Woodside Court, Addiscombe

Finding an existing piece of history in this modern, bustling, developed world ranks very highly in my life - it’s the little things . . .

I am researching the Croydon suburb of Addiscombe for a forthcoming video series and maps play a key part in this process. Typically areas that we see now as highly developed started out very differently - generally farms and fields - even in Croydon!

My first map examination piqued my interest in a building called “Woodside Court”. On my way home from watching Crystal Palace FC I often take a short cut along Woodside Court Road and naturally for me, the very name sowed a seed in my mind for future investigation.

This first image from 1894 shows Woodside Court on the map, the second image shows how the area looks today and the third image is a mix of the two.

1894 Map

2025 Map

Blend of the above images

When I looked closer I saw that there is an older looking building in the Co-op car park. A 3D view from Apple Maps shows how this has a sheer side wall as if it belonged to something much larger:

The building in Co-op Addiscombe Car Park

So, here is my theory that I will back up with some evidence. I believe this is a remaining part of Woodside Court. SHoppers visiting Co-op in Addiscombe via their rear car park, may not realise just how close they are to a piece of our local history. I happened to be in the area yesterday so took some pictures at ground level:

Various newspaper articles from the early 20th century refer to sales of land for development in the area of the Woodside Court Estate so we know at that time it was changing from a large, notable house to a set smaller homes for the growing population (now the Woodside Court Road development. But what about this evidence? The Lloyd George Domesday Survey of 1910 made some observations, read from “Since 1909”:

Extract from 1910 Lloyd George Domesday Survey

In summary, I “think” I have discovered a piece of notable local history. I would live to hear more about it though, and invite you to comment on any knowledge you may have. I haven’t visited archive sources, I haven’t found any old photos, this is quite a quick piece of research but potentially a very good story.

Please let me know what you know!