Dagenham () is a town in

East London East London is the part of London, England, east of the ancient City of London and north of the River Thames as it begins to widen. East London developed as London Docklands, London's docklands and the primary industrial centre. The expansion of ...

, England, within the

London Borough of Barking and Dagenham The London Borough of Barking and Dagenham () is a London boroughs, London borough in East London. The borough was created in 1965 as the London Borough of Barking; the name was changed in 1980. It is an Outer London borough and the south is wi ...

. Dagenham is centred east of

Charing Cross Charing Cross ( ) is a junction in Westminster, London, England, where six routes meet. Since the early 19th century, Charing Cross has been the notional "centre of London" and became the point from which distances from London are measured. ...

. It was historically a rural 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 19 ...

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

, stretching from Hainault Forest in the north to the

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

in the south. Dagenham remained mostly undeveloped until 1921, when the

London County Council The London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today ...

began construction of the large

Becontree Becontree ( or Both pronunciations are given as Received Pronunciation in the Longman Pronunciation Dictionary, but the form is prioritised (). The dialectologist Peter Wright wrote in 1981 that is the traditional pronunciation in the cockney ...

housing estate. The population significantly increased as people moved to the new housing in the early 20th century, with the parish of Dagenham becoming Dagenham Urban District in 1926 and the

Municipal Borough of Dagenham Dagenham was a local government district in south west Essex, England from 1926 to 1965 covering the parish of Dagenham. Initially created as an urban district, it was incorporated as a municipal borough in 1938. It was established to deal with t ...

in 1938. In 1965 Dagenham became part of

Greater London Greater London is an administrative area in England, coterminous with the London region, containing most of the continuous urban area of London. It contains 33 local government districts: the 32 London boroughs, which form a Ceremonial count ...

when most of the historic parish become part of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham was chosen as a location for industrial activity and is perhaps most famous for being the location of the Ford Dagenham motor car plant where the Ford sewing machinists strike of 1968 took place. Following the decline of industry, the southern part of Dagenham adjacent to the River Thames forms part of the

London Riverside The London Riverside is a redevelopment area on the north side of the River Thames in East London, England. The area was identified as a zone of change following the introduction of the Thames Gateway policy in 1995. Proposals for improvements i ...

section of the

Thames Gateway Thames Gateway is a term applied to an area around the Thames Estuary in the context of discourse around regeneration and further urbanisation. The term was first coined by the UK government and applies to an area of land stretching east from ...

redevelopment area, with a new district of Beam Park under construction on the former site of Ford Dagenham.

History

Toponymy

Dagenham first appeared in a document (as ) in a charter of

Barking Abbey The Abbey of St Mary and St Ethelburga, founded in the 7th-century and commonly known as Barking Abbey, is a former Roman Catholic, royal monastery located in Barking, in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. It has been described as havi ...

dating from 666 AD (though alternative 7th century dates have been suggested for the charter). The name almost certainly originated with a small farmstead, the "ham" or farm of a man called Daecca, as in

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

means ''home of a man called Dæcca''. The charter was made to reflect a transfer of land from Aethelred, kinsman of King Saebbi of Essex, to Barking Abbey.

Manor of Barking

Dagenham has been historically defined by its

ancient 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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

boundaries. The parish of Dagenham was formed in the medieval period from part of the huge manor of Barking, which was owned by the Nunnery of

. The Barking manor also included Barking and Great Ilford, which reversed the usual situation where a parish would be divided into one or more manors. As with other manors, the area held declined over time, and Barking Abbey was dissolved in 1539. The parish boundaries remained constant and were used to define Dagenham right up until the

was abolished in 1965.

Pre-urban landscape

Like most Essex Thames-side parishes, Dagenham was laid out on a N-S axis to give it a share of the marshes by the river, the agricultural land in the centre and the woods and commons on the poorer soils on the high ground in the north. Dagenham included a significant part of the now mostly lost Hainault Forest.

