Oaks Park

The villa here was built about 1750 for Thomas Gosling, remodelled by Robert Taylor in 1775 and by Robert Adam in 1790, and demolished between 1956 and 1960; the bakehouse, stable block and some outbuildings remain. The former stables, billiard room and coach house wings on the south and east sides of the stable yard are listed Grade II, NHLE 1245718, and the grotto and flanking walls at The Oaks are Grade II, NHLE 1065606. The estate was laid out for the Earl of Derby in the 1770s, with later changes for John Burgoyne in the 1790s. The Earl inaugurated The Oaks horse race in 1779 and named it after this house; it is still run during the Derby meeting at Epsom Downs Racecourse, about four miles west. Belmont station is 2,284 m away and Carshalton Beeches 2,605 m, while Woodmansterne, in Croydon, is 1,994 m; bus routes 166, 463, 633, S3 and S4 serve stops within walking distance, and SL7 does not reach the park.