Leyton Marsh is an open space in the

Lower Lea Valley The Lower Lea Valley is the southern end of the Lea Valley which surrounds the River Lea. It is part of the Thames Gateway redevelopment area and was the location of the 2012 Summer Olympics. A 2005 documentary ''What Have You Done Today, Mervyn ...

, located in

Leyton Leyton () is a town in east London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It borders Walthamstow to the north, Leytonstone to the east, and Stratford to the south, with Clapton, Hackney Wick and Homerton, across the River L ...

in the

London Borough of Waltham Forest The London Borough of Waltham Forest () is a London borough in north-east London, England. Its population is estimated to be 276,983 in 2019. It borders five other London boroughs: Enfield to the north-west, Haringey to the west, Hackney to th ...

Geography

The

marsh A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...

is bordered by the

Walthamstow Marshes Walthamstow Marshes, is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Walthamstow in the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It was once an area of lammas land – common land used for growing crops and grazing cattle. In aviation histo ...

to the north, and by Coppermill Fields, the

Lee Navigation The Lee Navigation is a canalised river incorporating the River Lea (also called the River Lee along the sections that are navigable). It flows from Hertford Castle Weir to the River Thames at Bow Creek; its first lock is Hertford Lock and its ...

and the

River Lee Flood Relief Channel The Lee Flood Relief Channel (FRC) is located in the Lea Valley and flows between Ware, Hertfordshire, and Stratford, east London. Work started on the channel in 1947 following major flooding and it was fully operational by 1976. The channel in ...

. Much of the original area has been taken over for other uses. The remaining open land is split into two distinct areas: * Leyton Marsh, to the north of

Lea Bridge Road Lea Bridge Road is a major through route in east London, across the Lea Valley from Clapton to Whipps Cross in Leyton. It forms part of the A104 road. Places served on the road are the Lea Valley Park, Lea Bridge railway station and the Bake ...

, adjoining the Walthamstow Marsh Nature Reserve. The part of the marsh north east of the Lea Bridge Road contains a large field (Porter's Field Meadow), which is used for a variety of events, including an annual schools countryside teaching event. The area is also used by local people for sporting events, and is part of various cycling and running routes that take in Leyton Marsh as well as other local parks and open spaces. * The Marsh Lane area of Seymour Road Playing Field and Marsh Lane Playing Field, north and south of Marsh Lane respectively. Since August 2012 its official name has been Leyton Jubilee Park. This area is now cut off from the rest of the marsh, connected only by a long pedestrian bridge over the railway. Access from Lea Bridge Road is at the end of Seymour Road. The

Dagenham Brook Dagenham Brook is a minor tributary of the River Lea located in the London Borough of Waltham Forest, and the traditional eastern limit of Leyton Marshes. Course The brook emerges from the old route of the River Lea at the northeast corner of ...

forms the eastern extent of the historical Leyton Marshes. Other areas which were historically part of Leyton Marshes are now put to other uses: *

Lee Valley Ice Centre The Lee Valley Ice Centre is located in Leyton, in the Lower Lea Valley, London. Figure Skating, ice hockey and public skating sessions are all available at the centre. Redevelopment There are plans to rebuild the centre, plans which would impro ...

. There are proposals to redevelop the Ice Centre, improving facilities but at the expense of public open space. * Lea Valley Riding Centre *

WaterWorks Nature Reserve Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavors or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes. Public water supply systems are crucial to properly functioning societies. Thes ...

Lammas Lane, despite historic associations, is buried in an industrial estate alongside the railway.

History

Leyton Urban District Council Act 1904 map

Leyton Marsh was originally more extensive open marsh, historically drained by means of open drainage ditches. The marsh is former

Lammas Lammas Day (Anglo-Saxon ''hlaf-mas'', "loaf-mass"), also known as Loaf Mass Day, is a Christian holiday celebrated in some English-speaking countries in the Northern Hemisphere on 1 August. The name originates from the word "loaf" in reference ...

Land: the land was divided into strips, which were cultivated to grow hay for winter feed. Parishioners had ancient rights to graze cattle and horses between 1 August (after the hay harvest) and 25 March. British History online (fn.194 & fn.55)
Retrieved 12 December 2007 In the 19th century the marsh was

polluted Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the ...

by sewage from the extensive new residential developments in

Walthamstow Walthamstow ( or ) is a large town in East London, east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London and the Historic counties of England, ancient county of Essex. Situated northeast of Chari ...

and

. By the 19th century the character of the marsh changed. Many acres were bought and built on by railway, water and gas companies. In the early 1890s the

East London Waterworks Company The East London Waterworks Company was one of eight private water companies in London absorbed by the Metropolitan Water Board in 1904. The company was founded by Act of Parliament in 1806, and in 1845 the limits of supply were described as ''" ...

erected fences, which angered local people. On Lammas Day in 1892, a large demonstration took place on the marsh and the fences were taken down. The locals set up the Leyton Lammas Lands Defence Committee and successfully challenged the water company in court. This led to the Leyton Urban District Council Act 1904, which provided that the marsh would be kept as an open space, in return for local people giving up Lammas rights. The fields at Marsh Lane did not come under this agreement and remain as Lammas land. During

World War II 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 opposin ...

, a

V-2 The V-2 (german: Vergeltungswaffe 2, lit=Retaliation Weapon 2), with the technical name ''Aggregat 4'' (A-4), was the world’s first long-range guided ballistic missile. The missile, powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine, was develope ...

rocket landed and exploded on the marsh; the crater is still visible seven decades later. After the war, the marsh was used to dump rubble from

The Blitz The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'. The Germa ...

. In 1971, the

Lee Valley Regional Park Authority Lee Valley Regional Park Authority (LVRPA) is a statutory body that is responsible for managing and developing the long, Lee Valley Regional Park. The park was established by Parliament of the United Kingdom in 1967. The headquarters of the a ...

acquired much of the land by compulsory purchase. It acquired the Essex Filter Beds in 1986 (now the

) and the Middlesex Filter Beds in 1988 (now the

Middlesex Filter Beds Nature Reserve 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 neighbouring ...

). Both of these are on the south side of Lea Bridge Road and were formerly part of the marsh.

Recent history and current use

The New Lammas Lands Defence Committee, a revival of the earlier organisation, is currently active in promoting, and on occasion defending, the public use of the marsh. Events include organised walks, with an annual highlight on 13 March:

beating the bounds Beating the bounds or perambulating the bounds is an ancient custom still observed in parts of England, Wales, and the New England region of the United States, which traditionally involved swatting local landmarks with branches to maintain a shared ...

, an ancient ritual defining the boundaries of the land where grazing rights were enjoyed. Parts of Leyton Marshes were used for the 2012 London Olympic and

Paralympic The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...

Games, despite some local opposition. A temporary basketball training venue was built on Porter's Field Meadow for the games, which was opposed by members of Save Lea Marshes.Leyeon Marsh campaign
/ref> The venue was dismantled after the Paralympic Games, the

Olympic Delivery Authority The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) was a non-departmental public body of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, responsible for ensuring the delivery of venues, infrastructure and legacy for the 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games ...

being required to return the open space to its original state. In addition, on the request of the local user group, the

committed to spending £65,000 on improving Leyton Marsh, including pathways and seating, as well as introducing habitats to attract existing and new species of wildlife into the area.

References

External links

New Lammas Lands Defence Committee

Lea Valley Park
{{Coord, 51, 34, 1.48, N, 0, 2, 43.61, W, scale:12500_region:GB, display=title Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Waltham Forest Marshland in London Lee Valley Park