Chiswick Park

 

Chiswick Park, the 54th station I have visited on the District Line. The first station was opened here in 1879 by the Metropolitan District Railway on its extension from Turnham Green to Ealing Broadway and was called Acton Green. It was renamed Chiswick Park and Acton Green in 1889. It dropped the name Acton Green in 1910 and from then on was just called Chiswick park.

In 1932 the station needed to be rebuilt as more tracks were added because of the extension of the Piccadilly Line from Hammersmith. The Piccadilly line does not stop at the station but runs through on two inside tracks. The new station was designed by Charles Holden and has changed little from Holden's original design.

Sections of the platforms are covered by these cantilevered concrete canopies providing shelter for passengers. Elsewhere on the platforms you can still see original signs from the early 1930s.

Although the information on some of the signs is no longer accurate, I am so glad they have been retained in situ.

This is a view from inside the circular large ticket hall. I was surprised by the size of the ticket hall as this is not a particularly busy station and only serves the District line as the Piccadilly Line doesn't stop here. The only change to this ticket hall since it was built in the 1930s, is the addition of a circular, brick ticket office in the centre.

There are three large entrances to the  drum shaped station.

To the side of the station is a tower which displays the Underground roundel and the station's name.

The building gained Grade II listed status in 1987.

On the other side of the road from the station an open gateway leads you into the Gunnersbury Triangle. A triangular area containing woodland, meadows, ponds and wetlands. The land is owned by Hounslow council and managed by the London Wildlife Trust.

This unusual triangle has developed over time beginning in the 19th century when gravel was extracted from here leaving, in its wake, low lying wetland habitats. In 1878, the land was formed into a triangle when the Acton Curve railway line joined the District and North London lines. In the 1940s the Triangle was used as allotments by railway workers and you can still see evidence of this with a few apple trees and soft fruit bushes dotted around the woodland today.

The allotments were abandoned after the war and nature took over with birch, broom and willow taking back the land. In 1981 the site was earmarked for industrial development but  local nature lovers launched a successful campaign to protect the land. In 1983 the land was designated a protected Nature Reserve. 

However, recent building developments have started to enclose the reserve.

After walking around the Nature Reserve I returned to the road and walked past the new housing development which backs onto the Gunnersbury Triangle. I could see some kind of bridge ahead so went to have a look. 

This pedestrian walkway takes you into the Chiswick Park development.

From the bridge you can see the tube trains going over the viaduct on their way to the next station at Acton Town.

I did go into the Chiswick Park development but then realised that there was another tube station at Gunnersbury that was closer so I will show you more when I write about that station.

Walking away from the station towards Turnham Green I passed the Old Pack Horse which has been around for a couple of centuries. It is mentioned in an advert in the London Gazette as far back as 1697. In the mid 18th century it had an assembly room which hosted evening balls. The name 'Pack Horse' was often used for coaching inns. These were places that provided a resting place for people and horses. The inn provided food, drink and accommodation as well as caring for the horses, including changing a tired team for a fresh one. I crossed over the road to Sutton Lane and noticed a blue plaque on the wall of Arlington Mansions.

Edward Morgan Forster lived here for over 20 years. he only published 5 novels in his lifetime. For those avid readers amongst you I'm sure you will have read one of his novels: Where Angels fear to Tread (1905), The Longest Journey (1907), A Room with a View (1908), Howards End (1910) and A Passage to India (1924). A sixth novel, Maurice, was published after his death possibly because it was a gay love story. Homosexuality was illegal in the UK until 1967 when the Sexual Offences Act decriminalised it.

Across the road is Turnham Green with Christ Church at its centre. Built by Sir George Gilbert Scott (1811-1878) who became one of the most successful church architects of Victorian England. The church is set back from the busy Chiswick High Road and being surrounded by a large green area it has become a major focal point in this part of Chiswick. It became a listed building in 1973.

The names are all a bit confusing as the nearest station to here is Chiswick Park but this patch of green is called Turnham Green which was the previous station I visited.

This large, rather fancy building dates mainly from 1876 although it was extended to the side in 1900 and is known as Chiswick Town hall. Chiswick was an urban district prior to 1927 when it merged with its neighbouring district of Brentford and then became a municipal borough. In 1965 the London Borough of Hounslow was created which swallowed up these smaller municipal boroughs. This was part of a huge reorganisation of London and its urban and municipal boroughs. From 1965 London was arranged into 32 London Boroughs plus the City of London. Twelve were designated Inner London Boroughs and the remaining twenty, outer London boroughs. I live in an inner London Borough which is deemed a more expensive area to live. As a consequence if you work in an Inner London Borough you usually receive an increased salary which includes an Inner London weighting. The Inner Boroughs are: Camden, Greenwich, Hackney, Hammersmith and Fulham, Islington, Kensington and Chelsea, Lambeth, Lewisham, Southwark, Tower Hamlets, Wandsworth and Westminster. Going back to Chiswick Town hall, the building was too small for the much larger Borough of Hounslow but its offices are still used by the borough council.

Outside the old town hall is this gold painted postbox. These are dotted around the country to celebrate those athletes who won a gold medal in the Olympics.  This one celebrates Pete Reed who won a gold medal at the London games for rowing.

Continuing my walk along Heathfield Terrace I passed a group of early 19th cent houses set back from the road. In 1821 the Royal Horticultural Society leased part of the Duke of Devonshire's estate and later held flower and vegetable shows here.

This large building was built as a furniture depository for the Army and Navy department stores. It was converted into apartments in the late 1980s. At one time the front of the building was the headquarters of the music company Independiente.

I carried straight on into Barley Mow Passage walking past The Lamb. This pub was originally established in the 19th cent and was part of the Lamb Brewery which I wrote about when I visited Stamford Brook station. The pub was refurbished in 2014.

As you walk down Barley Mow Passage your eye is immediately drawn to this white tiled building. It was built by Charles Voysey in 1902 as an extension to the Sanderson's wallpaper factory which was opposite. Charles Voysey (1857-1941) was an architect and designer and one of the leading figures in the Arts and Crafts movement. He was best known for his design of country houses, wallpaper, fabrics and furnishing designs. This was the only industrial building he designed.

 

The building was restored in 1989 and is now used as offices.

 

Arthur Sanderson and Son opened a  five storey wallpaper factory in Barley Mow passage in 1893. The business was initially formed in 1860 importing luxurious and expensive French wallpapers and then Sanderson decided to design and manufacture his own wallpapers. Voysey's factory was built opposite to improve manufacturing facilities and was joined to the main Sanderson factory by a bridge across the road.

 

At the end of the passage you can see the bell tower of  the church of Our Lady of Grace and St Edward on the left.  

Around the corner on Dukes Avenue  is Chiswick library which was the home of the Sanderson family. It was given to the community as a library in 1897 and was later extended.

I walked down Dukes Avenue back out onto Chiswick High Road. 

I continued back along the High Street to the station as I wanted to see if there was anything interesting on the other side of the station on Acton Lane.

Here I came across Acton Green Common. Another seemingly pleasant green area.

Surrounding the Common were numerous residential streets but one of them revealed this gem, the Mosaic House. 

The house is home to artist Carrie Reichardt who wanted to create a piece of public art that was uncensored so she decided to use her own home as her canvas. Both the back and front of the house are covered with pieces of coloured tiling. The design tells numerous stories and features work from some of the world's best mosaic artists. It has taken over twenty years to complete. If you want to see more photos go to my other blog here.

I spent a lot of time looking at the detailed designs. Sadly it wasn't until I was home researching the house that I discovered the back of the house is also covered in mosaics. If I am ever in this area again I will definitely return for another look.