The Viewing Plaque is installed on the Octagonal Pedestal at the top of Pollards Hill Park

The Stainless Steel Plaque installed onto the Pedestal in 2016

 

The current Plaque is made from Stainless Steel and replaces a Plaque that was installed in 1992, however that Plaque was made in Bronze and it was stolen, some time ago. It is presumed that the 1992 Bronze version of the Plaque replaced an earlier version installed in 1966 and was probably made from Bronze, sadly this was also pilfered many decades ago. Unfortunately not much is known prior to 1966 other than it is thought that the Pedestal was first constructed circa 1920.

Foreword

If we can imagine the view from Pollards Hill without any houses, commercial buildings , or skyscraper blocks, it becomes abundantly clear as to the site'ssignificant military importance. It has been recorded as a hill fort as early as Celtic times. In 1962 a Mr Humphrey's initiated a dig at the top of the hill, where 23 artefacts of Roman origin were found. A conclusion was made that Pollards Hill had been used as a Roman signal post. With the huge panorama and extensive views offered, only Grange Hill restricts the possibility of a 360°viewpoint. Counties that could have been seen, uninterrupted, would have been:-London; Surrey; Kent;  Berkshire; Oxfordshire; Bucks; Hertfordshire and Essex. I wonder how many of you, will remember the Buncefield fire at Hemel Hempstead in 2005, that I, myself, observed from the Drummond Centre in Croydon. That was 30 miles as the crow flies and 27.5 miles from Pollards Hill. I have included some views of London to offer the visual possibility, and some idea of the importance of the hill.

I, for one , have always been fascinated with viewpoints that offer huge panoramas and wonder what can be seen and identified. Our most obvious identifiable, distant, visual point, is the Bagshot Transmitter Tower, on Bagshot Heath, at 27.5 miles. It can be identified on the horizon to the right of the Morden Mosque. Strangely, we live close to visual points for people living many miles distant, away. The two transmitter towers at Crystal Palace can be viewed from many parts of the Home Counties, and help us to identify where we live, our home.

G.Winkworth.

Founding member of the PHRA.

The Photographic Record Of Pollards Hill Viewing Plaque by G Winkworth - The hard copy is held at Norbury library.