Woking, the largest town in Surrey, has a remarkable, indeed fascinating, history. Uniquely among European towns, it owes its modern origins to a cemetery company, which exploited the potential of an abundance of cheap land within easy reach of London (hard to believe though that might now be) to promote speculative buildings around a railway station in the midst of an empty heath. Its eccentric development continued as the location of two convict prisons, a huge lunatic asylum, Britain’s first crematorium, a retirement home for actors and actresses, the first purpose-built mosque in Western Europe and an Oriental Institute which almost became a university. To the casual observer in the 20th century the town seemed the archetypal dormitory suburb, but appearances can be deceptive.
Woking's recorded history goes back more than thirteen centuries, to the days when Surrey was a kingdom in its own right and a monastery was founded there, next to the tranquil waters of the River Wey. The first full account of the story of his home town was written in 1982 by Alan Crosby. A bestseller, it established itself not only as the definitive work on Woking but also as one of the finest town histories published in the 1980s. Now, over twenty years later, Dr Crosby has fully rewritten his famous book, with many new and previously unpublished illustrations, adding plenty of extra details of Woking’s past and bringing the story right up-to-date. It is a story superbly told and magnificently illustrated, building on the solid strengths of the previous book but, in reality, an entirely new work.
For everyone with any interest in Woking, Byfleet, Pyrford or Horsell and their collective or individual past or who wants to understand why Woking is like it is today, this is the essential book!
Contents:
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Before the Railways Came
A New Town Grows
People and Government
Between the Wars
Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
Endnote
Sources and Bibliography
Index
