Ickenham is an area in

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 ...

, forming the northern part of

Uxbridge Uxbridge () is a suburban town in west London, England, and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon, northwest of Charing Cross. Uxbridge formed part of the parish of Hillingdon in the county of Middlesex. As part ...

and within the

London Borough of Hillingdon The London Borough of Hillingdon () is a London borough in Greater London, England. It forms part of outer London and West London, being the westernmost London borough. It was formed in 1965 from the districts of Hayes and Harlington Urban Distr ...

. While no major historical events have taken place in Ickenham, settlements dating back to the

Roman occupation of Britain Roman Britain was the territory that became the Roman province of ''Britannia'' after the Roman conquest of Britain, consisting of a large part of the island of Great Britain. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410. Julius Caesa ...

have been discovered during archaeological surveys, and the area appears in the Domesday Book. Buildings from the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries remain standing and have been restored in recent years. The village was originally split into four manors, but later there were two: Ickenham and Swakeleys. The old manorial home of Swakeleys, a 17th-century Jacobean mansion Swakeleys House still stands, and much of the Swakeleys estate was sold for housing in the 1920s. Ickenham's manorial home, Manor Farm, now forms part of Long Lane Farm. A military station,

RAF West Ruislip RAF West Ruislip was a Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Ministry of Defence site, located in Ickenham within the London Borough of Hillingdon. The base was originally built as a depot for the Royal Air Force (RAF), split by what is now the ...

, was opened in 1917. Its final use was for the Navy Exchange of the U.S. Naval Activities, United Kingdom command between 1975 and 2006. At the 1901 census, Ickenham had a population of 329;Bowlt 1996, p.133 at the 2001 census the population had reached 9,933, although census figures show a marked

population decline Population decline, also known as depopulation, is a reduction in a human population size. Throughout history, Earth's total world population, human population has estimates of historical world population, continued to grow but projections sugg ...

during the 1960s and 1970s. By the 2011 census, the population had reached 10,387. When Ickenham obtained a railway station on the Metropolitan Railway's line between Harrow and

, a great deal of residential development started in the village, and it gradually became part of the

London commuter belt The London metropolitan area is the metropolitan area of London, England. It has several definitions, including the London Travel to work area, Travel to Work Area, and usually consists of the London urban area, settlements that share London' ...

.Hughes 1983, p.90 Ickenham expanded with the sale and development of much of the Swakeleys estate in 1922 and became part of what was later termed "

Metro-land Metro-land (or Metroland – see note on spelling, below) is a name given to the suburban areas that were built to the north-west of London in the counties of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Middlesex in the early part of the 20th century th ...

History

Toponymy

The name 'Ickenham' means 'homestead/village of Tic(c)a'. The T was lost in the 13th-14th centuries because of confusion with the

Middle English Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman Conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English pe ...

word for 'at'. Ickenham appears in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

of 1086 three times under the name "Ticheham". Translated from

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

, the second entry reads: The Domesday Book describes the land as being predominantly flat and composed of

London clay The London Clay Formation is a Sediment#Shores and shallow seas, marine formation (geology), geological formation of Ypresian (early Eocene Epoch, c. 54-50 million years ago) age which outcrop, crops out in the southeast of England. The London C ...

with the exception of

alluvium Alluvium (, ) is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. Alluvium is also sometimes called alluvial deposit. Alluvium is ...

along the banks of the River Pinn. Of the few archaeological surveys of Ickenham carried out, one in 1994 by the

Museum of London London Museum (known from 1976 to 2024 as the Museum of London) is a museum in London, covering the history of the city from prehistoric to modern times, with a particular focus on social history. The Museum of London was formed in 1976 by ama ...

found a system of

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

fields dating back to the 1st and 2nd centuries, along with pottery fragments. Research suggest that the area may have been abandoned for a period following the departure of the Romans from Britain around AD 410.

Early developments

Ickenham was originally divided into the four manors of Ickenham, Tykenham, Swalcliff (Swakeleys) and Herses (Hercies). Tykenham and Herses were within the parish of

Hillingdon Hillingdon is an area of Uxbridge within the London Borough of Hillingdon, centred 14.2 miles (22.8 km) west of Charing Cross. It was an ancient parish in Middlesex that included the market town of Uxbridge. During the 1920s the civil pari ...

