Wanstead () is a town in East London, England, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It borders

South Woodford South Woodford is an area of east London, England, within the London Borough of Redbridge. It adjoins Woodford Green to the north, Walthamstow to the west, Snaresbrook and Wanstead to the south and Redbridge to the east, and is north-ea ...

to the north, Redbridge to the east and

Forest Gate Forest Gate is a district in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England. It is located northeast of Charing Cross. The area's name relates to its position adjacent to Wanstead Flats, the southernmost part of Epping Forest. The town ...

to the south, with

Leytonstone Leytonstone () is an area in east London, England, north-east of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest, a local authority district of Greater London. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, ...

and Walthamstow to the west. It is located 8 miles northeast of Charing Cross. Historically an ancient parish in the

Becontree hundred Becontree was an ancient hundred in the south west of the county of Essex, England.John Marius Wilson, '' Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales'', (1870-72) Its area has been entirely absorbed by the growth of London; with its name reused in 192 ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and Grea ...

, it was granted urban district status in 1894, and formed part of the

Municipal Borough of Wanstead and Woodford Wanstead and Woodford was a local government district from 1934 to 1965 in southwest Essex, England. A merger of two former urban districts, it was suburban to London and part of the Metropolitan Police District. Background A local board of healt ...

between 1937 and 1965, when it became part of the London Borough of Redbridge. Wanstead was a key part of the

M11 link road protest The M11 link road protest was a campaign against the construction of the M11 link road in east London in the early to mid-1990s. "A12 Hackney to M11 link road", as it was officially called, was part of a significant local road scheme to connect t ...

from 1993 to 1995, which ended with the construction of the A12 that runs through the town. The area contains a number of open spaces that are part of

Epping Forest Epping Forest is a area of ancient woodland, and other established habitats, which straddles the border between Greater London and Essex. The main body of the forest stretches from Epping in the north, to Chingford on the edge of the London ...

, including the grasslands of

Wanstead Flats Wanstead Flats is the southernmost portion of Epping Forest, in Leytonstone and Wanstead, London. The flats and by extension the forest ends at Forest Gate directly to the south. It now falls wholly within the boundaries of the London Boroughs ...

and the woodland of

Wanstead Park Wanstead Park is a municipal park covering an area of about 140 acres (57 hectares), in Wanstead, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It is also a district of the London Borough of Redbridge, which was in Essex until 1965. It is administered as p ...

. Wanstead Park was the site of a Roman villa, and later

Wanstead Hall Wanstead Hall was the manor house for the Manor of Wanstead, now in the London Borough of Redbridge but historically in the county of Essex. It was later demolished to make way for the construction of Wanstead House. History Tudor It was prob ...

, the

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...

Wanstead Manor Wanstead Manor was a manor, historically in the English county of Essex and now in the London Borough of Redbridge. It centred on the manorhouse of Wanstead Hall, later demolished to build Wanstead House. The manor is said to have been granted to ...

. The park, with artificial lakes, was formerly part of the estate of a large stately home

Wanstead House Wanstead House was a mansion built to replace the earlier Wanstead Hall. It was commissioned in 1715, completed in 1722 and demolished in 1825. Its gardens now form the municipal Wanstead Park in the London Borough of Redbridge. History Construct ...

(1722-1825), built by

Richard Child, 1st Earl Tylney Richard Child, 1st Earl Tylney (5 February 1680 – March 1750), was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1708 and 1734. Initially a Tory, he switched to supporting the Whigs after 1715. He held no Office of State, ...

History

Toponymy

The place name is probably of Saxon origin and is first recorded in a charter of 1065 as Wenstede. The English Place-Names Society derives the name from the Anglo-Saxon words ''waenn'', meaning a hill or mound, and ''stede'', a place or settlement. According to an alternative explanation, the first element means "wain" or "wagon", but the meaning of the full compound is not clear. A place in Essex, in 1460, has a name spelt as "Waynsted".

