Starbucks Chinese Pavilion, Chiswick High Road

Chiswick High Road is the principal shopping and dining street of

Chiswick Chiswick ( ) is a district of west London, England. It contains Hogarth's House, the former residence of the 18th-century English artist William Hogarth; Chiswick House, a neo-Palladian villa regarded as one of the finest in England; and ...

, a district in the west of London. It was part of the main

Roman road Roman roads ( la, viae Romanae ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, and were built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman R ...

running west out of London, and remained the main road until the 1950s when the A4 was built across Chiswick. By the 19th century the road through the village of Turnham Green had grand houses beside it. The road developed into a shopping centre when Chiswick became built up with new streets and housing late in the 19th century. There are several

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern I ...

s including

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and wa ...

s, churches, and a former

power station A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid. Many p ...

, built to supply electricity to the tram network.

History

Chiswick High Road follows the alignment of the Roman road to Silchester as it leads west from London. Near the area of Turnham Green in Chiswick it was joined by another Roman road, which thus also followed part of the course of the High Road. The road continued to be London's main route west until the 1950s when the A4 dual carriageway was built further to the south across Chiswick. In the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians ("Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of Kingdom of England, England's governanc ...

, the

royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governm ...

forces under

Prince Rupert Prince Rupert of the Rhine, Duke of Cumberland, (17 December 1619 (O.S.) / 27 December (N.S.) – 29 November 1682 (O.S.)) was an English army officer, admiral, scientist and colonial governor. He first came to prominence as a Royalist cava ...

, advancing on London from Oxford along the main road, were halted in a skirmish, the 1642 Battle of Turnham Green, by the forces of the

Earl of Essex Earl of Essex is a title in the Peerage of England which was first created in the 12th century by King Stephen of England. The title has been recreated eight times from its original inception, beginning with a new first Earl upon each new cre ...

. The royalists withdrew, and never again threatened the capital. Several large houses were built in Turnham Green along the High Road in the 17th century; John Bowack recorded in 1706 that the area had as many inhabitants as the old village of Chiswick, which is some way to the south of the High Road, on the

river Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the ...

. In the 18th century the High Road between Acton Lane and

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. ...

was bordered "intermittently" with large detached houses. The High Road was a

toll road A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road (almost always a controlled-access highway in the present day) for which a fee (or '' toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemen ...

from 1717 until the abolition of tolls in 1872.

Stage coach A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...

es served the road on the way to towns such as

Bath Bath may refer to: * Bathing, immersion in a fluid ** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body ** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe * Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities Plac ...

and

Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal c ...

. Roadside inns for travellers included the Roebuck, and the Packhorse and Talbot. In November 1805,

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by Kingdom of England, English and Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were foug ...

Captain

John Richards Lapenotière Captain John Richards Lapenotière (1770 – 19 January 1834) was a British Royal Navy officer who, as a lieutenant commanding the tiny topsail schooner HMS ''Pickle'', observed the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805, participated in the r ...

travelled Chiswick High Road on his journey from Falmouth to Whitehall to carry the news of the victory at the

Battle of Trafalgar The Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805) was a naval battle, naval engagement between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French Navy, French and Spanish Navy, Spanish Navies during the War of the Third Coalition (August–De ...

. In 1826,

Thomas Griffiths Wainewright Thomas Griffiths Wainewright (October 179417 August 1847) was an English artist, author and suspected serial killer. He gained a reputation as a profligate and a dandy, and in 1837, was transported to the penal colony of Van Diemen's Land (no ...

