Editing Deptford

{{Short description|Area of southeast London, England}}
{{Good article}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}

{{Other uses}}

{{Infobox UK place
|country              = England
|region               = London
|official_name        = Deptford
|coordinates          = {{coord|51.4780|-0.0265|display=inline,title}}
|os_grid_reference    = TQ365775
|london_borough       = Lewisham
|london_borough1    = Greenwich
|post_town            = LONDON
|postcode_area        = SE
|postcode_district    = SE8
|dial_code            = 020
|constituency_westminster = [[Lewisham North (UK Parliament constituency)|Lewisham North]]
|static_image_name    = Deptford Market.jpg
|static_image_caption = An anchor at the southern end of [[Deptford High Street]] links Deptford to [[Deptford Dockyard|its dockyard history]]
|population           = 
|population_ref       = 
|charingX_distance_mi = 4.7
|charingX_direction   = WNW
}}

'''Deptford''' is an area on the south bank of the [[River Thames]] in southeast London, in the [[Royal Borough of Greenwich]] and [[London Borough of Lewisham]]. It is named after a [[Ford (crossing)|ford]] of the [[River Ravensbourne]]. From the mid 16th century to the late 19th it was home to [[Deptford Dockyard]], the first of the [[Royal Navy Dockyard|Royal Dockyard]]s. This was a major shipbuilding dock and attracted [[Peter the Great]] to come and study shipbuilding. Deptford and the docks are associated with the knighting of [[Francis Drake|Sir Francis Drake]] by [[Elizabeth I|Queen Elizabeth I]] aboard the ''[[Golden Hind]]'',<ref>''Sir Francis Drake: The Queen's Pirate'', pp 218-19, H Kelsey, Yale University Press (1 September 2000), {{ISBN|0-300-08463-3}}</ref> the legend of [[Walter Raleigh|Sir Walter Raleigh]] laying down his cape for Elizabeth,<ref>''Sir Walter Ralegh and the Quest for El Dorado'', pages 83 & 176, Marc Aronson, Clarion Books (17 April 2000), {{ISBN|0-395-84827-X}}</ref> [[James Cook|Captain James Cook]]'s third voyage aboard [[HMS Resolution (1771)|HMS ''Resolution'']],<ref>''Captain James Cook'', pp 273-294, Richard Hough, W.W. Norton (17 August 1996), {{ISBN|0-393-31519-3}}</ref> and the mysterious apparent murder of [[Christopher Marlowe]] in a house along Deptford Strand.<ref>{{Cite web |author=Greenwich 2000 |url=http://wwp.greenwich2000.com/info/local/deptford.htm |title=Greenwich England: Deptford |publisher=Wwp.greenwich2000.com |date=2010-01-05 |access-date=2010-07-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140219101752/http://wwp.greenwich2000.com/info/local/deptford.htm |archive-date=19 February 2014 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Though Deptford began as two small communities, one at the ford, and the other a fishing village on the Thames, Deptford's history and population has been mainly associated with the docks established by [[Henry VIII]]. The two communities grew together and flourished during the period when the docks were the main administrative centre of the [[Royal Navy]], and some grand houses like [[Sayes Court]], home to diarist [[John Evelyn]], and [[Stone House, Deptford|Stone House]] on Lewisham Way, were erected. The area declined as first the Royal Navy moved out, and then the commercial docks themselves declined until the last dock, [[Convoys Wharf]], closed in 2000.

A [[Metropolitan Borough of Deptford]] existed from 1900 until 1965, when the area became part of the newly created London Borough of Lewisham.<ref name="lewisham.gov.uk">[http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/leisureandculture/localhistoryandheritage/historicalresources/administrativehistory.htm] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608214414/http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/LeisureAndCulture/LocalHistoryAndHeritage/HistoricalResources/AdministrativeHistory.htm|date=8 June 2011}} Lewisham Borough Historical resource</ref>

==History==

=== Ancient ===
Deptford took its name from a ford across the [[River Ravensbourne|Ravensbourne]] (near what is now [[Deptford Bridge DLR station]]) along the route of the [[Ancient trackway#Great Britain|Celtic trackway]] which was later paved by the Romans and developed into the medieval [[Watling Street]].<ref name=route>{{cite web |url= http://www.dartfordarchive.org.uk/early_history/transport_rs.shtml |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20020109203103/http://www.dartfordarchive.org.uk/early_history/transport_rs.shtml |url-status= dead |archive-date= 9 January 2002 |title= Roman and Saxon Roads and Transport |work= Dartford archive |via= Dartford Grammar School |publisher= Kent County Council }}</ref> The modern name is a corruption of "deep ford".<ref>{{cite book| author1 =Patrick Hanks | author2 =Flavia Hodges| first3 =A. D. | last3 =  Mills| first4 = Adrian | last4 = Room |title=The Oxford Names Companion|date=2002|location= Oxford |publisher= The University Press|isbn= 978-0-19860561-4|page= 1003}}</ref>

Deptford was part of the pilgrimage route from London to [[Canterbury]] used by the pilgrims in [[Chaucer]]'s ''[[Canterbury Tales]]'', and is mentioned in the prologue to "[[The Reeve's Tale]]".<ref>{{cite web | author = Geoffrey Chaucer |author-link = Geoffrey Chaucer |url= http://sites.fas.harvard.edu/~chaucer/teachslf/rvt-par.htm#PROLOGUE |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190620005954/http://sites.fas.harvard.edu/~chaucer/teachslf/rvt-par.htm |archive-date=2019-06-20 |title=The Reeve's Prologue | at= line 3906 |website= Harvard University| access-date= 20 June 2019}}</ref> The ford developed into first a wooden then a stone bridge, and in 1497 saw the [[Battle of Deptford Bridge]], in which rebels from [[Cornwall]], led by [[Michael An Gof]], marched on London protesting against punitive taxes, but were soundly beaten by the King's forces.<ref>{{Cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=CSkGAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA468 |title=The Environs of London: pt. 2 |year=1811|page= 468 | author1 =Daniel Lysons | author2 =Samuel Lysons}}</ref>

=== Early modern ===
[[File:Deptford Strond.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|A 1623 map of Deptford Strond with annotations by [[John Evelyn]] showing [[Sayes Court]] in the bottom-left corner, and Deptford Green as "The Common Greene" just above centre left (click for larger version)]]
A second settlement, '''Deptford Strand''' or '''Deptford Strond''', developed as a modest fishing village on the Thames until [[Henry VIII of England|Henry VIII]] used that site for a royal dock repairing, building and supplying ships, after which it grew in size and importance, shipbuilding remaining in operation until March 1869.<ref name= brit_deptford>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=45272 ''Deptford''], Old and New London: Volume 6 (1878), pp. 143–64. accessed: 19 September 2009</ref>

[[Trinity House]], the organisation concerned with the safety of navigation around the British Isles, was formed in Deptford in 1514, with its first Master being [[Thomas Spert]], captain of the [[Mary Rose]]. It moved to [[Stepney]] in 1618. The name "Trinity House" derives from the church of Holy Trinity and St Clement, which adjoined the dockyard.<ref name=moorhouse>{{Cite book| author = Geoffrey Moorhouse  | title =Great Harry's Navy | publisher =Weidenfeld & Nicolson | year =2005 | location = London | pages =169, 170 | isbn =978-0-297-64544-3}}</ref>

Originally separated by market gardens and fields, the two areas merged over the years,<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/lewisham/main/deptford.htm |title=Deptford |publisher= Ideal homes |access-date=17 August 2008  |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080601064304/http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/lewisham/main/deptford.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = 1 June 2008}}</ref> with the docks becoming an important part of the [[Elizabethan era#Science, technology and exploration|Elizabethan exploration]].<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server.php?show=ConNarrative.38&chapterId=469 |title=The Tudor and Stuart port | work = About maritime London |publisher=Port Cities |access-date=9 January 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081222004120/http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server.php?show=ConNarrative.38&chapterId=469 |archive-date=22 December 2008}}</ref> [[Queen Elizabeth I]] visited the royal dockyard on 4 April 1581 to knight the adventurer [[Francis Drake]].<ref name= Green2000>Greenwich 2000 - ''[http://wwp.greenwich2000.com/info/local/deptford.htm Deptford Strand] {{webarchive|url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110711125222/http://wwp.greenwich2000.com/info/local/deptford.htm |date=11 July 2011 }}''</ref> As well as for exploration, Deptford was important for trade – the [[Honourable East India Company]] had a yard in Deptford from 1607 until late in the 17th century,<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/conMediaFile.484/The-East-India-Companys-Yard-at-Deptford.html |title= The East India Company's Yard at Deptford |publisher=Port cities |access-date=5 July 2010 |archive-date=9 June 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110609184430/http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/conMediaFile.484/The-East-India-Companys-Yard-at-Deptford.html |url-status= dead }}</ref> later (1825) taken over by the [[General Steam Navigation Company]]. It was also connected with the [[History of slavery|slave trade]], [[John Hawkins (naval commander)|John Hawkins]] using it as a base for his operations,<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.paradise-inn-carriacou.com/slavetrade.php |title=Slavetrade in the caribbean, from the beginning till abolishment. |publisher= Paradise inn Carriacou |access-date=9 January 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100412005442/http://www.paradise-inn-carriacou.com/slavetrade.php |archive-date=12 April 2010}}</ref> and [[Olaudah Equiano]], the slave who became an important part of the abolition of the slave trade, was sold from one ship's captain to another in Deptford around 1760.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.itzcaribbean.com/olaudah_equiano.php |title=Olaudah Equiano, UK |publisher= It's Caribbean |access-date=9 January 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081013124330/http://www.itzcaribbean.com/olaudah_equiano.php |archive-date=13 October 2008}}</ref><ref>''The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano Or Gustavus Vassa, The African, Written By Himself, Volume 1'', [[Olaudah Equiano]], Kessinger Publishing, 2004, {{ISBN|1419167499}}</ref>

