Ryecotes Mead was indirectly named for John and Cristina de Reygate, a couple from the 14th century.
John and Cristina de Reygate sold nine acres of land in ’Dylewissh’ in 1311. By 1405 Sir Robert Denny’s holdings in Dulwich included "the tenement lately called Reygates". This passed to the Legh family of Streatham, who sold it to the Drapers of Camberwell in 1542, and the last surviving Draper, Matthew, left it in his Will to Sir Edmund Bowyer of Camberwell, who sold it in 1609 to Edward Alleyn.
There are no definite clues as to where within Dulwich manor the property was.
The house called Ryecotes, from which Ryecotes Mead directly takes its name, was named in 1858 by William Young, a College and Estates Governor. By 1909 it was home to Sir Hiram Maxim, inventor of the Maxim gun. The house was demolished in 1967 to make way for the present development.
The Underground Map project is creating street histories for the areas of London and surrounding counties lying within the M25.
The aim of the project is to find the location every street in London, whether past or present, and tell its story. This project aims to be a service to historians, genealogists and those with an interest in urban design.
The website features a series of maps from the 1750s until the 1950s. You can see how London grows over the decades. |