Tollgate Road

A photo and information available at http://citytransport.info/Fee.htm. The Carmichaels live on Tollgate Road in Wichwood Village. In real life, this road is called College Road and is located in Dulwich Village in London. Jane Shaw chose its name because there really is a toll gate there, the last one in the city. It was built in 1789 by John Morgan when he rented land from Dulwich College. Here we can see the sign that is how much people had to pay in pre-decimal money. By clicking on the link, you can see more photos, including the toll gate itself, and a conversion of the prices into decimal money. The gate is first mentioned in Chapter 2 of Susan Pulls the Strings:

Opposite the house was the Picture Gallery, which was quite famous, and in front of the houses in Tollgate Road were grass verges surrounded by black and white posts. There really was a toll-gate, too, farther up the road, a trap for unwary motorists who had to pay threepence or go round the other way.