Diarist [[John Evelyn]] lived in Deptford at [[Sayes Court]], the manor house of Deptford, from 1652 after he had married the daughter of the owner of the house, [[Sir Richard Browne, 1st Baronet, of Deptford|Sir Richard Browne]].<ref>Douglas D. C. Chambers, [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/8996 'Evelyn, John (1620–1706)'], ''[[Oxford Dictionary of National Biography]]'', Oxford University Press, September 2004; online edn, January 2008, accessed 13 January 2008.</ref> After [[Stuart Restoration|the Restoration]], Evelyn obtained a 99-year lease of the house and grounds,<ref name=Deptford/> and laid out meticulously planned gardens in the French style, of hedges and [[parterre]]s. In its grounds was a cottage at one time rented by master woodcarver [[Grinling Gibbons]]. After Evelyn had moved to Surrey in 1694, [[Peter the Great]], the Russian [[tsar]], studied shipbuilding for three months in 1698 while staying at Sayes Court.<ref name=Green2000/> Evelyn was angered at the antics of the tsar, who got drunk with his friends who, using a wheelbarrow with Peter in it, rammed their way through a "fine holly hedge". Sayes Court was demolished in 1728-9 and a [[workhouse]] built on its site.<ref name=Deptford>{{cite book|url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=45482|title= Deptford, St Nicholas, The Environs of London: volume 4: Counties of Herts, Essex & Kent|publisher= T Cadell and W Davies|date=1796|pages=359–85|last=Daniel Lysons|work=British History Online}}</ref> Part of the estates around Sayes Court were purchased in 1742 for the building of the [[Victualling Commissioners#The Victualling Yards|Navy Victualling Yard]], which was renamed the [[HM Victualling Yard, Deptford|Royal Victoria Victualling Yard]] in 1858 after a visit by Queen Victoria.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.london-footprints.co.uk/wkdeptmillwalladd.htm |title=Deptford & Millwall - add info |publisher=London-footprints.co.uk |access-date=5 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090820182731/http://www.london-footprints.co.uk/wkdeptmillwalladd.htm |archive-date=20 August 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref> This massive facility included warehouses, a bakery, a cattleyard/abattoir and sugar stores, and closed in 1961. All that remains is the name of Sayes Court Park, accessed from Sayes Court Street off Evelyn Street, not far from [[Deptford High Street]]. The [[Pepys Estate]], opened on 13 July 1966, is on the former grounds of the Victualling Yard.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mcad.demon.co.uk/tag1.htm |title=Pepys Estate Tenants Action Group |access-date=11 June 2010 |archive-date=26 June 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090626213023/http://www.mcad.demon.co.uk/tag1.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[File:Flats on Deptford Strand, SE8 - geograph.org.uk - 1492422.jpg|thumb|Surviving riverside building of the former [[HM Victualling Yard, Deptford|Royal Victoria Victualling Yard]]]]

The Docks had been gradually declining from the 18th century; the larger ships being built found the Thames difficult to navigate, and Deptford was under competition from the new docks at [[Plymouth]], [[Portsmouth]] and [[Chatham Dockyard|Chatham]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/ConNarrative.52/chapterId/775/Deptford-and-Woolwich-Londons-Royal-Dockyards.html |title=Deptford and Woolwich: London's Royal Dockyards - London's docks and shipping - Port Cities |publisher=portcities.org.uk |access-date=14 January 2010 |archive-date=10 January 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100110072751/http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/ConNarrative.52/chapterId/775/Deptford-and-Woolwich-Londons-Royal-Dockyards.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> 

=== 19th century ===
When the [[Napoleonic Wars]] ended in 1815 the need for a Docks to build and repair [[Ship of the line|warships]] declined; the Docks shifted from shipbuilding to concentrate on [[victualling]] at the [[Royal Victoria Victualling Yard]], and the Royal Dock closed in 1869.<ref name="portcities">{{cite web |url=http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/ConNarrative.52/chapterId/779/Deptford-and-Woolwich-Londons-Royal-Dockyards.html |title=Deptford and Woolwich: London's Royal Dockyards - London's docks and shipping - Port Cities |publisher=portcities.org.uk |access-date=14 January 2010 |archive-date=31 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091231064152/http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/ConNarrative.52/chapterId/779/Deptford-and-Woolwich-Londons-Royal-Dockyards.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> From 1871 until 1913 the shipyard site was the [[City of London Corporation]]'s [[Foreign Cattle Market]], to which live animals were brought by cattle boat from four continents and from whence came about half of London's meat supply.

=== 20th century ===
The yard was taken over by the [[War Office]] in 1914,<ref name="times-1926">''Sale of Deptford Market. Government to Pay £387,000.'' The Times, 13 March 1926, p.12, col F</ref><ref name="times-1924">''Future of Deptford Market. War Office decision to buy.'' The Times, 6 February 1924, p12, col B</ref> and was an Army Supply Reserve Depot in the [[World War I|First]] and [[World War II|Second World Wars]].<ref name="sh">Greenwich Industrial History [http://greenwichindustrialhistory.blogspot.com/2010/01/royal-dockyard-deptford_06.html Proposal to list the remains of the Royal Dockyard at Deptford] 6 January 2010</ref><ref>[http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/default.htm PRO] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100105104154/http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/default.htm |date=5 January 2010 }} Works 43/614-6</ref> The site lay unused until being purchased by Convoys (newsprint importers) in 1984, and eventually came into the ownership of [[News UK|News International]].<ref name="lf">[http://www.london-footprints.co.uk/wkdeptmillwalladd.htm london-footprints.co.uk] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080720064552/http://www.london-footprints.co.uk/wkdeptmillwalladd.htm |date=20 July 2008 }} Deptford Dockyard</ref><ref name="rr">[http://www.richardrogers.co.uk/render.aspx?siteID=1&navIDs=1,4,22,132 Convoys Wharf London] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091003221105/http://www.richardrogers.co.uk/render.aspx?siteID=1&navIDs=1,4,22,132 |date=3 October 2009 }}, Richard Rogers Partnership, 2002</ref> In the mid-1990s, although significant investment was made on the site, it became uneconomic to continue using it as a freight wharf.<ref>[http://www.london.gov.uk/archive/mayor/planning/docs/safeguarded_wharves_05.pdf Safeguarded Wharves on the River Thames - London Plan Implementation Report] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604095332/http://www.london.gov.uk/archive/mayor/planning/docs/safeguarded_wharves_05.pdf |date=4 June 2011 }}, Mayor of London, January 2005, pp 60-63</ref> In 2008 Hutchison Whampoa bought the 16[[Hectare|ha]] site from News International with plans for a £700m 3,500-home development scheme.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.building.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=29&storycode=3152565&c=1 |title=Mothballed £700m Deptford housing scheme on track |publisher= Building |date=6 November 2009 |access-date=5 July 2010}}</ref> The [[Grade II listed]] Olympia Warehouse will be refurbished as part of the redevelopment of the site.<ref name="rr"/>

Deptford experienced economic decline in the 20th century with the closing of the docks, and the damage caused by the bombing during [[the Blitz]] in the [[Second World War]] – a [[V-2 rocket]] destroyed a [[Woolworths (United Kingdom)|Woolworths]] store in New Cross Gate, killing 160 people.<ref>{{Cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=W9TODKJGzjwC&pg=PA170 |title=Easier Fatherland: Germany and the Twenty-First Century |isbn=978-0-8264-6320-3|year=2004 |author=Steve Crawshaw |page=170 |publisher=A&C Black }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.flyingbombsandrockets.com/V2_maintextb.html |title=Flying Bombs & Rockets |access-date=15 January 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121214000651/http://www.flyingbombsandrockets.com/V2_maintextb.html |archive-date=14 December 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> High unemployment caused some of the population to move away as the riverside industries closed down in the late 1960s and early 1970s.<ref name=TownTalk>{{cite web |url= http://www.deptford.towntalk.co.uk/about/ |title=About | work = Deptford Town Centre |publisher= Towntalk |access-date=14 January 2010 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130101074054/http://www.deptford.towntalk.co.uk/about/ |archive-date=1 January 2013 |url-status=dead}}</ref> 

=== 21st century ===
The local council have developed plans with private companies to regenerate the riverside area,<ref name="concept" /> and the town centre.<ref name="regeneration">{{cite web |url= http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/Environment/Regeneration/DeptfordAndNewCross/DeptfordTownCentre/ |title= Proposals for the regeneration of Deptford town centre |publisher= Lewisham Council |access-date=14 January 2010 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110608221248/http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/Environment/Regeneration/DeptfordAndNewCross/DeptfordTownCentre/ |archive-date=8 June 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Governance==
{{Main|Metropolitan Borough of Deptford|London Borough of Lewisham}}
[[File:Deptford Town Hall, SE14 - geograph.org.uk - 82222.jpg|180px|left|thumbnail|Former [[Deptford Town Hall]], now part of Goldsmiths College]]

The Manor of Deptford or West Greenwich was bestowed by [[William the Conqueror]] upon [[Gilbert de Magminot]] or Maminot, [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Lisieux|bishop of Lisieux]],<ref>''A History of Deptford'' Dews, N, (London, 1884)</ref> one of the eight barons associated with John de Fiennes for the defence of [[Dover Castle]]. Maminot held the head of his [[English feudal barony|barony]] at Deptford<ref name="jl1814">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O98HAAAAQAAJ&q=%22Gilbert+de+Magminot%22+deptford&pg=PA139 |title=The history of the town and port of Dover and of Dover castle by John Lyon, published 1814, p. 139 |access-date=5 July 2010|year=1814|last1=Lyon |first1=John }}</ref><ref name="lcc">Dedication to the Public of Deptford Park by Dr W.J. Collins, 1897</ref> and according to John Lyon writing in 1814, he built himself a castle, or castellated mansion at Deptford. The location of the building is not known, but ancient foundations found on the brow of Broomfield,  near the Mast Dock and adjacent to [[Sayes Court]] may be the remains of the building.<ref name="jl1814"/><ref name="lcc"/><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NQ0HAAAAQAAJ&q=%22Gilbert+de+Magminot%22+deptford&pg=PA731 |title=England's topographer, or A new and complete history of the county of Kent by William Henry Ireland, 1830, page 731 |access-date=5 July 2010|year=1830|last1=Ireland |first1=William Henry }}</ref>
[[File:South London Map 1800.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|South of London in 1800. The border between [[Surrey]] and [[Kent]] is shown running through Deptford, with parts of the area in each county.]]