Astronomy

In 1707 the astronomer

James Pound James Pound (1669–1724) was an English clergyman and astronomer. Life He was the son of John Pound, of Bishops Cannings, Wiltshire, where he was born. He matriculated at St. Mary Hall, Oxford, on 16 March 1687; graduated B.A. from Hart Hal ...

became

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of Wanstead. In 1717 the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

lent Pound Huygens's 123-foot focal length object-glass, which he set up in

. Pound's observations with it of the five known

satellites of Saturn The moons of Saturn are numerous and diverse, ranging from tiny moonlets only tens of meters across to enormous Titan, which is larger than the planet Mercury. Saturn has 83 moons with confirmed orbits that are not embedded in its rings—of wh ...

enabled Halley to correct calculations of their movements; and Newton employed, in the third edition of the ''Principia'', his micrometrical measures of Jupiter's disc, of Saturn's disc and ring, and of the elongations of their satellites; and obtained from him data for correcting the places of the

comet of 1680 C/1680 V1, also called the Great Comet of 1680, Kirch's Comet, and Newton's Comet, was the first comet discovered by telescope. It was discovered by Gottfried Kirch and was one of the brightest comets of the seventeenth century. Overview The c ...

. Laplace also used Pound's observations of Jupiter's satellites for the determination of the planet's mass; and Pound himself compiled in 1719 a set of tables for the first satellite, into which he introduced an equation for the transmission of light. Pound trained his sister's son,

James Bradley James Bradley (1692–1762) was an English astronomer and priest who served as the third Astronomer Royal from 1742. He is best known for two fundamental discoveries in astronomy, the aberration of light (1725–1728), and the nutation of th ...

, and many of their observations were made together, including the opposition of Mars in 1719, and the

transit of Mercury frameless, upright=0.5 A transit of Mercury across the Sun takes place when the planet Mercury passes directly between the Sun and a superior planet. During a transit, Mercury appears as a tiny black dot moving across the Sun as the planet obs ...

on 29 October 1723. Their measurement of γ Virginis in 1718 was the first made of the components of a double star and was directed towards the determination of stellar parallax. In 1727, Bradley embarked upon a series of observations using a telescope of his own, erected at the rectory in Wanstead, now the site of

Wanstead High School Wanstead High School (WHS), formerly Wanstead County High School, is a co-educational, non-denominational, comprehensive secondary school in Wanstead, London, United Kingdom. Admissions It specialises in the performing arts and has 1532 pu ...

. This instrument had the advantage of a large field of view and he was able to obtain precise positions of a large number of stars that transited close to the zenith over the course of about two years. Combined with observations from his friend Samuel Molyneux's house at Kew in Surrey, this established the existence of the phenomenon of

aberration of light In astronomy, aberration (also referred to as astronomical aberration, stellar aberration, or velocity aberration) is a phenomenon which produces an apparent motion of celestial objects about their true positions, dependent on the velocity of t ...

, and also allowed Bradley to formulate a set of rules that would allow the calculation of the effect on any given star at a specified date.

The George public house

Although current building is from 1903, The George has been a pub on the site since at least 1716. Set in to the side of the pub is a plaque dating from 1752, which was formerly part of an older pub building. The plaque is inscribed with the eccentrically spelled verse: : ''In Memory of'' : ''Ye Cherry Pey'' : ''As cost 1/2 a Guiney'' : ''Ye 17 of July'' : ''That day we had good cheer'' : ''I hope to so do maney a Year'' : ''R C 1752 D Jerry'' There are various local legends explaining this curious plaque, including a tale of the theft of a cherry pie by local workmen who were caught and fined half a guinea (52.5p). However the most likely explanation is that it was placed there by the landlord of 1752, David Jersey (corrupted by centuries of repainting and re-cutting the inscription to D Jerry on the plaque), commemorating a feast which included a huge cherry pie. Monstrous pies were a feature of 18th-century Essex rural festivals; the Galmpton Gooseberry Pie Fair in Devon is still in existence, and other inns around the edge of Epping Forest were famed for pies (rabbit pie at The Reindeer,

Loughton Loughton () is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex. Part of the metropolitan and urban area of London, the town borders Chingford, Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Chigwell and Buckhurst Hill, and is northeast of Chari ...

