Long Ditton

Long Ditton
Long Ditton  Long Ditton shown within Surrey
Population	4,172
OS grid reference	TQ169664
District	Elmbridge
Shire county	Surrey
Region	South East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Surbiton
Postcode district	KT6/(KT7)
Dialling code	020 8398
Police	Surrey
Fire	Surrey
Ambulance	South East Coast
EU Parliament	South East England
UK Parliament	Esher and Walton
List of places: UK • England • Surrey

Long Ditton is a village in Surrey, England lying on the boundary with Greater London. Neighbouring settlements include Thames Ditton, Surbiton, Tolworth and Chessington.

History

Ditton was a Saxon settlement in England which, by Domesday, was already splitting between the riverside manor of Thames Ditton, and the more inland area which now forms Long Ditton.

Two Dittons appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Ditone and Ditune. The one that became known as Long Ditton was held by Picot from Richard Fitz Gilbert. The one that became known as Thames Ditton was held by Wadard from Bishop Odo. Long Ditton's Domesday assets were: 4 hides; 1 church, 1 mill worth 9s, 3½ ploughs, woodland worth 15 hogs, 1 house in Southwark paying 500 herrings. It rendered £2 10s 0d.

Despite a mix of period properties and a community feel, there are few traces of Long Ditton's more distant past to be found around town. In the 16th century the manor fell into the hands of a George Evelyn, whose family took a dynastic hold over the village's prosperity. The Evelyns had the foresight, or good fortune, to be producing gunpowder during a rather explosive period of history. Gunpowder mills proliferated across Long Ditton and beyond to keep up with demand, and the Evelyns set about buying up much of the country that was busy blowing itself up with the family's finest powder.

George's grandson John Evelyn, who gained posthumous fame for his Diary, had to flee the country during the civil war as swathes of family land fell awkwardly between Royalist and Roundhead strongholds. It was John who gleaned further prestige for the family name with his assimilation into the Royal Court of Charles II. When St Mary's Church was re-built in 1880, and monuments erected to commemorate local dignitaries, there were few other Long Ditton celebrities to celebrate, and the place became something of an Evelyn shrine.

Burials in the churchyard include that of Terence Patrick O'Sullivan.

Recent years

In more recent years Long Ditton has become a dormitory town and is well regarded as one of the first leafy suburbs within easy reach of London. Whilst enjoying its status as part of Elmbridge, the wealthiest borough in the country, some argue that more logically it forms a part of urban Surbiton. Others believe Long Ditton maintains the character of a village. Long Ditton also has a cricket club which holds the heart of the town, the cricket club has been there for over 3 generations and is a beloved part of the community, bringing young and old together within the community.

Residents' Association

The Long Ditton Residents' Association (LDRA) is a subscription-based body whose aims are to preserve Long Ditton from over-development, maintain its character, improve its amenities and defend its surrounding Metropolitan Green Belt.

External links

Media related to Long Ditton at Wikimedia Commons