Croydon was a rural district

Rural district

Rural districts were a type of local government area – now superseded – established at the end of the 19th century in England, Wales, and Ireland for the administration of predominantly rural areas at a level lower than that of the administrative counties.-England and Wales:In England...

 in north east Surrey

Surrey

Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, from 1894 to 1915. It was created by the Local Government Act 1894

Local Government Act 1894

The Local Government Act 1894 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level under the Local Government Act 1888...

 and replaced the Croydon Rural Sanitary District

Sanitary district

Sanitary districts were established in England and Wales in 1875 and in Ireland in 1878. The districts were of two types, based on existing structures:*Urban sanitary districts in towns with existing local government bodies...

. The district surrounded the County Borough of Croydon

County Borough of Croydon

Croydon was a local government district in north east Surrey, England from 1849 to 1965.-History:A local board of health was formed for the parish of Croydon St John the Baptist in 1849. On March 9, 1883 the town received a charter of incorporation to become a municipal borough...

 to the south, east and west.

When established in 1894, the area covered was primarily rural, dotted with small villages and towns, but the expansion of London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 in the late 19th and early 20th centuries led to rapid urbanisation

Urbanization

Urbanization, urbanisation or urban drift is the physical growth of urban areas as a result of global change. The United Nations projected that half of the world's population would live in urban areas at the end of 2008....

 and the rural district was progressively broken up to form newly created urban districts. It was abolished in 1915.

Its area now forms parts of the London Boroughs of Croydon

London Borough of Croydon

The London Borough of Croydon is a London borough in South London, England and is part of Outer London. It covers an area of and is the largest London borough by population. It is the southernmost borough of London. At its centre is the historic town of Croydon from which the borough takes its name...

, Merton

London Borough of Merton

The London Borough of Merton is a borough in southwest London, England.The borough was formed under the London Government Act in 1965 by the merger of the Municipal Borough of Mitcham, the Municipal Borough of Wimbledon and the Merton and Morden Urban District, all formerly within Surrey...

 and Sutton

London Borough of Sutton

The London Borough of Sutton is a London borough in South London, England and forms part of Outer London. It covers an area of and is the 80th largest local authority in England by population. It is one of the southernmost boroughs of London...

 and the Borough of Reigate and Banstead

Reigate and Banstead

Reigate and Banstead is a local government district with borough status in east Surrey England. It covers the towns of Reigate, Banstead, Redhill and Horley....

.

Parishes and boundaries

On creation, the district consisted of nine civil parish

Civil parish

In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...

es. The number was reduced to eight in 1907 with the creation of Merton Urban District, and to seven in 1913 when the parish of Morden was absorbed by Merton UD.

In 1914 the Surrey County Council

Surrey County Council

Surrey County Council is the county council that governs the non-metropolitan county of Surrey in England. The council is composed of 80 elected councillors.The council is controlled by the Conservative party.The leader of the council is David Hodge....

 made orders for the abolition of the rural district, with its area to be reconstituted as three new urban district

Urban district

In the England, Wales and Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council....

s or transferred to neighbouring rural districts. This was opposed by the County Borough of Croydon

County Borough of Croydon

Croydon was a local government district in north east Surrey, England from 1849 to 1965.-History:A local board of health was formed for the parish of Croydon St John the Baptist in 1849. On March 9, 1883 the town received a charter of incorporation to become a municipal borough...

 which sought to annex most of Beddington, Coulsdon, Sanderstead and Woodmansterne. Croydon's scheme was eventually defeated in parliament, and the break-up took place in 1915.

