Wormwood Scrubs - History

History

In the early 19th century the whole district was open fields, and included several areas of common land. In 1812 an area of 190 acres (0.77 km2) known as Wormholt Scrubs was leased by the War Office from the Manor of Fulham. This was in order to exercise cavalry horses which until that point had been hacked out in Hyde Park, Belgrave Square and Regent's Park - then known as St. Marylebone's Park. This common land became known as Wormwood Scrubs, 135 acres (0.55 km2) of which was bought by the War Office in 1878.

In 1879, Parliament passed The Wormwood Scrubs Act, which aimed to create a "metropolitan exercising ground" for the military and to provide the Scrubs for "the perpetual use by the inhabitants of the metropolis for exercise and recreation". Under this act, the military were able to expel civilians from the Scrubs whenever they were training, but allowed civilians free use of the area when they were not. To ensure that the Scrubs were kept as open land for all to enjoy, the act banned the military from building any permanent structures other than rifle butts, one of which survives today as a wall in the Linford Christie Stadium.

The Scrubs became recognised as the duelling ground of London, with several duels having been fought there. In 1908, the route for the Olympic Marathon went across the Scrubs on the final stages of the race from Windsor Castle to the Olympic Stadium at White City. In 1910 Wormwood Scrubs became part of aviation history when a pioneer airship took flight from an improvised landing ground; The Daily Mail Airship Garage was built shortly afterwards—the site is now occupied by the Linford Christie Stadium. In 1914 all air related activities on the Scrubs passed to the authority of the Admiralty, and there are records of a base here called 'Wormwood Scrubs Naval Air Station' in the National Archives at Kew. The airship shed was used to train RNAS armoured car crews. It remained as an emergency landing ground until the 1930s. In 1939 with the onset of another World War, Wormwood Scrubs again played host to an innovative military department—The Chief Cable Censorship Department, an outstation of the Government Code and Cypher School (GC&CS) at Bletchley Park.

Until 1940 it was served by St. Quintin Park and Wormwood Scrubs, a station on the West London Line. It was closed after heavy bombing damage during the Second World War.

The prison is located just yards from the scene of the Massacre of Braybrook Street in 1966, in which three policemen were shot dead by three armed men after stopping their suspicious car.

In 1986 local birdwatcher Lester Holloway set up a campaign to save Scrubs Wood, the area of railway land along the north side of Wormwood Scrubs, from destruction as part of plans by the then British Rail to build cleaning depots to service Channel Tunnel trains. Holloway and his campaign petitioned the House of Lords, supported by the then MP for Fulham Nick Raynsford, and won concessions. The existing nature reserve includes an area known as 'Lester's Embankment'. The campaign attracted considerable national publicity in 1987, and even a musical.

On 10 March 2009 the prison was listed as a Grade II building.

The Scrubs, one of the largest open spaces close to central London, is always under threat of development. The local politics of the Scrubs are a constant battle between vigilant groups like The Friends of Wormwood Scrubs and various interests—the railway, the local council and others—who always have an eye to building on the green space.