Dagenham Breach

South of Dagenham was a low-lying area including the Dagenham levels and Dagenham Marsh, these having been subject to periodic flooding from the Thames, and flood banks were built to protect the farmland, culminating in defences and a flood gate on the River Beam being built in the 17th century by Dutch engineers. In 1707 an exceptionally high tide swept away fourteen feet of embankment and flooded over 1,000 acres of land, the description given by

Daniel Defoe Daniel Defoe (; born Daniel Foe; 1660 – 24 April 1731) was an English writer, merchant and spy. He is most famous for his novel ''Robinson Crusoe'', published in 1719, which is claimed to be second only to the Bible in its number of translati ...

when he visited eight years later giving the area inundated as being 5000 acres is today considered an exaggeration. The "Dagenham Breach" widened over time to a width of 400 feet, allowing the Thames to strip the top layer of marsh clay from the flood plain and deposited it as a mud bank in the Thames where it became a danger to shipping. Despite various remedies, the breach was not securely filled and a further flood occurred in 1718 after which, under an act of parliament, over £40,000 of public money was spent on successfully closing the breach roughly at the location of Dagenham Dock. The closure of the gap left behind a large lake, also known as "Dagenham Breach" which became a popular spot for anglers. The lake is still there but much of it has silted up or been filled in and is now surrounded by industry, but parts can still be identified as the lakes to the north of Ford's plant and also where Breach Lane follows the now lost western outline of the lake.

Whitebait Dinners

Dagenham was formerly home to the famous annual whitebait feast. The custom appears to have been started by the King's Commissioner of Works to celebrate the closure of the breach in the seawall around 1714–20, and was held every subsequent spring, on or around

Trinity Sunday Trinity Sunday is the first Sunday after Pentecost in the Western Christianity, Western Christian liturgical year, liturgical calendar, and the Sunday of Pentecost in Eastern Christianity. Trinity Sunday celebrates the Christian doctrine of the ...

. Many years later, Sir Robert Preston MP, invited his friend George Rose the Secretary of the Treasury and others to celebrate the feast, and on another occasion Rose invited the Prime Minister, William Pitt. Thereafter it became an obligatory ritual of government for the entire cabinet to come to Dagenham and celebrate the security of the Thames and over time this simple but hearty meal based on Whitebait and local Essex Ale grew more lavish, including turtle, grouse, champagne and a range of other luxury food and drink. Eventually the cabinet tired of the long trip to Dagenham and moved the event to

Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...

Economic development

In 1931 the

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational corporation, multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. T ...

relocated from

Trafford Park Trafford Park is an area of the metropolitan borough of Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, opposite Salford Quays on the southern side of the Manchester Ship Canal, southwest of Manchester city centre and north of Stretford. Until the la ...

in Manchester, to a larger new plant in Dagenham, which was already the location of supplier Briggs Motorway Bodies. A riverside site was developed to become Europe's largest car plant, a vast vertically integrated site with its own

blast furnace A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally pig iron, but also others such as lead or copper. ''Blast'' refers to the combustion air being supplied above atmospheric pressure. In a ...

s and power station, importing iron ore and exporting finished vehicles. By the 1950s Ford had taken over Briggs at Dagenham and its other sites at

Doncaster Doncaster ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don, it is the administrative centre of the City of Doncaster metropolitan borough, and is the second largest se ...

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

and

Romford Romford is a large List of places in London, town in east London, east London, England, located northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Havering, the town is one of the major Metropolitan centres of London, metropolitan centr ...