Deptford was mostly located in the [[Blackheath, Kent (hundred)|Blackheath Hundred]] of the county of [[Kent]], with the [[Hatcham]] part in the [[Hundred of Brixton|Brixton Hundred]] of [[Surrey]].<ref name=hatcham>'[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=43029 Parishes: Hatcham (Parish of Deptford St Paul)]', A History of the County of Surrey: Volume 4 (1912) pp. 42-44. accessed: 19 September 2009</ref>

In 1730 Deptford was divided into the two parishes of St Nicholas and St Paul.<ref name=Deptford/> It was also referred to as West Greenwich, with the modern town of [[Greenwich]] being referred to as East Greenwich until this use declined in the 19th century.<ref name=kent>{{cite web |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=53780#n1 |title=The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent: Volume 1 (1797), pp. 340-71 |publisher=British-history.ac.uk |date=22 June 2003 |access-date=5 July 2010}}</ref> The whole of Deptford came within the [[Metropolitan Police District]] in 1830 and was included in the area of responsibility of the [[Metropolitan Board of Works]] in 1855.

It was transferred to the [[County of London]] in 1889. Originally under the governance of the ancient parishes of St Paul and St Nicholas, in 1900, a [[Metropolitan Borough of Deptford]] was formed out of the southern parish of St Paul,<ref>{{cite vob |url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10061660&c_id=10001043 |name=Deptford MB |map=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/bound_map_page.jsp?first=true&u_id=10061660&c_id=10001043 |access-date=4 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120412180712/http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10061660 |archive-date=12 April 2012 }}  {{Cite web |url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10061660 |title=Deptford MetB through time &#124; Administrative history of Local Government District: Hierarchies, boundaries |access-date=4 August 2008 |archive-date=12 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120412180712/http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10061660 |url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref> with St Nicholas and the area around the Royal Dockyard coming under the governance of the [[Metropolitan Borough of Greenwich]].<ref name="lewisham.gov.uk"/><ref>{{cite vob |url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10206078&c_id=10001043 |name=Deptford St Nicholas |map=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/bound_map_page.jsp?first=true&u_id=10206078&c_id=10001043 |access-date=4 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120412053655/http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10206078 |archive-date=12 April 2012 }}  {{Cite web |url=http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10206078 |title=Deptford St Nicholas CP/AP through time &#124; Administrative history of Parish-level Unit: Hierarchies, boundaries |access-date=4 August 2008 |archive-date=12 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120412053655/http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/relationships.jsp?u_id=10206078 |url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref>

Under the [[London Government Act 1963]], the Metropolitan Borough of Deptford was absorbed in 1965 into the newly created London Borough of Lewisham,<ref name="museumoflondon.org.uk">[http://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/English/Collections/OnlineResources/X20L/Themes/1380/1185/] Museum of London</ref> with the Deptford St Nicholas area becoming part of the [[Royal Borough of Greenwich]], with both these new boroughs now forming part of the new [[Greater London]] body. In 1994 the bulk of the northern part, including the former Royal Dockyard area, was transferred to Lewisham, an adjustment of about {{convert|40|ha|acres}},<ref name=OPSI>OPSI - [http://www.opsi.gov.uk/SI/si1993/Uksi_19931276_en_1.htm Greenwich and Lewisham (London Borough Boundaries) Order 1993]</ref> leaving only the north eastern area, around St Nicholas's church, in Greenwich.

Deptford is split between two [[electoral wards]] - [[Evelyn, London|Evelyn]] in the north and part of [[New Cross]] to the south.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadAreaMetadata.do;jsessionid=ac1f930c30d668398768b8d7432abd6ef20d001f4fc2?a=7&b=5941902&c=BR1+4PP&d=14&e=1&g=341646&i=1x1003x1004&m=0&r=0&s=1262088780192&enc=1&areaId=5941902&nsjs=true&nsck=true&nssvg=false&nswid=1152|title=About the Area|publisher=neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk|access-date=29 December 2009|archive-date=4 June 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604073141/http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadAreaMetadata.do;jsessionid=ac1f930c30d668398768b8d7432abd6ef20d001f4fc2?a=7&b=5941902&c=BR1+4PP&d=14&e=1&g=341646&i=1x1003x1004&m=0&r=0&s=1262088780192&enc=1&areaId=5941902&nsjs=true&nsck=true&nssvg=false&nswid=1152|url-status=dead}}</ref> Following public consultation, the [[Local Government Boundary Commission for England]] recommended in June 2020 that the Deptford wards (Evelyn and New Cross) should be unified and renamed Deptford.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/lgbce/Reviews/Greater%20London/Lewisham/Final/Lewisham%20Final%20Recommendations%20Report.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210304153918/https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/lgbce/Reviews/Greater%20London/Lewisham/Final/Lewisham%20Final%20Recommendations%20Report.pdf |archive-date=2021-03-04 |url-status=live|title=New electoral arrangements for Lewisham Council Final Recommendations|publisher=Local Government Boundary Commission for England |date=June 2020|pages=10–11}}</ref>

==Geography==
[[File:Convoy's Wharf from Daubeney Tower.jpg|thumb|right|View of Pepys Park, [[Convoys Wharf]], [[Sayes Court]], and over Deptford towards [[Lewisham]]]]

Deptford borders the areas of [[Brockley]] and [[Lewisham]] to the south, [[New Cross]] to the west and [[Rotherhithe]] to the north west; the [[River Ravensbourne|Ravensbourne]] river divides it from [[Greenwich]] to the east, and the [[River Thames|Thames]] separates the area from the [[Isle of Dogs]] to the north east; it is contained within the London [[SE postcode area|SE8]] post code area.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?x=537219&y=176874&z=0&sv=SE8%204DQ&st=PostCode&lu=N&tl=Location%20of%20Deptford%20telephone%20exchange&ar=y&bi=~&mapp=map.srf&searchp=ids.srf |title=Location of Deptford telephone exchange |publisher=streetmap.co.uk |access-date=29 December 2009 |archive-date=23 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023234346/http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?x=537219&y=176874&z=0&sv=SE8%204DQ&st=PostCode&lu=N&tl=Location%20of%20Deptford%20telephone%20exchange&ar=y&bi=~&mapp=map.srf&searchp=ids.srf |url-status=dead }}</ref> The area referred to as North Deptford is the only part of the [[London Borough of Lewisham]] to front the Thames and is sandwiched between Rotherhithe and Greenwich. Much of this riverside estate is populated by the former Naval Dockyards, now known as [[Convoys Wharf]], the [[Pepys Estate]] and some southern fringes of the old [[Surrey Commercial Docks]].

The name Deptford – anciently written Depeford meaning "deep [[Ford (crossing)|ford]]"<ref name=Deptford/> — is derived from the place where the road from London to [[Dover]], the ancient [[Watling Street]] (now the [[A2 road (Great Britain)#Borough to Shooter's Hill|A2]]), crosses the [[River Ravensbourne]] at the site of what became Deptford Bridge at Deptford Broadway. The Ravensbourne crosses under the A2 at roughly the same spot as the [[Docklands Light Railway]] (DLR) crosses over; and at the point where it becomes tidal, just after [[Lewisham College]], it is known as Deptford Creek, and flows into the [[River Thames]] at Greenwich Reach.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server.php?show=ConGallery.17 |title=Deptford Creek - About maritime London - Port Cities |publisher=portcities.org.uk |access-date=19 December 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090303172200/http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server.php?show=ConGallery.17 |archive-date=3 March 2009}}</ref>

==Demography==
[[File:Deptford slum.jpg|thumb|right|A cobbled street near the docks, around 1900]]

Deptford's population has been mainly associated with the docks since the establishment of the Royal Docks by Henry VIII, though there has also been some market gardening and potteries.<ref>''Demographic, social and economic indices for wards in Greater London'', Eric J. Thompson, Greater London Council (1972), ASIN B0006D80AS</ref> When the docks were thriving as the main administrative centre of the British Navy, so the area prospered, and fine houses were built for the administrative staff and the skilled shipbuilders, and a few grand houses like [[Sayes Court]] and [[Stone House, Deptford|Stone House]] on Lewisham Way were erected.<ref>
{{cite web
|url=http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/lewisham/main/st-johns-deptford-new-town-case-study.htm|title=St John's, Deptford New Town Case Study|publisher=ideal-homes.org.uk|access-date=17 August 2008|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080410203505/http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/lewisham/main/st-johns-deptford-new-town-case-study.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = 10 April 2008}}</ref>