, now Warren House, and

pigeon pie Pigeon pie is a savoury game pie made of pigeon meat and various other ingredients traditional to French cuisine and present in other European cuisines. It has been eaten at least as early as 1670 in French cuisine. Similar dishes to pigeon pie e ...

at The King's Head,

Chigwell Chigwell is a town and civil parish in the Epping Forest District of Essex, England. It is part of the urban and metropolitan area of London, and is adjacent to the northern boundary of Greater London. It is on the Central line of the Lond ...

). Wanstead was well known for its cherry orchards as late as the 1830s, when they were mentioned by poet

Thomas Hood Thomas Hood (23 May 1799 – 3 May 1845) was an English poet, author and humorist, best known for poems such as " The Bridge of Sighs" and " The Song of the Shirt". Hood wrote regularly for ''The London Magazine'', '' Athenaeum'', and ''Punch' ...

, who lived in Wanstead 1832–5.

Schools and education

The Royal Commercial Travellers Schools were sited in Wanstead from their foundation in 1845 by John Robert Cuffley until their move to

Pinner Pinner is a London suburb in the London borough of Harrow, Greater London, England, northwest of Charing Cross, close to the border with Hillingdon, historically in the county of Middlesex. The population was 31,130 in 2011. Originally a med ...

in 1855. The schools at Wanstead provided housing, food, clothing and education for up to 130 children of commercial travellers who had died or became unable to earn their livelihood. The Royal Merchant Navy School was founded in

St George in the East St George-in-the-East is an Anglican Church dedicated to Saint George and one of six Hawksmoor churches in London, England. It was built from 1714 to 1729, with funding from the 1711 Act of Parliament. Its name has been used for two forms of p ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in 1827 before moving to Hermon Hill, Wanstead in 1862. The new building provided for 300 orphans of Merchant Navy seamen. It moved again to Bearwood House near

Wokingham Wokingham is a market town in Berkshire, England, west of London, southeast of Reading, north of Camberley and west of Bracknell. History Wokingham means 'Wocca's people's home'. Wocca was apparently a Saxon chieftain who may ...

in 1921. The building then became a convent refuge for women and girls and later

Wanstead Hospital Wanstead Hospital was a former National Health Service, NHS hospital situated on Hermon Hill in Snaresbrook, not far from Wanstead in north-east London. History The building was originally constructed to accommodate the Merchant Seamans' Orphan ...

. The Royal Wanstead School was by the Eagle Pond, Snaresbrook up to about 1970. It subsequently became the site of a Crown Court. Wanstead is home to a large comprehensive school,

. Primary schools in Wanstead include Wanstead Church, Our Lady of Lourdes RC, Aldersbrook and Nightingale. From 1957 until 1987 Wanstead had a secondary Modern School called Nightingale Secondary Modern School. There was also Nightingale Primary School on the site which is still in existence. These schools were within the boundaries of Ashbourne Avenue, Colvin Gdns. and Elmcroft Ave.

Forest School, Walthamstow Forest School is an independent day school in Walthamstow in the London borough of Waltham Forest. The school occupies a large campus around its original Grade II listed Georgian and Victorian terraced buildings. The school has more than 1,430 ...

is close to Eagle Pond and Snaresbrook Crown Court.

Places of worship

The church of

St Mary the Virgin, Wanstead St Mary the Virgin, Wanstead is a Church of England church in Wanstead, east London. It is located on Overton Drive and now shares its parish with Christ Church, Wanstead. It is the only Grade I listed building in the London Borough of Redbridg ...

was completed in 1790. It is now a Grade I

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 Irel ...

, and contains a large monument to

Josiah Child Sir Josiah Child, 1st Baronet, , (c. 1630/31 – 22 June 1699) was an English economist, merchant and politician. He was an economist proponent of mercantilism and governor of the East India Company. He led the company in the Anglo-Mughal War. ...

. It was followed in the 1860s by both the Anglican church of Christ Church and Wanstead Congregational Church. Our Lady of Lourdes, Wanstead the local Catholic Church in Cambridge Park was opened in 1928.

