North Harrow

I am still on the Metropolitan Line with this station which is on the branch line to Amersham.

This is the 23rd station on this line , leaving me 12 more to visit before completing the Metropolitan line. Due to the long journey out to these stations (it takes about an hour and a half each way), I am hoping to photograph two stations today. Thunderstorms are forecast so I need a little luck on my side today. North Harrow is not that far from other stations I have visited in the area such as Harrow-on-the-Hill, West Harrow and Harrow and Wealdstone on the Bakerloo line.

The Metropolitan Railway first opened in 1863 and ran between Paddington and Farringdon, becoming the first underground railway in the world. Due to the success of this initial section the company extended the line to Harrow by 1880 and Pinner by 1885. As the popularity of the Pinner extension grew, developers looked to build housing estates alongside the line. The general manager of the Metropolitan Railway, Robert Selbie was extensively petitioned by these developers to open a station between Harrow and Pinner and in 1912 the board of the company agreed to build a station at North Harrow. The station was redeveloped in 1931 and has changed little since then.
 

Another of Mark Wallinger's Labyrinths. This one is no 12 out of the 270 he designed. I am hoping that I will find no 1 at the end of this line.

The platforms are above ground so I needed to go down the stairs to the exit. On either side of the stairwell were lots of pieces of artwork.

The art work is centred around the 100th anniversary(2008) of the roundel - the symbol for London Underground and London's transport system. This exhibition for North Harrow features work by local students of fine art and photography. It is all part of the 'Art on the Underground' scheme which offers the tube as a unique opportunity to exhibit work by well established artists or those at the beginning of their careers.

Leaving the station I was surprised by the number of shops. I thought there would just be a few. 

Not many cafes though.

One road I turned down took me into a car park which had this Home Guard Club at the end. The name refers to the Home Guard that was formed in May 1940 in response to the expected invasion by the German Armed Forces. It was made up of volunteers who were either waiting to be called up into the regular forces or were medically unfit to join. Initially the plan was that this lightly armed force would guard key local places such as the transport and the utility services. As time went on the importance of their role increased as they provided prisoner escorts and assisted with anti aircraft and searchlight operations. At the end of WW2 when the Home Guard regiments were disbanded, each of the volunteers were given a bonus of £10 (the equivalent of about £450 today). Using their bonuses a group.of volunteers clubbed together in North Harrow and bought a hut and the North Harrow Home Guard club was born in Dec 1945. The club was moved to this site in 1982.

Behind the club were open fields and then woodland.

I walked through the park and back out onto the road. This is the Wealdstone Motors art deco clock tower dated 1933. It was built as part of a parade of shops with flats above. It was originally known as Morris House as it was built for Stewart and Arden, exclusive sellers of Morris cars in Greater London. I wandered down a few roads. I am still in Betjeman's Metroland with its 1920/30s housing and tree lined streets.  It gave the impression of a  lovely, quiet residential area in which to live but probably not much for me to photograph or write about. 

I then saw a sign for Headstone Manor Park and decided to have a look. As I entered the park I noticed sections of it had been fenced off which seemed unusual.

 

On reading the information boards I discovered that this was the Headstone Manor Park Flood Alleviation Scheme which aims to address surface water flooding in the North Harrow area. The scheme provides basins in the park that will temporarily store water and reduce the risk of the downstream drainage system exceeding capacity during heavy rainfall.

The land that the park is now on has a history dating back to 823 when an Anglo Saxon princess gave it to the Archbishop of Canterbury. Headstone was a working farm for the next 1100 years. During that time it belonged to many influential people including Henry VIII.  The Headstone Manor and museum site consists of four separate buildings with the museum being based in the Manor House itself. The Manor House and its moat were originally built in 1310. They remained symbols of wealth and status until the 1800s.

This is the moat surrounding the house. In 1332 the house was sold to Robert DeWoodhouse, the Keeper of the King's Wardrobe and Chancellor of the Exchequer. Twelve years later the house was sold to the Archbishop of Canterbury and became the Archbishop's main residence in Middlesex. Since 1344 Headstone Manor had belonged to the Archbishops of Canterbury. The farm was let to the Redings who provided services to the Archbishop as part of their rent. These included food and use of the house when the Archbishop and his men visited.  In 1546 Henry VIII seized the entire Headstone estate during the reformation.

