An
Iron Age settlement existed in the vicinity of the present
St Paulinus Church between the
Julian and
Claudian invasions of Britain, from roughly 30 BC to AD 40. Roman ruins have been discovered and Crayford is one of several places proposed as the site of
Noviomagus Cantiacorum, a place mentioned in the
Antonine Itinerary as being on the Roman equivalent of the later
Watling Street. Crayford is also plausible as the site of the bloody
battle of Crecganford ("Creeks
ford") in 457 in which Hengist defeated
Vortimer to become the supreme sovereign of
Kent. The
Anglo-Saxon Chronicle written around 400 years later describes how
Hengist and
Æsc defeated the "Brettas" at that battle. Crayford is mentioned in the
Domesday Book, which was compiled just prior to 1086, as a settlement within the
Hundred of Litlelee with a church, three mills, and a relatively large population of 27 regular householders (
villeins) and two
smallholders. Its overlord was not a private individual or the king but
Christ Church, Canterbury. As a
(civil/combined) parish (before 1920) it included the hamlets of
Northend, Perry Street and
Slade Green which lie to the north. In 1831, the population of the parish was 2022 people. For centuries it was strongly associated with brick-making, the printing of silk scarves, ties and calico cloths, and for a short period carpet-making. There were two main Manor Houses in the area during the
Middle Ages, Newbery Manor on the site of what is now Crayford Manor House, and Howbury Manor next to Slade Green. Roger Apylton had served Kings
Henry V and
Henry VI as auditor, and resided at Marshalls Court, Crayford. Late in the reign of
Elizabeth I Henry Partich sold Newbery Manor to Henry Apylton of Marshalls Court, and Apylton built May Place close by.
Hall Place, which lies alongside the River Cray, was built for
Lord Mayor of the City of London,
Sir John Champneis, in around 1537. There was also an Iron Mill, which was later replaced by a saw mill (in 1765), which produced the timber for the floor of
Buckingham Palace. In 1623 most of the parish of Crayford was purchased by Merchant Taylor Robert Draper including Newbery Manor, Howbury Manor, Marshalls Court and May Place, where his family took up residence. Draper's wife Anne was the daughter of
Thomas Harman who lived at Ellam House which subsequently passed to the Drapers. The ownerships subsequently passed to Robert Draper's son William, who was selected to be the Sheriff of the County of Kent but died in 1650 before taking office, and then to Robert's grandson, parliamentarian
Cresheld Draper. On the death of Cresheld Draper in 1694, his heirs sold all the properties to
Sir Cloudesley Shovell. Other notable 19th-century local houses included Shenstone (built around 1828 and demolished 1974, the site is now Shenstone School, with Shenstone's former grounds now being Shenstone Park), Stoneyhurst (which became Stoneyhurst Convent High School and is now the site of St Catherine's Roman Catholic School for Girls), Martens Grove and Oakwood – the latter two designed by architect
John Shaw Jr. and built by George Locke of builders Locke & Nesham with each occupying one of the houses.
Industrialisation In 1819, the former saw mill site became a flour mill. Another major employer was the silk works set up by
Augustus Applegath and later run by David Evans. The Maxim Nordenfeldt Gun and Ammunition Factory was also a major employer, until taken over by the
Vickers Company in 1897. Vickers built military aeroplanes and armaments and became the dominant employer, building homes, a theatre and a canteen close to many workshops. The canteen (built during the
First World War) was converted for use by the
Crayford Urban District Council as
Crayford Town Hall and is a locally listed building. Another former major employer in Crayford was Dussek Brothers (part of Burmah-
Castrol since the 1960s) who operated their oils and waxes blending business on Thames Road from around 1928 until the site was bought by BP and subsequently closed down in 2001. The entire site was demolished in early 2010. The David Evans silk works is another recent closure, in 2002. In 1982 a
housing cooperative was built at Craymill next to the A206 road. ==Demography==