. At its peak the Dagenham plant had of floor space and employed over 40,000 people, although this number gradually fell during the final three decades of the 20th century as production methods advanced and Ford invested in other European factories as well. Some of Britain's best selling cars, including the Fiesta, Escort, Cortina and Sierra, were produced at the plant over the next 71 years. On 20 February 2002, full production was discontinued due to overcapacity in Europe and the relative difficulty of upgrading the ageing site compared with mostly newer European production facilities such as Almussafes (

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

, Spain) and

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

. Other factors leading to the closure of the Auto-assembly line were the need of the site for the new Diesel Centre of Excellence, which produces half of Ford's Diesel Engines worldwide, and the UK employment laws when compared to Spanish, German and Belgian laws. In 2005 Cummins went into a joint venture and offered $15 million (US) to reinstate the factory. Ford and Cummins offered a good redundancy package, billed as one of the best in UK manufacturing. It is the location of the

Dagenham wind turbines The Dagenham wind turbines are three high Enercon E-66 and one E-82 wind turbines located on the Ford Dagenham assembly plant, Dagenham estate of the Ford Motor Company in East London, England. The first two turbines were completed in April 2004 ...

.Greater London Authority –
Wind Turbines, Ford Estate, Dagenham planning application
''. 4 June 2003. Some 4,000 people now work at the Ford plant. The movie ''

Made in Dagenham ''Made in Dagenham'' is a 2010 British comedy-drama film directed by Nigel Cole, written by William Ivory, and starring Sally Hawkins, Bob Hoskins, Miranda Richardson, Geraldine James, Rosamund Pike, Andrea Riseborough, Jaime Winstone, ...

'' (2010) is a dramatisation of the

1968 Ford sewing machinists strike The Ford sewing machinists strike of 1968 was a landmark labour-relations dispute in the United Kingdom. It was a trigger cause of the passing of the Equal Pay Act 1970. Strike action The strike, led by Rose Boland, Eileen Pullen, Vera Sime, ...

at the plant, when female workers walked out in protest against sexual discrimination and unequal pay. Sterling, who manufactured British Army weapons and Jaguar car parts, were also based in Dagenham until they went bankrupt in 1988. Other industrial names once known worldwide were Ever Ready, whose batteries could be found in shops throughout the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

, Bergers Paint and the chemical firm of May & Baker who in 1935 revolutionized the production of

antibiotics An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting pathogenic bacteria, bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the therapy ...

with their synthetic sulfa-drug known as M&B 693. The May & Baker plant, owned and run by

Sanofi-Aventis Sanofi S.A. is a French multinational pharmaceutical and healthcare company headquartered in Paris, France. The corporation was established in 1973 and merged with Synthélabo in 1999 to form Sanofi-Synthélabo. In 2004, Sanofi-Synthélabo merg ...

, occupied a 108-acre site in Rainham Road South, near Dagenham East Underground station. It was abandoned in 2013 when the company closed it. BeFirst, a company working on behalf of the council, began to redevelop the site for commercial opportunities. It is now the London East Business and Technical Park. NTT have their London1 data centre on this site, and the Eastbrook Studios is currently under construction.

Local government

Dagenham was an ancient, and later civil, 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 19 ...

. The

Metropolitan Police District The Metropolitan Police District (MPD) is the police area which is policed by the Metropolitan Police Service in London. It currently consists of the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, which excludes the City of ...

was extended in 1840 to include Dagenham. The parish formed part of the Romford Rural District from 1894.Vision of Britain �
Dagenham parish

historic map
) Dagenham Parish Council offices were located on Bull Street. The expansion of the Greater London conurbation into the area caused the review of local government structures, and it was suggested in 1920 that the Dagenham parish should be abolished and its area divided between Ilford Urban District and Barking Town Urban District. Separately, the London County Council proposed that its area of responsibility should be expanded beyond the

County of London The County of London was a county of England from 1889 to 1965, corresponding to the area known today as Inner London. It was created as part of the general introduction of elected county government in England, by way of the Local Government A ...

to cover the area. Instead, in 1926 the Dagenham parish was removed from the Romford Rural District and designated as an urban district. In 1938, in further recognition of its development, Dagenham became a

municipal borough A municipal borough was a type of local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of ...

