Time Walk
A Bend First Drawn in 1636
A field track to Kennington Common once bent sharply along this very line, long before any house stood here. Today the street still splits in two: handsome 1860s terraces to the northeast, and a narrower stretch behind the Old Town Hall leading through to Kennington Road. Walkers notice wide pavements, granite kerbs and iron railings fronting the terraces.
Beneath the Gothic brickwork lies an older geography: a right-angled turn in a path that once crossed open common land. Where that turn survives in the street's present kink, the name laid over it raises a question the records here cannot answer.
Name Origin
An Unexplained Name
The sources used here do not explain why this street is called Milverton. No origin for the name appears in the records consulted for this page.
History
From Common Track to Gothic Terrace
A map drawn by Harbord in 1636 shows an old track running from Kennington Cross towards the Common. It followed the line of Windmill Row across what is now Kennington Road, then turned south-westwards down the line later occupied by Milverton Street, before crossing Kennington Road again towards Kennington Green. The street as it stands dates from a 19th-century building campaign: its houses went up in the 1860s, in a style shared with nearby streets. Lambeth's own appraisal singles out Milverton Street as one of the most impressive examples of that period's housing, praising its unity and sense of place.
People
A Boy of Number 3
Leonard Arthur Baker lived at No. 3 Milverton Street with his parents, Rose Sarah Baker and William Charles Baker. He was 14 years old when he died on 15th October 1940 at the Kennington Park shelter, a short distance from his home.
Leonard Arthur Baker, a 14-year-old boy from No. 3 Milverton Street, was killed in October 1940 at the Kennington Park shelter, just a short walk from his family's front door.
Today
Two Streets in One
Milverton Street still reads as two different places. At the southwest end stands Gateway House, a red and brown brick office block that the council's own appraisal calls "uninspiring." A narrow pedestrian passage, Aulton Place, links the street through to Stannary Street.
On the Map
Milverton Street Then & Now
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is it called Milverton Street?
The sources used for this page do not explain the origin of the name Milverton.
What is Milverton Street known for?
Its 1860s Venetian Gothic terraces, built with cast-iron railings and semi-basements, which Lambeth's own appraisal rates among the most impressive 19th-century housing in Kennington.
Is there anything older than the Victorian houses on Milverton Street?
A map from 1636 shows a track bending along the same line, long before the street's houses were built in the 1860s.