Deptford St Nicholas was a civil parish in the metropolitan area of

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. The creation of the parish accompanied the building of the Church of St Paul's, Deptford, constructed by the

Commission for Building Fifty New Churches The Commission for Building Fifty New Churches (in London and the surroundings) was an organisation set up by Act of Parliament in England in 1711, the New Churches in London and Westminster Act 1710, with the purpose of building fifty new churc ...

to meet the demands of the growing population. The ancient parish of

Deptford Deptford is an area on the south bank of the River Thames in southeast London, within the 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 ...

was split in 1730 with the southern part around the new church becoming

Deptford St Paul The Metropolitan Borough of Deptford was a Metropolitan borough in the County of London between 1900 and 1965, when it became part of the London Borough of Lewisham along with the Metropolitan Borough of Lewisham. History The borough cove ...

. St Nicholas parish included the old maritime settlement and the dockyard adjacent to the River Thames. Civil parish administration was in the hands of the vestry until 1855 when the parish was grouped into the Greenwich District and the parish elected vestrymen to Greenwich District Board of Works. The parish was transferred from the

County of Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces th ...

to the

County of London The County of London was a county of England from 1889 to 1965, corresponding to the area known today as Inner London. It was created as part of the general introduction of elected county government in England, by way of the Local Governmen ...

in 1889. It became part of the

Metropolitan Borough of Greenwich The Metropolitan Borough of Greenwich was a metropolitan borough in the County of London between 1900 and 1965. It bordered the boroughs of Woolwich, Lewisham and Deptford and, across the River Thames, the borough of Poplar and the County Borou ...

in 1900 and the local authority became Greenwich Borough Council. The civil parish had only nominal existence until 1930 when it was abolished. The area became part of the

London Borough of Greenwich The Royal Borough of Greenwich (, , or ) is a London borough in southeast Greater London. The London Borough of Greenwich was formed in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. The new borough covered the former area of the Metropolitan Borough ...

in 1965 and following boundary changes in 1994, part of the former parish is now in the

London Borough of Lewisham Lewisham () is a London borough in south-east London; it forms part of Inner London. The principal settlement of the borough is Lewisham. The local authority is Lewisham London Borough Council, based in Catford. The Prime Meridian passes throu ...

Creation

It was created in 1730 by an act of parliament when the ancient parish of

was split into St Nicholas and

St Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

parishes. The split was prompted by the building of a new Church of St Paul by the

. The ancient parish of Deptford had been divided between Kent and Surrey, but St Nicholas was entirely within the Hundred of Blackheath in Kent.

Geography

St Nicholas was geographically smaller than St Paul and had a much higher population density. It was bounded by the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the ...

to the north and Deptford Creek to the east. It consisted of the maritime settlement of Lower Deptford adjacent to the river around

Deptford Dockyard Deptford Dockyard was an important naval dockyard and base at Deptford on the River Thames, operated by the Royal Navy from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries. It built and maintained warships for 350 years, and many significant events ...

Government

The parish was governed by a

vestry A vestry was a committee for the local secular and ecclesiastical government for a parish in England, Wales and some English colonies which originally met in the vestry or sacristy of the parish church, and consequently became known colloquial ...

from 1730 to 1855. The parish was grouped with Greenwich and Deptford St Paul into the Greenwich District in 1855 when it came within the district of the

Metropolitan Board of Works The Metropolitan Board of Works (MBW) was the principal instrument of local government in a wide area of Middlesex, Surrey, and Kent, defined by the Metropolis Management Act 1855, from December 1855 until the establishment of the London Coun ...

. The local authority became Greenwich District Board of Works and the parish elected vestrymen to the authority. The parish was transferred from the

to the

in 1889 and the Metropolitan Board of Works was replaced by the

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...

Poor law

Following the

Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 The ''Poor Law Amendment Act 1834'' (PLAA) known widely as the New Poor Law, was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom passed by the Whig government of Earl Grey. It completely replaced earlier legislation based on the ''Poor Relie ...

the parish was grouped into the Greenwich Poor Law Union with Greenwich, Deptford St Paul and Woolwich. The parish elected three of the twenty members of the

board of guardians Boards of guardians were '' ad hoc'' authorities that administered Poor Law in the United Kingdom from 1835 to 1930. England and Wales Boards of guardians were created by the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834, replacing the parish overseers of the p ...

. Woolwich left the union in 1868. The union ceased to exist and the parish had no further role in the administration of the poor law following the

Local Government Act 1929 The Local Government Act 1929 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that made changes to the Poor Law and local government in England and Wales. The Act abolished the system of poor law unions in England and Wales and their board ...

Abolition

The parish became part of the

in 1900 and the Greenwich District Board of Works was replaced by Greenwich Borough Council. The civil parish had only nominal existence for administration of the Poor Law until 1930 when it was abolished, and the borough and parish of Greenwich became aligned. All civil parishes were then abolished in Greater London on 1 April 1965. The former area of the parish became part of the London Borough of Greenwich in 1965, but following boundary changes in 1994, the former parish is now split between the

and the

Royal Borough of Greenwich The Royal Borough of Greenwich (, , or ) is a London boroughs, London borough in southeast Greater London. The London Borough of Greenwich was formed in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. The new borough covered the former area of the Metr ...

Population

The population of the parish was as follows:

References

{{reflist 1730 establishments in England 1930 disestablishments in England History of local government in London (pre-1855) History of the Royal Borough of Greenwich Parishes united into districts (Metropolis) Former civil parishes in London History of the London Borough of Lewisham Deptford