. In 1965 the

was abolished and its former area became part of the

London Borough of Barking The London Borough of Barking and Dagenham () is a London borough in East London. The borough was created in 1965 as the London Borough of Barking; the name was changed in 1980. It is an Outer London borough and the south is within the Lond ...

, which was renamed Barking and Dagenham in 1980. For elections to the Greater London Council, Dagenham was part of the Barking electoral division until 1973 and then the

Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fo ...

electoral division until 1986.

Market gardens to suburban estate

In 1205 Dagenham was large enough to have a chaplain, and the Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul was probably built at around that time. In 1854, the

London, Tilbury and Southend Railway The London, Tilbury and Southend Railway (LT&SR), was a British railway company, whose network connected Fenchurch Street railway station, Fenchurch Street station, in central London, with destinations in east London and Essex, including , , , T ...

was built through the south of Dagenham, near the River Thames. In 1885 a new direct route from Barking to Pitsea, via Upminster, was built with

station opened just north of the village. Dagenham Dock station opened on the original southern route in 1908. Dagenham was still an undeveloped village, when building of the vast

estate by the

began in the early 1920s. The building of the enormous council estate, which also spread into the neighbouring parishes of

Ilford Ilford is a large List of areas of London, town in East London, England, northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Redbridge, Ilford is within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. It had a po ...

and Barking,British History Online –
The borough of Barking
'. Date accessed: 5 May 2007. caused a rapid increase in population. In 1932 the electrified

District line The District line is a London Underground line running from in the east and Edgware Road tube station (Circle, District and Hammersmith & City lines), Edgware Road in the west to in west London, where it splits into multiple branches. One br ...

of the

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or as the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Undergro ...

was extended to

Upminster Upminster is a suburb of east London, England, in the London Borough of Havering, northeast of Charing Cross. Historically a rural village, it formed an ancient parish in the Chafford hundred of the county of Essex. The economic history of ...

through Dagenham with stations opened as ''Dagenham'' and ''Heathway'' and today called Dagenham East and Dagenham Heathway. Dagenham East was the location of the Dagenham East rail crash in 1958. Services on the London Tilbury & Southend line at Dagenham East were withdrawn in 1962.

Governance

The 2010 wards of Eastbrook, Heath, River, Village and Whalebone are in the Dagenham and Rainham Parliamentary Constituency. The 2010 wards of Alibon, Mayesbrook, Parsloes, Thames and Valence are in the Barking Parliamentary Constituency. Each ward in B&D elects two or three councillors to

Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council, also known as Barking and Dagenham Council, is the local authority for the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham in Greater London, England. It is a London borough council, one of 32 in the United Ki ...

. The whole area is within the City and East London Assembly Constituency.

Geography

Dagenham is located approximately east of

in Central London. The

estate is largely in the pre-1965 borough of Dagenham, which also included

Becontree Heath Becontree Heath (also spelt Beacontree Heath) is an open space in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. The name has also been applied to the local area, in particular to the RM postcode area, RM8 postal district. History Becontree Heath f ...

, part of Rush Green, Old Dagenham village, and the southern section around Dagenham Dock and adjacent to the

. This southern section, which includes Ford Dagenham, is part of the

section of the

redevelopment zone. Including new developments of Beam Park and Dagenham Green. The Dagenham

post town A post town is a required part of all postal addresses in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, Ireland, and a basic unit of the postal delivery system.Royal Mail, ''Address Management Guide'', (2004) Including the correct post town in t ...

includes the whole of the Becontree estate, including those sections that were in the former (pre 1965) boroughs of Barking and Ilford. Parts of the former borough of Dagenham – part of Chadwell Heath, part of Collier Row and part of Rush Green – are in the Romford Post town. It is adjacent to Barking to the west,

to northeast and

Hornchurch Hornchurch is a suburban town in East London in the London Borough of Havering. It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross. It comprises a number of shopping streets and a large residential area. It historically formed a large ancient par ...

to the east. Dagenham Dock on the River Thames is to the south.