Parish	Fate
Addington Addington, London Addington is a district of south London, England, located in the London Borough of Croydon. It is situated south south-east of Charing Cross.-History:...	Transferred to Godstone Rural District on abolition of rural district in 1915. Subsequently absorbed by County Borough of Croydon in 1925.
Beddington Beddington Beddington is a settlement between the London Boroughs of Sutton and Croydon. The BedZED low energy housing scheme is located here. In Beddington was a static inverter plant of HVDC Kingsnorth....	Became part of Beddington and Wallington Urban District Municipal Borough of Beddington and Wallington Beddington and Wallington was, from 1915 to 1965, a local government district in north east Surrey, England. It formed part of the London suburbs, lying within the Metropolitan Police District and the London Passenger Transport Area...  in 1915.
Coulsdon Coulsdon Coulsdon is a town on the southernmost boundary of the London Borough of Croydon. It is surrounded by the Metropolitan Green Belt of the Farthing Down, Coulsdon Common and Kenley Common...	Formed part of Coulsdon and Purley Urban District Coulsdon and Purley Urban District Coulsdon and Purley Urban District was a local government district in north east Surrey from 1915 to 1965.It was formed in 1915 from part of the abolished Croydon Rural District...  in 1915.
Merton Merton (historic parish) Merton was an ancient parish in the Brixton hundred of Surrey, England. It was bounded by Wimbledon to the north, Mitcham to the east, Morden to the south and Kingston upon Thames to the west. The 1871 Ordnance Survey map records its area as . The parish was centred around the 12th century parish...	Formed Merton Urban District in 1907. Later merged into Merton and Morden Urban District in 1913.
Mitcham Mitcham Mitcham is a district in the south west area of London, in the London Borough of Merton. A suburban area, Mitcham is located on the border of Inner London and Outer London. It is both residentially and financially developed, well served by Transport for London, and home to Mitcham Town Centre,...	Formed Mitcham Urban District Municipal Borough of Mitcham Mitcham was a local government district in north east Surrey from 1915 to 1965 around the town of Mitcham.It was created in 1915 as an urban district from part of the abolished Croydon Rural District...  in 1915
Morden Morden Morden is a district in the London Borough of Merton. It is located approximately South-southwest of central London between Merton Park , Mitcham , Sutton and Worcester Park .- Origin of name :...	Merged with Merton Urban District to form Merton and Morden Urban District Merton and Morden Urban District Merton Urban District and Merton and Morden Urban District was an urban district in Surrey, England. It was formed in 1907 from the parish of Merton and was expanded in 1913 to take in Morden...  in 1913.
Sanderstead Sanderstead Sanderstead is a village in London Borough of Croydon, located on high ground at the edge of the built-up area of Greater London. From 1915 to 1965 it formed a parish in the Coulsdon and Purley Urban District of Surrey. Having been a farming community in previous centuries, Sanderstead is now...	Formed part of Coulsdon and Purley Urban District in 1915.
Wallington Wallington, London Wallington is a town in the London Borough of Sutton situated south south-west of Charing Cross. Prior to the merger of the Municipal Borough of Beddington and Wallington into the London Borough of Sutton, it was part of the county of Surrey.- History :...	Became part of Beddington and Wallington Urban District in 1915.
Woodmansterne Woodmansterne Woodmansterne is a village in Reigate and Banstead borough of the county of Surrey, England. Woodmansterne village is located on the B278, which starts at Morden and winds through Carshalton past Oaks Park and into the village. The road continues down to Chipstead Bottom...	Transferred to Epsom Rural District Epsom Rural District Epsom was a rural district of Surrey from 1894 to 1933.It was created in 1894 and covered the area of the formed Epsom Rural Sanitary District - ie the parishes of Ashtead, Banstead, Cheam, Chessington, Cobham, Cuddington, Ewell, Fetcham, Great Bookham, Headley, Little Bookham and Stoke d'Abernon...  in 1915. Subsequently formed part of Banstead Banstead Banstead is a town in the borough of Reigate and Banstead in the county of Surrey, England, on the border with Greater London. It lies south of London, west of Croydon and of the county town of Kingston-Upon-Thames. Banstead is on the North Downs and is protected by the Metropolitan Green Belt;... Urban District in 1933