There was a start of a demographic shift downwards when the Royal Navy pulled out of Deptford, and the docks moved into storage and freight.<ref>''Demographic review of Greater London 1983'', Greater London Council (1983), {{ISBN|0-7168-1348-3}}</ref> The downward shift continued into the 20th century as the local population's dependency on the docks continued: as the docks themselves declined, so did the economic fortune of the inhabitants until the last dock, [[Convoys Wharf]], closed in 2000.<ref>[http://emancipationofthedispossessed.com/pdfs/part2.pdf INFORMATION SHEET Deptford and the dockyards] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110710185032/http://emancipationofthedispossessed.com/pdfs/part2.pdf |date=10 July 2011 }} The Emancipation of the Dispossessed</ref>

In common with neighbouring areas of South East London, immigrants from the Caribbean settled in Deptford in the 1950s and 1960s.<ref>UCL Case Study - Deptford https://www.ucl.ac.uk/urbanbuzz/downloads/projects_09/Deptford_Case_Study.pdf</ref>

Deptford's northern section nearest the old docks contains areas of council housing, with some concentrations of people experiencing the forms of deprivation typically associated with the poverty of Inner London. Northern Deptford near the Thames, along with neighbouring [[New Cross]], has been touted as "the new [[Shoreditch]]" by some journalists and estate agents paying attention to a trendy arts and music scene that is popular with students and artists.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.primelocation.com/uk-property-to-rent/browse/all/uk/england/london/south-east-london/deptford/ |title=PrimeLocation.co.uk |publisher=PrimeLocation.co.uk |access-date=5 July 2010}} Shoreditch is a former working class area of East London that has a number of contemporary art galleries and is home to a number of creative and media companies</ref> To the south where Deptford rolls into the suburban spread of [[Brockley]], the previously multi-occupancy Victorian houses are being gentrified by young city workers and urban professionals.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/guide/seat-profiles/lewishamdeptford |title=Lewisham Deptford |publisher=ukpollingreport.co.uk |access-date=5 July 2010 |archive-date=21 April 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090421061309/http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/guide/seat-profiles/lewishamdeptford |url-status=dead }}</ref> Deptford has a growing Vietnamese community reflected in the number of restaurants in the area.

Deptford contains a number of student populations, including those of [[Goldsmiths College]], the [[University of Greenwich]], [[Bellerbys College]] and [[Laban Dance Centre]]. Goldsmiths College's hall of residence, Rachel McMillan, in Creek Road was sold in 2001 for £79 million,<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20111124032008/http://residential-investment.savills.co.uk/case-studies/rachel-mcmillan-greenwich.pdf Rachel McMillan, Greenwich, Opal] savills.com</ref> and was subsequently demolished and replaced with the McMillan Student Village which opened in 2003 and provides accommodation for approximately 970 students of the University of Greenwich, Trinity Laban and Bellerbys colleges.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gre.ac.uk/about/accommodation/halls/greenwich/mcmillan_student_village |title=McMillan Student Village |work=Accommodation - University of Greenwich |publisher=gre.ac.uk |access-date=29 December 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090822024553/http://www.gre.ac.uk/about/accommodation/halls/greenwich/mcmillan_student_village |archive-date=22 August 2009}}</ref>

==Economy==
[[File:Deptford Market clothes stalls.jpg|thumb|upright|Clothes stalls in [[Deptford Market]]]]

Deptford's economic history has been strongly connected to the Dockyard - when the Dockyard was thriving, so Deptford thrived; with the docks now all closed, Deptford has declined economically.<ref name=portcities/><ref name=TownTalk/> However, areas of Deptford are being gradually re-developed and gentrified - and the local council has plans to regenerate the riverside and the town centre.<ref name=regeneration/> A large former industrial site by the Thames called [[Convoys Wharf]] is scheduled for redeveloping into mixed use buildings. This will involve the construction of around 3,500 new homes and an extension of the town centre northwards towards the river.<ref name=concept>{{cite web |url=http://www.richardrogers.co.uk/render.aspx?siteID=1&navIDs=1,4,25,124,125 |title=Concept |publisher=richardrogers.co.uk |access-date=19 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091003221319/http://www.richardrogers.co.uk/render.aspx?siteID=1&navIDs=1,4,25,124,125 |archive-date=3 October 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

The site of a former foundry (established in 1881 by [[J. Stone & Co]] in Arklow Road) which closed in 1969 is being redeveloped for commercial and residential use.<ref name="Turley">{{cite web |title=Deptford Foundry, Arklow Road |url=https://turley.co.uk/projects/deptford-foundry-arklow-road|website=Turley |access-date=3 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180403174928/https://turley.co.uk/projects/deptford-foundry-arklow-road|archive-date=3 April 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Much of the area along Creek Road, close to Greenwich, has also been redeveloped, with the demolition of the old Deptford Power Station and [[Rose Bruford College]] buildings. [[Aragon Tower]] on the Pepys Estate was sold by Lewisham Borough to fund regeneration plans for the estate; the award-winning refurbishment into privately owned accommodation was featured in the [[BBC One]] documentary, "The Tower".<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2007/jul/01/features.review7 |title=Television: Kathryn Flett on Paris |work=The Guardian|access-date=19 December 2009 |location=London |date=1 July 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.berkeleyhomes.co.uk/index.cfm?articleid=1366 |title=2006 - Berkeley Homes |publisher=berkeleyhomes.co.uk |access-date=19 December 2009 }}</ref>

[[Deptford Market]], a street market in Deptford High Street sells a range of goods, and is considered one of London's liveliest street markets.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.timeout.com/london/features/162/3.html |title=London's Best Markets - Time Out London |publisher=timeout.com |access-date=16 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915051600/http://www.timeout.com/london/features/162/3.html |archive-date=15 September 2008}}</ref> In February 2005, the High Street was described as "the capital's most diverse and vibrant high street" by [[Yellow Pages]] business directory, using a unique mathematical formula.<ref name=yellow>Yell Group, ''[https://web.archive.org/web/20061111190045/http://www.yellgroup.com/english/media-pressreleases-2005-deptfordistopoftheshops Deptford is Top of the Shops - New study reveals London's hidden gems in the High Street Hit Parade]'', 23 February 2005.</ref>

==Culture==
[[File:Laban Centre Deptford.jpg|thumb|The [[Laban Dance Centre]]]]

The [[Albany Theatre]], a community arts centre with a tradition of "radical community arts and music" including holding 15 "[[Rock Against Racism]]" concerts,<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JBDplHzkWA4C&q=The+Albany+Theatre+deptford&pg=PA181 |title=Settlements, social change and ... - Google Books |isbn=978-1-85302-764-2|date=March 2001 |last1=Gilchrist |first1=Ruth |last2=Jeffs |first2=Tony |publisher=Jessica Kingsley Publishers }}</ref> has its roots in a charity established in 1894 to improve the social life of Deptford's deprived community.<ref name=Albany>{{cite web |url=http://www.thealbany.org.uk/infopoint/26/Albany-History |title=The Albany – Get Involved: Albany History |publisher=thealbany.org.uk |access-date=19 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091128143458/http://www.thealbany.org.uk/infopoint/26/Albany-History <!--Added by H3llBot--> |archive-date=28 November 2009 }}</ref> The original building, the Albany Institute, was opened in 1899 on Creek Road, changing its name in the 1960s to the Albany Empire. It was burnt down in 1978, but rebuilt on Douglas Way, with Prince Charles laying the foundation stone, and Diana, Princess of Wales opening it in 1982.<ref name=Albany/>

[[Deptford Cinema]] is a volunteer run, not-for-profit, [[community]] [[Movie theater|cinema]], [[art gallery]], and occasional [[music venue]], open since late 2014 and located at 39 Deptford Broadway. At the time of opening it was the borough of [[London Borough of Lewisham|Lewisham]]'s only functioning cinema.<ref name="News Shopper">{{cite web |url=http://www.newsshopper.co.uk/news/15999310.5-independent-cinemas-in-se-london-perfect-for-a-date-or-great-night-out/ |title=5 independent cinemas in SE London perfect for a date or great night out |website=[[News Shopper]] |publisher=[[Newsquest]] |location=London |author=Emily Hennings  |date=17 February 2018 |access-date=11 April 2018}}</ref>

