Swanley is a town and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. It is located on the south-eastern outskirts of London, north of Sevenoaks town. The town boundaries encompass the settlements of Swanley itself, Hextable and Swanley Village. Swanley has a population of 20,986 (2001 census). The ancient parish and village of Swanley began life as three houses before the advent of the railway in 1861. The newer settlement grew up around the railway junction and was originally named Swanley Junction; it became Swanley, and the original Swanley became Swanley Village, in the 1920s. Swanley was renowned as a horticultural centre and became known as the "Home of Flowers", a designation recently revived by its Town Council in connection with a major initiative to beautify the town with flowers. Today Swanley is essentially a commuter and distribution centre, trading on its excellent rail links to London and its proximity to the M25 motorway. Its 1960s shopping centre was remodelled in the 1990s when the ASDA supermarket was extended. Swanley was historically a health "resort" and housed an important care home for sufferers of tuberculosis; a number of hospitals were built there in the 1880s and 1890s. The painter James Dickson Innes died there in 1914, aged 27. More on Swanley 

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