The Underground Map

The Underground Map is a project which is creating street histories for the areas of London and surrounding counties lying inside the M25.

In a series of maps from the 1750s until the 1950s, you can see how London grew from a city which only reached as far as Park Lane into the post war megapolis we know today. There are now over 85 000 articles on all variety of locations including roads, houses, schools, pubs and palaces.

You can begin exploring by choosing a place from the dropdown list at the top.

As maps are displayed, click on the markers to view location articles.

Latest on The Underground Map...

Yiewsley

Yiewsley is a large suburban village in the London Borough of Hillingdon. Yiewsley’s transition from an agrarian community began when the Grand Junction Canal was opened. Construction started in May 1793 and connected the area to the Thames at Brentford, passing through Yiewsley on its way north following the River Colne. An aqueduct was built at Cowley Lock to cross the Fray’s River. In 1794, the canal opened between the Thames and Uxbridge, and in 1795, the aqueduct over the Fray’s River was likely completed.

The following year, in 1796, Colham Wharf, Yiewsley’s first dock, was established near Colham Bridge. In 1801, the Paddington Arm of the canal opened, connecting the area to national trade routes.

The canal played a vital role in transporting Cowley stock bricks, which were made from the abundant brick-earth in Yiewsley. The bricks were transported mainly along the Grand Junction Canal and the Regent’s Canal to supply the demand for building materials in Victorian London.

By t...

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NOVEMBER

2023

South Harrow
South Harrow originally spread south and west from the hamlet of Roxeth as a result of easier access from Central London by rail In the 1890s, the Metropolitan District Railway, which later became the District Line but was operating as an independent company at the time, recognised the inadequate service to Uxbridge and Harrow. To address this, they proposed the construction of a railway line towards both towns, and this led to the formation of the Ealing & South Harrow Railway. The railway line was intended to extend to South Harrow, which was then a rural area located to the south of Roxeth.

Construction of the railway line was completed by 1899, but the District Line faced financial difficulties that delayed its opening until 1903. Consequently, South Harrow became the terminus of a line extending from Park Royal & Twyford Abbey. The location around Northolt Road subsequently developed into South Harrow’s own commercial and residential hub.

The original station building was approximately 170 metres south of the present-day station. This extension marked a significant miles...
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SEPTEMBER

2023

Great Portland Street
Great Portland Street is a London Underground station near Regent’s Park Great Portland Street station was opened on 10 January 1863 as Portland Road, renamed Great Portland Street and Regents Park in 1923 and changed to its present name on 1 March 1917.

The station’s present structure, constructed in 1930, is situated on a traffic island at the intersection of Marylebone Road, Great Portland Street and Albany Street. This building features a steel-framed design with a cream terracotta exterior. The station’s perimeter also houses shops and, in the past, included a car showroom with office spaces above it. Notably, Great Portland Street was a significant sales location for the motor industry. The station’s architectural design, credited to C.W. Fowler, earned it a Grade II listing in January 1987.

The area around Great Portland Street station offers various points of interest. Regent’s Park and the iconic BT Tower are nearby attractions. Additionally, the station’s proximity to Regen...
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SEPTEMBER

2023

Courtfield Gardens, SW5
Courtfield Gardens is named after the field beneath it, cultivated until the 19th century According to 16th-century records, Courtfield Gardens was built on a vast open meadow known as Great Courtfield. This meadow was surrounded by fertile land and small farms and was part of a large area of land that extended from Cromwell Road to The Old Brompton Road in one direction, and from Gloucester Road to Earl’s Court Road in the other direction. Great Courtfield was included in the Earl’s Court ’manor’.

During the 18th century, Earl’s Court House, a grand manor house, was constructed on the land that is now the western terrace of Barkston Gardens. This building replaced an extensive dwelling that was described in 1705 as having fountains, a marble-tiled dairy, engines for water, and impressive gates at its entrance.

In the 19th century, the area surrounding Courtfield Gardens was developed with rows of terraced houses, as the demand for housing in London grew. Earl’s Court House was demolished in the middle of th...
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JUNE

2023

Alba Place, W11
Alba Place is part of the Colville Conservation Area Originally the stable house accommodation for the main houses on Lancaster Road, the primary purpose of the Mews properties is now residential.

Alba Place is located on the site of an original Mews but has been redeveloped to a degree that it no longer contains any surviving Mews properties. It is a gated cul-de-sac off Portobello Road in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, almost opposite Hayden’s Place (another redeveloped Mews). It contains 16 properties used for residential purposes.