Creekside, a regeneration area beside Deptford Creek,<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pj8cderhbr8C&q=creekside+deptford&pg=PA153 |title=Cities and natural process: a basis ... - Google Books |isbn=978-0-415-29854-4|date=15 June 2004 |last1=Hough |first1=Michael |publisher=Psychology Press }}</ref> is used for educational and artistic purposes,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.creeksidecentre.org.uk/about.htm |title=Creekside - About Creekside |publisher=creeksidecentre.org.uk |access-date=29 December 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100328150924/http://www.creeksidecentre.org.uk/about.htm |archive-date=28 March 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.creeksideartists.co.uk/ |title=Creekside Artists | location= Deptford, South East London, UK |publisher=creeksideartists.co.uk |access-date=29 December 2009 }}</ref> such as the [[Laban Dance Centre]], which was designed by Swiss architects [[Herzog & de Meuron|Jacques Herzog]] and [[Herzog & de Meuron|Pierre de Meuron]], and opened in February 2003; and the [[Art in Perpetuity Trust]] (APT) gallery and studio space.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aptstudios.org/index.html |title=APT - Art in Perpetuity Trust |publisher=aptstudios.org |access-date=29 December 2009 |archive-date=18 July 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090718061509/http://www.aptstudios.org/index.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 2002 the [[Creekside Discovery Centre]] was established to retain some urban habitat that was being destroyed through the area's regeneration.<ref> [https://www.creeksidecentre.org.uk/about/ About] Creekside Centre. Retrieved: 6 November 2023.</ref> A record label, [[Deptford Fun City Records]] was set up by [[Miles Copeland III]], brother of [[Stewart Copeland]], in the late 1970s as an outlet for Deptford bands such as [[Alternative TV]]<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/punkrocksowhatcu00roge |url-access=registration |page=[https://archive.org/details/punkrocksowhatcu00roge/page/65 65] |quote=Deptford Fun City Records. |title=Punk rock: so what?: the cultural ... - Internet Archive |publisher=Routledge |access-date=8 January 2010|isbn=978-0-415-17029-1|year=1999 |last1=Sabin |first1=Roger }}</ref> and [[Squeeze (band)|Squeeze]].<ref name=PaulMarko>Paul Marko {{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=r4bmVbNSnk4C&q=Deptford+Fun+City+Records&pg=PA177 |title=Popular music genres: an introduction - Google Books |isbn=978-0-7486-1745-6|year=2004 |last1=Borthwick |first1=Stuart |last2=Moy |first2=Ron }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rcnVLioLCNIC&q=Deptford+Fun+City+Records&pg=PA229 |title=''The Roxy London Wc2: A Punk History''|publisher=The Roxy Club London:Punk |access-date=8 January 2010|isbn=978-0-9556583-0-3|date=15 October 2007 }}</ref>

The area has several pubs, including the ''Dog & Bell'' which has a reputation for serving a range of [[cask ale]]s,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.timeout.com/london/bars/reviews/12679.html |title=Dog & Bell - Deptford - Review - Time Out London |publisher=timeout.com |access-date=11 January 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091003015953/http://www.timeout.com/london/bars/reviews/12679.html |archive-date=3 October 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fancyapint.com/pubs/pub1234.php |title=Dog and Bell, Deptford, London pub guide |work=fancyapint? |access-date=11 January 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527165635/http://www.fancyapint.com/pubs/pub1234.php |archive-date=27 May 2010 }}</ref> ''[[Royal Albert, Deptford|The Royal Albert]]'' which is a [[listed building|Grade II listed]] building from the mid-19th century<ref name=EnglishHeritage>{{NHLE|desc=The Royal Albert Public House|num=1079967|accessdate=30 September 2024}}</ref> that was previously known as The Paradise Bar and saw early gigs by [[Bloc Party]] and [[Art Brut]],<ref name="Joyzine">{{cite web|url=https://joyzine.org/2022/11/09/video-joyzine-editor-paul-maps-takes-blang-records-on-a-tour-of-new-cross-music-venues-past-present/|title=Video: Joyzine Editor Paul Maps takes Blang Records on a tour of New Cross music venues past & present|date=9 November 2022|first=Paul|last=Maps|website=Joyzine|accessdate=1 October 2024}}</ref><ref name="3am">{{cite web|url=https://www.3ammagazine.com/musicarchives/2004/jun/underground.html|title=So Much For The Underground|website=3am Magazine|date=2004|first=Andrew|last=Stevens|accessdate=1 October 2024}}</ref> and ''The Bird's Nest'' which has live music, film and art performances from local bands and artists.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fancyapint.com/pubs/pub1586.php |title=The Bird's Nest, Deptford, London pub guide |work=fancyapint? |access-date=11 January 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100220141001/http://www.fancyapint.com/pubs/pub1586.php |archive-date=20 February 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.artrocker.com/node/830 |title=DEPTFORD ARMS - Open Mic & Open To Art |work=Artrocker |access-date=11 January 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110603232955/http://www.artrocker.com/node/830 |archive-date=3 June 2011}}</ref> The [[Deptford Town Hall|town hall]] of the former [[Metropolitan Borough of Deptford]], built in 1905 with decorative sculpture by [[Henry Poole (sculptor)|Henry Poole]],<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5szc9GBZLwwC&pg=RA3-PA496 |title=Public sculpture of Glasgow |access-date=29 December 2009|isbn=978-0-85323-937-6|date=1 December 2001 |author=Raymond McKenzie  |publisher=Liverpool University Press }}</ref> lies just outside Deptford, on the New Cross Road in [[New Cross]]. It was purchased by [[Goldsmiths College]] in 2000.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/lewisham/new-cross/deptford-town-hall-1910.htm |title=Deptford Town Hall, New Cross Road, New Cross, c. 1910 |publisher=ideal-homes.org.uk |access-date=29 December 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080819235006/http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/lewisham/new-cross/deptford-town-hall-1910.htm |archive-date=19 August 2008 }}</ref>

There are several green spaces in the area, the largest being [[Brookmill Park]], [[Deptford Park]], [[Ferranti Park]], Pepys Park and [[Sayes Court|Sayes Court Park]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.london-footprints.co.uk/wkdeptfordgrn.htm |title=London-Footprints' Green Deptford Walk |publisher=London-footprints.co.uk |date=16 June 1944 |access-date=5 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090923170240/http://www.london-footprints.co.uk/wkdeptfordgrn.htm |archive-date=23 September 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 1884 [[William John Evelyn]], a descendant of [[John Evelyn]], sold ground then being used as [[Market gardening|market gardens]] in Deptford, to the [[London County Council]] for less than its market value, as well as paying toward the cost of its purchase. It was officially opened to the public as Deptford Park on 7 June 1897.<ref>Lewisham.gov.uk's description of [http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/LeisureAndCulture/ParksAndRecreation/LocalParks/DeptfordPark.htm Deptford Park] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100212232159/http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/LeisureAndCulture/ParksAndRecreation/LocalParks/DeptfordPark.htm |date=12 February 2010 }}</ref><ref>[http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/D9A90CD7-69F1-484A-AD7C-BD674E184721/0/A3LCCParkOpening1897Small.pdf Dedication to the public of Deptford Park] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608223718/http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/D9A90CD7-69F1-484A-AD7C-BD674E184721/0/A3LCCParkOpening1897Small.pdf |date=8 June 2011 }} by [[William Job Collins]], 7 June 1897, London County Council.</ref> In 1886, he dedicated an acre and a half of the Sayes Court recreation ground in perpetuity to the public and a permanent provision was made for the Evelyn estate to cover the expense of maintenance and caretaking, this was opened on 20 July 1886.<ref>''Sayes Court, Deptford'', The Times, 20 July 1886, p. 5, col F</ref><ref>Public Recreation Grounds, The Times, 21 July 1886, p. 9, col F</ref>

==Transport==
[[File:Deptford station entrance 2013.JPG|thumb|The refurbished Deptford Station]]

Deptford is served by [[National Rail]] and [[Docklands Light Railway]] services. The National Rail service is operated by [[Southeastern (train operating company)|Southeastern]] and [[Govia Thameslink Railway|Thameslink]] on the suburban [[Greenwich Line]] at [[Deptford railway station]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/stations/DEP.html |title=National Rail Enquiries - Station Facilities for Deptford |publisher=nationalrail.co.uk |access-date=15 November 2009 }}</ref> the oldest passenger-only railway station in London.<ref>[http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/E1D65A8E-CEDE-4942-A64A-18F257A6DAEC/0/DeptfordTownCentreExhibitionBoard9.pdf Deptford's Railway Station] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100326203206/http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/E1D65A8E-CEDE-4942-A64A-18F257A6DAEC/0/DeptfordTownCentreExhibitionBoard9.pdf |date=26 March 2010 }} lewisham.gov.uk</ref><ref>[http://acolnet.lewisham.gov.uk/ACOLLATEDOCS/45089_1.pdf Deptford Station] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110811031006/http://acolnet.lewisham.gov.uk/ACOLLATEDOCS/45089_1.pdf |date=11 August 2011 }}, acolnet.lewisham.gov.uk</ref> Deptford station was redeveloped during 2011 and 2012. The works included the demolition of the original 1836 station building and its replacement by a new station to the west in the former station yard.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/Environment/Regeneration/DeptfordAndNewCross/DeptfordTownCentre/DeptfordStation.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608223358/http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/Environment/Regeneration/DeptfordAndNewCross/DeptfordTownCentre/DeptfordStation.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=8 June 2011 |title=Lewisham Council - Deptford station redevelopment plans |publisher=lewisham.gov.uk |access-date=19 December 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.volkerfitzpatrick.co.uk/en/projects/detail/deptford-station-redevelopment|work=volkerfitzpatrick.co.uk|title=Deptford Station Redevelopment}}</ref> Deptford's DLR station is at [[Deptford Bridge DLR station|Deptford Bridge]] on the DLR's Lewisham branch.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tfl.gov.uk/gettingaround/transportaccessibility/dlr/3261.aspx |title=Deptford Bridge | work=Transport for London  |access-date=15 November 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tfl.gov.uk/gettingaround/transportaccessibility/dlr/3258.aspx |title=Elverson Road |work= Transport for London |access-date=15 November 2009 }}</ref>

