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Thornton Heath of the Past
Thornton Heath in 1905 was a lot different to how it is now. In fact the district's reputation at the turn of the 20th Century was wildly different to today.
From 1861 to 1911, the area had a complete transformation from isolated rural outpost to integrated metropolitan suburb. In the late 19th century the western part of Thornton Heath, which was directly on the main London to Sussex road, demonstrated a classic form of suburban ribbon development. In the process it became the final piece in an urban chain linking two major centres, London and Croydon, completing the greatest metropolitan expansion in the world at that time.
