Glover's Island (originally called Petersham Ait) is in a tree-lined section of river, formerly known as Horse Reach on the tidal Thames, between Richmond Lock and

Teddington Lock Teddington Lock is a complex of three locks and a weir on the River Thames between Ham and Teddington in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England. Historically in Middlesex, it was first built in 1810. The limit of legal po ...

in the Borough of Richmond upon Thames,

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

Description

The tree-covered islet"Richmond Libraries’ Local Studies Collection"
/ref> has been precisely measured as above mean high water springs.

19th century brinkmanship and the view from Richmond Hill

In 1872 the

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

, then called Petersham Ait, was bought by a Richmond-based waterman named Joseph Glover for £70 (); advertising it for resale in 1895. Sir John Whittaker Ellis, Mayor of Richmond, had a house along the aristocratic row on the place with the highest, definitive Thames Arcadia view.''Arcadian Thames: The River Landscape from Hampton to Kew'' Mavis Batey, 2000 This is on the steep terrace of Richmond Hill above public pleasure gardens and he declined to buy the island at £5,000 () so suggested that the Richmond Corporation should be approached. The view itself had been painted by

John Wootton John Wootton (c.1686– 13 November 1764)Deuchar, S. (2003). "Wootton, John". Grove Art Online. was an English painter of sporting subjects, battle scenes and landscapes, and illustrator. Life Born in Snitterfield, Warwickshire (near Stratfo ...

in about 1740 as ''A View From Richmond Hill. An English Arcadia''. The Amenities Committee considered the proposal on 2 April 1895 and decided –

"''That while the Committee think it desirable that the Island should be acquired for the Corporation if it could be obtained at a reasonable price, they are of the opinion that in view of the sum now named, it would be useless to enter into any negotiation for its purchase.''"

Trying again in 1898, Glover caused furore by putting the isle up for auction and suggesting it could be sold to

Pears soap Pears transparent soap is a British brand of soap first produced and sold in 1807 by Andrew Pears, at a factory just off Oxford Street in London. It was the world's first mass-market translucent soap. Under the stewardship of advertising pionee ...

to erect a giant advertising hoarding. Glover used this threat to vex the corporation, offering it to them for £4,000 but although the corporation wanted to buy the island, it was felt that there was no justification in spending such a large sum of money out of its funds. There then followed a lengthy debate and correspondence in the local press about preserving the view from Richmond Hill and suggestions were made that the purchase should be funded jointly by public subscription and the corporation. By September, only £50 had been given to the public fund; disclosure of Glover's purchase at £70 did not help. The auction took place on 21 September but the highest bid was only £200. An unnamed resident had offered Glover £1,000 for the island (which he then intended to present to the corporation), but Glover refused to sell. In 1900 Max Waechter of Terrace House, Richmond Hill, bought it for £1,600 and conveyed it to the council having that body covenant, with intent to bind its successors, it was never to be developed.

References

Sources

"Richmond Libraries’ Local Studies Collection"
{{LB Richmond Geography of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames Islands of London Islands of the River Thames

Description

19th century brinkmanship and the view from Richmond Hill

See also

References

Sources