The Tooting Commons consist of two adjacent areas of common land lying between Balham

Balham

Balham is a district of London, EnglandBalham can also refer to:*Balham, Ardennes, a commune in France*Balham station, railway and tube station in Balham, London*Balaam, a Biblical figure...

, Streatham

Streatham

Streatham is a district in Surrey, England, located in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-History:...

 and Tooting

Tooting

Tooting is a district in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It is situated south south-west of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-History:...

, in south west 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...

: Tooting Bec Common and Tooting Graveney Common.

Since 1996, they have been wholly within the London Borough of Wandsworth

London Borough of Wandsworth

The London Borough of Wandsworth is a London borough in southwest London, England, and forms part of Inner London.-History:The borough was formed in 1965 from the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea and much of the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth, but...

, which has administered the commons since 1971 when a substantial part of Tooting Bec Common was within the adjacent London Borough of Lambeth

London Borough of Lambeth

The London Borough of Lambeth is a London borough in south London, England and forms part of Inner London. The local authority is Lambeth London Borough Council.-Origins:...

. Wandsworth's Parks Department continues to describe the two historically separate spaces as Tooting Common.

Tooting Bec Common includes Tooting Bec Lido

Tooting Bec Lido

Tooting Bec Lido is an open-air fresh water swimming pool in South London. It is the largest swimming pool by surface area in the United Kingdom, being 100 yards long and 33 yards wide....

 and Tooting Graveney Common includes Tooting Bec Stadium

Tooting Bec Stadium

Tooting Bec Athletics Track is an athletics stadium in Tooting Common, near Tooting Bec, Wandsworth, southwest London, England. It is located on Tooting Bec Road.-External links:*...

.

History

Tooting Bec Common and Tooting Graveney Common, are the remains of common land that once stretched as far as Mitcham.

Tooting Bec Common — the northern and eastern part of the commons — was within the historic parish of Streatham, and takes its name from the area's links to Bec Abbey

Bec Abbey

Bec Abbey in Le Bec Hellouin, Normandy, France, once the most influential abbey in the Anglo-Norman kingdom of the twelfth century, is a Benedictine monastic foundation in the Eure département, in the Bec valley midway between the cities of Rouen and Bernay.Like all abbeys, Bec maintained annals...

 at Le Bec-Hellouin

Le Bec-Hellouin

Le Bec-Hellouin is a commune in the department of Eure in the Haute-Normandie region in northern France.It is best known for Bec Abbey and has recently been voted one of the "most beautiful villages of France".-History:...

 in Normandy

Normandy

Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...

. At various points in history this common has been called Streatham Common, which causes some confusion with the open space a mile to the east of that name. The common is not immediately adjacent to the area now known as Tooting Bec

Tooting Bec

Tooting Bec is a place in the London Borough of Wandsworth in south London.It is named after Bec Abbey in Normandy, which was given land in this area after the Norman Conquest. Saint Anselm, the second Abbot of Bec, is reputed to have been a visitor to Tooting Bec long before he succeeded...

, which appears to take its name from Tooting Bec Road.

Tooting Graveney Common was in Tooting parish and a thin line of other common land ran further south down Church Lane towards the River Graveney.

During the 19th century, the commons at Tooting were divided by building of roads and railways — starting with the West End of London and Crystal Palace Railway

West End of London and Crystal Palace Railway

The West End of London and Crystal Palace Railway was an early railway company in south London between Crystal Palace station and Wandsworth, which was opened in 1856. The line was extended in 1858 to a station at Battersea Wharf which was misleadingly named Pimlico...

 line in 1855, and the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway

London, Brighton and South Coast Railway

The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1922. Its territory formed a rough triangle, with London at its apex, practically the whole coastline of Sussex as its base, and a large part of Surrey...

 line running north — south which opened in 1861 and was further widened in 1901 after this had become the main line to Brighton

Brighton

Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...

. The common today continues to be divided into multiple parcels by these busy transport links.

Tooting Bec Common, comprising nearly 152 acres (61.5 ha), was one of the first commons which the Metropolitan Board of Works

Metropolitan Board of Works

The Metropolitan Board of Works was the principal instrument of London-wide government from 1855 until the establishment of the London County Council in 1889. Its principal responsibility was to provide infrastructure to cope with London's rapid growth, which it successfully accomplished. The MBW...

 took action to preserve following the Metropolitan Commons Act of 1866 when in 1873 it acquired the manorial rights for £13,798. In 1875 the MBW acquired Tooting Graveney Common of 66 acres (26.7 ha) for £3,000.

The road marking the boundary between the two commons (and the historic parish boundary between Streatham and Tooting) is called Doctor Johnson's Avenue. This was originally a country path leading from Streatham Place

Streatham

Streatham is a district in Surrey, England, located in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-History:...

, and Doctor Johnson

Samuel Johnson

Samuel Johnson , often referred to as Dr. Johnson, was an English author who made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, literary critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer...

 is reputed to have regularly walked here when visiting Hester Thrale

Hester Thrale

Hester Lynch Thrale was a British diarist, author, and patron of the arts. Her diaries and correspondence are an important source of information about Samuel Johnson and 18th-century life.-Biography:Thrale was born at Bodvel Hall, Caernarvonshire, Wales...

.

Tooting Bec Common includes a number of formal avenues of trees — the first such avenue to be recorded was a line of oaks to commemorate a visit by Elizabeth I

Elizabeth I of England

Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...

 in 1600. With the loss of elms along Tooting Bec Road to Dutch Elm Disease

Dutch elm disease

Dutch elm disease is a disease caused by a member of the sac fungi category, affecting elm trees which is spread by the elm bark beetle. Although believed to be originally native to Asia, the disease has been accidentally introduced into America and Europe, where it has devastated native...

, most visitors are now immediately aware of late Victorian era

Victorian era

The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...

 plantings of horse chestnuts on the boundaries, but there are some much older trees — notably the oaks parallel to Garrad's Road which are the successors to an avenue first recorded in the 17th century.

In the 1990s the junction of Tooting Bec Road and Church Lane was widened, encroaching on the common. A few metres of grass behind the railings of the former Tooting Bec Mental Hospital (redeveloped as the Heritage Park residential development) are now part of the common in exchange for the lost land.

Wildlife and ecology

The two commons are recognised as being of Site of Metropolitan importance for Greater London

Greater London

Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...

 because they include a number of rare wildlife habitats. Although the woodland areas are the most obvious, the unimproved areas of acid grassland are actually far rarer.