Along with Rosendale Road, the Tottenham estate marked a new departure for Peabody. These were the first estates where Peabody built cottages rather than just flats.

The land on which the Tottenham estate stands was once open fields, and later part of it was occupied by White Hart Nursery. Old maps show several glasshouses where plants would have been cultivated. We bought the site in 1903, and in a separate deal with the London County Council, agreed to straighten out the western boundary which originally followed the path of a stream.

In 1905, the Peabody Trustees commissioned builders to construct 154 cottages at a total cost of £63,795. Improved public transport meant it was no longer essential for tenants to live close to their workplaces, so estates could be built further from the centre of London. The estate was opened in 1907.

In October 1940, nine cottages were destroyed by bombing and four tenants were killed. A later raid caused further damage and the death of another resident. Almost all the estate’s children were evacuated to the country at the start of the war, but by September 1942 they had all returned and 138 children below the age of 15 were living on the estate.

After the war, we replaced the homes that had been destroyed and added prefabricated bathrooms to most of the original cottages.