In the time before the railways, the population of Fleet and Crookham was only a couple of hundred people, who mainly worked the land. Today that figure has dramatically increased to in excess of 35,000. When Aldershot camp was built in the mid-1850s army personnel required homes in the vicinity. Many of these gentlemen eventually retired in Fleet and a quick look through the street directories of the turn of the century reveals the names of several high-ranking officers. The London & South Western Railway, which came in 1847, brought many visitors down to Fleet Pond station to enjoy the pine woods and heathland, together with its 134-acre stretch of water. Nowadays the railways carry thousands of commuters in to London daily.