Time Walk
A Street Named for a Graveyard
A street named after a burial ground still carries its old name, though the graves are long gone. Walking it today, a visitor passes a short run of plain brick terraces, a taller survivor from the 1600s, and the quiet green space that gave the street its name.
Beneath the terraces lies a story of church land and leaseholders rather than grand architecture — a street built, let, and rebuilt in service of an endowment most residents would never have seen named aloud.
Name Origin
What "Paradise" Meant Here
The street is named after a burial ground that once stood on it. According to Sheila Fairfield's The Streets of London (1983), Old Paradise Street took its name from this former burial ground, known locally as "paradise".
The word itself carried a wider meaning in earlier times. The Lambeth Village local society notes that "paradise" was often applied to a walled garden, and was sometimes used as an indirect reference to a royal property. Whichever sense applied here, the name stuck to the ground long after its original use had changed.
History
From Norfolk House Land to a School's Endowment
Old Paradise Street was formed in the late 17th century on land that had formerly belonged to Norfolk House. Nos. 2–18 on the street later formed part of the endowment left by Archbishop Tenison to the girls' school he founded in the High Street.
In the 18th century the school trustees let these properties on long lease to Richard Summersell, who later passed the lease to his daughter Elizabeth Pillfold.
Two buildings from this long span still stand on the street. Nos. 2–8 form a plain brick-built terrace probably dating from about 1760. No. 14, older still, probably dates from the late 17th century and rises three storeys, with the uppermost storey set into the roof.
Culture
A Graveyard Turned Garden
At some point the ground was known as Lambeth High Street Recreation Ground, before reverting to the name it carries today — Old Paradise Gardens.
People
Bailiffs, Surveyors and a Widow's Surrender
Richard Summersell held an unusual cluster of local offices while leasing Nos. 2–18 on the street: bailiff of four manors, surveyor of the Parish Roads, and surveyor of Thrale's Brewery. The lease passed in time to his daughter, Elizabeth Pillfold, widow of Alexander Pillfold.
It was Elizabeth who gave up the lease of properties on Old Paradise Street, when the land was needed to enlarge the burial ground nearby. Her surrender tied the street's residential fabric directly to the growth of the graveyard that gave it its name.
Today
Still Called After Its Paradise
The same terrace and old house still stand on the street, close by the green space that gave it its name.
The word "paradise" could once mean a walled garden, or even hint at a royal property — so the burial ground's name may carry more than one layer of meaning.
On the Map
Old Paradise Street Then & Now
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is it called Old Paradise Street?
It is named after a former burial ground on the street known as "paradise", according to Sheila Fairfield's The Streets of London (1983). The word could also describe a walled garden or hint at a royal property.
What is Old Paradise Street known for?
For its link to Archbishop Tenison's school endowment, its 18th-century leaseholder Richard Summersell, and Old Paradise Gardens — the former burial ground, consecrated in 1705, that became a public garden in 1884.
What is the oldest building on Old Paradise Street?
No. 14 probably dates from the late 17th century, making it older than the plain brick terrace at Nos. 2–8, which was built around 1760.