Newington

"NEWINGTON, (or Newington St. Mary), a parish, and suburb of the metropolis, in the E. division of the hundred of Brixton, county Surrey. At the Elephant and Castle is a station of the London, Chatham, and Dover railway, by which line it is intersected. It is bounded on the W. by Kennington, and by the parish of Lambeth, within which parliamentary borough it is situated; on the E. by St. George's, Southwark; and on the N. by the borough of Southwark. The earliest mention of this place under its present name is in a record of Elizabeth's time. Its appellation "Butts" originated from the butts or marks for the practice of archery set up here by order of government in the 17th century, when this parish consisted of open fields. At the end of the last century above 300 acres of land in this parish were in fields and market gardens, but the whole is now built over. The streets, which are in general well paved and lighted, are irregularly arranged, but contain some good modern buildings. On the eastern side of Newington-causeway are situated the sessions house for the county of Surrey, and the county prison, commonly called Horsemonger-lane Gaol; and in the Surrey Gardens is a music hall, converted temporarily for the accommodation of St. Thomas's Hospital. At the intersection of the Kent and Surrey roads is the Elephant and Castle inn; and on the verge of the parish is Kennington Common, now enclosed and planted as a park. The great road from London to Brighton and the S. coast passes through this parish, which includes the populous district of Walworth. The principal manufactures are those of floor-cloth, cabinet goods, and an extensive vitriol manufactory."
[Description(s) from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland (1868), Transcribed by Colin Hinson ©2003]