Alba Place was Albion Place until 1937, one of the many patriotic names dating from the period immediately following the Crimean War.
»read full article

LATEST LONDON-WIDE CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE PROJECT

Eileen Brecknock Road, N7 Added: 10 Nov 2023 09:42 GMT	Brecknock Road Pleating Company My great grandparents ran the Brecknock Road pleating Company around 1910 to 1920 and my Grandmother worked there as a pleater until she was 16. I should like to know more about this. I know they had a beautiful Victorian house in Islington as I have photos of it & of them in their garden. Source: Family history Reply
Squirrel’s Lane, IG9 Added: 6 Nov 2023 16:59 GMT	061123 Why do Thames Water not collect the 15 . Three meter lengths of blue plastic fencing, and old pipes etc. They left here for the last TWO Years, these cause an obstruction,as they halfway lying in the road,as no footpath down this road, and the cars going and exiting the park are getting damaged, also the public are in Grave Danger when trying to avoid your rubbish and the danger of your fences. Source: Squirrels Lane. Buckhurst Hill, Essex. IG9. I want some action ,now, not Excuses.MK. Reply
Christian Cornwall Road, W11 Added: 31 Oct 2023 10:34 GMT	Cornwall Road, W11 Photo shows William Richard Hoare’s chemist shop at 121 Cornwall Road. Reply
Vik Oaks Road, TW6 Added: 30 Oct 2023 18:48 GMT	Old pub sign from the Rising Sun Hi I have no connection to the area except that for the last 30+ years we’ve had an old pub sign hanging on our kitchen wall from the Rising Sun, Stanwell, which I believe was / is on the Oaks Rd. Happy to upload a photo if anyone can tell me how or where to do that! Reply
Phillip Martin Ashburnham Place, SE10 Added: 16 Oct 2023 06:25 GMT	16 Ashburnham Road On 15 October 1874 George Frederick Martin was born in 16 Ashburnham Road Greenwich to George Henry Martin, a painter, and Mary Martin, formerly Southern. Reply
Christine Bithrey Holly Park, N4 Added: 15 Oct 2023 15:20 GMT	The Hollies (1860 - 1900) I lived in Holly Park Estate from 1969 I was 8 years old when we moved in until I left to get married, my mother still lives there now 84. I am wondering if there was ever a cemetery within The Hollies? And if so where? Was it near to the Blythwood Road end or much nearer to the old Methodist Church which is still standing although rather old looking. We spent most of our childhood playing along the old dis-used railway that run directly along Blythwood Road and opposite Holly Park Estate - top end which is where we live/ed. We now walk my mothers dog there twice a day. An elderly gentleman once told me when I was a child that there used to be a cemetery but I am not sure if he was trying to scare us children! I only thought about this recently when walking past the old Methodist Church and seeing the flag stone in the side of the wall with the inscription of when it was built late 1880 If anyone has any answers please email me [email protected] Reply
Chris hutchison Broadhurst Gardens, NW6 Added: 15 Oct 2023 03:04 GMT	35 broadhurst gardens. 35 Broadhurst gardens was owned by famous opera singer Mr Herman “Simmy”Simberg. He had transformed it into a film and recording complex. There was a film and animation studio on the ground floor. The recording facilities were on the next two floors. I arrived in London from Australia in 1966 and worked in the studio as the tea boy and trainee recording engineer from Christmas 1966 for one year. The facility was leased by an American advertising company called Moreno Films. Mr Simbergs company Vox Humana used the studio for their own projects as well. I worked for both of them. I was so lucky. The manager was another wonderful gentleman called Jack Price who went on to create numerous songs for many famous singers of the day and also assisted the careers of Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff. “Simmy” let me live in the bedsit,upper right hand window. Jack was also busy with projects with The Troggs,Bill Wyman,Peter Frampton. We did some great sessions with Manfred Mann and Alan Price. The Cream did some demos but that was before my time. We did lots of voice over work. Warren Mitchell and Ronnie Corbett were favourites. I went back in 1978 and “Simmy “ had removed all of the studio and it was now his home. His lounge room was still our studio in my minds eye!! Reply
Sue L Battersea Added: 13 Oct 2023 17:21 GMT	Duffield Street, Battersea I’ve been looking for ages for a photo of Duffield Street without any luck. My mother and grandfather lived there during the war. It was the first property he was able to buy but sadly after only a few months they were bombed out. My mother told the story that one night they were aware of a train stopping above them in the embankment. It was full of soldiers who threw out cigarettes and sweets at about four in the morning. They were returning from Dunkirk though of course my mother had no idea at the time. I have heard the same story from a different source too. Reply