, in a story told by his biographers, poisoned his uncle George Edward Griffiths, while living in the uncle's grand home, Linden House on the High Road. He inherited and sold the house, but it was insufficient to clear his debts. He was later convicted of

forgery Forgery is a white-collar crime that generally refers to the false making or material alteration of a legal instrument with the specific intent to defraud anyone (other than themself). Tampering with a certain legal instrument may be forbi ...

and transported to Tasmania. In 2022, Chiswick High Road provided the basis for the local historian Wesley Henderson-Roe's British Association for Local History award-winning study of changes to shopping habits, based on surveys of the road's shops conducted in 1936 and 2020. File:Sale of Linden House, Turnham Green, 1831.jpg, Sale of Linden House, 1831, by the notorious

File:Turnham Green north side with Crown and Anchor 1863.jpg, Turnham Green north side with smithy and Crown and Anchor pub (before it was rebuilt), 1863 File:Chiswick High Road postcard.jpg, Chiswick High Road (to the junction with Goldhawk Road) and

King Street, Hammersmith King Street, Hammersmith is the main shopping street in Hammersmith, London. It runs west–east, and forms part of the A315, and is the eastern continuation of Chiswick High Road, where it meets Goldhawk Road (the A402), close to Stamford Br ...

, late 19th century. The buildings on the left have survived.

Street

Chiswick High Road runs the from Kew Bridge northeastwards to

Chiswick Roundabout Chiswick Roundabout is a major roundabout, with flyover, in Chiswick, West London. It was opened in 1959, and is the meeting point of three roads which terminate here, the A205 South Circular, A315 Chiswick High Road, A406 North Circular; and ...

, then eastwards through part of Gunnersbury to Turnham Green, and then across Chiswick to

at the corner with Goldhawk Road. The section between Kew Bridge and Chiswick Roundabout is part of the A205 South Circular Road, while the rest of the street is part of the A315. The street offers many restaurants, bars, and pubs; ''

Time Out Time-out, Time Out, or timeout may refer to: Time * Time-out (sport), in various sports, a break in play, called by a team * Television timeout, a break in sporting action so that a commercial break may be taken * Timeout (computing), an enginee ...

'' describes it as "an undeniably posh but very friendly bubble".

Gunnersbury

On the north of Chiswick High Road in Gunnersbury is the Chiswick Business Park, on the site of a former bus garage. It was designed in 1990–1991 by the architects Terry Farrell & Partners as a suitable backdrop for buildings by themselves, Foster Associates, and Peter Foggo around the main piazza, and others by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners and ABK Architects around a smaller square to one side. On the south side is the 18-storey high BSI ( British Standards Institution) tower, built above Gunnersbury station. Between 1966 and 1992 it was a headquarters of IBM UK. On the north side of this section of the High Road is The Gunnersbury, formerly the John Bull pub, built in 1853, with a billiards saloon built a little later. It became a music venue, visited by bands including

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are conside ...

. The playwright

Harold Pinter Harold Pinter (; 10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A Nobel Prize winner, Pinter was one of the most influential modern British dramatists with a writing career that span ...

lived at no. 373, on the south side. File:Gunnersbury, Gunnersbury, W4 (4802189047).jpg, The Gunnersbury, formerly the John Bull music venue File:BSI-building--Gunnersbury-312.JPG, BSI tower, formerly IBM File:Chiswick Business Park lake and landscaping.jpg, Chiswick Business Park
lake and landscaping

Facing Turnham Green

The 1910

Old Pack Horse The Old Pack Horse is a listed building, Grade II listed public house in a prominent position on the corner of Chiswick High Road and Acton Lane in Chiswick, London. Architecture The current structure was built in 1910 by the architect Nowel ...

is a

Grade II listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ir ...

on the corner of Chiswick High Road and Acton Lane, at the western end of Turnham Green common. The building historian

Nikolaus Pevsner Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner (30 January 1902 – 18 August 1983) was a German-British art historian and architectural historian best known for his monumental 46-volume series of county-by-county guides, '' The Buildings of England'' ...

writes that it has "plenty of jolly terracotta detail and bowed ground-floor windows". The Chiswick Empire was a music hall theatre facing Turnham Green, opened in 1912 and demolished in 1959. The Crown and Anchor pub, facing the common from the corner of the High Road and Belmont Road, is a Grade II listed early 19th century building. It is of brown brick over three storeys with flat-arched double-hung sash windows. The ground floor is covered with late 19th century tiles and plaques stating "Young and Co. Ales & Stouts". Above the corner doorway on the upper floors is a large round-arched plaque depicting a yellow-coloured ram for the