, though Herses subsequently became part of the manor of Swalcliff. These manors were eventually merged to form the main manors of Ickenham and Swakeleys. The original lord of the manor of Ickenham was Geoffrey de Mandeville, from whom it passed to William de Brock and then, in 1334, to John Charlton whose son John owned Swakeleys from 1350. By the mid-14th century, Ickenham was owned by the Shorediche family who retained possession until 1819.Hughes 1983, p.17 The Crosier family, major landowners in north-west Middlesex, moved to Ickenham in the 16th century. They established their manorial home as Sherwyns, and owned Home Farm and Sears house in 1624. After the Shorediche family Milton Farm was bought by William Crosier in 1685. Edward Hilliard become the direct descendant of the final member of the Crosier family, John Crosier. Under the Hilliards, Milton Farm was sold to become part of the Swakeleys estate in 1816, and Hill Farm become Northolt Aerodrome in 1916. The Shorediche family built their manor house on a track off Long Lane. Originally called Ickenham Hall, it was let out to farmers in 1818 and renamed Manor Farm,Bowlt 1996, p.17 at which point the Crosier family renamed their manorial home from Sherwyns to Ickenham Hall. Swakeleys manor, subordinate to Ickenham, was named after Robert Swalcliffe, who owned the manor with his wife Joan in the 14th century. He appears in records as Robert de Swalclyve and Robert de Wykeham, reflecting his ownership of Swakeleys and Wickham Park in

Oxfordshire Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...

. In 1347, he owed £40 to a money lender, Roger Rikeman, which he was unable to pay, and so his land in Ickenham was passed by Rikeman in 1350 to John de Charlton. A descendant of John de Charlton, the first Sir Thomas de Charlton, died in 1448 whereupon Swakeleys passed to his son, also named Sir Thomas, who became

Speaker of the House of Commons Speaker of the House of Commons is a political leadership position found in countries that have a House of Commons, where the membership of the body elects a speaker to lead its proceedings. Systems that have such a position include: * Speaker of ...

and member of parliament (MP) for Middlesex. He died in 1465, at which point his son Sir Richard became owner of the manor. Sir Richard was killed fighting on the side of

Richard III Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and its cadet branch the House of York. His defeat and death at the Battle of Boswor ...

during the

Battle of Bosworth Field The Battle of Bosworth or Bosworth Field ( ) was the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the houses of House of Lancaster, Lancaster and House of York, York that extended across England in the latter half ...

in 1485. The victor of the battle, Henry VII, named him in his Act of Attainder, though he granted Sir Richard's wife Elizabeth a life interest in the manor. However, Sir Thomas Bourchier was subsequently granted the manor of Swakeleys and Covelhall ( Cowley). Upon Sir Thomas' death in 1510, the manor passed to Sir John Peeche as his executor. Sir John had no children, so Swakeleys passed to the

Earl of Devon Earl of Devon is a title that has been created several times in the Peerage of England. It was possessed first (after the Norman Conquest of 1066) by the Redvers family (''alias'' de Reviers, Revieres, etc.), and later by the Courtenay famil ...

, Henry Courteney in 1521. The Earl granted a licence to control Swakeleys to Sir William Fitzwilliam in 1531, who was acting as trustee for Ralph Pexall. The lords of the manor of Swakeleys resided at Swakeleys House, though the house that stands today was not the first on the site. The original dated to around the 14th century and was probably constructed of wattle and timber. It was subject to extensive remedial work, much lamented at the time, while under the ownership of John Bingley. Bingley later sold the estate to Sir Edmund Wright, a future

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the Mayors in England, mayor of the City of London, England, and the Leader of the council, leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded Order of precedence, precedence over a ...