Click here to explore another London street
We now have 628 completed street histories and 46872 partial histories

OCTOBER

2022

Headstone Lane, HA2
Headstone Lane connects the Hatch End area with Harrow and Wealdstone. Headstone is a residential area that lies immediately north of North Harrow. The two areas are separated by a green buffer zone that includes the Headstone Manor, a moated manor site, as well as football and rugby pitches. Despite this separation, there are some areas of overlap between the two neighbourhoods. To the west of Headstone is Pinner Park, which is predominantly an agricultural pasture

In the early 14th century, the settlement located here was called Hegeton, which probably meant ‘the farmstead enclosed by a hedge’. The land was owned by Wulfred, Archbishop of Canterbury, in AD 825. Later on, in the 1310s, a moated manor house was built, which became the main Middlesex residence of the archbishops of Canterbury in 1397. A small barn was also constructed around the same time and was rebuilt at least twice. A larger tithe barn was added in 1506.

In 1546, the estate was confiscated by the Crown, sold to a court favourite within a week, and...
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OCTOBER

2022

Droop Street, W10
Droop Street is one of the main east-west streets of the Queen’s Park Estate. During the Victorian era, the concept of a cottage estate was created, taking advantage of the railway network and railway companies’ low-priced workman’s fares. It was a self-contained community of affordable houses built on open land outside of the city centre. William Austin, an ex-labourer turned philanthropist, founded the Artisan’s, Labourers’, and General Dwellings Company in 1867.

The Queen’s Park Estate, named in honour of Queen Victoria, was founded in 1874 by the Company, which purchased six fields on the north side of Harrow Road, just east of its intersection with Ladbroke Grove and Kilburn Lane, from All Souls College, Oxford. At that time, the only buildings in the area were a church, parsonage, and school at the Harrow Road crossroads, a couple of farms in Kilburn Lane, and Kensal House, as well as a tea garden and a few cottages, in the small triangle between the canal and Harrow Road.

Over the following twel...
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OCTOBER

2022

Bayard’s Bridge
Bayard’s Bridge took the Uxbridge Road over the River Westbourne. The origin of the river name Westbourne is not clear and does not appear before the 19th century. The areas named Westbourne such as Westbourne Grove were called that as they lay west of the bourne or river.

The river itself was named Bayswater Brook and named the Westbourne later on.

The name Bayswater is said to have derived from ’Bayard’s Watering Place’, first recorded in 1380, where the River Westbourne passed under the Uxbridge road (now Bayswater Road), a ‘bayard’ being a horse which would have taken water from the river.

Another explanation is that the land now called Bayswater belonged to the Abbey of Westminster when the Domesday Book was compiled; the most considerable tenant under the abbot was Bainiardus, may therefore be concluded that this ground known for its springs of excellent water, once supplied water to Baynard, his household, or his cattle; that the memory of his name was preserved in t...
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OCTOBER

2022

Ormond Mews
Ormond Mews - also Ormond Yard - was made up of two extensive rows of mews and was situated just south of Great Ormond Street. Its primary entrance was directly across from the entrance to the world-renowned children’s hospital and is still recognisable today. The mews was first documented on the 1746 Roque map, with Queen Square, located nearby, having been established two decades prior. The area north of Queen Square was still considered open countryside at the time.

Access to the mews was available via today’s Barbon Close to the north and Ormond Close to the west. At the time when it was called Ormond Mews, Ormond Yard was situated slightly to the east and had its own exit onto Great Ormond Street. It appears that Orchard Yard was renamed to Ormond Place by 1819 and, ten years later, it was renamed again to Little Ormond Yard. Around the same time, Ormond Mews was renamed Great Ormond Yard.

Great Ormond Yard was renamed Ormond Yard after 1885. Lansdowne Mews became Ormond Mews in 1937. Ormond Close was also the name for a while - naming is very confusing here!
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OCTOBER

2022

Bell Lane, E1
Bell Lane has late C16/early C17 origins, dividing the Halifax estate from the nearby tenter ground. Located in Spitalfields, Bell Lane is a short road that links Goulston Street and Crispin Street.

