In 1834 a celebrated highway robbery and murder occurred along what is now Yew Tree Bottom road where it joins the Reigate Road (Purcell's Gap). A Mr Richardson, returning from the Epsom cornmarket to Bletchingley, had dismounted on account of the steep climb, and was ambushed by two men whom he had considered suspicious on his outward trip that morning. Later in that century the railway arrived (1865), primarily to serve Epsom Racecourse. Then in 1880 a large "cottage home" for children opened along the northern edge of Nork, between Fir Tree Road and the railway line. It was originally called "The Kensington and Chelsea District School" and later "Beechholme". At its peak, over 400 children were accommodated. The school closed in 1974 and the area was rebuilt with modern housing.