, in 1629, and the current house was built of brick in 1638. A church in Ickenham is not mentioned in the Domesday Book and it is likely that residents travelled to nearby

Harefield Harefield is a village in the London Borough of Hillingdon, England, northwest of Charing Cross near Greater London's boundary with Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the north. The population at the 2011 Census was 7,399. Har ...

for services. The original

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

and

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

of St Giles' Church have been dated to 1335 while the nave was extended west in 1959. The bell turret was built in the 15th century and a brick aisle added in 1575. 'The Pump' is a significant local landmark. Donated to the village by Charlotte Gell, this water pump stands close to the village pond at the intersection of Swakeleys Road and Long Lane. After Gell's death in 1863, under the provisions of her will a water pump was sunk for the benefit for the community in 1866. The village pond next to the pump was dug at the same time as the well for the pump was sunk, to accommodate waste from the construction. An older pond on the other side of the village was filled in with the excavated earth from the new one. In 1857 Gell had also donated some of her land near St Giles's Church for five

almshouse An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) is charitable housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the Middle Ages. They were often built for the poor of a locality, for those who had held ce ...

s to be built for longstanding servants of the Gell household or Ickenham residents who were members of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

. No more than three people were allowed to live in the houses at one time. The cottages remain and are maintained by the St Giles' Church. Next to the pump stands the Coach & Horses public house, first licensed for the sale of alcohol in 1759 but of 16th-century origin. The house was used for manorial courts throughout the 19th century until the last was held in 1878.

Urban development

On 25 September 1905, following lobbying by Ickenham Parish Council, the

Metropolitan Railway The Metropolitan Railway (also known as the Met) was a passenger and goods railway that served London from 1863 to 1933, its main line heading north-west from the capital's financial heart in the City to what were to become the Middlesex su ...

opened a small halt on their line between Harrow and

. The railway company had been reluctant to open a station in the area due to a perceived lack of demand, and so a compromise was reached with the construction of the halt. The new stop brought with it travellers from London seeking a day out in rural surroundings. Nearby villagers sold flowers from their gardens and served teas to the visitors. The parish council later requested shelters for passengers on the platforms, which were built in December 1905, followed by a booking hut in 1910. The original platforms, too short to align with all train carriages, were extended in 1922. Ickenham Halt was rebuilt as a station in the 1970s. The

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of kilometres ( 26 mi 385 yd), usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There ...

event of the

1908 Summer Olympics The 1908 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the IV Olympiad and also known as London 1908) were an international multi-sport event held in London, England, from 27 April to 31 October 1908. The 1908 Games were originally schedu ...

in London passed through Ickenham and Uxbridge on its way to the

White City Stadium White City Stadium in London, England, was built for the 1908 Summer Olympics. It hosted the finish of the first modern marathon and swimming, speedway, boxing, show jumping, athletics, stock car racing, concerts and a match at the 1966 FIFA W ...

. As a result of the railway, more commuters gradually moved to Ickenham and travelled to work in London. On 5 July 1922, of the Swakeleys estate was auctioned for development, thereby significantly reducing its size. Roads laid out for the new development were Warren Road, Swakeleys Drive, Court Road, Milton Road, Ivy House Road, The Avenue and Thornhill Road (originally named Park Road). Other land bordering the River Pinn was designated as public open land. Shops were built around Swakeleys Road, while houses were constructed along its length. The road was widened to become a dual carriageway in 1937. Milton Farm, one of the farms on the former Swakeleys estate was demolished in 1939. The farm's pond and listed barn were cleared to make way for housing in what became Milton Road and Milton Court, though marketed as "Ickenham Garden City". Ickenham pond - April 2011

A military station, operated by the Royal Air Force and later the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

, was opened on part of Home Farm close to the parish boundary with Ruislip in 1917, later becoming known as

. The site was used originally for the British No. 4 Maintenance Unit, together with the RAF Records division. It became involved in the repair of aircraft equipment and later in the servicing of American vehicles from RAF South Ruislip. Between 1955 and 1975 the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

was based at the Ruislip station, before the U.S. Naval Activities, United Kingdom command leased the site from the

Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...

