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.

Hillingdon

This is the penultimate station on the Uxbridge branch of the Metropolitan line and  also the Piccadilly Line. The station was resited in 1992 and is the most recently constructed Metropolitan line station. To enable the widening of the A40 (Western Avenue) at Hillingdon Circus, the old station was demolished and a new station built to the South. The word Swakeleys on the roundel refers to the nearby junction of the A40. 

Unusual to see a glass covered track and platform.

Going up the steps from the platform the first thing I noticed was the noise. It was coming from the A40. All the time I was walking around the area the noise was ever present. The A40 is a major road between London and Wales.

You can see here the railway bridge crossing the A40. 

I do like the blue clock on the church. I have seen a few churches in this area with similar clocks. The church was first consecrated in 1933, but the clock is a more recent addition in 2018

This won't be a long post as there wasn't much to see. The main town in this area is Uxbridge, the next station on the line which I intend visiting after my brief visit to Hillingdon. I am still very much in Metroland where the railway bought up adjacent land and built land on it promoting living a rural life but working in a city.

A short walk from the station is Hillingdon Court Park. With its football pitches, tennis courts, play area, formal gardens and woodland, it seems to cater for all the community.

 I walked back towards the station past this row of mock tudor shops. It was still quite early on a Sunday morning so most of them were closed.

Crossed the bridge over the A40. Doesn't look that busy when this photo was taken.

I followed the signs to Swakeleys Park which wasn't really that far from the station.

Swakeleys Park is part of the former Swakeleys estate which covered 429 acres. The Jacobean mansion Swakeleys dominated the landscape. The park itself was privately owned until the 1920s, when it was given to the council to be preserved as public open space.   

More recently, additional recreational facilities have been added to the park with this outdoor gym and a children's playground.

Swakeleys House was built between 1629 and 1638 and is an example of Jacobean architecture. It is a Grade I listed building. The house has been open to the public on Open House weekends but in 2015 the property was put on the market for £45 million. In winter you can just about see the house from the park

On the way back to the station I walked past these gates which I assume is the driveway to Swakeleys House. Other than the noise from the A40 this seemed a very pleasant residential area. Houses were all different. Many had large gardens at the front and I assume at the back as well. There were lots of green spaces and the wide tree lined roads gave a feeling of space. Just a pity about the noise.

Ickenham

 

This was my second underground visit of the day. It was only a few minutes on the tube from the previous station at Ruislip to this, the 20th station I've visited on the Metropolitan Line. 

The Metropolitan Railway completed the line through Ickenham to Uxbridge in 1904. Initially the trains were operated by steam but track electrification was soon completed and electric trains began operating in 1905. At first Ickenham was just a halt. A halt is a small station, usually unstaffed with no facilities. The trains stop only on request from the passengers onboard or from passengers on the platform. The halt brought day trippers from London and villagers sold flowers from their gardens and served teas. A shelter was built at the halt in 1905 followed by a booking hall in 1910. The platforms were fully extended in 1922. The halt structures from 1905 were replaced in 1970/71 when the station was rebuilt. In 2021 lifts were installed making the station step free. Due to the age of many underground stations, there are still numerous stations that are not step free and so not accessible to a number of people. Transport for London began a programme of making stations more accessible in 2016 and I think the current figure is now 92 out of 272 are step free.

In 1910 District Line trains were introduced and in 1933 Piccadilly line trains also began to use this track so for a while all three services came through Ickenham but the District line was later discontinued and from 1965 the station served just the Metropolitan and Piccadilly lines. The name of the area was listed in the Doomsday book of 1086 as 'Ticheham' and consisted of 3 estates and this seems to be the origin of the village name of Ickenham. Other interesting information from the Doomsday book tells us that 31 people inhabited the area in 1086. 3 knights, 3 Englishmen, 13 villeins, 9 borders and 3 cottars. Villein was a type of serf who was expected to labour on the lord's land in exchange for some land. He was not a freeman and could not leave without permission of the lord of the manor. A bordar was a middle ranking peasant who farmed more land than a cottar but less than a villein. He was also required to work on his lord's land. A cottar occupied a cottage with a small piece of land in exchange for labour.

 

           

Turning left out of the station took me past a small parade of shops. 

I followed the road round to the right.

Past the modern looking library and into the heart of the old village.

I'm not sure how long ago this was built but at British History online it states that there is 17th century work incorporated into the building. During the 19th cent the pub was used as a venue for the 'Court Baron'. This was a local court used for cases of theft, land encroachment and non payment of rents. On an early 20th cent map it shows that the pub had a blacksmiths attached to it.

Ickenham pump was erected in 1866 under the will of Mrs Charlette Gell of the Buntings who died in 1863. Before the pump was built many of the villagers had no water supply of their own. The well is 144ft deep, sunk through 64ft of clay and sand and then a further 80 ft into the chalk bed. The water rose into the air under artesian pressure and the pond was dug to take the overflow. The pump remained in use until 1914 and was finally sealed in 1921 when piped water supplies made it redundant and the increasing number of motorists considered it a traffic hazard. Plans in 1927 to remove the pump met with strong local opposition.

The octagonal canopy above the pump is supported by twisted columns and decorative arches and was erected to commemorate Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887. The G in the weather vane is for Charlette Gell 

Not much greenery around the pond at the moment but I'm sure that will change over the coming weeks.

Although this was the centre of the old village the pump and pub are now opposite a very busy road junction.

On the opposite side of the road from the pump is St Giles's church which started out as a small hamlet church over 770 years ago. Although a Sunday when I visited, it was closed as it was late afternoon. The oldest part of the building is the nave which dates back to 1250. 

I turned off the main road onto Austen Lane. This used to be farmland but has now been developed into an estate with cottages and flats. The large timbered barn still remains. It has been restored and is used for social events. 

The Hillingdon Trail, a walk of 20 miles through the greener sections of the London Borough of Hillingdon takes you along Austen Lane and through Ickenham Marshes. Ickenham Marsh was one of the commons of Ickenham where villagers were entitled to graze animals. Today it is a nature reserve managed since 1987 by London Wildlife Trust.

There was a small children's playground just off the lane. 

I walked back towards the station across this field.

This is Ickenham Hall, built in the 1700s this substantial building was home to the Crosiers. It is known that the family have farmed the land here since the 11th century. Originally their home was a mud and brick thatched hut. Over the centuries they improved their living conditions by building themselves a farmhouse. In 1700, as the family acquired more land and prospered they were declared 'Gentlemen' farmers and were no longer Yeomen.  To demonstrate their new status they demolished their farmhouse and built Ickenham Hall. The site included a range of outbuildings and another cottage. Since 1990 the hall has been used  as council offices for the Youth and Music services.

Adjacent to the Grade II listed Ickenham Hall is the Compass Theatre. This 158 seat theatre is owned by the London Borough of Hillingdon and was built in 1968. I returned to  the road to discover I had walked in a large circle and was now back at the station. It had been a long but interesting day and I was only too pleased to get on the tube for the long journey back home.