Politics

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 during the Second World War, and again from ...

represented Wanstead as MP from 1924 to 1945 when Wanstead formed part of the Epping Constituency, and also when Wanstead lay within the Woodford Constituency, from 1945 to 1964. During this period he served as

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

(1940-1945) during much of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, and again in peace-time, from 1951 to 1955. There is a bust of Churchill in Wanstead High Street.

Military activity

During the Second World War the tunnels of the as-yet-to-be-commercially used Wanstead underground station were utilised for aircraft production. Wanstead Flats was used for Anti-Aircraft batteries protecting London, Barracks for Pre-D-Day troops and a Prisoner-of-War Camp subsequently. Due to terminal moraine (left by glaciers) the soil was relatively infertile.

Underground stations

Wanstead has two

London Underground stations The London Underground is a metro system in the United Kingdom that serves Greater London and the home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire. Its first section opened in 1863, making it the oldest underground metro system in the ...

at either each of the High Street that runs through the town;

Snaresbrook Snaresbrook is a district of East London in the London Borough of Redbridge. It is located 8 miles east of Charing Cross. The name derives from a corruption of Sayers brook, a tributary of the River Roding that flows through Wanstead to the E ...

and Wanstead on the Central line. Wanstead Underground station, entrance

Notable residents

* Clive Burr, drummer (ex-Samson/Iron Maiden) *

Charles Bressey Sir Charles Herbert Bressey, CB, CBE (3 January 1874 – 14 April 1951) was an English civil engineer and surveyor who specialised in road design. Bressey was Chief Engineer for Roads at the Ministry of Transport from 1921 to 1938. Between 1935 ...

, civil engineer * Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester and favourite of

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is ...

, had a house here, in which he died, much to Elizabeth's intense sorrow, on 4 September 1588, three days before the Queen's 55th birthday. *

, poet. * Peter Goddard, physicist and journalist. *

Rodney Gordon Rodney H Gordon (2 February 1933 – 30 May 2008) was an English architect. He was the primary architect of the Tricorn Centre, Portsmouth, and Trinity Square, Gateshead. Architecturally, his works were primarily in concrete; he was said to be ...

, architect *

William Penn William Penn ( – ) was an English writer and religious thinker belonging to the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, a North American colony of England. He was an early advocate of democracy a ...

, Quaker, founder of the Province of Pennsylvania. * James Holden (locomotive engineer). *

, astronomer. *

Max Raison Maxwell Raison (7 November 1901 – 26 July 1988) was an English cricketer. Raison was a right-handed batsman who bowled right-arm medium pace. He was born at Wanstead, Essex and educated at Forest School, Walthamstow. Raison made his ...

(1901–1988), cricketer * Harry Roberts, criminal *

Richard Brinsley Sheridan Richard Brinsley Butler Sheridan (30 October 17517 July 1816) was an Irish satirist, a politician, a playwright, poet, and long-term owner of the London Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. He is known for his plays such as '' The Rivals'', '' The ...

, dramatist, lived in the right-hand house of the Georgian Terrace in the High Street near to the George. *

Mark Stephens (solicitor) * Mark Howard Stephens (born 7 April 1957) is an English solicitor specialising in media law, intellectual property rights, freedom of speech and human rights. He is known for representing James Hewitt when allegations of his affair with ...

, lawyer, mediator, writer and broadcaster *

Colin Ward Colin Ward (14 August 1924 – 11 February 2010)

, social historian, writer and anarchist *

Jessie Wallace Karen Jane Wallace (born 25 September 1971), known professionally as Jessie Wallace, is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Kat Slater on the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'' since 2000. Her role as Kat won her the Natio ...

, actress, lived in Wanstead. * Tom Watt, actor *

Joseph Wilton Joseph Wilton (16 July 1722 – 25 November 1803) was an English sculptor. He was one of the founding members of the Royal Academy in 1768, and the academy's third keeper. His works are particularly numerous memorialising the famous Britons ...

, sculptor * Bilal Zafar, comedian and actor

References

* Pewsey, S (2005), The Wanstead Cherry Pie Stone, Wanstead Historical Society

External links

*
Parish of WansteadWanstead Village DirectoryWansteadium
{{London Districts Areas of London Districts of the London Borough of Redbridge District centres of London