Installed when the bakehouse was built in the early 1600s, the window is in a typical Elizabethan style. The fact that a glazed window was included in a functional space demonstrates the high status of the owner. This glass is modern and parts of the frames would have been replaced over the centuries.

The Buttery was the true heart of the medieval Manor House. This space has changed the least since the house was built in 1310. The Buttery would have been used to store food which on special occasions would have provided for the Archbishop's feasts in the Great Hall.

This is the Great Hall where the Archbishops dined in state, conducted their business and entertained visitors. The Great hall is part of the house built around 1310 by the prosperous Ramesey family. Headstone was a house of the highest quality with large flint foundations supporting great oak timbers two storeys high.

With pegged joints and intricate carpentry to the winders and vertical supports, this medieval or early Tudor staircase led from an adjoining space demolished in the mid 1700s. No evidence of the staircase in the room above is visible as it has been boarded over.

Next to the manor house is the Small Barn which was built  around 1550 and until the 1920s  was probably used for keeping livestock such as pigs and goats. Today it is a Grade II listed building.The Small Barn was part of a series of buildings that enclosed the farmhouse. Archaeological discoveries beneath the existing Small Barn show that earlier buildings once stood here. 

The Great Barn formed one side of the farm courtyard. It was mainly used by tenant farmers to store their grain and stable their horses when Headstone Manor was a working farm. The 500-year-old Barn is now a Grade II listed building. It was also the centre of local home front activities in the area during World War II as well as the first home of the museum in the 1980’s.

The Great Barn is now used for specials events and weddings.

The granary was built c1760 to store cattle feed. Originally constructed at Pinner park Farm about a mile away. By the 1980s the Granary had fallen into disrepair so the decision was made to dismantle, restore and rebuild it here at Headstone Manor where it opened in 1991. The building is now used as the Museum's Learning Centre.

Outside the Granary is this wheel showing different forms of transport through the ages and how long journeys would take. For instance being carried in a  Sedan Chair in Tudor times would take you 45mins to get to Harrow school.
 I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to North Harrow and Headstone Park and before moving on to the next station I took advantage of there being a cafe on site to enjoy  a sandwich and cup of tea.

Uxbridge

 I hadn't intended doing two stations today but as there wasn't much to see at Hillingdon I decided to push on and complete the last station on this branch line. So this is Uxbridge. This is the 22nd station I have visited on the Metropolitan Line, leaving me 13 more to visit on this line. Out of a total of 272 different underground stations, this is the 177th station I have explored leaving just 95 to go!

The Harrow and Uxbridge Railway which later became the Metropolitan Railway opened a station in Uxbridge in July 1904. The current station dates from 1938 and serves both the Metropolitan and Piccadilly lines.

It is a large impressive station with a concrete arched canopy stretching out from the ticket hall over the platforms. Near the top of the canopy is a row of windows providing natural light onto the platforms.

There is much at this station that is original including the Buffet sign pointing you towards the cafe. I had completely forgotten that cafes were always called buffets on railway stations.

Another of the Mark Wallinger labyrinths created to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the London Underground in 2013. Each one is different and  can be found at every tube station except the two new ones on the Northern Line. I am looking for the first one in the series. This is 34 out of 270.

As you leave the station you can't miss the stained glass windows by Erwin Bossanyi. The one on the left is the arms of Middlesex County Council. The one on the right is associated with Buckinghamshire whilst the middle one is thought to be the arms of the Basset family used by Uxbridge District Council in 1948.

The station was designed by Charles Holden and is Grade II listed as are most of the stations he designed. The  paired sculptures by Joseph Armitage over the entrance, represent stylised winged wheels as an acknowledgement to the trolley buses which used the large forecourt as a turning circle.

The original sign and roundel outside the station.

