Place   

River Effra

Categories: Gardens / Agriculture

At the Brockwell Lido plaque there is an information board which begins by explaining the function of stink pipes:
"What is a stink pipe?
The lofty green pipe behind you is a Victorian stink pipe, a hollow pillar built to allow noxious (and smelly) gases to escape from underground sewers into the air, high above our heads. Often unnoticed by passers-by, stink pipes ensured that gases didn’t build up to dangerous pressures in the sewage pipes below.

The ‘lost’ River Effra
Stink pipes such as this one can be found along the course of the ‘lost‘ River Effra, which flowed from springs in West Norwood and Dulwich, passing Herne Hill and meandering through Brixton and Kennington before emptying into the Thames at Vauxhall. The once sparkling Effra was heavily polluted by people and factories until it eventually became an open sewer. The contaminated river was incorporated into the Victorian sewer system in the 1860s. Now the stink pipes are the only remaining signposts to mark where the river flows beneath the streets of Lambeth and Southwark."

The board goes on to explain that while the river has gone, its valley remains and exacerbates flooding in the area. People are encouraged not to pave their gardens. We applaud the message and all the work that is being done on this problem.

For the route of the Effra see Turney and Burbage (2024: link now dead). The northern part of the route, as the river approaches the Thames, is much less certain than the rest.

Lambeth Council commissioned the Effra cast-iron plaques from Atelier Works. They were designed by Faranak, a Lambeth artist.

Diamond Geezer has a very informative post about the plaques that mark the route. We haven't found them all. Do let us and DG know if you find any more.

April 2024: Alan Underwood kindly shared with us his map with 31 plaques plotted. We've published only 17 which leaves a few still for us to capture.

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in here to see them

This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
River Effra

Commemorated ati

River Effra - Barnwell Road

The hidden River Effra is beneath your feet.

Read More

River Effra - Brockwell Lido

The hidden River Effra is beneath your feet.

Read More

River Effra - Canterbury Square 1

The hidden River Effra is beneath your feet.

Read More

River Effra - Canterbury Square 2

The hidden River Effra is beneath your feet.

Read More

River Effra - Canterbury Square 3

The hidden River Effra is beneath your feet.

Read More

Show all 17

Other Subjects

Friends of Burgess Park

Friends of Burgess Park

The Friends of Burgess Park are an association of people and other interested groups who are concerned to protect, promote and enhance an important, inner-city London park.

Group, Community / Clubs, Gardens / Agriculture

4 memorials
Olive Katherine Lloyd-Baker

Olive Katherine Lloyd-Baker

From Cotswoldsaonb: "Olive Lloyd-Baker was born ... the middle of three daughters of Michael Granville Lloyd-Baker, eldest son and heir to the Estate. There are glimpses of her strong character in ...

Person, Gardens / Agriculture, Museums / Libraries, Politics & Administration

1 memorial
Lieutenant Harry Leopold Pollak

Lieutenant Harry Leopold Pollak

Harry Leopold Pollak was born on 18 July 1885 in Marylebone, Middlesex (now Greater London), the second of the eight children of Joseph Pollak (1847-1927) and Emma Jane Pollak née Goldmann (1863-19...

Person, Armed Forces, Gardens / Agriculture, Argentina, France

War dead, WW1
1 memorial
Hampstead Heath

Hampstead Heath

For the history of this beautiful place go to: external site.

Place, Gardens / Agriculture

1 memorial
South Woodford copper beech tree

South Woodford copper beech tree

Located in the grounds of St Mary's Church, South Woodford. We have been unable to discover its age.

Place, Gardens / Agriculture

1 memorial

Previously viewed

Francis Towneley

Francis Towneley

Born into a Catholic Lancashire family, supporters of the Jacobites. Served in the French army for over 10 years and returned to support Prince Charles in the 1745 rebellion. Colonel of the Manches...

Person, Armed Forces, Tragedy

2 memorials
London County Council

London County Council

Prior to the LCC London matters were run by church parishes. The LCC was the first directly elected strategic local government body for London. Replaced by the Greater London Council, covering a la...

Group, Politics & Administration

283 memorials
Shandy Park / East London Cemetery

Shandy Park / East London Cemetery

Shandy Park is a green space a few blocks due south of this site. It was opened in 1837 as the East London Cemetery with its own chapel, by local landowner, John Thomas Barber Beaumont. Beaumont ar...

Place, Gardens / Agriculture

1 memorial
People's Palace

People's Palace

Proposed by Walter Besant, the first People's Palace was built by the Beaumont Trustees, ‘Unitarian philanthropists’, to replace Beaumont's Philosophical Institution which had been in Beaumont Squa...

Building, Education, Sport / Games, Theatre

3 memorials
Imperial College

Imperial College

Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine is an independent constituent part of the University of London. On 8 July 1907, King Edward VII granted a Royal Charter establishing the Imperi...

Group, Education, Race Issues

5 memorials