East Barnet Valley was a local government district from 1863 to 1965 around the town of East Barnet. It was partly in the counties of

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For gov ...

and

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

until 1889, when the Middlesex part was transferred to Hertfordshire. It was renamed East Barnet in 1935.

Creation

The district was created under the

Local Government Act 1858 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 ...

on 25 September 1863, as East Barnet Valley Local Government District.''Kelly's Directory of Hertfordshire, 1899 '', p.38 (Historical Directories)
/ref> The district was governed by a

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 ...

. Apart from the parish of East Barnet, the local board's area included parts of the surrounding parishes of

Chipping Barnet Chipping Barnet or High Barnet is a suburban market town in north London, forming part of the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is a suburban development built around a 12th-century settlement, and is located north-northwest of Chari ...

in Hertfordshire and Enfield,

Monken Hadley Monken Hadley is a place in the London Borough of Barnet. An ancient country village north of Barnet, it is now a suburban development on the very edge of Greater London north north-west of Charing Cross, while retaining much of its rural c ...

and

South Mimms South Mimms is a village and civil parish in the Hertsmere district of Hertfordshire in the East of England. It is a small settlement located near to the junction of the M25 motorway with the A1(M) motorway and is perhaps more widely known because ...

in Middlesex.Frederic A Youngs ''Guide to the Local Administrative units of England'', Volume I: Southern England, London 1979

Reform

In 1889

was reduced locally by the

Local Government Act 1888 Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States * Local government, a form of public administration, usually the lowest tier of administrat ...

: East Barnet Valley became entirely part of

. The

Local Government Act 1894 The Local Government Act 1894 (56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales outside the County of London. The Act followed the reforms carried out at county level un ...

reconstituted the local board's area as an

urban district Urban district may refer to: * District * Urban area * Quarter (urban subdivision) * Neighbourhood Specific subdivisions in some countries: * Urban districts of Denmark * Urban districts of Germany * Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland) (his ...

, governed by East Barnet Valley Urban District Council. The urban district consisted of three

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

es, shown below with their area in 1901: * East Barnet (1,697 acres) * Barnet Vale (the area formerly in Chipping Barnet parish) (279 acres) *

(the parts formerly in Middlesex) (668 acres) The urban district was renamed East Barnet in 1935. The district formed part of a long, thin protrusion into

and was surrounded by that county on three sides; to the north, east and south.

Coat of arms

The urban district council adopted an unofficial

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

consisting of a shield bearing crossed swords between a

red rose of Lancaster The Red Rose of Lancaster (blazoned: ''a rose gules'') was the heraldic badge adopted by the royal House of Lancaster in the 14th century. In modern times it symbolises the county of Lancashire. The exact species or cultivar which it represents i ...

and a

white rose of York The White Rose of York (Latinised as ''rosa alba'', blazoned as ''a rose argent'') is a white heraldic rose which was adopted in the 14th century as a heraldic badge of the royal House of York. In modern times it is used more broadly as a s ...

and the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

letter omega. This design represented the

Battle of Barnet The Battle of Barnet was a decisive engagement in the Wars of the Roses, a dynastic conflict of 15th-century England. The military action, along with the subsequent Battle of Tewkesbury, secured the throne for Edward IV. On Sunday 14 April ...

, the final battle in the

Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses (1455–1487), known at the time and for more than a century after as the Civil Wars, were a series of civil wars fought over control of the throne of England, English throne in the mid-to-late fifteenth century. These w ...

. The ''chief'' or top third of the shield showed a

fleur de lys The fleur-de-lis, also spelled fleur-de-lys (plural ''fleurs-de-lis'' or ''fleurs-de-lys''), is a lily (in French, and mean 'flower' and 'lily' respectively) that is used as a decorative design or symbol. The fleur-de-lis has been used in the ...

between two flory crosses, emblems of

St Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

, the patron saint of the ancient parish of East Barnet. In 1955 this became the basis for an official grant from the

College of Arms The College of Arms, or Heralds' College, is a royal corporation consisting of professional officers of arms, with jurisdiction over England, Wales, Northern Ireland and some Commonwealth realms. The heralds are appointed by the British Sover ...

. A crest was added above the shield: a hart from the arms of Hertfordshire County Council, with a shield hanging from the neck bearing the cross of St Alban for the historical associations of the

Abbey of St Albans St Albans Cathedral, officially the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban but often referred to locally as "the Abbey", is a Church of England cathedral in St Albans, England. Much of its architecture dates from Norman times. It ceased to be ...

with the area. The

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. M ...

adopted: ''Willingness Rids Way'', was from

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

Henry VI, Part 3 ''Henry VI, Part 3'' (often written as ''3 Henry VI'') is a history play by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1591 and set during the lifetime of King Henry VI of England. Whereas '' 1 Henry VI'' deals with the loss of Eng ...

''. It comes from a speech made by

Edward IV Edward IV (28 April 1442 – 9 April 1483) was King of England from 4 March 1461 to 3 October 1470, then again from 11 April 1471 until his death in 1483. He was a central figure in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars in Englan ...

following the Battle of Barnet.''Civic Heraldry of England and Wales: Hertfordshire (obsolete)'', accessed January 26, 2007
/ref>

Abolition

In 1965 the urban district was abolished by the

London Government Act 1963 The London Government Act 1963 (c. 33) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which created Greater London and a new local government structure within it. The Act significantly reduced the number of local government districts in the ...

and its former area transferred from Hertfordshire to

Greater London Greater may refer to: *Greatness Greatness is a concept of a state of superiority affecting a person or object in a particular place or area. Greatness can also be attributed to individuals who possess a natural ability to be better than al ...

. Its former area was combined with that of other districts to form the present-day

London Borough of Barnet The London Borough of Barnet () is a suburban London borough in North London. The borough was formed in 1965 from parts of the ceremonial counties of Middlesex and Hertfordshire. It forms part of Outer London and is the largest London borough ...

Population

The area of the urban district was . The population, as returned at the census, was:

Politics

The urban district was divided into seven wards for elections: Brunswick Park, Cockfosters, East Barnet, Hadley, Lyonsdown, New Barnet and Osidge.

Urban District council

Parliament constituency

For elections to

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

, the urban district was part of the constituency of: * Mid or St Albans Division of Hertfordshire In 1945 St Albans was divided as an emergency measure because its electorate exceeded 100,000 voters, with the urban district becoming part of the new constituency of: * Barnet

Gallery

Image:Barnet 1961.png, In 1961: 1 is Barnet and 2 is East Barnet File:East Barnet Valley Civil Parish Map 1863.svg, District in 1863. File:East Barnet Valley Civil Parish Map 1894.svg, District in 1894. File:East Barnet Civil Parish Map 1935.svg, District in 1935.

References

{{coord, 51.643, -0.161, type:adm3rd_dim:4000_region:GB-BNE, display=title Districts abolished by the London Government Act 1963 Districts of England created by the Local Government Act 1894 Local Government Districts created by the Local Government Act 1858 History of the London Borough of Barnet History of Hertfordshire History of local government in London (1889–1965) Urban districts of England East Barnet Local government in Hertfordshire