Talacre Gardens
Kentish Town was probably named after the combination of Ken-ditch; Ken as in Kenwood, being the Celtic word for "green" and "river" and the "ditch" being referred to as the river Fleet. In 1251 the area was a small hamlet of just 30 houses, fields of pasture and river surrounded it. In 1801 Thompson's map shows that the current Talacre Gardens were once a part of "Fourteen Acre Field" just west of the hamlet of Kentish Town.
At the end of the 18th Century there was a building boom and Kentish Town had turned from village to a suburb by the mid 19th century. Land was taken for the railway and the area is described as becoming "a grimy working class district with railway lines, houses of multiple occupancy and the river. Fleet becoming confined and buried in an iron pipe." Small factories and industries began to spring up everywhere. Noted industries in the area included: piano and organ factories, scientific instruments, building materials and false teeth!
In 1962 the County of London (Prince of Wales Road, St Pancras) placed a compulsory purchase order on the land for the purpose of "providing public walks or pleasure grounds" in accordance with the Open Spaces Act of 1906.
In 1974-75 the slum terraced houses were demolished and planning permission was granted to use the site as public open space in 1975. Talacre Open Space was unusual because unlike many of the Borough's open spaces, which were the result of the preservation of open space during the construction of residential neighbourhoods. Talacre Open Space was created by the deliberate and large-scale demolition of residential properties.
The park was originally laid out between 1980 and 1982.
The park was closed to the public between 24th February and the end of May 2003 to landscape the area next to the newly constructed Sport Centre. Works included the demolition of the old Talacre Action Group building, re-landscaping of open space, a new children's play area, a new floodlight multi-use games area and the installation of new perimeter fencing.
When the park was re-opened a new fence had been constructed around the park. this fencing was 1.8m high and had gates at five points on the site. The gates were opened and closed in accordance with the schedule of opening and closing times as set out in the By-laws for Camden's Parks and Open Spaces. The name of the site was changed by public request from Talacre Open Space to Talacre Gardens as the local residents wanted the name of the park to reflect the new high quality gardens.
A park attendant was funded at the site from early in 2005.
* Provided by the LB of Camden Parks & Open Spaces.
The Struggle
The campaign to transform Talacre from a second world war bomb site and remaining slum area to a community garden started in the 1970s. The local residents transformed the unsightly land into an adventure play ground for the local youth. Hundreds of residents managed to convince a reluctant council to turn this site into a park.
Talacre Today
Talacre still remains under threat from private developers. Recently, the council almost allowed a private developer to have a lorry route through the gardens! The same developer is trying to encroach the park with the Dalby Street seven storey building scheme. Many people believe the granting of a Town Green status was the only way to protect this open space forever.
About Talacre Open Space
This large open space between Chalk Farm to the west and Kentish Town to the east was redesigned in 2003 following the development of Talacre Community Sports Centre. Separate areas in the park provide an all weather pitch; a children’s playground; a planted seating area; a wide expanse of grass, pathways and benches and an area outside of the park for dog exercising. The Gardens provide an ideal space for community activities and events at all times of the year. In 2008 this site gained ‘Town Green’ status protecting it from development.
A wonderful open park created through the efforts of local residents. Popular throughout the year. A lovely place to run, jump and play or to kick back and enjoy a picnic.
About the cache
The cache is a magnetic container and can be accessed from the pavement. It also can be acess from inside the park, but the hint will only be accurate from outside the park.
Wheelchair users may not have problems to catch this one.
Borough of Camden usually is a busy area with many locals and tourists, especially during weekends. Please, use stealth when looking for the cache (which was been reflected in the difficulty rating).
And please replace the cache at the same location so that the hint can always remain accurate.
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If you found any errors, had any ideas for improvement while doing the search or even just want to talk with us and encourage more caches like this one, feel free to send us a message. We will respond to everyone as soon as possible.
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About Hampstead_Twins
We are Hampstead locals and have recently discovered GeoSearching activity. As we are delighted with the place where we live and with the stories we find in every corner of this locality, we decided to share some curious facts about our neighbourhood and encourage GeoSearching activity in the region. We hope you enjoy.
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What’s next?
Did you like to know different parks like this one? If you haven't already, how about trying to find another micro cache, this time in Whittington Park? Look for 'Whittington's Cat' cache and have fun!