Longford, London
Longford | |
---|---|
timber-frame older homes | |
![]() Bridge over the 17th century-created Longford River[1] | |
Location within Greater London | |
OS grid reference | TQ045765 |
• Charing Cross | 15.8 mi (25.4 km) E |
London borough | |
Ceremonial county | Greater London |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | WEST DRAYTON |
Postcode district | UB7 |
Dialling code | 01753 |
Police | Metropolitan |
Fire | London |
Ambulance | London |
UK Parliament | |
London Assembly | |
Longford is a suburban
It was formerly part of
Longford is 16 miles (25.5 km) west of Charing Cross and within the M25 motorway which marks its western boundary with Colnbrook, Berkshire.
Etymology
The name Longford derives from the two words "long" and "ford", after the wide ford across the Colne which is where the old Bath Road crosses it, a middle ditch, and the Wraysbury River, carrying on west from the village street. Its old country residents pronounced its name as "Long Ford" with both syllables stressed.
History
The settlement developed by this multi-channel
Longford, the only medieval settlement to grow up along the Bath Road in
In 1586 land on either side of the river was charged with the upkeep of Mad Bridge, which carried the Bath Road across the river. During the 18th and early 19th centuries this bridge was maintained by the Colnbrook turnpike trustees, who presumably erected in 1834 the bridge with cast-iron parapets which now stands.[2]
Rocque's map of 1754, shows clearly the settlement pattern: at Longford, Harmondsworth, Sipson there were small compact groups of houses, and a straggling group at Heathrow. At Longford they lined both sides of the Bath Road from the east bank of the Longford River up to and across the Duke of Northumberland's River.[2]
The uncultivated area west of the rivers was to the north known as Harmondsworth moors, south of the Bath Road the area between the Colne and the Longford rivers was meadowland and, between the Longford and the Duke's rivers, arable.
Parliament's Act of
By 1839 Longford and Harmondsworth and Sipson had a shop serving the whole parish.[2]
In 1929 the Longford and Colnbrook by-pass was built.
In 1930 the Road Research Laboratory on the Colnbrook by-pass opened. In the same year the Fairey Aviation Company opened an airfield, the Great West Aerodrome, southeast of Heathrow village.
About 1930 a brickworks was set up east of the junction of Cain's Lane and Heathrow Road in Heathrow. Later the quarry's main purpose changed to excavating sand and gravel. The quarry company went bankrupt in 1943; after 1944 the airport obliterated the quarry along with every trace of Heathrow village.
Middlesex County Council opened a large sewage sludge settlement works west of Perry Oaks farm; in the 1990s it was removed and Heathrow Airport's Terminal 5 is there now.
In 1648 the first bridge across the then-new Longford River was demolished. This had been replaced by 1675. In the 19th century, when it was called Stone Bridge, the Crown, not a local authority, was responsible for its upkeep and by 1960 it had been renamed King's Bridge.[2]
Geography
Longford village is a
The last bridge or ford in the west over the Wraysbury River marked the boundary of Colnbrook which has been superseded by the M25 motorway which the road then crosses over.
The Duke of Northumberland's River that runs from here to Isleworth since its construction in or about 1543.[2]
Soil and elevation
Elevation is an almost uniform 22 metres (72 ft).
Longford's soil is the rich western soil of the historic parish of Harmondsworth, being alluvial. Shortly south of the main street gravel is instead close to the surface except near rivers and northeastward of the village, and less fertile clay soil dominates for many miles.[2]
Transport
Immediately to the north is a purpose-built bypass with a western junction connected
Access to the M25 motorway is considerably shortest to the south, at Junction 14 (Stanwell Moor).
The Bath Road (A4) is an arterial road and traffic along it became so dense so early that in 1928 a bypass to Longford and Colnbrook was opened.
Landmarks
Longford retains an old-fashioned community centre character, in particular a former and an existing
One of the listed cottages is thatched.[8]
Longford Village Conservation Area
Much of the land surrounding the village of Longford is within the Metropolitan Green Belt.[9] Many of its buildings are included in the Longford Village Conservation Area, which was designated in 1988 with a minor boundary change in 1999. It includes seven listed buildings, one listed wall and a number of unlisted properties which are considered to make an important contribution to the character and appearance of the Conservation Area.[10]
Effect of Proposed Heathrow Runway 3
On 1 July 2015, the Airports Commission recommended that the Government approve Heathrow Airport having a third runway in the form of the Northwest Runway scheme put forward by Heathrow Airport Ltd. The plan on page 99 of the Airports Commission report confirms that the proposal requires the demolition of every building at Longford.[11] The stages involved in bringing forward the proposed development are set out on the Heathrow Expansion website.[12]
Religion
Of residents of the output area Hillingdon 31A (Cranford, Longford and West Harmondsworth) 938 people (or 51.2%) declared themselves to be Christian in 2011. Also in this area 11.9% of people were Muslim, 11% Sikh, 1.9% Buddhist, 13.3% of no recognised religion, 5.9% gave no religious status and 1% were of other religions.
The
The Catholic Church have a church in central West Drayton to the north, as well as three chaplains who serve St George's Chapel in Heathrow's inner ring west or the Sunday Mass at Terminals 4 and 5.[13]
Gurdwaras exist on Martindale and Hanworth Road, Hounslow, the latter being Sri Guru Singh Sabha. The nearest Islamic centre is the Al-Falah Muslim Centre, Tavistock Road, Yiewsley to the north.
References
- ^ Local history page at This is Longford
- ^ a b c d e f g h T F T Baker, J S Cockburn, R B Pugh (Editors), Diane K Bolton, H P F King, Gillian Wyld, D C Yaxley (1971). "Harmondsworth: Introduction". A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 4: Harmondsworth, Hayes, Norwood with Southall, Hillingdon with Uxbridge, Ickenham, Northolt, Perivale, Ruislip, Edgware, Harrow with Pinner. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 19 August 2013.
{{cite web}}
:|author=
has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - Philip Sherwood, publ. West Middlesex Family History Society, 1993
- ^ King Henry and Stables (opened before 1775, closed 20th century) Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1080296)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 19 August 2013.
White Horse — 17th century, restored Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1192507)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 19 August 2013. - ^ Yeomans Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1080298)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 19 August 2013.
- ^ Queen River Cottage and Willow Tree Cottage Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1358336)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 19 August 2013.
- ^ King's Bridge Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1080299)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 19 August 2013.
- ^ Image of the Thatched Cottage with modern houses behind at geograph.org.uk
- ^ "Unitary Development Plan – Proposals Map (Heathrow West)". Retrieved 15 September 2015.
- ^ "Longford Village Conservation Area Appraisal – March 2007". London Borough of Hillingdon. Retrieved 15 September 2015.
- ^ "Airport Commission: final report". Retrieved 13 June 2018.
- ^ "Heathrow Expansion: The Planning Process". Retrieved 13 June 2018.
- ^ The Roman Catholic Diocese of Westminster
External links
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