Whitton, London
Whitton is an area of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England. Historically, it was the north-western part of Twickenham manor, bounded by the River Crane and the Duke of Northumberland's River.
Whitton High Street is one of the best-preserved 1930s high streets in London. The most common type of housing in the area is 1930s detached and semi-detached housing. Whitton lies on the A316 road, which leads to the M3 motorway, and Whitton railway station is on the line from London Waterloo to Windsor. As a mainly residential area in outer London, many residents commute to Central London.
History
Whitton was formally part of the ancient parish of Twickenham until 1862 when it became a separate parish, with the church of St Philip and St James opening that year. Due to rapid development, the parish was divided again in 1958; the two electoral wards that make up the area still broadly follow these two parish boundaries.Bronze Age
In 1999, excavations on the former Feltham marshalling yard, located on the western border of Whitton, unearthed remains of an Iron Age furnace and post holes from a round house. There are various remains of former mills and other industrial archaeological features adjoining the River Crane; this part of the river is classified as an Archaeological Priority Area.Norman
In Norman times, Whitton was the western rural part of Twickenham, which in turn was part of the Manor of Isleworth – itself part of the hundred of the same name in the ancient county of Middlesex. The manor had belonged to Ælfgar, Earl of Mercia in the time of Edward the Confessor, but was granted to Walter de Saint-Valery by William the Conqueror after 1066.Tudor
Around 1540, gunpowder started to be produced on Hounslow Heath, which at the time covered a large part of Twickenham. The site, beside the River Crane, was to become known as the Hounslow Gunpowder Mills, and was chosen in part as it was away from built-up areas, lessening the impact of accidental explosions. The site remained active until 1927.By the 16th century the area that was to become Whitton started to see large houses being developed, as the fashionable society in Twickenham started to spread outward. The Elizabethan and Jacobean courtier Sir John Suckling built a house in the vicinity of the present Murray Park. Sir John later replaced his first house with a grander residence on land adjoining today's Warren Road.
Stuart
Around 1640, Edmund Cooke built a large house close to the centre of the village. In 1709, this house was bought by the court painter Sir Godfrey Kneller, who had it demolished and replaced with a larger house reputedly designed by Sir Christopher Wren. This house was originally known as Whitton Hall, but was renamed Kneller Hall following Kneller's death in 1723. It was considerably modified by later owners, before it was acquired by the state in 1847 for use as a teacher training college. Until 2021 it was home to the Royal Military School of Music.At the centre of the original village, about 200 metres from Kneller Hall, is the White Hart, an inn dating back to at least the mid-17th century and possibly much earlier. Records relating to this inn seem to suggest that Whitton had an importance that was not well recorded, or that travellers passed through it in considerable numbers. A document of 1685 shows that it provided three beds and stabling for ten horses, numbers which did not seem to fit with Whitton's apparent status as a sleepy rural hamlet with only a few dozen inhabitants.
Georgian
At the northern end of Whitton was Whitton Park, the estate of Archibald Campbell, 3rd Duke of Argyll. The Duke established the estate in 1722 on land that had been enclosed some years earlier from Hounslow Heath. An enthusiastic gardener, the Duke imported large numbers of exotic species of plants and trees for his estate; he received professional advice from the Scottish gardener James Lee. After the Duke's death in 1761, his nephew John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute, moved many of these plants and trees, including mature trees, to the Princess of Wales' new garden at Kew, which later became Kew Gardens. Some of the Duke's trees can still be seen at Kew Gardens to this day.Victorian
Whitton was renowned as a market garden, known for its roses, narcissi, lilies of the valley and for its apple, plum and pear orchards. Indeed, until the 1920s the village was still separated from the surrounding towns by open fields and much of the earlier character of the old village was retained well into the 1940s.Following the coming of the railways in the mid-19th century, there was some housing development along Nelson, Kneller and Hounslow Roads. Whitton was initially served by what is now Hounslow railway station, which opened on 1 February 1850.
Early 20th century
Whitton developed rapidly following the opening of Whitton railway station, on Percy Road, in 1930. Houses replaced the market gardens and the former Whitton Park estate, while new parades of shops were built on either side of Percy Road from the new railway station to the junction with Nelson and Hounslow Roads, this stretch then being renamed High Street Whitton.At around the same time, the A316 Chertsey Road was built through the south of the area. Today, this road leads to the M3 motorway, with links to Southampton and the South West of England.
World War II
A number of houses were damaged by enemy bombing in the early years of the Second World War. Before 1944, 86 Hounslow Road received a direct hit from a German bomb and was badly damaged, though not destroyed. In June 1944, 81 High Street received a direct hit from a V-1 flying bomb. Part of the parade of shops and the flats above were totally destroyed and several people were killed. Around the same time, a house on Lincoln Avenue was also destroyed by a V-1 and several adjoining houses were severely damaged.A common sight during the Blitz was of RAF fighters scrambling from nearby airfields almost at rooftop height, low enough for the pilots to be seen in their cockpits.
Economy
Most people travel outside of the town for their work as very little land is in employment use. Many people travel into Central London making use of the good transport connections, or work in nearby district centres such as Twickenham and Richmond or the bigger metropolitan centres such as Hounslow and Kingston upon Thames. London Heathrow Airport is important to the local economy both through direct employment and the cluster of international firms that have their European headquarters in the Thames Valley area.The town centre is the third largest in the Richmond upon Thames. In 2014, it received a £2 million programme of economic regeneration including new street lighting, yorkstone pavements and a £5 million redevelopment of the railway station was completed in December 2016.
Notable inhabitants
- Charles Calvert, brewer and Member of Parliament, lived at Kneller Hall.
- Phil Collins, musician.
- Elvis Costello, musician.
- Sir Godfrey Kneller, portrait painter, built a house in 1709 in Whitton; its site is now occupied by the mid-19th century Kneller Hall, home of the Royal Military School of Music.
- Michael MacLeod, graphic designer noted for his crisp packet designs.
- Munira Wilson, Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament.
- Lucy Irvine, British adventurer and author, was born in Whitton
Leisure activities
Parks and open spaces
The town has one long linear park along the River Crane, London and five smaller neighbourhood parks that have sport facilities and children's playgrounds along with three cemeteries. Close to the town are the large Bushy Park and Richmond Park that are managed by The Royal Parks and serve as the larger district parks for the area. Hounslow Heath, a large open space and local conservation area is heavily used by the town's residents.- Borough Cemetery along Powder Mill Lane and operated by London Borough of Hounslow.
- was opened in the 1930s and is laid out to accommodate sport pitches and a pavilion. In 2022 a 1.8ha extension was added, designated as a nature zone and named Jubilee Meadows in recognition of the Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II.
- Hounslow Heath is located directly to the north of Whitton. It is one of the largest open spaces in West London and managed by London Borough of Hounslow as a nature reserve.
- is the part of Hounslow Heath within London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and managed as a recreation ground and contains a children's playground.
- is located between Redway Drive and Godfrey Avenue, next to Chertsey Road and is a registered Village Green and contains a children's playground and a dog park.
- Crane Park, the largest nearby park, lies to the south on the London Loop walking route. It is managed as a number of wildlife habitats and is home to a number of protected species such as bats and common kingfishers. The river is also the historic boundary line between Whitton and Twickenham.
- along Hanworth Road and operated by London Borough of Hounslow
- was opened in 1931 and is set out as grassland and children's playgrounds.
- was opened in 1914 and is set out as grassland and children's playgrounds.
- Twickenham Cemetery was opened in 1868 by the local council and serves as the main burial ground for Twickenham.
Cycling