The Jewish Free School, once the largest educational institution in the British Empire with a student body of over 4300, used to stand next to a chicken slaughterhouse on this street until its demolition in 1939. The colossal size of the school building created a cramped atmosphere on Bell Lane. Across the street from the school, at number 12, resided Ikey Solomons in the 1820s. Ikey Solomons was a Jewish fence who received stolen goods and is thought to be the inspiration for the character of Fagin in Charles Dickens’ novel, Oliver Twist.

Many notable figures, such as Joe Loss, Bud Flanaghan, and Morris "Two Gun" Cohen (a Chinese political activist), received their education at this institution.
»read full article

OCTOBER

2022

Keystone Crescent, N1
Keystone Crescent has the smallest radius of any crescent in Europe, and has a collection of old preserved houses. In 1846, Robert James Stuckey, the son of a Shoreditch bricklayer, built Keystone Crescent along with over 100 other properties in the area. The crescent, which originally comprised 24 houses, was constructed speculatively and was initially named Caledonian Crescent.

Keystone Crescent has a unique feature of a matching inner and outer circle. The houses are uniform in design, featuring a round arched doorway, Welsh slate roof, and a stucco band around the second storey.

The Stuckey family held onto many of the properties and rented them out, with the estate office located at number 2A.

During the construction of the Channel Tunnel in the early 1990s, plans were initially proposed to build a new station next to King’s Cross. This would have resulted in the destruction of 83 homes and 53 shops, covering 17 acres of land. Additionally, half of Keystone Crescent would have had to be demolished in order to excavate the necessary space for ...
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OCTOBER

2022

Stonebridge
Stonebridge was named after a stone bridge built in the late 17th century (when most bridges were of wood) over the River Brent. The exclusive Craven Park Estate, consisting of large houses, was built in the Stonebridge area during the 1860s, along with the construction of the Dudding Hill Line by the Midland Railway. The estate failed to become an up-market suburb due to the general expansion of London, increasing industry, and the building of low-quality, cheap housing. As a result, Stonebridge became a low-income area, and in the 1960s and 1970s, the Stonebridge Estate was built, consisting of more than 2000 mostly high-rise units.

Some improvements were made in the early 1990s as a result of government funding, but the area continued to face significant social issues. The most significant improvements occurred after 2000, with the comprehensive redevelopment of the 1960s and 1970s housing, resulting in a traditional street layout of two- and three-story houses, often with four-story flats around street junctions.

Stonebridge is geographically adjacent to the Park Royal industri...
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OCTOBER

2022

Bermondsey Square, SE1
Bermondsey Square is located on Tower Bridge Road, the former the site of Bermondsey Abbey. The earliest medieval remains found in Bermondsey Square were a Norman church from around 1080, which was recorded in the Domesday Book.

Long Lane, which leads northwest to Borough High Street, originally linked the Abbey with St George the Martyr church. To the west of Bermondsey Square is Bermondsey Street, which heads north towards Tooley Street and London Bridge station.

Bermondsey Square was once referred to as the Court Yard and served as the primary quadrangle of Bermondsey Abbey. In 1699, a Puritan divine erected a chapel, which was later converted into a wool warehouse before being demolished. The entrance to the square was once marked by the Abbey’s gatehouse, which stood between the King John’s Head public house and an oil shop but was removed in the early 19th century. The Mansion House was situated between the entrance to the Long Walk and a salt warehouse, and it was built using materials taken from the Abbey.

In ...
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OCTOBER

2022

Mill Street, SE1
Mill Street runs along the east side of St Saviour’s Dock. St Saviour’s Dock, situated at the mouth of the River Neckinger, seems to have been included in the lands of Bermondsey Abbey. Originally a natural waterway, banks were constructed on both sides, and the abbey erected a mill on one side of the dock, possibly during the 13th century.

To the east of St Saviour’s Dock lies Mill Street, which was reportedly named after the mill stream that flowed along its path and powered the mill. The mill was used by the abbey to grind corn.

By the 17th and 18th centuries, maps indicate that the area surrounding St Saviour’s Dock had been fully developed, a process that had started during the 16th century and continued until the beginning of the 19th century.

