Beddington Park was originally part of the deer park attached to Carew Manor, which was once a major country house. At its height in the Tudor period the park occupied almost all the land between Mitcham Common, Beddington Lane, Croydon Road and London Road. At the beginning of the 18th century a long canal-like lake was created in front of Carew Manor. There were avenues of trees along either side and two other avenues radiating out across the park from the west front of the house.

By the mid-18th century the fortunes of the Carew family had declined and most of the northern part of the park had been converted into fields. The southern part survived as a deer park until the Carew estate was sold in 1859. Shortly after this the park was acquired by Canon Alexander Henry Bridges, the wealthy rector of Beddington. Bridges lived in Beddington House in Bridges Lane, a short distance from the park. Bridges filled in the long narrow lake and replaced the avenue of trees along it. He carried out a great deal of planting including the shelter belt along the north side of the park and the round spinneys within it. Most of the older trees in the park date from his time.

Beddington Park is a site of considerable archaeological importance and contains may slight earthworks which are probably of mediaeval and later dates.

The Grange (on the west side of the park) was outside the Carew’s deer park. The land was acquired by Alfred Smee in the 1860s who created a very elaborate garden described in My Garden (1872). His son built a house on the site which was burnt down in 1960 and eventually replaced by the present building. In 1935 the house and grounds were acquired by the Borough of Beddington & Wallington and turned into a public park. The garden has been considerably altered over the years but the little stone bridge by the lake, the adjacent rockery, and many trees date back to Smee’s time.

The Grange lake was originally a mill pond. The mill stood at the east end of the lake near London Road. It was a paper mill in 1771, Mr Kilburn’s calico works in 1805, Holloway’s flour mill in 1853, and E Manico’s paper mill in 1879. It was subsequently the Helm chocolate factory. The buildings have been demolished.