Anerley is a district inside the south east of London in the London Borough of Bromley. It is west of Bromley and it is 7 miles south south-east of Charing Cross. It is the previous site of the Crystal Palace.
Anerley has not been its own independent entity, but just a general district. Before the closure and relocation of the Crystal Palace to Penge Place at the top of Sydenham Hill, Anerley was an empty part of Penge Common that didn't develop till the 19th century. In 1827, a Scottish silk manufacturer, William Sanderson, bought land around the former Penge Common, and constructed the first home in the district. He named it 'Anerly', which is a Scottish word for 'solitary' or 'only', and the road then became known as Anerley Road and also the surrounding area.
There are plenty of transport links in Anerley, including 9 bus routes, two A roads, two rail stations and one London Overground station and aTram station at Birkbeck station. Transport for London had proposed the extension of Tramlink services from Harrington Road tram stop to the bus station on Crystal Palace Parade by way of Anerley Road, but Mayor Boris Johnson cancelled the £170m extension in November 2008.
Notable persons that lived in Anerley consist of Thomas Crapper, who promoted the flush toilet, in his retirement; Walter de la Mare, well-known poet and author of ghost stories; and James Leavey, award winning Punch magazine columnist.