The photograph here captures a view down towards Bermondsey Wall East, with Wolseley Street situated to the right. The majority of the warehouses were abandoned and boarded up at this time. To the left of the photo is Mill Wharf, which...
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OCTOBER

2022

Goldhawk Road to Shepherds Bush Market walk
One of the shorter walks on the Hammersmith and City. Goldhawk Road is Shepherd’s Bush’s oldest thoroughfare, which underwent improvements in 1864. During these improvements, the remains of the Roman road to Staines, known as the Devil’s Highway, were discovered beneath the surface. The bend at Stamford Brook was not part of the Roman road, as it was known for being famously straight. Over time, the route through Chiswick shifted south, and the New Road was constructed to compensate for this change. The main westbound section of this road was named Gould Hawk Road after Gould’s Farm in Stamford Brook, while the old Roman road continued to the boundary at Emlyn Road. The area had several pubs, and today only The Shepherd & Flock and The Raven have the same name as the original establishments. The notorious remand home for boys, Stamford House, was located on Goldhawk Road, and physical and sexual abuse by some members of staff was common.

Shepherd’s Bush had many stations, and the current Sheph...
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OCTOBER

2022

Clockhouse Farm, NW2
Clockhouse Farm was also known as Clock Farm. In the 18th century, Cricklewood and Childs Hill were both small settlements with Childs Hill being larger. Most of the dwellings in Cricklewood were situated on the Hendon side of the Edgware Road. By 1792, there were some new cottages at Dollis Hill. The area was divided between the parishes of Willesden and Hendon.

Despite its location on the important Roman road, Edgware Road, Cricklewood did not benefit from it. Several streams ran across the road, and one fed a horse pond opposite the Crown pub. As a result, even as late as 1798, the road was notorious for mud up to four inches deep after summer rain and nine inches deep in winter. It was also known for highway robberies.

Before the enclosure in 1823, which allowed farmers to enclose their land and claim common land, there was little development in the area. In 1815, the wasteland along Edgware Road was sold as suitable for building and by the early 1850s, several houses had already been built.
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OCTOBER

2022

Cricklewood Broadway, NW2
Cricklewood Broadway is the name for the A5 Edgware Road is it passes through the area. In 1868, Childs Hill and Cricklewood station, later renamed Cricklewood, opened its doors to the public. The following year, Mr H. Finch laid out several streets behind the Crown Inn, including Yew, Ash, and Elm Groves. In the summer of 1881, the Midland Railway Company moved its locomotive works from Kentish Town to the new "Brent Sidings," and by October of that year, new accommodation for its workers, now known as Railway Cottages, was announced.

By 1884, the station had become the terminus for the Midland Railway suburban services. The population grew significantly enough to warrant a new church, and in 1891, St Peter’s replaced a tin chapel. The parish church on Cricklewood Lane was demolished and rebuilt in the 1970s, only to be closed in 2004. Services for Anglicans were then held in the Carey Hall on Claremont Road but discontinued in December 2015.

The London General Omnibus Company started providing services to Regent Street from the Crown...
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OCTOBER

2022

Victoria Embankment, SW1A
Victoria Embankment leads north out of the Westminster area. Francis Webb Shields, a civil engineer, designed the Victoria Embankment in 1861 and submitted his designs to a Royal Commission. His scheme was accepted, and the Metropolitan Board of Works carried out the construction, led by Joseph Bazalgette, starting in 1865 and completing in 1870. The Victoria Embankment is one of three embankments, including the Albert Embankment and the Chelsea Embankment, that were built to provide London with a modern sewerage system and to alleviate traffic congestion on the Strand and Fleet Street.

The embankment was constructed by building out onto the River Thames’ foreshore, which required the purchase and demolition of expensive riverside property. The construction involved facing the embankment with granite and building penstocks to release diluted sewage during rainstorms and flush mud banks. The embankment was also the location for the cut-and-cover tunnel for the District Railway, which was roofed over to support the roadway.»more

OCTOBER

2022

Florin Court, EC1A
Florin Court is a classic Art Deco building in Clerkenwell. Florin Court at Charterhouse Square features an impressive curved façade with projecting wings, a roof garden, setbacks on the eighth and ninth floor and a basement swimming pool.

Constructed in 1936 by Guy Morgan and Partners, who had previously worked for Edwin Lutyens until 1927, the building at 6-9 Charterhouse Square in Clerkenwell was one of the earliest residential apartment blocks in the area. The walls were made of beige bricks that were specially manufactured by Williamson Cliff Ltd and placed over a steel frame.

