Ealing Common is a large open space (approx ) in Ealing,

West London West London is the western part of London, England, north of the River Thames, west of the City of London, and extending to the Greater London boundary. The term is used to differentiate the area from the other parts of London: North Londo ...

Boundaries

Ealing-Common-old-drinking-fountain-DMS-01

The Ealing Common Area is bounded by Ealing Town Centre to the west, North Ealing and

Hanger Hill Hanger Hill or Haymills Estate is a local area and ward of the London Borough of Ealing around Hanger Lane (A406 road). It was developed in the interwar period when affluent Londoners began to move out of Central London for more green spaces. Th ...

to the north, Acton to the east and South Ealing and South Acton to the south. The Ealing Common open space is bounded by Gunnersbury Ave ( A406) to the east and the

Uxbridge Road Uxbridge Road is the name of the A4020 road in West London. The route starts at Shepherd's Bush Green and goes west towards Uxbridge. It passes through Acton, Ealing, Hanwell, Southall, Hayes, and Hillingdon. Uxbridge Road is a major r ...

to the north. A smaller area of the common extends to the east of Gunnersbury Ave, including Leopold Road. The western boundary includes The Common and Warwick Dene, with Elm Avenue to the south. Some distance to the south is also the much larger Gunnersbury Park.

Ownership

The Ealing Common open space is a

common land Common land is land owned by a person or collectively by a number of persons, over which other persons have certain common rights, such as to allow their livestock to graze upon it, to collect wood, or to cut turf for fuel. A person who has a ...

as designated by the 1866 Metropolitan Commons Act.

History

In August 1733 a

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...

match was played on the common between Ealing & Acton and

London Cricket Club The original London Cricket Club was formed in 1722 and was one of the foremost clubs in English cricket over the next four decades, holding important match status. It is closely associated with the Artillery Ground, where it played most of i ...

. p. 8.

Flora

Ealing Common preserves a large area of open space with fine avenues of

horse chestnut The genus ''Aesculus'' ( or ), with species called buckeye and horse chestnut, comprises 13–19 species of flowering plants in the family Sapindaceae. They are trees and shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere, with six species n ...

trees, most of which were planted in the late Victorian period, following the purchase of the common land by the Ealing

Local Board Local boards or local boards of health were local authorities in urban areas of England and Wales from 1848 to 1894. They were formed in response to cholera epidemics and were given powers to control sewers, clean the streets, regulate environmenta ...

. The northern part of the common has a large English

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

tree at its centre, and London

plane tree ''Platanus'' is a genus consisting of a small number of tree species native to the Northern Hemisphere. They are the sole living members of the family Platanaceae. All mature members of ''Platanus'' are tall, reaching in height. All except f ...

s are also found with the horse chestnuts around the perimeter of the common. Charles Jones was the borough surveyor responsible for the layout. In the south-west corner of Ealing Common there is a small enclosed park, called Warwick Dene, with

rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

beds at its centre.

Other information

There is a local Conservation Area which includes streets around the common. Ealing Common is also informally used by some as the name of the area in the

London Borough of Ealing The London Borough of Ealing () is a London borough in West London. It comprises seven major towns: Acton (W3), Ealing (W5, W13, NW10), Greenford (UB6), Hanwell (W7), Northolt (UB5), Perivale (UB6) and Southall (UB1, UB2). With a population ...

surrounding Ealing Common station, which is named after the common; however, it is officially part of the Ealing district.

References

External links

Ealing Common Conservation area Appraisal on Ealing Council Website.
{{coord, 51.510, -0.294, display=title 1733 establishments in England Common land in London Cricket grounds in Middlesex Cricket in Middlesex Defunct cricket grounds in England Defunct sports venues in London Districts of the London Borough of Ealing English cricket venues in the 18th century History of Middlesex Middlesex Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Ealing Sport in London Sports venues completed in 1733 Sports venues in London