Ram Brewery Young's (Young & Co.'s Brewery Plc) is a British pub chain operating nearly 220 pubs. The company was founded as a brewery in 1831 by Charles Young and Anthony Bainbridge when they purchased the Ram Brewery in Wandsworth. The company closed t ...

in Wandsworth. File:Old Pack Horse, Chiswick, W4 (2446507593).jpg, The

File:Chiswick Empire postcard 1913.jpg, The Chiswick Empire in 1913 File:Crown and Anchor, Chiswick High Road.jpg, The Crown and Anchor

On Turnham Green common

The Grade II listed Victorian era

Christ Church, Turnham Green Christ Church, Turnham Green is a Grade II listed Anglican church sited on the eastern half of Turnham Green in Chiswick, west London. The church and the green on which it sits are local landmarks, and are considered of special historic interes ...

, in the middle of the common to the south of the High Road, was designed by

George Gilbert Scott Sir George Gilbert Scott (13 July 1811 – 27 March 1878), known as Sir Gilbert Scott, was a prolific English Gothic Revival architect, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches and cathedrals, although he starte ...

. It was completed in 1843 as a short five-sided

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. ...

with an

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. ...

, in the "early English lancet style" with a tall spire. It was extended in length by James Brooks in 1887 to provide a square eastern end. The eastern tip of the common, where Heathfield Terrace joins the High Road, is marked by the Chiswick War Memorial, built in 1921. It too is Grade II listed, both for its historic and for its architectural interest. It is an

obelisk An obelisk (; from grc, ὀβελίσκος ; diminutive of ''obelos'', " spit, nail, pointed pillar") is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape or pyramidion at the top. Originally constructed by An ...

designed by Edward Willis, the council's engineer and architect. File:Turnham Green Church 3.jpg, Christ Church,
Turnham Green File:Chiswick War Memorial and Christ Church Turnham Green in Snow.jpg, Chiswick War Memorial
in snow

Heathfield Terrace to Chiswick Lane

The Old Fire Station on the south side of Chiswick High Road was purpose-built in 1891. In 1911, it was equipped with a motor fire escape and ambulance, allowing it to claim it was one of the best in London. The building was provided with a tall tower to hang up the leather hosepipes to dry.Bolton, Diane K.; Croot, Patricia E. C.; Hicks, M. A.
Chiswick: Local government
", in ''A History of the County of Middlesex'': Volume 7, Acton, Chiswick, Ealing and Brentford, West Twyford, Willesden, ed. T. F. T. Baker and C. R. Elrington (London, 1982), pp. 86-90. British History Online ccessed 28 July 2021 Its

façade A façade () (also written facade) is generally the front part or exterior of a building. It is a loan word from the French (), which means 'frontage' or ' face'. In architecture, the façade of a building is often the most important aspect ...

is decorated with a carving of a fireman's helmet. It closed in 1963, the station moving to new premises on Heathfield Terrace. The old station has since been used as a restaurant. Chiswick's old police station was built on the corner with Windmill Place in 1871. In 1890 it held 73 policemen; by 1926, the total had risen to 126. It was closed in 1972 when the police station moved across the road to a new building. The old station served as Carvosso's restaurant, and then as The Crown restaurant. In 2001, a statue of the painter

William Hogarth William Hogarth (; 10 November 1697 – 26 October 1764) was an English painter, engraver, pictorial satirist, social critic, editorial cartoonist and occasional writer on art. His work ranges from realistic portraiture to comic strip-lik ...

with his dog Trump, made by Jim Mathieson, was unveiled on the High Road, not far from Hogarth's House, where he lived from 1749 until his death in 1764. File:Old Fire Station, Chiswick High Road, January 2021.jpg, Old Fire Station, 1891 File:Window pediment with carved fire helmet and axe, Old Fire Station, Chiswick (cropped) (cropped).jpg, Sculpture on Old Fire Station File:The Crown, Chiswick High Road, corner view.jpg, The old police station, built 1871,
now The Crown restaurant File:William Hogarth statue.jpg, Statue of

, 2001 The 1886 Roman Catholic Church of Our Lady of Grace and St Edward stands on the south side of the High Road, on the corner with Duke's Avenue. It is a red brick

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...

by the architects

Kelly and Birchall Kelly & Birchall, a partnership between Edward Birchall (1839 – 6 March 1903) and John Kelly (1840–1904), was an architectural practice based in Leeds, England, from 1886 to 1904 and specialising in churches in the Italianate and Gothic Rev ...

