Norham Gardens is a residential road in central north Oxford

North Oxford

North Oxford is a suburban part of the city of Oxford in England. It was owned for many centuries largely by St John's College, Oxford and many of the area's Victorian houses were initially sold on leasehold by the College....

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. It adjoins the north end of Parks Road

Parks Road

Parks Road is a road in Oxford, England, with several Oxford University colleges along its route. It runs north-south from the Banbury Road and Norham Gardens at the northern end, where it continues into Bradmore Road, to the junction with Broad Street, Holywell Street and Catte Street to the...

 near the junction with Banbury Road

Banbury Road

Banbury Road is a major arterial road in Oxford, England, running from St Giles' at the south end, north towards Banbury through the leafy suburb of North Oxford and Summertown, with its local shopping centre. Parallel and to the west is the Woodstock Road, which it meets at the junction with St...

. From here it skirts the north side of the Oxford University Parks, ending up at Lady Margaret Hall, a college of Oxford University that was formerly for women only, backing onto the River Cherwell

River Cherwell

The River Cherwell is a river which flows through the Midlands of England. It is a major tributary of the River Thames.The general course of the River Cherwell is north to south and the 'straight-line' distance from its source to the Thames is about...

. Public access to the Parks is available from the two ends of the road. To the north of the road are Bradmore Road near the western end and Fyfield Road near the eastern end.

History

Norham Gardens was developed from 1860 onwards as part of the Norham Manor

Norham Manor

The Norham Manor estate is a residential suburb in Oxford, England. It is part of central North Oxford. To the north is Park Town with its crescents, to the east is the River Cherwell, to the south are the University Parks and to the west is Walton Manor, on the other side of Banbury Road.The...

 housing estate. Most of its houses are large Victorian Gothic villas. Nos. 1, 5, 7, 11 and 13 were designed by the architect William Wilkinson

William Wilkinson (architect)

William Wilkinson was a British Gothic Revival architect who practised in Oxford, England.-Family:Wilkinson's father was a builder in Witney in Oxfordshire. William's elder brother George Wilkinson was also an architect, as were William's nephews C.C. Rolfe and H.W. Moore .-Career:Wilkinson...

 and nos. 3 and 9 are by Charles Buckeridge

Charles Buckeridge

Charles Buckeridge was a British Gothic Revival architect who trained as a pupil of Sir George Gilbert Scott. He practiced in Oxford 1856–68 and in London from 1869. He was made an Associate of the Royal Institute of British Architects in 1861.-Work:Much of Buckeridge's work was for parish...

. A number of houses in Norham Gardens are now used by the University of Oxford

University of Oxford

The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...

 and its colleges. When he was Regius Professor of Medicine

Regius Professor of Medicine

The title Regius Professor of Medicine, or similar, is a Regius professorship at the ancient universities of the United Kingdom — specifically Oxford, Cambridge, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Dublin.-See also:* Regius Professor...

1905-1919 , Sir William Osler

William Osler

Sir William Osler, 1st Baronet was a physician. He was one of the "Big Four" founding professors at Johns Hopkins Hospital as the first Professor of Medicine and founder of the Medical Service there. Sir William Osler, 1st Baronet (July 12, 1849 – December 29, 1919) was a physician. He was...

 lived at No. 13 with his wife, Grace, who remained there until her death in 1928. Osler and his friends nicknamed the house "The Open Arms" as the Oslers were very sociable, particularly to Canadians and Americans visiting Oxford; Osler having been born in Canada and having worked in both Canada and the US before moving to Oxford.

Literature

The novel The House in Norham Gardens was written by Penelope Lively

Penelope Lively

Penelope Lively CBE, FRSL is a prolific, popular and critically acclaimed author of fiction for both children and adults. She has been shortlisted three times for the Booker Prize, winning once for Moon Tiger in 1987.-Personal:...

and published in 1970.