There are two main road routes through Deptford: the [[A200 road|A200]] which runs along Evelyn Street and Creek Road,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/wiki/index.php?title=A200 |title=A200 - Roader's Digest: The SABRE Wiki |publisher=sabre-roads.org.uk |access-date=19 December 2009 }}</ref> and the [[A2 road (Great Britain)#Borough to Shooter's Hill|A2]] which runs along New Cross Road, and is the modern version of the [[Ancient trackway#Great Britain|Celtic trackway]] which was later paved by the Romans and developed into the medieval [[Watling Street]].<ref name=route/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/wiki/index.php?title=A2_route |title=A2 route - Roader's Digest: The SABRE Wiki |publisher=sabre-roads.org.uk |access-date=19 December 2009 }}</ref> The [[A20 road (England)|A20]] marks the southern boundary of the area, along Lewisham Way and Loampit Vale.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sabre-roads.org.uk/wiki/index.php?title=A20 |title=A20 - Roader's Digest: The SABRE Wiki |publisher=sabre-roads.org.uk |access-date=19 December 2009 }}</ref>

Since June 2016, Deptford has been on the cycling route of the London [[List of cycle routes in London|Quietway]] route Q1 that starts in Greenwich and ends near Waterloo Bridge in central London.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://content.tfl.gov.uk/quietway-1-south-map-waterloo-to-greenwich.pdf|title=Quietway 1 (South) Waterloo to Greenwich|date=21 June 2018|website=Transport for London|access-date=21 June 2018|archive-date=22 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180622033247/http://content.tfl.gov.uk/quietway-1-south-map-waterloo-to-greenwich.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> A second Quietway route, Q14, between Waterloo and Thamesmead, passes through Deptford's riverfront.<ref>{{cite web |title=Central London Cycling Grid: Quietway 14 – Results of public consultation |url=http://moderngov.southwark.gov.uk/documents/s58095/Report%20Quietway%2014%20results%20of%20consultation.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160701082702/http://moderngov.southwark.gov.uk/documents/s58095/Report%20Quietway%2014%20results%20of%20consultation.pdf |archive-date=2016-07-01 |url-status=live |publisher=Southwark Council |access-date=29 May 2016}}</ref>

==Education==
There are five [[primary school]]s in the area.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.streetmap.co.uk/sl/lbl.srf?id=lbl&range=-10&xc=536912&yc=177724&view=1&ar=N&ut91=3&sp=0&code=SE8&ff=1&mapx=536951&mapy=177643&type=b&iview=120 |title=Locator Search Results |publisher=streetmap.co.uk |access-date=30 December 2009 |archive-date=23 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023234409/http://www.streetmap.co.uk/sl/lbl.srf?id=lbl&range=-10&xc=536912&yc=177724&view=1&ar=N&ut91=3&sp=0&code=SE8&ff=1&mapx=536951&mapy=177643&type=b&iview=120 |url-status=dead }}</ref> There are no local [[secondary school]]s directly in Deptford, however there are two secondary schools near the border between [[New Cross]] and Deptford: [[Deptford Green School|Deptford Green]], regarded by [[Ofsted]] as "needing improvement",<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/inspection-reports/find-inspection-report/provider/ELS/100740 |title=Deptford Green Secondary School Ofsted |publisher=ofsted.gov.uk |access-date=7 October 2014 }}</ref> and [[Addey and Stanhope School|Addey and Stanhope]], regarded by Ofsted as "good".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/inspection-reports/find-inspection-report/provider/ELS/100748 |title=Addey and Stanhope Ofsted |publisher=ofsted.gov.uk |access-date=7 October 2014 }}</ref> A branch of the [[further education]] college, Lewisham College incorporating Southwark College (known as [[LeSoCo]]), is located on Deptford Church Street; the college was regarded as "inadequate" in the 2014 Ofsted inspection.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/provider/files/2354445/urn/130415.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141011211311/http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/provider/files/2354445/urn/130415.pdf |archive-date=2014-10-11 |url-status=live |title=College Inspection Report |publisher=ofsted.gov.uk |access-date=7 October 2014 }}</ref>

==Landmarks==
[[File:Tanners Hill3.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Grade II listed 18th-century buildings on Tanners Hill]]

[[Deptford railway station]] is one of the oldest suburban stations in the world,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www2.lewisham.gov.uk/lbl/documents/News/LewishamLife/Aug04/LEWlife_p21.pdf |title=7623 LEWlife p6 |access-date=5 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718200909/http://www2.lewisham.gov.uk/lbl/documents/News/LewishamLife/Aug04/LEWlife_p21.pdf |archive-date=18 July 2011}}</ref> being built (c.1836-38) as part of the first suburban service (the [[London and Greenwich Railway]]), between [[London Bridge railway station|London Bridge]] and [[Greenwich station|Greenwich]]. Close to Deptford Creek is a [[Deptford pumping station]], a [[Victorian era|Victorian]] [[pumping station]] built in 1864, part of the massive [[London sewerage system]] designed by [[civil engineer]] Sir [[Joseph Bazalgette]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/ConNarrative.153/chapterId/3182/Bazalgette-and-Londons-sewage.html |title=Bazalgette and London's sewage - Leisure, health and housing - Port Cities |publisher=portcities.org.uk |access-date=19 December 2009 |archive-date=3 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091203111218/http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/ConNarrative.153/chapterId/3182/Bazalgette-and-Londons-sewage.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The former [[Deptford Power Station]], in use from 1891 to 1983, originated as a pioneering plant designed by [[Sebastian Ziani de Ferranti|Sebastian de Ferranti]], which when built was the largest station in the world.<ref>[http://swehs_archive.swelocker.co.uk/news25su.pdf Ferranti's Deptford Power Station] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110830091523/http://swehs_archive.swelocker.co.uk/news25su.pdf |date=30 August 2011 }} Supplement to HISTELEC NEWS No.25 December 2003</ref>

In 2008, Lewisham Council granted permission for the last remnants of the Deptford [[Ragged school|Ragged School]] known as The Princess Louise Institute to be demolished and replaced by flats.<ref name=lew_plan>Lewisham London Borough Council - [http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/B7E19BAF-47F9-44B9-9A26-75D8310B08C5/0/6_plan_comm_c_princess_louise_institute_hales_street_290905amended.pdf Planning Committee - Princess Louise Institute] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080530164637/http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/B7E19BAF-47F9-44B9-9A26-75D8310B08C5/0/6_plan_comm_c_princess_louise_institute_hales_street_290905amended.pdf |date=30 May 2008 }}</ref>

[[Albury Street]] (previously Union Street) contains a fine row of early urban houses largely dating from 1705 to 1717 which were once popular with naval captains and shipwrights.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/LeisureAndCulture/LocalHistoryAndHeritage/HistoricalResources/HistoryOfTheBuildingsInTheBorough/DevelopmentOfTheBorough.htm |title=Lewisham Council - History of housing in the borough |publisher=Lewisham.gov.uk |access-date=5 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608220011/http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/LeisureAndCulture/LocalHistoryAndHeritage/HistoricalResources/HistoryOfTheBuildingsInTheBorough/DevelopmentOfTheBorough.htm |archive-date=8 June 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Tanners Hill in the St John's or New Deptford area to the south of [[A2 road (Great Britain)#Borough to Shooter's Hill|New Cross Road]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/lewisham/main/st-johns-deptford-new-town-case-study.htm |title=St John's, Deptford New Town Case Study |publisher=Ideal-homes.org.uk |access-date=5 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100425051846/http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/lewisham/main/st-johns-deptford-new-town-case-study.htm <!--Added by H3llBot--> |archive-date=25 April 2010}}</ref> is part of an Area of Archaeological Priority due to the longevity of settlement and early industry,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www2.lewisham.gov.uk/lbl/planning/udp/schedule3.html |title=Lewisham Council - Unitary Development Plan |publisher=.lewisham.gov.uk |access-date=5 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100927165515/http://www2.lewisham.gov.uk/lbl/planning/udp/schedule3.html |archive-date=27 September 2010}}</ref> and contains a set of commercial buildings from numbers 21 to 31 which are survivors from a row of 31 which were built in the 1750s on the site of cottages dating from the 17th century.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/lewisham/deptford/tanners-hill.htm |title=Tanners Hill, Deptford, Lewisham, 1926 |publisher=Ideal-homes.org.uk |access-date=5 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100613191705/http://www.ideal-homes.org.uk/lewisham/deptford/tanners-hill.htm <!--Added by H3llBot--> |archive-date=13 June 2010}}</ref>

These timber-frame buildings have a [[Grade II]] listing from [[English Heritage]]<ref>[https://www2.lewisham.gov.uk/lbl/CouncilMeetings/Committees_post0502/AreaPlanningCommittees/documents/06mar2003/plan_dept_24-30_tanners_hill_060303.doc]{{dead link|date=December 2016|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}} Lewisham Planning Committee</ref> and are home to established businesses such as bicycle maker [[Witcomb Cycles]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.london-footprints.co.uk/wkdeptford.htm |title=Deptford |publisher=London-footprints.co.uk |access-date=5 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100720024419/http://www.london-footprints.co.uk/wkdeptford.htm |archive-date=20 July 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Of Deptford's two important houses, [[Sayes Court]] no longer exists, but the [[Stone House, Deptford|Stone House]] in [[St Johns, London|St Johns]], built around 1772 by the architect George Gibson the Younger, and described by [[Nikolaus Pevsner|Pevsner]] as "the one individual house of interest in this area", still stands by [[A20 road (England)|Lewisham Way]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.londonopenhouse.org/london/search/factsheet.asp?ftloh_id=1594 |title=LOH Building Details |publisher=londonopenhouse.org |access-date=19 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927225653/http://www.londonopenhouse.org/london/search/factsheet.asp?ftloh_id=1594 |archive-date=27 September 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Deptford's [[Albany Theatre]] has a history stretching back over 100 years and is a prominent feature of the South-East London arts scene.

