The Old Kent Road is situated in south east London. It runs in a fairly straight line and is angled north west to south east at a roughly 45 degree angle on a map. It runs for 1.8 miles and forms part of the A2 which (unsurprisingly) leads to Kent. The road is part of the historic Watling Street which was an ancient trackway trodden by the Britons and later paved by the Romans. Watling Street ran from what is now Canterbury to St Albans via central London. As you might imagine such an historic and important route has borne witness to some monumental events. Pilgrims heading to Canterbury as documented by Chaucer, soldiers marching back from victory at Agincourt in 1415, public hangings and more.
In more modern times the road became more industrial with large gas holders built alongside the Surrey canal and railway sidings near the Bricklayers Arms. During the 19th and 20th century the road became known for its organised crime and violence. At one point there were 39 pubs along the road! The biggest changes happened post war when the flyover was built at the north west end of the road, derelict victorian housing was demolished to build housing estates and as part of the 1943 County of London Plan Burgess Park was built. The Surrey canal was filled in and now acts as a green cycleway from Peckham to Bermondsey.