Demography

Dagenham is a working class area. During the 2000s there was a large influx of migrants, in particular Africans. The current population of the former (pre 1965) Borough of Dagenham could be approximated from the population of the current wards which together most closely match the area, but the former boundary between the borough and neighbouring Barking, with which it merged in 1965, no longer corresponds to any ward boundaries. At the time of the 2011 census, the Alibon ward (north of Heathway station) was 61% White British and 15% Black African. Goresbrook ward (southwest from Heathway) was 57% White British and 17% Black African. River ward (south of Heathway) was 51% White British and 19% Black African. Village ward (east from Heathway) was 58% White British and 19% Black African. Eastbrook ward (around Eastbrookend Country Park) was 69% White British and 11% Black African. Heath ward (north of Heathway) was 60% White British and 17% Black African.

Economy

The former May and Baker plant site at Dagenham East is now a centre of film and television production. Called Eastbrook Studios London.

Transport

Dagenham is connected to the

services from three stations,

(in the pre-1965 borough of Barking), Dagenham East and Dagenham Heathway, all on the

c2c Trenitalia c2c, trading as c2c, is a British train operating company that operates commuter services from its London terminus at to parts of East London and south Essex along the London, Tilbury and Southend line, as part of the Essex Thame ...

, part of

National Rail National Rail (NR) is the trading name licensed for use by the Rail Delivery Group, a group representing passenger train operating companies (TOCs) of England, Scotland, and Wales. The TOCs run the passenger services previously provided by ...

operated by

Trenitalia Trenitalia Società per azioni, SpA is the primary train operator of Italy. A subsidiary of Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, itself owned by the Italian government. It was established in 2000 following a European Union directive on the deregulati ...

since February 2017, runs a train service through Dagenham Dock station.

Elizabeth Line The Elizabeth line is a railway line that runs across Greater London and nearby towns, operating similarly to the Réseau Express Régional, RER in Paris and the S-Bahn systems of German-speaking countries. It runs services on dedicated infras ...

services also operate from nearby

Chadwell Heath Chadwell Heath is an area in East London, England. It is split between the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham and the London Borough of Redbridge, around west of Romford and east of Ilford, and north-east of Charing Cross. History Topon ...

station. A proposed, and as yet unfunded

Docklands Light Railway The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is an automated medium-capacity rail system, light metro system primarily serving the redeveloped London Docklands, Docklands area of London and providing a direct connection between London's two major financi ...

extension from Gallions Reach to Dagenham Dock. It was anticipated that the project could be completed and open for use by 2017.Transport for London
Docklands Light Railway - Dagenham Dock: Key Project Milestones
However the public inquiry has been postponed due to concerns about funding. Dagenham Heathway is served by the following

Transport for London Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom. TfL is the successor organization of the London Passenger Transport Board, which was established in 1933, and His ...

contracted routes:

London Buses London Buses is the subsidiary of Transport for London (TfL) that manages most bus services in London, England. It was formed following the Greater London Authority Act 1999 that transferred control of London Regional Transport (LRT) bus s ...

routes 145, 173, 174, 175 and 364. Routes 145, 173, 174, 175, 287, and EL2 operate in the Dagenham Dock area. Routes 103, 145, and 364 operate in Dagenham East. Bus routes 5, 103, 128, 150, 173, 175, 499, and N15, and East London Transit service EL2 operate from

, north of Dagenham. Routes 128 and EL1 run a 24-hour service, while the N15 runs through the night.

Culture

Valence House Valence House Museum is the only surviving of the five manor houses of Dagenham. The timber-framed museum building, partially surrounded by a moat, is situated in Valence Park off Becontree Avenue, in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, L ...

