West Hackney
| West Hackney | |
| Middlesex | |
|---|---|
 West Hackney Almshouses, Northwold Road | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | TQ340865 |
| Location: | 51°33’36"N, 0°4’12"W |
| Data | |
| Post town: | London |
| Postcode: | E5 |
| Dialling code: | 020 |
| Local Government | |
| Council: | Hackney |
| Parliamentary constituency: |
Hackney North and Stoke Newington |
West Hackney is a village which has become a barely distinguishable urban suburb in eastern Middlesex, to the west of Hackney. It stands on the eastern side of Ermine Street, the major Roman Road better known as the A10.
The area was part of the ancient parish of Hackney, but has come to be seen by many as an informal extension of Stoke Newington.
Its principal railway station is Rectory Road.
History
Early history
The part of Hackney included the hamlet of Newington – entirely distinct from Stoke Newington – which lay between Ermine Street and the Common. The hamlet has now been absorbed into the wider urbanised area.
Newington was first recorded in the 1200s and was traditionally one of four Hackney hamlets (together with Dalston, Kingsland and Shacklewell) which were together rated as having, for taxation purposes, the same number of houses as the main Hackney Village.[1]
Chapel of ease
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The increasing population of the area saw it gain a chapel of ease in 1814, the church of St James, designed by Robert Smirke in the Greek Doric style.[2] In 1825 an new ecclesiastical parish of West Hackney was created and saw St James was elevated to the status of parish church.
First World Way and London's first air raid
The first bomb of the first air raid on London, a 190lb incendiary, fell on 16 Alkham Road on 31 May 1915. The German Army airship LZ 38 had begun the first assault on the capital by a foreign power since 1066. The householder, Albert Lovell, had just returned home from posting a letter. The bomb bounced off his chimney and went through his roof, starting a fire on the upper storey. Mr Lovell, his wife, children and houseguests managed to escape the building, but the raid killed seven, including four children, in other parts of London, outraging public opinion.
The eastern suburbs out of London were at particular risk at this time, due to the Kaiser's order, later rescinded, that the raiders limit their attacks to targets east of the Tower of London. An attack by Captain Lanoe Hawker of the Royal Flying Corps destroyed LZ 38 on the ground, at its base in Belgium a week later,[3] but airship raids on London continued until 1917, with attacks from Gotha bombers in 1917-18.[4][5]
Second World War: The Blitz
West Hackney church was destroyed by enemy action in September 1940, during The Blitz. The remains were cleared away and replaced by a modern building, rededicated to St Paul, in 1960.
After the War
Jack ‘the Hat’ McVitie was killed at Evering Road by gangsters Ronnie and Reggie Kray. The murder was a significant factor in their subsequent downfall and imprisonment.[6][7]
Open Spaces
The largest open space in the area is Stoke Newington Common at 2.15 hectares. Originally known as Cockhangar Green it took its current name in the twentieth century.[8]
West Hackney Recreation Ground is one hectare in extent and was originally the burial ground for St James's church (replaced, after bombing, by St Paul's church).[9]
References
- ↑ A History of the County of Middlesex - Volume 10 pp 38-44: Hackney: Newington and Stamford Hill (Victoria County History)
- ↑ A History of the County of Middlesex - Volume 10 pp 122-128: Hackney: List of Churches (Victoria County History)
- ↑ Zeppelins: German Airships 1900-40, ISBN 978-1-84176-692-8
- ↑ "Alkham Road: The first Zeppelin bomb – Eastlondonlines". 2018-07-02. https://www.eastlondonlines.co.uk/2018/07/alkham-road-the-first-zeppelin-bomb/.
- ↑ London 1914-17, The Zeppelin Menace, Ian Castle, ISBN 978 1846032455
- ↑ "'Singing with people connects you': How four UK streets are living with lockdown". 25 April 2020. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2020/apr/25/singing-with-people-connects-you-how-four-uk-streets-are-living-with-lockdown.
- ↑ Smith, Oliver (25 January 2018). "The Krays in London: 15 sites associated with the twins". The Telegraph. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/united-kingdom/england/london/articles/The-Krays-in-London-15-sites-associated-with-the-twins/.
- ↑ "Stoke Newington Common Hackney". https://www.hackney.gov.uk/stoke-newington-common.
- ↑ "West Hackney Recreation Ground Hackney". https://www.hackney.gov.uk/west-hackney-recreation-ground.