Regalian Properties renovated the building in the late 1980s, under the guidance of Hildebrand & Clicker architects, to create the interior layout and additional facilities that exist today. Before the refurbishment, the ground floor included a porter’s office and a flat for the head porter. The entrance hall had a marble floor adorned with the Charterhouse arms (now covered with carpet), and an inlaid ceiling covered the exterio...
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OCTOBER

2022

Allsop Farm
Allsop Farm stood on the north side of Marylebone Road. Thomas Allsop built a farm on Marylebone Road soon after its construction in 1757. He was described as a `cow-keeper’, and a cow-yard is still shown on maps of the 1830s, but by that time his grazing land was covered by Allsop’s Buildings, Allsop’s Mews and Allsop’s Place. Only the Place now remains.

The Allsop Arms in Gloucester Place was also built on part of the farm.
»read full article

OCTOBER

2022

Colville Terrace, W11
Colville Terrace, W11 has strong movie connnections. Colville Terrace began the 20th century well-to-do but some time before World War Two the houses became multi-occupied. The street suffered some bomb damage in the Blitz and hosted the local communists’ headquarters. In the late 50s numbers 2, 9, 10, 19, 22 and 24 were Rachman houses occupied by West Indian immigrants and prostitutes, including Majbritt Morrison who wrote the ’Jungle West 11’ book.

In the 1958 riots they became targets for the fascist-influenced local mob. In 1960 the basement of number 24 was put under police surveillance and duly established to be a brothel. Michael de Freitas, who was living on the top floor, was arrested but the police couldn’t prove he was the landlord.
Colville Terrace also hosted several West Indian blues clubs including Sheriff’s gym and the Barbadian La Paloma. In the early 70s number 42, at the east end of Powis Square, became renowned as the gay hippy commune, which was evicted and re-hou...
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OCTOBER

2022

Hillingdon
Hillingdon is an area within the London Borough of the same name. Hillingdon was an ancient parish, and had within it the chapelry of Uxbridge, which became a separate civil parish in 1866.

Eventually part of Uxbridge Urban District Council, under the London Government Act 1963, Hillingdon became the name of the westernmost borough of Greater London in 1965.

The Metropolitan Railway (Harrow and Uxbridge Railway) constructed the line between Harrow on the Hill and Uxbridge; this was opened on 4 July 1904, with an intermediate station at Ruislip. At first services were operated by steam trains, but electrification was completed on 1 January 1905.

Development in north Middlesex after the First World War led to the opening of additional stations on the London Underground Uxbridge branch. Hillingdon was the last of these to open, on 10 December 1923, with Metropolitan and District line services. In 1933, the District line service was replaced by the Piccadilly line.

The A40 Western Avenue was r...
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OCTOBER

2022

Uxbridge
Uxbridge, a Middlesex market town, lies at the end of the Metropolitan and Piccadilly lines. The origin of the name "Uxbridge" can be traced back to the "Wuxen Bridge," which was believed to be located near the current site of the "Swan and Bottle" pub on Oxford Road. The Wuxen tribe, a Saxon group from the seventh century, gave the area its name.

Today, the town centre is home to major retail outlets and office buildings, including the main European offices of several international companies. Brunel University is also located in Uxbridge, and it serves as the civic centre of the London Borough of Hillingdon. The civic centre is an award-winning building that was designed in the 1980s, during the postmodernist architectural trend. RAF Uxbridge is located nearby, and it was instrumental in controlling much of the Battle of Britain through its 11 Group command centre.

During the construction of the new shopping mall, The Chimes, archaeologists discovered Bronze Age remains dating back to before 700 BC and medieval remains. Paleolithic remains have ...
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OCTOBER

2022

Pennington Street, E1W
Pennington Street is an east-west road in St George in the East, north of London Dock. After Queen Anne ascended the throne from 1702-14, the Tories took control following 22 years of Whig governance. Under the Acts of Settlement, which aimed to ensure the Protestant succession, a New Churches in London & Westminster Act of 1710/1711 was enacted. This established a Commission tasked with constructing fifty new churches in densely populated districts, reflecting a political and religious agenda. The imposing structures were intended to demonstrate the national religion and tower over the homes of the working class, especially in the East End where many dissenting conventicles existed due to immigration. To fund this initiative, a tax on coal was imposed, theoretically providing an infinite budget, but only twelve churches were ever completed, including St George-in-the-East. The churches exceeded their budgets, and the scheme eventually came to a halt. Architect Nicholas Hawksmoor designed six of the churches.

