Dorking, Castle Mill 1909

Photo ref: 61414

More about this scene

hen travelling south from Leatherhead, we pass on our right the fine house in Norbury Park; it is said to be one of the loveliest estates in Surrey. Preserved by Surrey County Council, it is most famous for its ancient yews. It was home to William Locke (1863-1930), born in Barbados, novelist, dramatist and architect. He ‘spared no expense to make it beautiful’, and later sold it to Dr Marie Stopes, the pioneer of birth control. To our left is the entrance to the Old London Road, which leads to Mickleham, one of Dorking’s neighbouring parishes. The village boasts many grand buildings. Box Hill School has become one of the dominant features of the village; it was erected by Edward Gardener in 1870, and was then named Dalewood. The Army requisitioned the building as headquarters for the Pay Corps during World War II. After the war, it became St Nicholas’s school. In 1959 a housemaster from Gordonstoun founded what is now Box Hill School, which accommodates approximately 300 boys and girls, both boarding and day pupils.

An extract from Dorking Town and City Memories.