for the American Naval Exchange. The original village school was built on Ickenham High Road in 1866, although by 1920 it had become overcrowded. Older children were moved to the village hall in 1928 under the name Ickenham Temporary Council School. In 1929 the village school closed and its infant pupils also moved to the village hall. The road was widened in 1934 necessitating demolition of the school building along with the original Fox & Geese public house. The village pump remained in use until December 1914, while the handle was removed in 1921 by the local council for safe keeping but was never returned. The pump was restored in 2004 in partnership with a local building company, and a similar handle was fitted during the works. Breakspear Primary School was built in 1937, followed by Glebe Primary in 1952 on the other side of the railway line. The

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

secondary school Douay Martyrs was built in 1962 and later expanded onto the former site of Swakeleys School nearby. Swakeleys School had opened in 1929 for older children from the village school. In 1952 the boys moved to the newly opened Abbotsfield School and Swakeleys became a girls' secondary modern school. The girls' school moved from Ickenham to share the site of Abbotsfield School for Boys in

in 1973. Vyners School opened as a

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...

on 12 January 1960 and later became a comprehensive. Delays in building work meant the first intake of pupils were taught at St Mary's Grammar School in Northwood Hills from 9 September 1959. The village hall, designed by Clifton Davy, was built on part of Church Farm in 1926. Opened by Princess Victoria, as well as becoming the temporary village school the hall also became a restaurant during the Second World War and went on to be used as a bank and a

polling station A polling place is where voters cast their ballots in elections. The phrase polling station is also used in American English, British English and Canadian English although a polling place is the building and polling station is the specific ...

. A police telephone box was constructed next to the Pump in February 1936, and became operational on 4 May 1936. Church Farm opposite St Giles' church was demolished after the Second World War and replaced with shops, while new roads were built in the area. By 1951 the population of Ickenham had reached 7,107, and this had risen to 10,370 by 1961 and 11,214 by 1971. The ford over the River Pinn on Swakeleys Drive, nicknamed "The Splash", was replaced in 1957 by a road bridge. Ickenham Hall - April 2011

Middlesex County Council Middlesex County Council was the principal local government body in the administrative county of Middlesex from 1889 to 1965. The county council was created by the Local Government Act 1888, which also removed the most populous part of the cou ...

bought Ickenham Hall and its grounds in 1948 in order to convert it into a youth centre. In 1968 a theatre was built behind the hall, later named the Compass Theatre by the Theatre Director John Sherratt. A new building connecting the two was built in 1976. During the Second World War Swakeleys House was requisitioned by the military and a searchlight battery established in the grounds. The house was

Grade I 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, Hi ...

in 1956, and the head gardener's cottage on the junction of Swakeleys Road and The Avenue was Grade II listed in 1959. The village library opened in 1962 on the site of the 16th century cottage and tea garden, The Orchard. Uxbridge Borough Council installed a three-sided clock commemorating the 1953

coronation A coronation ceremony marks the formal investiture of a monarch with regal power using a crown. In addition to the crowning, this ceremony may include the presentation of other items of regalia, and other rituals such as the taking of special v ...

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. ...

in the library's tower, having been persuaded not to add it to the eight-sided village pump. In the 1980s, St Giles' church celebrated its 650th anniversary and formed a covenant with the neighbouring United Reformed Church. The United Reformed Church moved to its current building in 1936 after the previous chapel building proved too small for the growing congregation. It was then used by a local company as a wood and scrap metal yard. Nearby, many buildings on the RAF station were demolished to make way for a new housing estate named Brackenbury Village. The US Navy eventually left in 2006 and the base was permanently closed. The site was cleared in 2007 and is currently undergoing redevelopment as residential housing under the "Ickenham Park" name. The local library was closed for a complete refurbishment in 2009 and reopened in March 2010. A garden commemorating the

Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II The year 2012 marked the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II being the 60th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II on 6 February 1952. The only diamond jubilee celebration for any of Elizabeth's predecessors was in 1897, for Queen Victo ...

was opened in September 2012 in Swakeleys Park. The garden, featuring a landscaped area and benches around a stone obelisk, was designed by the local council's Green Spaces Team. The opening had been scheduled for 26 May 2012, although this was postponed after vandals destroyed the stone obelisk overnight shortly after it had been installed.

