History
The borough was formed by the London Government Act 1899 from the civil parishes of Lee from the Lee District and Lewisham from the Lewisham District. The borough also took in a small area formerly administered by Camberwell Vestry on the western slopes of Forest Hill.
While there had been minor industry along the River Ravensbourne for centuries and the extension of the railways had seen suburban development, there were still large areas of farmland at the time of the borough's formation. The next London property boom in the 1930s saw much of that farmland built upon with both private estates, and the final gaps on the roads to Kent were filled in later on with London County Council built social housing, particularly in Downham and Bellingham.
Read more about this topic: Metropolitan Borough Of Lewisham
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