Croydon is a large suburban town and commercial centre to the south of London and forms part of the Greater London conurbation. It gains its name from the Anglo-Saxon for "Saffron valley". It was once a Surrey Urban District Council, but in 1889, through its growing economic importance, it was made a County Borough exempt from county administration. In 1965 it became the London Borough of Croydon, annexing the former Coulsdon and Purley Urban District. It is now governed by a cabinet-style council created in 2001.It is twinned with Arnhem in the Netherlands.Its area is 34 square miles (87 km²). It is the largest London Borough by population. The box, right, gives its rank within England.
The name of Croydon derives originally from the Anglo-Saxon croeas deanas, meaning "the valley of the crocuses", indicating that, like Saffron Walden in Essex, it was a centre for the collection of saffron.Another opinion holds that the name derives from the Old French croie dune, meaning chalk hill. This was because Croydon stands at the northern edge of the chalk hills called the North Downs.
As the town continued to grow, it became especially popular as a pleasant leafy residential suburb for members of the Victorian middle classes, who could commute to the City of London by fast train in 20 minutes. In 1883, Croydon was incorporated as a Borough. In 1889, it became a County Borough, with a still greater degree of autonomy. The new Council implemented the Croydon Improvement scheme in the early 1890s, which resulted in the widening of the High Street, and the clearance of much of the 'Middle Row' slum area. The remaining slums were cleared shortly after World War II, with much of the population relocated to the isolated new community at New Addington. New stores opened and expanded in central Croydon, including Allders, Kennards and Grants, and one of the first Sainsbury's shops.
Croydon Airport on Purley Way used to be the main airport for London before it was superseded by London Heathrow Airport and London Gatwick Airport. Starting out during World War I as an airfield for protection against Zeppelins, and developing into one of the great airports of the world during the 1920s and 1930s, it welcomed the world's pioneer aviators in its heyday. As aviation technology progressed, however, and aircraft became larger and more numerous, it was recognized in 1952 that the airport would be too small to cope with the ever-increasing volume of air traffic. It was decided it would have to close, and the last scheduled flight departed on 30 September 1959.The air terminal, now known as Airport House, has been restored and has a museum open one day a month.