===Churches===
[[File:St Paul Deptford.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|The notable [[Baroque]] frontage of [[St Paul's, Deptford|St. Paul's]] church]]

St Nicholas's Church, the original parish church, dates back to the 14th century but the current building is 17th century. The entrance to the churchyard features a set of skull-and-bones on top of the posts. A plaque on the north wall commemorates playwright [[Christopher Marlowe]], who was stabbed to death by [[Ingram Frizer]] in a nearby house, and buried in an unmarked grave in the churchyard on 1 June 1593. Frizer was pardoned for the killing on the grounds that he acted in self-defence.<ref>''The Reckoning: The Murder of Christopher Marlowe'', Charles Nicholl, Vintage, {{ISBN|0-09-943747-3}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.southwark.anglican.org/news/pr179.htm |title=Diocese of Southwark - News: Christopher Marlowe Remembered at Deptford |publisher=Southwark.anglican.org |date=24 January 2002 |access-date=5 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607064751/http://www.southwark.anglican.org/news/pr179.htm |archive-date=7 June 2011}}</ref>

There is also St. Luke's, another historic circular church, dating from 1870. It is the daughter church of the parish of St Nicholas'.

In the 18th century [[St. Paul's, Deptford]] (1712–1730) was built,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.paulsdeptford.org.uk/SPD_ver2/History.htm |title=St.Paul's, Deptford - Official Site: Local History |publisher=Paulsdeptford.org.uk |access-date=5 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090918230546/http://www.paulsdeptford.org.uk/SPD_ver2/History.htm |archive-date=18 September 2009 }}</ref> acclaimed by the [[Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England]] as one of the finest [[Baroque]] churches in the country.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.paulsdeptford.org.uk/SPD_ver2/homepage.htm |title=St.Paul's, Deptford - Official Site: Home Page |publisher=Paulsdeptford.org.uk |access-date=5 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090708153705/http://www.paulsdeptford.org.uk/SPD_ver2/homepage.htm |archive-date=8 July 2009 }}</ref> [[John Betjeman]] is attributed as referring to the church as "a pearl at the heart of Deptford".<ref>{{cite web |author=A Church Near You |url=http://www.achurchnearyou.com/621/ |title=Deptford, Deptford, St Paul - London &#124; Diocese of Southwark |publisher=Achurchnearyou.com |access-date=5 July 2010}}</ref> It was designed by the architect [[Thomas Archer]], who was a pupil of Sir Christopher Wren, as part of the [[Commission for Building Fifty New Churches]] with the intention of instilling pride in Britain, and encouraging people to stay in London rather than emigrate to the [[New World]].<ref>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=38870 ''List of churches built''], The Commissions for building fifty new churches: The minute books, 1711-27, a calendar (1986), pp. XL. accessed: 19 September 2009</ref>

Adjacent to the church yard is Albury Street, which contains some fine 18th-century houses which were popular with sea captains and shipbuilders.<ref>[http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/LeisureAndCulture/LocalHistoryAndHeritage/HistoricalResources/HistoryOfTheBuildingsInTheBorough/DevelopmentOfTheBorough.htm] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608220011/http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/LeisureAndCulture/LocalHistoryAndHeritage/HistoricalResources/HistoryOfTheBuildingsInTheBorough/DevelopmentOfTheBorough.htm|date=8 June 2011}} Lewisham Borough Local history</ref>

===Deptford Dockyard===
[[File:St Albans Deptford.jpg|thumb|upright=1.7|Painting of Deptford Dockyard in 1747 by [[John Cleveley the Elder]]. [[National Maritime Museum]].]]
{{Main|Deptford Dockyard|Convoys Wharf}}

Deptford Dockyard was established in 1513 by [[Henry VIII of England|Henry VIII]] as the first [[Royal Navy Dockyard|Royal Dockyard]], building vessels for the [[Royal Navy]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/ConNarrative.52/chapterId/774/Deptford-and-Woolwich-Londons-Royal-Dockyards.html |title=Deptford and Woolwich: London's Royal Dockyards - The working Thames |publisher=Port Cities |access-date=5 July 2010 |archive-date=19 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100619044944/http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/ConNarrative.52/chapterId/774/Deptford-and-Woolwich-Londons-Royal-Dockyards.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> and was at one time known as the King's Yard.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pepysdiary.com/archive/1665/08/22/index.php |title=Samuel Pepys diary entry for 22 August 1665 |date=22 August 2008 |publisher=Pepysdiary.com |access-date=5 July 2010}}</ref> It was shut down from 1830 to 1844 before being closed as a dockyard in 1869,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nmm.ac.uk/researchers/library/research-guides/the-royal-navy/research-guide-b5-royal-naval-dockyards |title=National Maritime Museum Research guide B5: Royal Naval Dockyards |publisher=Nmm.ac.uk |access-date=1 May 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100601092732/http://www.nmm.ac.uk/researchers/library/research-guides/the-royal-navy/research-guide-b5-royal-naval-dockyards |archive-date=1 June 2010 }}</ref> and is currently known as [[Convoys Wharf]]. From 1871 until the [[First World War]] it was the [[City of London Corporation]]'s [[Foreign Cattle Market]]. In 1912, ''[[The Times]]'' reported that over 4 million head of live cattle, and sheep, had been landed.{{Citation needed|date=August 2018}}

From 1932 until 2008 the site was owned by [[News International]], which used it to import [[newsprint]] and other paper products from [[Finland]] until early 2000. It is now owned by [[Hutchison Whampoa|Hutchison Whampoa Limited]] and is subject to a planning application to convert it into residential units,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.richardrogers.co.uk/render.aspx?siteID=1&navIDs=1,4,25,124,125 |title=Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners "Convoys Wharf Conception" |publisher=Richardrogers.co.uk |date=15 December 2004 |access-date=5 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091003221319/http://www.richardrogers.co.uk/render.aspx?siteID=1&navIDs=1,4,25,124,125 |archive-date=3 October 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref> though it has [[safeguarded wharf]] status.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.london.gov.uk/archive/mayor/planning/docs/safeguarded_wharves_05.pdf |title=Safeguarded Wharves COVER |access-date=5 July 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604095332/http://www.london.gov.uk/archive/mayor/planning/docs/safeguarded_wharves_05.pdf |archive-date=4 June 2011 }}</ref>

Other notable shipyards in Deptford were Charles Lungley's Dockyard and the [[General Steam Navigation Company]]'s yards at Deptford Green and Dudman's Dock, also sometimes referred to as ''Deadmans Dock'' at [[Deptford Wharf]].
{{Clear}}

==Murder of Christopher Marlowe==
{{Main|Christopher Marlowe#Arrest and death}}

[[File:Memorial to Christopher Marlowe on the Eastern Wall around St Nicholas' Church, Deptford Green (II).jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|right|Modern memorial to [[Christopher Marlowe]] on the east wall of the graveyard of the Church of St Nicholas, Deptford. The precise location of his grave is unknown.]]

The Elizabethan playwright [[Christopher Marlowe]] was killed during an alleged drunken brawl in [[Eleanor Bull]]'s house in Deptford Strand in May 1593. Various versions of Marlowe's death were current at the time. [[Francis Meres]] says Marlowe was "stabbed to death by a bawdy serving-man, a rival of his in his lewd love" as punishment for his "epicurism and atheism".<ref>''Palladis Tamia''. London, 1598: 286v-287r.</ref> In 1917, in the ''[[Dictionary of National Biography]]'', Sir [[Sidney Lee]] wrote that Marlowe was killed in a drunken fight. Some modern theories posit that he was assassinated.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p003k9d6 |title=BBC - BBC Radio 4 Programmes - In Our Time, Marlowe |publisher=bbc.co.uk |access-date=29 December 2009 }}</ref> It is commonly assumed that the fight took place in a Deptford tavern.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lycos.com/info/christopher-marlowe--deptford-strand.html |title=Christopher Marlowe: Deptford Strand |publisher=lycos.com |access-date=29 December 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100314074610/http://www.lycos.com/info/christopher-marlowe--deptford-strand.html |archive-date=14 March 2010 }}</ref>

The scholar [[Leslie Hotson]] discovered in 1925 the [[coroner]]'s report on Marlowe's death in the [[Public Record Office]] which gave fuller details.<ref name=INQUISITION/> Marlowe had spent all day in a house owned by the widow [[Eleanor Bull]], along with three men, [[Ingram Frizer]], [[Nicholas Skeres]] and [[Robert Poley]].<ref>E. de Kalb, Robert Poley's Movements as a Messenger of the Court, 1588 to 1601 Review of English Studies, Vol. 9, No. 33</ref> Witnesses testified that Frizer and Marlowe had earlier argued over the bill, exchanging "divers malicious words." Later, while Frizer was sitting at a table between the other two and Marlowe was lying behind him on a couch, Marlowe snatched Frizer's dagger and began attacking him. In the ensuing struggle, according to the coroner's report, Marlowe was accidentally stabbed above the right eye, killing him instantly.<ref name=INQUISITION>{{cite web |url=http://www.prst17z1.demon.co.uk/inquis~2.htm |title=The Coroner's Inquisition (Translation) |publisher=prst17z1.demon.co.uk |access-date=29 December 2009 |archive-date=30 January 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100130224551/http://www.prst17z1.demon.co.uk/inquis~2.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> The jury concluded that Frizer acted in self-defence, and within a month he was pardoned. Marlowe was buried in an unmarked grave in the churchyard of St Nicholas, Deptford, on 1 June 1593.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.marlowe-society.org/news/news2009/news2009_007_deptfordmap.html |title=News - 1623 Deptford Map Online |publisher=marlowe-society.org |access-date=29 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110513235723/http://www.marlowe-society.org/news/news2009/news2009_007_deptfordmap.html |archive-date=13 May 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Notable people==