When St George in the East was consecrated on ...
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OCTOBER

2022

Colombo Street, SE1
Colombo Street was - until 1937 - called Collingwood Street. Colombo Street, just south of Christ Church in Blackfriars Road, was at first called Green Walk before it became Collingwood Street. Green Walk, led from the Thames, past Christ Church to a ’tenter ground’ - an area used for drying newly manufactured cloth.

Christ Church had been a new parish formed in 1671 from St Saviour’s, Southwark. The area did not develop until after the building of Blackfriars Bridge and its approach roads during the 1790s. The surrounding marshy ground was drained at the same time.

These cottages of Colombo Street/Collingwood Street were shown on the John Roque map of 1745. The cottages were probably built in the late-seventeenth century and would have been occupied by tradesmen and artisans. They were demolished in 1948 after suffering wartime bomb damage.
»read full article

OCTOBER

2022

Hanging Sword Alley, EC4Y
Hanging Sword Alley is an alley running between Whitefriars Street and Salisbury Square. Hanging Sword Alley was at first known as Ouldwood Alley in the 16th century. It had been named after the sign of a fencing school recorded there in 1564.

The area was in the manor of the Bishop of Salisbury, who owned twenty-four tenements here.

By the 18th century, the street had became known as Blood Bowl Alley after an infamous drinking den. William Hogarth’s 1747 engraving Industry and Idleness showed an apprentice, intent on murder, in Hanging Sword Alley being betrayed by a prostitute.
»read full article

OCTOBER

2022

Hammersmith to Goldhawk Road walk
This is a proposed walk between Hammersmith and Goldhawk Road along the Hammersmith & City Line. Hammersmith station serves as a major transport hub for the area. It opened on Beadon Road on 13 June 1864 as part of a western extension of the Metropolitan Railway - the station was moved south to its present location in 1868. When the station opened, Hammersmith was a relatively small settlement outside London.

The Hammersmith population grew from 10 000 in 1801 to 250 000 in 1901, and a lot of that was due to the railway connecting the area to the rest of the city and enabling its rapid growth. As the population of Hammersmith swelled in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the station underwent several renovations and improvements to accommodate the increasing demand for transport.

As you exit the station and are facing the "other" Hammersmith station, turn left and follow the road left again into Shepherd’s Bush Road, a main road. On its left, you’ll walk past the former site of the Hammersmith Palais.

With a large bra...
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OCTOBER

2022

Kensington High Street, W8
Kensington High Street is one of western London’s most popular shopping streets, with upmarket shops serving a wealthy area. Kensington High Street is the continuation of Kensington Road. It runs through central Kensington, starting from the entrance of Kensington Palace and ending at Hammersmith Road near Kensington (Olympia) station, where the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea meets the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. High Street Kensington underground station serves the street.

The street was home to three well-known department stores, Barkers of Kensington, Derry & Toms and Pontings, from the late 19th century until the mid-1970s. Derry & Toms and Barkers were transformed into Art Deco buildings between 1930 and 1958. Derry & Toms boasted Europe’s largest roof garden area, featuring three different gardens, 500 plant species, fountains, a stream, ducks, flamingos and a restaurant.

The Barkers Group was purchased by House of Fraser in 1957, leading to the eventual closure of all three department stores. Biba was also located on Kensington High Street in...
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OCTOBER

2022

Westminster to Green Park walk
The heart of government .
»read full article

OCTOBER

2022

North Circular Road, NW10
North Circular Road is one of the main arterial roads of London. This was the final section of the North Circular Road - from Hanger Lane to Harrow Road - to be built.

It was opened on 2 July 1934 by Oliver Stanley, Minister of Transport. It involved burrowing under the embankments of 15 railway lines at Stonebridge Park and through the 25 foot embankment of the Grand Junction Canal, building the bridges and aqueduct whilst rail and canal traffic continued. The cost was £95 000. This completed the 20 mile North Circular Road from the A4 near Kew Bridge clockwise to near the Southend Road at Wanstead which had first been thought out in 1912.
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OCTOBER

2022

Watling Avenue, HA8
Watling Avenue is a road which forms part of the Burnt Oak Broadway shopping area. The main shopping parade on Watling Avenue was built in 1930 but the road was originally built to connect the new Burnt Oak station to Edgware Road. Watling Avenue was known as Mill Hill Avenue until 1927.