, in Becontree Avenue, is the only surviving of the five manor houses of Dagenham. Dating back to the 13th century, it is sited in parkland and there is a moat around part of it. Valence House is the London Borough of Barking & Dagenham's local history museum, displaying artifacts and archives that tell the story of the lives of the people of Barking and Dagenham. The collection also includes portraits, family papers and other mementos of the Fanshawe family, who occupied Parsloes Manor, since demolished, from the sixteenth century. The Fanshawe collection is "one of the best collections of gentry portraits in the country and is of international importance", according to Valence House. Elizabeth Ogborne
The History of Essex: From the Earliest Period to the Present Time
Printed for the Proprietors by R.H. Kelham, London, 1814, p. 61. Among members of the Fanshawe family was the diplomat Sir Richard Fanshawe, 1st Baronet, whose portrait is at Valence House. Nine successive members of the Fanshawe family served as Remembrancer to the Crown, following Henry Fanshawe's appointment to the position by

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...

in 1566. The appointment made possible the family's rise to prominence. In the post town of Romford and the pre-1965 borough of Dagenham, on the corner of Whalebone Lane and the Eastern Avenue, diagonally opposite the

Moby-Dick ''Moby-Dick; or, The Whale'' is an 1851 Epic (genre), epic novel by American writer Herman Melville. The book is centered on the sailor Ishmael (Moby-Dick), Ishmael's narrative of the maniacal quest of Captain Ahab, Ahab, captain of the whaler ...

public house, is the site of Marks Manor House, a large 15th-century moated building demolished in the early 19th century. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

the adjoining fields were used by the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

for an anti-aircraft battery; later a

prisoner-of-war camp A prisoner-of-war camp (often abbreviated as POW camp) is a site for the containment of enemy fighters captured as Prisoner of war, prisoners of war by a belligerent power in time of war. There are significant differences among POW camps, inte ...

for Germans was erected there. Further south down Whalebone Lane on the corner of the High Road is the Tollgate pub. This stands on the site of the

milestone A milestone is a numbered marker placed on a route such as a road, railway, railway line, canal or border, boundary. They can indicate the distance to towns, cities, and other places or landmarks like Mileage sign, mileage signs; or they c ...

which marked the limit from the

City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...

and the turnpike toll-gate.

The Roundhouse The Roundhouse is a performing arts and concert venue at the Grade II* listed former railway engine shed in Chalk Farm, London, England. The building was erected in 1846–1847 by the London & North Western Railway as a roundhouse, a circ ...

public house on the junction of Porters Avenue and Lodge Avenue (in the pre-1965 borough of Barking) became eastern Greater London's premier rock-music venue between 1969 and 1975, incorporating the ''Village Blues Club''. Notable performers at the pub included Jethro Tull,

Supertramp Supertramp were a British rock band formed in London in 1970. Marked by the individual songwriting of founders Roger Hodgson (vocals, keyboards and guitars) and Rick Davies (vocals and keyboards), the group were distinguished for blending p ...

Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...

Eric Clapton Eric Patrick Clapton (born 1945) is an English Rock music, rock and blues guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the most successful and influential guitarists in rock music. Clapton ranked second in ''Rolling Stone''s l ...

Status Quo is a Latin phrase meaning the existing state of affairs, particularly with regard to social, economic, legal, environmental, political, religious, scientific or military issues. In the sociological sense, the ''status quo'' refers to the curren ...

, and

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...

(on 5 April 1969). The Eastbrook is a

Grade II* listed In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

pub. Given the influence of U.S. blues on the English musicians who played at the Roundhouse, journalist

Nik Cohn Nik Cohn (born 1946), also written Nick Cohn, is a British writer. Life and career Cohn was born in London, England and brought up in Derry in Northern Ireland. He is the son of historian Norman Cohn and Russian writer Vera Broido. An incomer ...

called the London of the late 1960s and early 1970s the "Dagenham Delta".

Media

The '' Barking & Dagenham Post'' is printed weekly and also published online.

