Garden Museum, Lambeth

In what was St Mary-at-Lambeth church resides the world's first Garden Museum.

John and Rosemary Nicholson, who were keen garden lovers, rediscovered the tombs of two 17th century Royal gardeners, John Tradescant the Elder and the Younger in the churchyard garden, in 1976. This same year the church, by now roofless and crumbling, was scheduled for demolition, so the Nicholsons set up the Tradescant Trust as a way of saving the tombs and the church buildings, with plans to open a museum to the history of gardening.

The Museum of Garden History opened in 1977, with much of its original collection being donated by friends and Londoners. When it opened it had wooden and earth floors, no heating or lighting and no drainage. As such the museum was unable to exhibit works of art or precious artefacts that needed to be securely displayed.

In the 1980s the Knot Garden, created and designed by Lady Salisbury, President of the Garden Museum, offering a place of quiet reflection, away from the hustle and bustle of London life.

In 1990 the Museum of Garden History looked to expand, not just its collection but also spaces within which to display it, so plans were drawn up that included a mezzanine level.

In 2002 the museum set a target to raise £600,000 to pay for a general overhaul of the facilities.

In 2008 Phase I of the refurbishment began, with the museum's interior being transformed to include exhibition, event and gallery spaces. On November 18 the Museum of Garden History reopened as the Garden Museum.

'Windrush & Commonwealth NHS Nurses and Midwives Statue' by Dr Jak Beula

At the entrance to the Whittington Hospital, on Magdala Avenue, there is a stylised mother and child statue.

It depicts a mother cradling her newborn baby, with the mother wearing a nurses' fob watch.

This unique statue was commissioned to commemorate the extraordinary efforts of the some 40,000 Windrush and Commonwealth NHS nurses and midwives, who came to the UK between 1948 and 1973 in order to help the newly created NHS.

The statue consists of 16 pieces of granite and is 2.1m in height, width and depth and cost £100,000.

It was unveiled on Friday September 10, 2021.

A worn brass plaque reads:

'The Windrush & Commonwealth NHS Nurses and Midwives Statue' was conceived and designed by Johnny Alexander Bebeula Dodd, aka Dr Jak Beula. 

He named the piece "NICU Suite 16" because of the 16 pieces of granite used to create the statue. 

It is dedicated to all Commonwealth National Health Service staff, notably Nurses and Midwives from Africa and the Caribbean, who have worked in the NHS since its foundation in 1948. 

The Nubian Jak Community Trust thanks Whittington Health NHS Trust and Islington Council for supporting this NHS Memorial. 

Special thanks to Islington BH365, Haringey Council, Ernst & young, Arsenal Football Club, Entain PLC, Havas Group, Aviva, Crowdfunder UK and the generous donations from nursing organisations and the general public for the successful delivery of this statue. May she be a source of inspiration to all NHS staff and provide light,  hope and pride to those who come into contact with this memorial.

Elsyng Spital Church Tower, City of London

Elsyng Spital Church Tower.

The City of London is full of churches. Some are still in use, while others are ruins. Some of these ruins have been turned into pocket gardens, where people can go to escape the bustle of the city. Others, like Elsyng Spital Church Tower, have been left as they are.

I like that places like this have been left, rather than bulldozed, now standing alongside the new office blocks which, no doubt, won't last as long.

This is all that remains of the tower of the church of the medieval hospital of Elsyng Spital. 

 

The entrance to the church was through the archway on the right.

 

'Sam' the Cat

London is full of statues of monarchs, politicians, generals, soldiers, horses, wild animals and lots more. The ones that I love discovering, though, are the smaller, lesser known ones... such as this one.

This statue depicts a cat poised to jump from a brick wall, possibly to land on an unsuspecting bird or mouse. Sam was a real cat and he was commissioned to recognise his owner, Patricia Penn. 

Bow Creek Lighthouse: London's Only Lighthouse

On the Leamouth Peninsula, where the River Thames and Bow Creek meet, lies Trinity Buoy Wharf, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

The site was used by the Brethren of Trinity House, now known as Corporation of Trinity House, from 1803, with the sea wall being constructed in 1822.

A photo of both lighthouses, circa 1900s.

Originally there were two lighthouses, with one being built in 1852, by James Walker, and the other between 1864-1866, by James Douglas. The former was demolished in the 1920s, while the latter one still stands today.

Both lighthouses were used to train lighthouse keepers and for testing lighting systems, not for their true purpose, as the River Thames is not that dangerous a stretch of water.

The original lantern, at the top of the lighthouse, came from the Paris Exposition of 1867, where Trinity House had demonstrated improved systems of electric lighting for lighthouses.

Michael Faraday set up a workshop, next door to the lighthouse, and carried out experiments here, discovering the principles underlying electromagnetic induction, electrolysis and diamagnetism.