During the day Watling Avenue is generally very busy, bustling and vibrant. The shops are mainly family businesses serving all sectors of the community but there is a predominance of shops serving the diverse population.

For years, behind the road, and directly behind the shops, the Silk Stream clogs up with silt and refuse.
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OCTOBER

2022

Flanders Road, W4
In the area of Turnham Green station, Flanders Road leaves Bath Road and runs at a diagonal to the latter. Jonathan Thomas Carr - a cloth merchant - was the creator of the Bedford Park Estate. In the initial purchase, Carr acquired 24 acres but adjoining sites were soon added including, in 1877, a 99-year building lease from the Ecclesiastical Commissioners.

The main roads of the Estate were Bath Road, The Avenue and Woodstock Road with all three radiating from the east end of Acton Green. The first houses - in the Avenue - were occupied in 1876 and many in Woodstock Road were ready by 1878.

The Bedford Park Company was formed in 1881, with Carr as Chair and by 1883 there were 490 houses on 113 acres.

Carr fell ill in 1886 with only half of the land built up. The assets were mainly bought by Bedford Park Estate Ltd., which finished the roads.

Ultimately the estate came to be bounded by Gainsborough Road and Abinger Road to the east, Blenheim Road and Marlborough Crescent to the north, Esmond Road to the west with South Parade and...
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OCTOBER

2022

Neal’s Yard, WC2H
Neals Yard is one of the most photographed places of London. Neal’s Yard is a small alley which opens into a courtyard between Shorts Gardens and Monmouth Street. It is named after the 17th century developer, Thomas Neale.

In 1976, activist Nicholas Saunders established the bulk Whole Food Warehouse. He had bought 2 Neal’s Yard, a derelict warehouse previously used by the former Covent Garden fruit and vegetable market a few years earlier. From this success, other enterprises grew in other buildings.

The area now contains several other health-food cafes and retailers.
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OCTOBER

2022

Bevin Court, WC1X
Bevin Court is a modernist housing project designed in the post-war period by the Tecton architects. Berthold Lubetkin, Francis Skinner and Douglas Carr Bailey were responsible for Bevin Court’s completion after the dissolution of the Tecton architecture practice.

The project features the main building of Bevin Court, along with the smaller Holford House and Amwell House.

Bevin Court is situated in Cruikshank Street on the site of Holford Square, which was destroyed by bombs during the war. The project comprises the main building of Bevin Court, Holford House (a smaller building that mimics the form of its larger neighbour), and Amwell House (which is notable for being a modernist interpretation of the bay-fronted Victorian terrace).

Notably, the building is located on the site of the home of Lenin from 1902-1903, where he edited the Russian socialist newspaper Iskra (Spark) while in exile. The building was to incorporate Lubetkin’s memorial to Lenin, which had been located on the site of Holford Square since 1942.
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OCTOBER

2022

Angela Gardens, E2
Angela Gardens opened as part of Columbia Market in 1869 Angela Burdett Coutts erected a market next to her "set of model dwellings for working-class families" called Columbia Market.

The market consisted of four blocks of buildings with arcades surrounding an open quadrangle. There were shops - four stories high- with accommodation consisting of a kitchen, cellar, store and closets in the basement; shop, parlour and private entrance on the ground floor; with a sitting room and four bedrooms on the two stories above.

Those dwellings in the east building were called Georgina Gardens with those in the west building Angela Gardens. Angela Gardens overlooked an ornamental plantation of plane trees and flowering shrubs.

After its acquisition by the London County Council in 1915, the buildings were used as workshops and warehouses until the entire Columbia Market complex was demolished in 1958.
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OCTOBER

2022

West Square, SE11
West Square was developed from 1794 onwards. Immediately to the west is the Imperial War Museum and the Imperial War Museum Annex is to the south in Austral Street.

The terraced houses in the square surround a communal garden that is open to the public during the day. The garden is maintained by Southwark Borough Council.

In the mid-18th century, Henry Bartelote and the West family owned several plots of land in St George’s Fields, with the largest one being located south of St George’s Road, between Moulton’s Close (now the Imperial War Museum) and the estate owned by Hayle.

Colonel Temple West passed away in 1784 and his freehold estate was inherited by his wife Jane until her death, after which it was passed down to his eldest son, Temple. They were given the authority to grant leases of up to 99 years and in 1791 they granted building leases to Thomas Kendall and James Hedger for the side of West Square.

The construction of most of the houses on ...
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