John Rocque's 1745 map of London and the surrounding area includes the Horns Tavern at Knight's Hill, opposite what is now the main entrance to West Norwood station, with a largely undeveloped valley stretching to 'Island Green' in the north, approximately where Herne Hill railway station stands now.

The River Effra ran alongside the current Elder Road, in a northerly direction, and was prone to flooding.

The South Metropolitan Cemetery was laid out in 1837 to provide burial facilities largely for the population of crowded areas that were closer to the centre of London.

Horse-drawn trams shuttled passengers along this road from the terminus in front of St Luke's Church towards the middle of London.

The York Hill, Fern Lodge, Portobello and Holderness Estates arose during the late 1940s and the 1950s on the sites of houses with large gardens that had been destroyed by bombing or were simply demolished.

Later houses and flats, such as in the Dunbar Street area, took the place of Victorian dwellings that were cleared away as slums or, alternatively, to achieve a higher density of development.

The Woodvale Estate in Elder Road was erected on the site of the "Lambeth New Schools", which had been part of the local Workhouse and that had been renamed as "Wood Vale" before demolition.

Local landmarks such as St Luke's Church, the late Victorian fire station (now the South London Theatre) on Norwood High Street, by the architect Robert Pearsall.,[6] The early 20th-century former fire station at Norwood Road and the original public library at Knights Hill are Grade II listed buildings.

[10] Of the original buildings only the porter's lodge off Knights Hill now remains, its curving Dutch-gables, red brick with black diaperwork and mullioned windows echoing the design of the main 3-storey institution.

The Arnold & Jane Gabriel Home was built on the Wolfington Road frontage of the orphanage in 1910; it was converted into Julians primary school in 2012, which now features a colourful modern extension to the original building.

These include: During recent years, the number and variety of churches has increased, reflecting the diverse origins of many new residents.

It is a Grade II Listed Building and the only local purpose-built church in West Norwood that survives but no longer used for worship.