque on the srchway recording the residence here of Fanny Burney and General d’Arblay at Camilla Cottage.

Chapel Lane
It has been suggested that this is part of the Pilgrims Way. The concept of this path originated in the mid 19th Ordnance Survey – yet the path probably follows the line of a prehistoric track running under the North Downs.
Camilla Lacey. This is the site of the house which novelist and diarist Fanny Burney built; it is said, with the proceeds of her novel ‘Camilla’. She lived here with her husband General d’Arblay 1797-1801. The house was later sold and passed through many owners. It is said to have burnt down in 1919 destroying a collection of Burney memorabilia.  In 1922 the site and a new house were bought by Victor Freeman which he named Leladene after his wife Lela who had recently died. It has since passed through other owners and is now called Camilla Lacey.
Ice House.  This was rectangular built into an artificial mound, which had been made to give a view of Norbury Park.  It stands in the north west corner of the site
Chapel Farm. The farm dates from the middle ages and was the centre of the manor of Polesden.
Barn. This is a late 16th early 17th timber framed barn with weatherboarding on a base of flint and stone.  This base includes some blocks which may be reused from derelict adjacent Chapel. It has now been converted to housing.
Ruined Chapel. Ruins of a late 13th chapel – what remains is a flint built west wall with a gable and part of the east wall. It was probably part of the medieval manor of Polesden.  It was probably abandoned as a chapel in the 16th and used as a farm outbuilding

Crabtree Lane
Lovedon Cottage. This was formerly a 17th Farmhouse called 'Birds and Abbotts’. Between 1930 and 1960 it was occupied by H J Baker who used the outbuildings as a forge. Later his son ran a car repair business on the site.
St Michael's Chapel.  This is a Chapel of Ease to the church at Mickleham. It was originally an oak-framed barn owned by 'Birds and Abbotts' arm used in the 19th by railway workers.  It was secured as a rest room for them by a local lady, Elizabeth Vulliamy. She organised Sunday services, and helped with writing letters to the men’s families. The barn continued to be used for Sunday services after the workers had left and in 1904, it was licensed as a chapel-of-ease

North Downs Way
Modern long distance footpath which runs from Dover to Farnham and passes east west through this square.

Pilgrim’s Way
This was built as the entrance to Home Farm
Home Farm. This was part of the Camilla Lacey estate and was built for Victor Freeman in the 1920s. The buildings were arranged round three sides of a courtyard with a pump in the middle. There was a central clock tower and a pump which remains. The estate developed financial problems in 1932 and the site was developed as housing by Portwell Ltd,
Barn End. This was built to house senior farm workers.
Tudor Cottage. This was the house for the farm manager
St Anthony. This was built to house senior farm workers

West Humble Street
West Humble. May be remains of a hamlet depopulated in the Middle Ages
'The Stepping Stones' Public House.  This was originally the Railway Arms built around 1870 on the site of the old workshops. It was renamed The Stepping Stones when Prime Minister Clement Attlee and Home Secretary Chuter Ede ate here in 1946 to celebrate the re-instatement of the Stepping Stones across the River Mole.
Anti-tank ditch. This was dug in the Second World War from the pub eastwards across the fields belonging to Bradley Farm
Box Hill and West Humble Station. This lies between Leatherhead and Dorking Stations on Southern and also the South Western railways. It dates from 1867. The owner of Norbury Park was a retired railway contractor, Thomas Grissell,   and he insisted on having his own station, and to be able to stop any train at the station on request.  It was built in a very ornate style, designed by Charles Driver with patterned tiles, exposed gable timbers and a pyramidal turret with ornamental ironwork.  The station was successively named-'West Humble for Box Hill' until 1870, then 'Boxhill and Burford Bridge' .then 1896, 'Boxhill' until 1904, then 'Boxhill and Burford Bridge' again until 1985.
Catbells. This was the village Infant School
Cleveland Court. These flats and houses are on the site of what was Westhumble House and named Cleveland after the Duke of Cleveland lived there in the 1830s. It was later owned by astronomer, physicist and mathematician Sir JamesJeans.  The annual Box Hill Music Festival was held here until 1992. The house was later demolished

Sources
British Listed Buildings. Web site
Chelsea Speleological Society, Newsletter
Denbies Wine Estate. Web site
English Wine Producers. Web site
Historic England. Web site
Penguin.  Surrey
Pevsner. Surrey
Stepping Stones. Web site
Tarplee. Industrial History of the Mole Valley District
Wikipedia. Web site. As appropriate.

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