Among people associated with Deptford are [[Christopher Marlowe]], who was stabbed to death at Deptford Strand;<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hACogSBAweoC&pg=PA18|title=The Reckoning: The Murder of Christopher Marlowe |page=18|author=Charles Nicholl|publisher=Random House|year= 2002 |isbn=9780099437475 }}</ref> diarist [[John Evelyn]] (1620–1706), who lived at [[Sayes Court]],<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DTU5m66sEPcC&pg=PA204 |title=John Evelyn: Living for Ingenuity|page=204| author=Gillian Darley|publisher=Yale University Press|year= 2006|isbn=0300112270}}</ref> and had [[Peter the Great]] (1672–1725) as a guest for about three months in 1698;<ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/londonculturalhi0000tame|url-access=registration|title=London: A Cultural History|author=Richard Tames  |publisher=Oxford University Press|year= 2006 |page=[https://archive.org/details/londonculturalhi0000tame/page/45 45] |isbn=9780195309539}}</ref> [[Francis Drake|Sir Francis Drake]], who was knighted by [[Queen Elizabeth I]] aboard the ''[[Golden Hind]]'' in Deptford Docks;<ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/lifevoyagesexplo00barr|title=Life, Voyages, and Exploits of Sir Francis Drake |publisher=John Murray|year=1861 |author=John Barrow|page=[https://archive.org/details/lifevoyagesexplo00barr/page/74 74] }}</ref> and [[Emperor Norton]] (Joshua Abraham Norton), the San Francisco eccentric and self-proclaimed "Emperor of the United States", who was born in Deptford in 1818.<ref>John Lumea, [http://emperornortontrust.org/blog/2015/2/8/joshua-abraham-norton-b-4-february-1818 "Joshua Abraham Norton, b. 4 February 1818,"] The Emperor Norton Trust, 9 February 2015.</ref>

Other people who have lived in Deptford range from the first governor of the [[East India Company]] and ambassador to the court of Russia, [[Thomas Smythe]], whose magnificent house was destroyed by fire in 1618;<ref name=Deptford/> to early members of the [[Chartist movement]], [[John Gast (activist)|John Gast]]<ref>{{cite journal |title= Iowerth Prothero, Artisans and Politics in Early Nineteenth-Century London: John Gast and His Times. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1979. 418 pp|journal = International Labor and Working-Class History|volume = 19|issue = 19|pages = 65–69 |jstor = 27671357|last1 = Epstein|first1 = James|year = 1981|doi = 10.1017/S0147547900011674| s2cid=144128887 }}</ref> and [[George Julian Harney]];<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/CHharney.htm |title=George Julian Harney |publisher=spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk |access-date=2010-01-11 |archive-date=6 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090106024233/http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk./CHharney.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> and the Cleveleys, [[John Cleveley the Elder]] and his sons [[John Cleveley the Younger|John]] and [[Robert Cleveley|Robert]], a family of marine artists who also worked as tradesmen in the Dockyard.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/ConNarrative.76/chapterId/1838/Picturing-the-18thcentury-port.html |title=Picturing the 18th-century port - Thames art, literature and architecture - Port Cities |publisher=portcities.org.uk |access-date=2010-01-11 |archive-date=12 October 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081012020620/http://www.portcities.org.uk/london/server/show/ConNarrative.76/chapterId/1838/Picturing-the-18thcentury-port.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> Another artist born in Deptford is [[Henry Courtney Selous]],<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9XNe0mLSJQAC&q=Henry+Courtney+Selous+deptford&pg=PA711 |title=British and Irish paintings in ... - Google Books |access-date=2010-01-11 |isbn=0300117302|author1=Christopher Wright |author2=Catherine May Gordon|year=2006 |publisher=Yale University Press }}</ref> who is known for ''The Opening of The Great Exhibition'', painted in 1851.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.victorianweb.org/art/illustration/selous/bio.html |title=Henry Courtney Selous (1803-90): Illustrator of the Heroic |publisher=victorianweb.org |access-date=2010-01-11 }}</ref>

Members of rock groups [[Squeeze (band)|Squeeze]] and [[Dire Straits]] lived on the Crossfield Estate in Deptford in the late 1970s,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/leisure/4785842.VIDEO___Dire_Straits_recall_their_first_ever_gig_in_Deptford/ |title=Mark Knopfler and John Illsley of Dire Straits return to the Crossfield Estate, Deptford (From This Is Local London) |publisher=thisislocallondon.co.uk |access-date=8 January 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604040531/http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/leisure/4785842.VIDEO___Dire_Straits_recall_their_first_ever_gig_in_Deptford/ |archive-date=4 June 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.shadyoldlady.com/location.php?loc=1876 |title=They were in Dire Straits |publisher=shadyoldlady.com |access-date=9 January 2010 }}</ref> along with [[Mark Perry (musician)|Mark Perry]], founder of the punk fanzine ''Sniffin Glue'' and punk rock band [[Alternative TV]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bobbyvalentino.co.uk/electric-bluebirds-sleevenotes.html |title=Bobby Valentino -Electric Bluebirds Sleeve Notes |publisher=bobbyvalentino.co.uk |access-date=9 January 2010 }}</ref> The DJ and music journalist [[Danny Baker]] lived near the Crossfield Estate, where he was born and brought up.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/a-few-quiet-words-with-danny-baker-boy-1274806.html |title=A few quiet words with Danny Baker boy |work=The Independent |access-date=9 January 2010 | location=London | author=Deborah Ross | date=24 March 1997}}</ref> [[Steve Harley]], frontman of the [[glamrock]] band [[Cockney Rebel]], was born in Deptford.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Mitchell |first1=Ben |title=Cockney Rebel frontman Steve Harley went from cub reporter to rock star |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/music/queen-london-deptford-rolling-stones-newspapers-b1145842.html |access-date=21 March 2024 |work=[[Evening Standard]] |date=17 March 2024 |language=en |archive-date=19 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240319112117/https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/music/queen-london-deptford-rolling-stones-newspapers-b1145842.html |url-status=live}}</ref>

Children's author [[Robin Jarvis]] wrote two trilogies of books: ''[[The Deptford Mice]]'' (and a couple of spin off books called ''The Deptford Mouselets'' series) and ''The Deptford Histories'', set in and around Deptford and featuring many of its landmarks.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Lawrence Phillips  |last2=Anne Witchard  |title=London Gothic: Place, Space and the Gothic Imagination |date=23 September 2010 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=9781441159977 |page=115}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Jarvis |first1=Robin |title=The Deptford Mice - The Realm of the Green Mouse |url=http://www.robinjarvis.com/Mouserealm.html |website=Robinjarvis.com |access-date=15 November 2020}}</ref>

[[Rapman]] (Andrew Onwubolu) is a British rapper and filmmaker who gained fame through YouTube storytelling series like "Blue Story Trilogy" and "[[Shiro's Story]]." His unique style blends rap with visual narratives, addressing London's urban life and social issues. RapMan's success led to a record deal with Island Records and [[Roc Nation]]. In 2019, he directed the critically acclaimed film "[[Blue Story]]," which became the highest-grossing British urban film. His work continues to influence UK grime and hip-hop culture, spanning music, film, and television.

==References==
{{reflist}}

;Bibliography
{{Refbegin}}
*Nathan Dews, ''The History of Deptford'' (Deptford: J.D. Smith, 1883) {{ISBN|1-241-34064-1}} or {{ISBN|0-85177-041-X}}
*Jess Steele, ''Turning the Tide: The History of Everyday Deptford'' (New Cross: Deptford Forum Publishing Ltd, 1993), {{ISBN|1-898536-00-7}}
*Ellen Chase, ''Tenant Friends in Old Deptford'' (London: Williams & Norgate, 1929)
*Dan Colman, ''I Never Saw My Father Nude'' (London: Arthur Barker, 1981), {{ISBN|0-213-16791-3}}
*George Glazebrook, ''Where No Flowers Grow. A child's eye-view of Deptford: 1921-1931'' (Rainham: Meresborough Books, 1989), {{ISBN|0-948193-37-9}}
*Jim Rice, ''Deptford Creek'' (Manchester: Cornerhouse Publications, 1993), {{ISBN|0-948797-77-0}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Deptford, London|Deptford}}
{{EB9 Poster|Deptford}}
{{AmCyc Poster}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110608221248/http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/Environment/Regeneration/DeptfordAndNewCross/DeptfordTownCentre/ Lewisham Council's Deptford Town Centre regeneration plans]

'''History'''
*[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=53780#n1 'Parishes: Deptford', The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent: Volume 1 (1797), pp. 340-71]
*[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=45482 'Deptford, St Nicholas', The Environs of London: volume 4: Counties of Herts, Essex & Kent (1796), pp. 359-85]
*[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=45483 'Deptford, St Paul', The Environs of London: volume 4: Counties of Herts, Essex & Kent (1796), pp. 386-93]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20140202132556/http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/inmyarea/regeneration/deptford/north-deptford/Pages/Surrey-Canal-Road-station.aspx Prospects and phasing of proposed new railway station]

{{LB Lewisham}}
{{London Districts}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Deptford| ]]
[[Category:Districts of the London Borough of Lewisham]]
[[Category:Shipbuilding in London]]
[[Category:Shipyards on the River Thames]]
[[Category:Districts of London on the River Thames]]
[[Category:Port of London]]
[[Category:Former civil parishes in the London Borough of Lewisham]]
[[Category:District centres of London]]