Sport

Dagenham & Redbridge F.C., based at Victoria Road were relegated to the in the 2015–16 season from the

Football League Two The English Football League Two, simply known as League Two and for sponsorship purposes as Sky Bet League Two, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League Two is the fourth division of the English Football League (EFL ...

, after being relegated from the

Football League One The English Football League One, known as Sky Bet League One for sponsorship reasons, or simply League One, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League One is the second-highest division of the English Football League an ...

which they had reached having been promoted as playoff-winners of League two after beating Rotherham United F.C. 3–2, in the 2010–11 season. They were also the Nationwide Conference champions of the 2006–07 season.

Greyhound racing Greyhound racing is an organized, competitive sport in which greyhounds are raced around an oval track. The sport originates from Hare coursing, coursing. Track racing uses an artificial lure (usually a form of windsock) that travels ahead of th ...

and

Motorcycle speedway Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four clockwise, anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that ...

was staged at the Dagenham Greyhound Stadium off Ripple Road, from 1930 to 1965. The speedway club ran various events from 1932 to 1939 and a team called the Dagenham Daggers took part in challenge matches and the Sunday Dirt-Track League. Dagenham's leading cricket club Goresbrook Cricket Club are based at the May & Baker Sports Club in Rainham Road South, in 2011 the club won the Essex County Cricket League for the first time in its history. Dagenham has a King George's Field in memorial to

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. George was born during the reign of his pa ...

. The park was renamed in 1953 by

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

. Dagenham also has many other parks such as Valence - and Parsloes (which lies partly in the pre-1965 borough of Barking). Dagenham Crusaders Drum and Bugle Corps, founded by John Johnson, was the first British Drum Corps and performed in the United States for the first time in 1983. In 2010 they reformed to perform for DCUK's 30th anniversary, fielding a competitive corps for the first time in 22 years.

Dagenham Flat Fire

In the early hours of 26 August 2024, a fire blazed through the Spectrum Building, a tower block mostly of flats on Freshwater Road, Dagenham. Emergency services received the first report of the fire at 02:44 local time, with the first

fire engine A fire engine or fire truck (also spelled firetruck) is a vehicle, usually a specially designed or modified truck, that functions as a firefighting apparatus. The primary purposes of a fire engine include transporting firefighters and water to ...

arriving at 02:49 local time. More than 100 people were evacuated, at least 20 being rescued by

firefighters A firefighter (or fire fighter or fireman) is a first responder trained in specific emergency response such as firefighting, primarily to control and extinguish fires and respond to emergencies such as hazardous material incidents, medical in ...

. 225 firefighters and at least 40 fire engines responded to the incident. Four people were treated by ambulances at the scene, of which two were taken to hospital. At 12:35 local time, Assistant Commissioner Patrick Goulbourne of the

London Fire Brigade The London Fire Brigade (LFB) is the Fire department, fire and rescue service for London, the capital of the United Kingdom. It was formed by the Metropolitan Fire Brigade Act 1865 (28 & 29 Vict. c. 90), under the leadership of superintendent ...

announced ''"everyone has been accounted for"'' and they had ''"Stood down the Major Incident"'' The building was in the process of having 'non-compliant' cladding removed, similar to the cladding that was found on the

Grenfell Tower Grenfell Tower is a derelict 24-storey residential tower block in North Kensington in West London, England. The tower was completed in 1974 as part of the first phase of the Lancaster West Estate. Most of the tower was destroyed in a Grenfell T ...

