Time Walk
A Roman Road Under Georgian Brick
The Romans drove the road to Chichester straight through here, and traffic has followed it ever since. Today it is a line of stuccoed and stock-brick terraces, a domed Underground entrance, and a scatter of milestones still counting the miles to Whitehall.
Beneath the pavements, archaeologists still watch for traces of that ancient road. The terraces along the common look Georgian, but the road they stand on is far older — which is where the name comes in.
Name Origin
Simply, the South Side
The name describes exactly what it is: the road running along the south edge of Clapham Common. The sources used here do not explain the name beyond this.
History
From Stane Street to the Turnpike Trust
The road's history begins with the Romans. Clapham Common South Side lies along the course of Stane Street, the Roman road linking London and Chichester, and the route is now protected as an area of archaeological importance.
Two milestones still stand on the road recording distances from Whitehall. One, marking 4½ miles, was probably erected in 1745 and was inherited by the Epsom, Ewell and Tooting Turnpike Trust in 1755. A second, marking 4 miles, also dates from 1745 but was probably moved to its present spot in the early 19th century. Both were protected in 2021.
The terraces that line the common followed through the early and mid 19th century. Nos 28 and 29 form a single large mansion of three storeys and an attic. Nos 32 and 33, No 36, and No 53 are early 19th-century houses, while Nos 34 and 34A carry a plaque dated 1812 reading "South Buildings". Nos 37 and 38 followed in the same period. Later came Nos 12-16, a Victorian group built around the Alexandra Hotel, and No 78, a Tudor-style house dated 1888 on its rainwater heads.
Clapham Common station arrived at the end of the century. It opened in 1900 as the terminus of the City and South London Railway's extension from Stockwell, and in 1926, when the Northern Line was pushed on to Morden, the station was rebuilt by S. A. Heaps with a domed entrance set on the island formed by The Pavement and Clapham Common South Side.
One of the street's milestones was probably moved to its current spot in the early 19th century, long after it was first set up in 1745.
"SOUTH BUILDINGS"Plaque on Nos 34 and 34A, Clapham Common South Side, dated 1812
People
The Architect at No. 53
Among the early 19th-century houses on the south side, No. 53 was once the home of the architect Lewis Vulliamy.
Today
Old Road, Listed Terraces
Walk the south side today and the Georgian and Victorian terraces still stand largely as they were built. The domed entrance built in 1926 still marks the Underground station on the island between The Pavement and the common. Below it all, the road still follows the line the Romans cut.
On the Map
Clapham Common South Side Then & Now
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is it called Clapham Common South Side?
The name simply describes its position: the road running along the south edge of Clapham Common. The sources used here do not explain it further.
What is Clapham Common South Side known for?
For following the line of the Roman road to Chichester, for its Georgian and Victorian listed terraces, for two 18th-century milestones, and for the 1900 Underground station rebuilt in 1926 with a domed entrance.
How old are the milestones on the street?
Both surviving milestones probably date from 1745. One was inherited by the Epsom, Ewell and Tooting Turnpike Trust in 1755; the other was likely relocated to its current position in the early 19th century.