. The main door, with a round pediment, faces the High Road. There is no apse; the side walls are stepped. The ground floor is designed with intentionally blind window panels. The building is ornamented with substantial amounts of moulded and rubbed brick and terracotta decoration. The tall rectangular yellow-brown brick bell-tower was added by

Giles Gilbert Scott Sir Giles Gilbert Scott (9 November 1880 – 8 February 1960) was a British architect known for his work on the New Bodleian Library, Cambridge University Library, Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, Battersea Power Station, Liverpool Cathedral, and d ...

in 1930; a rather more ornate tower was included in the original plans. The roof is covered with pantiles. Next to it on the High Road is the 18th century Presbytery of brown brick with Coade stone details, three storeys with double-hung sash windows; both buildings are Grade II listed. File:Chiswick Catholic Church, W4 - geograph.org.uk - 879891.jpg, Our Lady of Grace and St Edward, 1886, tower added in 1930 File:Our Lady of Grace, Chiswick interior facing altar.jpg, Our Lady of Grace and St Edward, interior The High Road has for centuries provided ample inns to refresh thirsty travellers. The Roebuck, the Barley Mow and the Coach & Horses were all licensed drinking premises in the 18th century; by the 1820s, some were able to book stage coaches for their guests. The Roebuck was briefly renamed to the 'Rat and Parrot' in the 1990s; the present building, from 1895 replacing an earlier structure, is decorated with stucco and relief statues of stags on its front and side pediments. The George IV was already licensed in 1771, then called Lord Boston's Arms; Fuller, Smith and Turner bought and renamed it in 1826, and rebuilt it in 1931–32. File:Packhorse and Talbot Inn - geograph.org.uk - 2308087 (cropped).jpg, Packhorse and Talbot Inn, the wide pavement (right) indicating the old market place File:The George IV, Chiswick High Road.jpg, The George IV, 1931–32, replacing an earlier pub File:The Roebuck, Chiswick High Road.jpg, The Roebuck, 1895,
replacing an earlier inn

Barley Mow Passage and Bourne Place

Just off Chiswick High Road and parallel to it is Bourne Place, with the sole surviving large detached house of those along the High Road in the 18th and 19th centuries. Afton House, since 1919 the Chiswick Memorial Club, is a Grade II listed building, built circa 1800. It is in brown brick with five bays of double-hung sash windows over four floors; the ground floor and entrance are

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...

ed. Its large front garden has been replaced by buildings along the south side of the High Road. Leading westwards from Bourne Place is the narrow Barley Mow Passage, still with an industrial air. The Sanderson factory building now known as Voysey House was designed by the architect Charles Voysey in 1902. It is faced in white glazed brick, with

Staffordshire blue brick Staffordshire blue brick is a strong type of construction brick, originally made in Staffordshire, England. The brick is made from the local red clay, Etruria marl, which when fired at a high temperature in a low-oxygen reducing atmosphere ...

s (now painted black) forming horizontal bands, with the plinth, surrounds for door and window openings, and dressings in

Portland stone Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries are cut in beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a buildi ...

