Surbiton was a local government district in north east Surrey

Surrey

Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...

, United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 from 1855 to 1965.

Until 1855 Surbiton

Surbiton

Surbiton, a suburban area of London in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, is situated next to the River Thames, with a mixture of Art-Deco courts, more recent residential blocks and grand, spacious 19th century townhouses blending into a sea of semi-detached 20th century housing estates...

 was administered as part of the parish

Civil parish

In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...

 of Kingston upon Thames

Kingston upon Thames

Kingston upon Thames is the principal settlement of the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames in southwest London. It was the ancient market town where Saxon kings were crowned and is now a suburb situated south west of Charing Cross. It is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the...

. In that year a body of improvement commissioners

Improvement commissioners

Boards of improvement commissioners were ad-hoc boards created during the 18th and 19th centuries in the United Kingdom. They were an early form of local government.The first Improvement Commission was the Manchester Police Commission, established in 1765...

 was formed by a local act of parliament

Act of Parliament

An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...

 to govern the area. The Local Government Act 1894

Local Government Act 1894

The Local Government Act 1894 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level under the Local Government Act 1888...

 reconstituted the Improvement Commissioners District as an urban district

Urban district

In the England, Wales and Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council....

, and Surbiton Urban District Council was formed to replace the commissioners.

The parishes of Hook

Hook, London

Hook is a place in south west London, England. It forms part of the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames and is located 13.5 miles south west of Charing Cross....

 and Tolworth

Tolworth

Tolworth is a mostly residential area of outer South London in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, located south west of Charing Cross. Neighbouring places include: New Malden, Kingston, Surbiton, Berrylands, Chessington, Ewell and Worcester Park....

 were added from the short-lived Kingston Rural District

Kingston Rural District

Kingston was a short-lived rural district in Surrey, England from 1894 - 1895.The district was formed by the Local Government Act 1894 as the successor to Kingston Rural Sanitary District.The district comprised the following civil parishes:*Coombe*Esher...

 in 1895 and Chessington

Chessington

Chessington is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames in Greater London, England. The Hogsmill river runs through it. Neighbouring settlements include: Tolworth, Ewell, Surbiton, Claygate, Epsom, Oxshott, Leatherhead, Esher, Kingston upon Thames and Worcester Park.-History:Its name...

 was added in 1933, transferred from Epsom Rural District

Epsom Rural District

Epsom was a rural district of Surrey from 1894 to 1933.It was created in 1894 and covered the area of the formed Epsom Rural Sanitary District - ie the parishes of Ashtead, Banstead, Cheam, Chessington, Cobham, Cuddington, Ewell, Fetcham, Great Bookham, Headley, Little Bookham and Stoke d'Abernon...

. In 1936 the town was granted a charter of incorporation to become a municipal borough

Municipal borough

Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002...

.

In 1965 it was abolished and its former area transferred to Greater London

Greater London

Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...

 to be merged into an expanded Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames

Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames

The Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames is a borough in southwest London, England. The main town is Kingston upon Thames and it includes Surbiton, Chessington, New Malden and Tolworth. It is the oldest of the three Royal Boroughs in England, the others are Kensington and Chelsea, also in London,...

.