Notable people

Please see 'Geography' above for various definitions of 'Dagenham'. *Actress Adelayo Adedayo was raised in Dagenham. * Abraham Blackborne, long-serving vicars of Dagenham. * England international footballer and World Cup-winning manager

Alf Ramsey Sir Alfred Ernest Ramsey (22 January 1920 – 28 April 1999) was an English association football, football player and Manager (association football), manager. As a player, he represented England national football team, the England national ...

was born in Dagenham in 1920. * St Peter and St Paul's Church, Dagenham Parish Church, was once the Parish Church of the former

archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

George Carey George Leonard Carey, Baron Carey of Clifton (born 13 November 1935) is a retired Anglican bishop who was the Archbishop of Canterbury from 1991 to 2002, having previously been the Bishop of Bath and Wells. During his time as archbishop the C ...

. *Musician and comedian

Dudley Moore Dudley Stuart John Moore (19 April 193527 March 2002) was an English actor, comedian, musician and composer. He first came to prominence in the UK as a leading figure in the British satire boom of the 1960s. He was one of the four writer-perf ...

was brought up in Dagenham, which was the home of

Peter Cook Peter Edward Cook (17 November 1937 – 9 January 1995) was an English comedian, actor, satirist, playwright and screenwriter. He was the leading figure of the British satire boom of the 1960s, and he was associated with the anti-establishmen ...

and Dudley Moore's famous comic alter-egos ''

Pete and Dud Pete and Dud were characters played by the comedians and entertainers Peter Cook and Dudley Moore. The dialogue format originated in 1964 when Dudley Moore invited Peter Cook to appear in a television performance. Cook scripted a conversation be ...

''. * Sandie Shaw, a 1960s pop singer who had a string of hit singles in the decade and won the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), often known simply as Eurovision, is an international Music competition, song competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) among its members since 1956. Each participating broadcaster ...

in 1967 with Puppet on a String, was born in Dagenham. * Arsenal and England footballer

Tony Adams Tony Alexander Adams (born 10 October 1966) is an English former football manager and player. Adams played for Arsenal and England, captaining both teams. Known as Mr. Arsenal, he spent his entire playing career of 19 years as a centre-back t ...

grew up in Dagenham, attending both Hunters Hall Primary School and

Eastbrook Comprehensive School Eastbrook School is a coeducational primary school, secondary school and sixth form located in Barking and Dagenham, London, England. The Executive Headteacher is Tony Roe. The secondary headteacher is Jamie Gibson and the Primary Headteacher ...

. * Rap artist Devlin was born in Bermondsey but grew up in Dagenham. *Singer

John Farnham John Peter Farnham (born 1 July 1949) is a British-born Australian singer. Farnham was a teen pop idol from 1967 until the mid-1970s, billed as Johnny Farnham. He has since forged a career as an adult contemporary singer.McFarlane (1999). Enc ...

was born in Dagenham, before migrating to Australia at the age of 10. *Former darts player Wayne Mardle was born in Dagenham before living in Romford. *English actor, musician, YouTuber and podcaster,

James Buckley (actor) James Patrick Buckley (born 14 August 1987) is an English actor, musician, YouTuber and podcaster. He is best known for playing Jay Cartwright in the E4 sitcom ''The Inbetweeners''. He is also notable for playing the young Del Boy in the BBC c ...

calls Dagenham his home town. *British singer, TV presenter, and personality

Stacey Solomon Stacey Chanelle Clare Solomon (born 4 October 1989) is an English television personality and singer. In 2009, she was a contestant on the sixth series of the ITV talent show ''The X Factor'', in which she finished in third place. The followin ...

is from Dagenham. *British singer, Steve Ignorant of the original anarcho-punk collective

Crass Crass was an English art collective and punk rock band formed in Epping, Essex in 1977 who promoted anarchism as a political ideology, a lifestyle, and a resistance movement. Crass popularized the anarcho-punk movement of the punk subculture, ...

grew up in Dagenham. * Richard Wisker actor, was born in Dagenham. * Chris Youlden blues singer, Savoy Brown, was born in Dagenham.

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * * * Terry Cooper Death by Dior: Françoise Dior, (Dynasty Press, 2013, )

External links

{{Authority control Areas of London Districts of the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Vehicle manufacture in London District centres of London