History 

Peartree Green has a long, varied and interesting history.  In his book “A History of Southampton 1700 – 1914, An Oligarchy in Decline” Patterson (1966) reports as follows.  “In 1804 when Napoleon was busy making his invasion preparations, various volunteer groups were given short periods of training in Southampton.  The Fareham Volunteers and the Ringwood Corps had a sham fight on Peartree Green which took the form of a landing from boats on the Itchen Shore and an attack on the Green.”

Also, at the beginning of the 19th Century, Cricket was regularly played on the Green when booths were set up offering refreshments of all kinds and attracting vast crowds.

A great deal of discussion took place on the suggestion of a swing bridge further down river from the ferry at Cross House.  The original plans were to construct a road across the Marsh, with a branch to Chapel, and on the eastern side of the river, a road to link Sholing, Hound, Netley Commons to Bursledon Bridge and hence to the villages of Itchen and Peartree Green.  High tolls were being charged by the Bursledon Bridge Company.  However, the investment by Thomas Chamberlayne and others gave the Company interest in the Commons over which its road would pass and the value of neighbouring properties rose.

However, fishermen in Itchen complained the bridge would affect their egress and ingress and the villagers were unhappy at having to pay a toll, whereas the ferry had been free.  It was therefore agreed that the ferry should continue for foot passengers.

There are several references to the Itchen Ferry, superseded by the Floating Bridge, which ran across the Itchen towards the shore near Peartree Green.  We now have the main Southampton to Portsmouth railway line running along the shore on the west boundary of the site.

Originally there were fishermen and local tradesmen housed around the Green, but more wealthy traders moved in and built more houses around its boundaries.

An 1870 Ordnance Survey Map shows Peartree Green and the pond, at the bottom south-west corner, which we know as the Dew Pond.  This is now overgrown with brambles. The Friends of Peartree Green are hoping to put in a pond on a suitable area identified to the north-east of the site.

Houses were built between the wars on the surrounding roads and more recently the Council used the bottom end of Peartree Green as a refuse landfill site. Until fairly recently this was regularly monitored for methane gas.

Peartree Green is near the site of the historic Supermarine Factory, known for its production of seaplanes and the Spitfire. During World War 2, air attacks aimed at the factory caused major destruction of the houses on the Green and left significant bomb craters, some of which can still be found within the nature reserve.