Local government

Ickenham had a parish council but came within the Uxbridge Rural District until 1925, when this was absorbed into the Municipal Borough of Uxbridge. This remained until 1965, when the borough was included in the newly established

.Cotton 1994, p.133 Within the borough of Hillingdon, all of Ickenham fell within the Ickenham ward, until 1999 when parts of the village were moved into adjoining wards to balance ward populations. Following further ward boundary changes in 2022, Ickenham currently falls within the Ickenham and South Ruislip ward, with Conservative Councillors Kaushik Banerjee, Martin Goddard and Eddie Lavery representing it. Ickenham was within the Uxbridge constituency until boundary changes at the 2010 general election meant it became part of the new Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner constituency, represented by Nick Hurd MP.

Demography

72% of the population is White British, according to the 2011 census. The next largest groups are Indians (10.9%) and

Other White The term Other White, or White Other, is a classification of ethnicity in the United Kingdom, used in documents such as the 2021 United Kingdom Census, to describe people who identify as white persons who are not of the English, Welsh, Scotti ...

s (3.6%). 81.2% of people living in Ickenham were born in England. Other common places of birth include

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

(3%),

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

(1.6%), and

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

(1.3%). The most common religious affiliations in Ickenham are

Christians A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

(60%), those of no religion (17.9%),

Hindus Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

(5.8%) and

Sikhs Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Sikh'' ...

(4.3%). Almost half the housing stock, 45.3%, are detached houses. 40.3% are semi-detached, 9.4% flats/maisonettes/apartments, and 5% terraced.

Education

Primary schools in Ickenham include Breakspear School, Breakspear Junior School, and Glebe Primary School. Secondary schools include The Douay Martyrs School and Vyners School. There is also Pentland Field School – a new special school on the former USA Navy site in Ickenham. This is for young people aged between 4 and 19 years old who have severe to moderate learning difficulties.

Sports clubs and societies

Sports clubs in Ickenham include Ickenham Cricket Club and Ickenham Rugby Club. Hillingdon Athletics Club (an amalgamation of the Ruislip-Northwood and Uxbridge clubs), has attracted many athletes from Ickenham since its foundation in the 1960s. The Ickenham and District Society of Model Engineers was formed in September 1948 and originally met in the old ARP huts, before moving to Ickenham Hall. On 14 May 1949, the society held their first exhibition of miniature locomotives in a field off Swakeleys Road. A new society clubhouse opened on 18 June 1955 on a site near the Coach & Horses public house where it remains. The miniature railway is open to the public on the first Saturday of each month. Ickenham's residents' association was established in 1924, and it plays an active role within the community; in recent years the association has been involved in preventing developments by

Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in the United Kingdom at its head offices in Welwyn Garden City, England. The company was founded by Jack Cohen (businessman), Sir Jack Cohen in ...

and

IKEA IKEA ( , ) is a Multinational corporation, multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in Sweden that designs and sells , household goods, and various related services. IKEA is owned and operated by a series of not-for-profit an ...

, which in the association's view would have adversely affected the town.

Transport

Ickenham tube station is served by the Metropolitan and

Piccadilly Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, England, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road (England), A4 road that connects central London to ...

lines. West Ruislip station (opened as Ruislip & Ickenham) is on the border of

Ruislip Ruislip ( ) is a suburb in the London Borough of Hillingdon in northwest London. Prior to 1965 it was in Middlesex. Ruislip lies west-north-west of Charing Cross, London. The manor of Ruislip appears in the Domesday Book, and some of the ear ...

and Ickenham and is served by the Central line and

Chiltern Main Line The Chiltern Main Line is a railway line which links London () and Birmingham (Birmingham Moor Street railway station, Moor Street and Birmingham Snow Hill railway station, Snow Hill) on a route via High Wycombe, Bicester, Banbury, Leamington ...

. The

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 U1, U10 and 278 serve Ickenham. B467 (Swakeleys Road) and B466 (Long Lane) intersect in the centre of Ickenham. They link the Ickenham area with Harefield, Hillingdon and Ruislip.