The station exits onto a busy High Street. I crossed over the road to look at the church opposite.

The oldest parts of the Church of St Margaret date from c.1240 although there may have been a church here since the 7th century. Around 1820, the tower was rebuilt and the interior was completely restored by the Victorians who replaced most of the stained glass and furnishings. I was unable to see inside the church as it wasn't open when I visited.

Beside the church is the Town's Pump. Uxbridge was supplied with piped water until c1800 when the Grand Junction Canal was built severing the old timber pipes. Wells then had to be dug in the Town Centre and this pump is the 'last relic of the second stage of the attempts to supply the people of Uxbridge with water'. In 1988 the pump was restored and returned to its original location.

There were numerous pubs on the High Street. This one was across the road from the church. The earliest documented evidence of a public house on this site is 1544 but is more likely it dates back even further. It has been known as 'The Axe' presumably at the time of Anne Boleyn's beheading. Then 'The Angel', 'The Jolly Ostler', 'The Hostelry', and then 'The Queens Head' to commemorate Anne Boleyn who is depicted on the pub sign. 

Unusually the pub had its licence taken away in the early 18thh century for around 25 years and disappeared from the records until 1769 when it was part owned by the Rev Thomas Milway and it is possible that it may have been used as a rectory. The fact that there is an underground passage linking the pub to St Margaret's church opposite lends credence to this theory.

The Queens Head has undergone various structural changes having had a stable yard and three separate bars and the pub frontage has had a various number of windows and stable doors to suit its owners over the years. In 1986 it was hit by an arson attack but fortunately there were no serious injuries and it reopened later that year in its present layout.

Also close to the station is The Market House. In 1561, the importance of the market was recognised by the erection of a market house. That one was demolished and this one was built in 1789. It was used as a corn market in the 19th century. It stands on pillars so that market stalls could be put underneath the building.

Throughout the 18th century, the town prospered and became important for its coaching inns. Because of its position on the main road from London to Oxford, by the end of the 18th century up to 40 stage coaches a day passed through the town and would stop here to change horses. During this period there were about 50 inns and ale houses plus four breweries to cater for this passing trade. 

You can still see some of these old coaching houses in the town today with the large entrances big enough for the horse and carriage to enter.

Here is another pub on the High Street. This was another coaching inn built in the 16th/17th century. A 'tun' is a brewery vessel used to mix the grains with water.

Further along the High Street is this Grade II listed timber framed building which also dates back to the 16th and 17th centuries. It, too, looks like a coaching inn. It is now a Japanese restaurant.

This art deco building used to be a department store selling mainly furniture, Although it originated in 1891, the current building was built in the 1930s. The building has been used as a location for the sitcom 'Only Fools and Horses'. It closed down in 2015 and was bought by property developers. It was made a Grade II listed building in 2008 so the frontage will remain as will any art deco features within the building. 

Another art deco building on the High Street is this former cinema built in 1930. You can still clearly see the name Regal. After closing as a cinema, it became a disco and it is now a nightclub. It was listed as a Grade II building in 1977 after a hard fought campaign by the local community who objected to proposals to demolish the cinema and other buildings to build offices, flats and warehouses.

This large building at the end of the High Street is the Civic Centre. It was designed to contrast with other buildings in the town centre yet blend in with local styles by using traditional red bricks and pitched tiled roofs.

I walked back down the High Street with its numerous shops and a couple of shopping malls.

At the other end of the High Street is the 'Crown and Treaty' pub which dates back to 1576. During the English Civil War, Uxbridge was an important garrison for Parliamentary troops. In 1644 an attempt at a peace treaty was negotiated in Uxbridge and the meeting was held here. 

As I left the High Street I was in for a surprise when I came across the Grand Union Canal. I didn't realise it was so close to the town.

 It became more and more attractive as I left the town. The canal was completed in 1805 and linked London with the Midlands.

At 137 miles the Grand Union Canal is the longest in the UK.

This is the former lock keeper's cottage.

I really loved walking along the tow path. But it was time for me to make my way home.

I really enjoyed Uxbridge as there was so much to see and enjoy.