Time Walk
A Short Curve Off Brixton Road
A quiet curve hides a Victorian school and a blue plaque for a pioneer of sex research. Walking it today, three things stand out: the low, almost rural outline of the old school building on the north side, the tall Queen Anne front of Dover Mansions opposite, and the plaque fixed to its wall.
Beneath that quiet curve lies a story of Victorian charity and a controversial scientist whose books once scandalised respectable London. That is where Canterbury Crescent's history really begins.
Name Origin
An Unexplained Name
The sources used here do not explain why the street is called Canterbury Crescent. No naming record, lease or map consulted for this page accounts for the choice of name.
History
A School Given Free, A War Survived
St John's C.E. Primary School was built on Canterbury Crescent in 1853. It was designed by Benjamin Ferrey in Tudor style, built in Rochester brick with Bath stone dressings by Messrs. Holland, at a cost of £1,600. The site was freely given by Benedict John Angell Angell.
The school was severely damaged in the war of 1939–45 and reopened in 1947. The surviving building, known as St John's Buildings, stands on the north side of the crescent, low and almost rural for such an urban spot. It was listed at Grade II in 1981, along with its forecourt walls, railings and gates.
On the south side stands Dover Mansions, a five-storey Queen Anne style block, well restored and placed on the local list of buildings in 2012.
St John's School cost just £1,600 to build in 1853 — built in Rochester brick with Bath stone dressings by Messrs. Holland.
Culture
A Pioneer of Sex Research on the Crescent
A plaque on Dover Mansions remembers an unlikely figure on this quiet Brixton crescent, whose research spanned more than a decade into a subject most Victorians would not discuss in print.
People
A Benefactor, an Architect, a Scientist
Benedict John Angell Angell freely gave the land on which St John's School was built. The design was the work of Benjamin Ferrey.
Decades later, Henry Havelock Ellis is remembered here by a blue plaque at Dover Mansions.
On the Map
Canterbury Crescent Then & Now
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is it called Canterbury Crescent?
The sources consulted for this page do not explain the origin of the name Canterbury Crescent.
What is Canterbury Crescent known for?
It is known for St John's C.E. Primary School, built in 1853 and now Grade II listed, and for a blue plaque to sexologist Henry Havelock Ellis at Dover Mansions.
What is Dover Mansions?
Dover Mansions is a five-storey Queen Anne style block on the south side of Canterbury Crescent, well restored and included on Lambeth's local list of buildings in 2012.
Who was Henry Havelock Ellis?
Henry Havelock Ellis (1859–1939) was a pioneer in the scientific study of sex, author of the six-volume Studies in the Psychology of Sex (1897–1910), commemorated by a plaque at Dover Mansions.