History of Hanwell

By Eric Leach

Modern day Hanwell shares a western and northern boundary with the River Brent and the Grand Union Canal. To the east is West Ealing and the southern extremity is Boston Manor Station.

The first known evidence of human occupation in Hanwell is Paleaolithic flints being discovered in gravel pits opposite Elthorne Avenue in 1910. Bronze Age pottery was found in Seward’s Pit and Iron Age pottery was unearthed in land between Greenford Avenue and Copley Close. When the houses on Townholm Crescent were being built in the 1900s a relic of Glaciation was discovered. Called the Sarson Stone, it can be viewed at the main entrance of Elthorne Park. Remains of sixth century Saxon warriors have been found on the site of what is now Oaklands Primary School.

Domesday Book Entry

The Manor of Hanwell or Hannewelle is first definitively mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086. It was measured as covering some 120 acres. It’s thought that Hanwell’s oldest church is St Mary’s Church built in the 12th century. William Hobbayne owned land in Hanwell and upon his death in 1484 he donated a house and 24 acres of land for ’godly uses’ to a charity. His charity survives and still flourishes today. In 1547 Hanwell’s population has been estimated as numbering 265 people. For many centuries the Manor of Hanwell was combined with the Manor of Greenford. It was only in the 17th century that local government in Hanwell was controlled by the Hanwell Parish vestry.

Stagecoaches, Barges, Trains, Trams, Trolleybuses and Buses

In 1714 the Uxbridge Turnpike Trust was founded which managed the Oxford Road (at some point renamed the Uxbridge Road). A toll gate was set up in Hanwell and the ‘Coach and Horses’ Inn was built to service stage coach passengers travelling to and from London and Oxford. As part of the new canal to link Birmingham with the River Thames at Brentford, built between 1799 and 1801, the Hanwell flight of six locks was installed. They raised the Grand Union Canal by over 53 feet. Isambard Kingdom Brunel of the Great Western Railway (GWR) constructed the railway line from Paddington to Maidenhead which opened in May 1838. This included the spectacular Wharncliffe Viaduct which spans the Brent River valley in Hanwell – 65 ft high and 900 ft long. Lord Wharncliffe was the GWR Chairman. The ‘Coach and Horses’ Inn, close to the viaduct, was renamed ‘The Viaduct’. In December of that year Hanwell Railway Station was opened. In 1847 the viaduct was widened. The original viaduct accommodated two tracks of Brunel’s wide gauge railway. New regulation Stephenson narrower tracks were mandated in 1846 and the widening subsequently allowed four track running. Hanwell Station is largely unchanged except for a lift added in 2020.

In 1901 the Hanwell Tram Shed opened in central Hanwell, with tramcars running between Shepherd’s Bush and Uxbridge. Trolleybuses took over the route in 1936 and were themselves replaced by buses in 1960. The tram shed/ bus garage was demolished in recent years and replaced by a Lidl supermarket and free public car park.

Victorian Centre of Innovative Mental Health Treatment

In 1829-31 the Middlesex County Asylum at Hanwell was built, initially housing 300 patients. By 1839 there were 791 patients. The first superintendent was Dr William Ellis. He believed in the humane treatment of patients. After he resigned in 1838 he was replaced by psychiatrist Dr John Conolly, an innovator in the treatment of mental illness, who introduced the principle of non-restraint into the treatment of the insane. This led to non-restraint becoming an accepted practice throughout England. By 1919 the facility was expanded and the number of patients had risen to 2,750. Since then changes in the approach to mental health care have resulted in the drastic reduction of patients over time on the site. The name was changed to St Bernard’s Hospital and in 1979 Ealing Hospital was built on part of the site. Conolly’s name – and fame - lives on captured in Conolly Road and Conolly Dell.

Parks and Open Spaces

Residents in Hanwell are justifiably proud of their parks and open spaces. In 1816 St George’s Fields were set aside ‘for the poor’. Churchfields, surrounding St Mary’s Church and overlooking the River Brent, was bought in 1898 for the public. The 7.5 acres of Elthorne Park were acquired from the Earl of Jersey in 1910. Between Elthorne Park and the River Brent is Elthorne Waterside which was designated in 1970 and is managed for nature conservancy. The Brent River & Canal Society was set up in 1973. By 1985 its aim of creating a continuous and integrated Brent River Park (BRP) was largely achieved. The Hanwell components of the BRP include Brent Lodge Park, Brent Meadow, a large part of Brent Valley Golf Club, Elthorne Park and Elthorne Waterside.

Educating The Poor

District School in Hanwell in 1857 was a major event. Its construction cost £35,000. The establishment was a closed, self-supporting community. It was designated to educate those whose families had ended up in the workhouse. The Poor Law Union and others paid £12,000 to Mr Millard, the owner of Hanwell Park Estate, for some 140 acres of the eastern part of the estate. There were often over 1,000 pupils at the school, the most famous of whom was film legend Charlie Chaplin. The building was extended and by 1900 there were classrooms, residential blocks, an infirmary, and a sewage and gas works. Much of the remainder of the land was farmed by a tenant at Cuckoo Farm. The school closed in 1933 and much of the building was demolished in 1935. The remaining block is now the Hanwell Community Centre.

Hanwell Locks

Celebrations

The Hanwell Carnival, founded in 1898, is London’s oldest carnival. It was created to fund raise for the Cottage Hospital (now Ealing Hospital). The carnival floundered during World War II, but was resurrected with the help of circus showman Billy Smart. Hanwell Clock Tower was unveiled on Hanwell Broadway in May 1937 as part of Ealing’s celebrations of the Coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. The modern design was not liked by everyone. It was renovated in 2002 and although breaking down occasionally, its design has stood the test of time.

From 1960 Jim Marshall owned a music store on Hanwell Broadway. Local Rock guitarists spoke to him about wanting louder amplification of their efforts. In 1962 Marshall formed Marshall Amplification and in creating the Marshall JTM 45 he hit the jackpot. Customers included Rock guitar icons Pete Townsend, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page. Marshall Amps were a worldwide success. Jim Marshall died in 2012. In 2013 a tribute music festival was held in Hanwell and a commemorative plaque unveiled in Hanwell Broadway. Out of this grew an annual music festival called the ‘Hanwell Hootie’. Virtual in 2020, it is now London’s largest one day music festival.

Much of the source for this article is extracted from two excellent books:

‘Southall and Hanwell: History Guide’ by Dr. Jonathan Oates, published in 2003 by Tempus Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0 7524 2638 9.

‘Ealing and Hanwell Past’ by Peter Hounsell, published in 1991 by Historical Publications Ltd. ISBN 0 948667 13 3.