Landmarks and events

Pynchester Moat

The Pynchester Moat is a

Scheduled Ancient Monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...

on the River Pinn just east of Copthall Road West. Although usually dry in the summer months, the moat surrounding the location of a manor house can still be seen. Excavations of the site between 1966 and 1969 found pottery and an oven dating back to the 14th or 15th century. It is believed the manor house at the centre of the moat was "Pynchester", a building owned by the Hastings family in the 16th century. The moat is a point of interest on the Celandine Route, a walk along the River Pinn from

Pinner Pinner is a suburb in the London Borough of Harrow, northwest London, England, northwest of Charing Cross, close to the border with Hillingdon, historically in the county of Middlesex. The population was 38,698 in 2021. Originally a mediaeval ...

to the

Grand Union Canal The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the Canals of the United Kingdom, British canal system. It is the principal navigable waterway between London and the Midlands. Starting in London, one arm runs to Leicester and another to Birmi ...

at Cowley.

Swakeleys House

Built between 1629 and 1638 for Sir Edmund Wright, the house replaced an existing structure dating back to the 14th century.Newbery 1996, p.19 In later years the Foreign & Commonwealth Office Sports Association bought the house, followed by the London Postal Region Sports Club. Cricket matches between the club and local teams from Ickenham and Uxbridge were played within the grounds.Skinner 2005, p.23 The house was bought by three local residents in the 1980s and restored, whereupon it was leased to

Bristol-Myers Squibb The Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, doing business as Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), is an American multinational pharmaceutical company. Headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey, BMS is one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies and consist ...

for 25 years. Since the expiry of the lease in 2009, the house has been open to the public for one day a year as part of Open House London.

Ickenham Festival

The biennial Ickenham Festival has taken place in the town since 1976, originally with the aim of highlighting the variety of societies and groups in the area. The festival normally centres on a charity gala day in June, when various groups including Scouts, church groups and schools parade through the town, finishing with a large fête in the grounds of Swakeleys House. Fireworks mark the end of the festival in the evening. The festival Gala moved to the grounds of Vyners School in 2014 after a dispute with the owner of Swakeleys House.

Notable people

* Roger Crab (1621-1680), English soldier, haberdasher, herbal doctor and writer best known for his ascetic lifestyle and Christian vegetarianism, lived as a hermit in Ickenham between 1652 and 1657. * Steve Conway (1920–1952), singer, lived in Ickenham * Cellist

Florence Hooton __NOTOC__ Florence Hooton (8 July 1912 – 14 May 1988) was an English cellist, chamber music performer and teacher, responsible for many important British music premieres in the 1930s, 40s and 50s. Life She was born in Scarborough, the daughter o ...

(1912-1988) lived at 34 Thornhill Road, Ickenham with her violinist husband David Martin (1911-1982) * Anna Rose O'Sullivan (born 1994), ballerina and principal dancer with

The Royal Ballet The Royal Ballet is a British internationally renowned classical ballet company, based at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden, London, England. The largest of the five major ballet companies in Great Britain, the Royal Ballet was founded ...

, was raised in Ickenham.

References

Notes

: a A hide was originally an amount of land suitable for supporting a household, but became a measure for assessing land for tax in Anglo-Saxon England. : b A

virgate The virgate, yardland, or yard of land ( was an English unit of land. Primarily a measure of tax assessment rather than area, the virgate was usually (but not always) reckoned as hide and notionally (but seldom exactly) equal to 30 acr ...

was a unit of land area measurement used in medieval England, and was held to be the amount of land that a team of two oxen could plough in a single annual season.

Citations

Bibliography

* Bowlt, Eileen. M. (1996) ''Ickenham & Harefield Past''. London: Historical Publications * Cotton, Carolynne. (1994) ''Uxbridge Past''. London: Historical Publications * Hughes, Morris. W. (1983) ''The Story of Ickenham''. Uxbridge: London Borough of Hillingdon * Newbery, Maria; Cotton, Carolynne; Packham, Julie Ann & Jones, Gwyn. (1996) ''Around Ruislip''. Stroud: The Chalfont Publishing Company * Skinner, James. (2005) ''Images of England: Ickenham''. Stroud: Tempus

External links

Ickenham OnlineIckenham Residents' AssociationSt Giles' Church
{{Authority control Districts of the London Borough of Hillingdon Areas of London Places formerly in Middlesex