The comedian Paul Merton unveiled the English Heritage blue plaque on Glenshaw Mansions, honouring the home Chaplin shared with his older brother Sydney and recalled as “a cherished haven”.
In 1910 Chaplin left Brixton for America, leaving a note instead of saying goodbye to Sydney.
Merton said the plaque was a reminder of the humble origins of one of the greatest comic geniuses of the early 20th century.
Twice their destitute mother was forced to put the boys into the local workhouse, a time Chaplin recalled with heroic understatement as “a forlorn existence”.