. It was originally a

wallpaper Wallpaper is a material used in interior decoration to decorate the interior walls of domestic and public buildings. It is usually sold in rolls and is applied onto a wall using wallpaper paste Adhesive flakes that are mixed with water to pro ...

printing works, now used as office space. It is Grade II* listed. It faces the main Devonshire Works building, and was once joined to it by a bridge across the road. It was Voysey's only industrial building, and is considered an "important Arts and Crafts factory building". File:Afton House, Chiswick corner view.jpg, Afton House, Bourne Place: its front garden once stretched to the High Road. File:Afton House, Chiswick doorway.jpg, Afton House's doorway File:Voysey House Sandersons Building design by CFA Voysey 1902.jpg, Voysey House industrial building design by Charles Voysey, 1902, showing the bridge that once spanned Barley Mow Passage File:A Sanderson & Sons 1893 detail of Voysey House.jpg, A Sanderson & Sons 1893: detail of Devonshire Works, Barley Mow Passage File:Barley Mow Passage - Voysey House - Devonshire Works.jpg, Barley Mow Passage, Voysey House and Devonshire Works. The tower of the Catholic church is in the background.

Chiswick Lane to Goldhawk Road

Nos 1-21 Chiswick High Road, on the south side, was designed by William Blore in 1837 and built in 1838. The entire building, then named William's Terrace, survives as a terrace of ten three-storey houses, though with some changes to the front, and additional structures in what were the front gardens, making it less conspicuous than it was when built. The 1837 print omits the roofs and chimneys to make the building look grander and more formal. File:Williams Terrace, 1-21 Chiswick High Road in 1837.jpg, William's Terrace, 1-21 Chiswick High Road, 1837 print by William Blore, architect File:Williams Terrace, 1-21 Chiswick High Road.jpg, 1-21 Chiswick High Road in 2021 The Power House, on the north of Chiswick High Road next to the bus garage, was built as an electricity generating station for the London United Electrical Tramway Company between 1899 and 1901. Pevsner describes it as a "monumental free Baroque brick and stone composition ... by far the most exciting building

n the High Road, and N, or n, is the fourteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''. History ...

... the best surviving example in London from the early, heroic era of generating stations whose bulky intrusion in residential areas was tempered by thoughtful architectural treatment". When it fell into disuse it was threatened with demolition; the campaign to save it resulted in its Grade II listing. Ballet Rambert's offices and training studios were housed in 94-96 Chiswick High Road from 1971 until 2013, when the company moved across London to the

South Bank The South Bank is an entertainment and commercial district in central London, next to the River Thames opposite the City of Westminster. It forms a narrow strip of riverside land within the London Borough of Lambeth (where it adjoins Albert ...

. The premises have been converted into the Chiswick Cinema, opened in 2021 with five screens and a bar. File:The Power House, Chiswick (stitched).jpg, The Power House from southwest corner File:Electricity and Locomotion on The Power House, Chiswick (cropped).jpg, 'Electricity' and 'Locomotion' sculpture on the London United Electrical Tramway Company's Power House File:Chiswick Cinema looking east.jpg, Chiswick Cinema, opened 2021

Conservation areas

In 2015, Hounslow Council appraised part of Chiswick High Road as a

conservation area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

, near those of Bedfork Park and the old village of Chiswick, to the north and south respectively. The area's western end is on Clifton Gardens (a short distance east of Turnham Green), and its eastern end is on Chiswick Lane; it extends northwards to take in the buildings on the east side of Turnham Green Terrace, whose shops and restaurants are part of the same shopping centre. The appraisal noted that the "consistent three storey height, regular fenestration pattern, strong parapet line and plot widths work together to provide a regular rhythm" along the High Road. In 2021, Hounslow Council reappraised the Turnham Green Conservation area. This is adjacent to the Chiswick High Road conservation area, covering the part of the High Road from Chiswick Road in Gunnersbury to the west, via the whole of Turnham Green common and the buildings facing its north side along the High Road, to Clifton Gardens in the east. It takes in a substantial area to the south of the common, and was extended in 2019 to include the streets between Sutton Court Road and Duke's Avenue down to the Great West Road.

Cycling and traffic

In 2020, Hounslow Council and Transport for London installed a two-way cycle lane, Cycleway 9, on the south side of Chiswick High Road in a " low traffic neighbourhood" scheme. The lane had a mixed reception among traders and the public. File:Cycle route 9 Chiswick High Road.jpg, Cycle route 9 on Chiswick High Road

Notes

References

Sources

* * * {{Chiswick Chiswick Streets in the London Borough of Hounslow