| Chingford | |
Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge |
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Chingford
Chingford shown within Greater London |
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| OS grid reference | TQ395945 |
|---|---|
| - Charing Cross | 10 mi (16 km) SW |
| London borough | Waltham Forest |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | London |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LONDON |
| Postcode district | E4 |
| Dialling code | 020 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| EU Parliament | London |
| UK Parliament | Chingford and Woodford Green |
| London Assembly | North East |
| List of places: UK • England • London | |
Chingford is a district of north east London, bordering on Enfield and Edmonton to the west, Woodford to the east, Walthamstow and Stratford to the south and Essex to the north. It is situated 10 miles (16 km) northeast of Charing Cross and forms part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest. Landmarks in the west, between Chingford and Enfield, are the William Girling and King George V reservoirs, known together as the Chingford reservoirs, and the River Lea. To the north lies Epping Forest which is in Essex but is maintained by The Corporation of the City of London.
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It is thought that Chingford is named so, after the ford in the River Ching. The River Ching runs through the area, and Chingford is based on a crossing across the river. It is also thought that similarly to how Kingston upon Thames appears in Domesday Book of 1086 as Chingestone and Chingetun(e), with ching being old English for king, that Chingford could relate to the King's river, and Kings Ford. This idea is compounded by the Queen Elizabeth Hunting Lodge and links to royalty using the area for hunting in centuries gone by.
One notable local landmark is Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge.[1] Originally called the Great Standing, it was built for King Henry VIII of England in 1543, and was used as a grandstand to watch the hunting of deer, although it has been heavily altered over time. The building is located on Chingford Plain within Epping Forest and is open to the public.
All Saints' Church in Chingford Mount (known locally as The Old Church) dates back to the 12th Century. Directly opposite from the church is Chingford Mount Cemetery, best known today as the burial place of the Kray family.[2]
A granite obelisk at Pole Hill was erected in 1824 under the direction of the Astronomer Royal, the Rev. John Pond M.A., to mark true north for the telescopes of the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, south of the Thames. It was placed on high ground along the line of the Greenwich Meridian, but when this was recalibrated later in the 19th century, the obelisk was deemed to have been erected 19 feet (5.8 m) west of the revised meridian line. Today, an adjoining triangulation pillar marks the modern line.
Friday Hill House, Simmons Lane, dating from 1839, was a manor house built and owned by Robert Boothby Heathcote, who was both the lord of the manor and rector of the local church. It was he who paid for the building of the church of St Peter and St Paul in Chingford. He is buried in the Boothby family vault in All Saints churchyard (Chingford Old Church), Old Church Road. The vault was purchased by Robert Boothby (died 1733), who lived in the previous manor house. The present building is now used as a further education centre.
Pimp Hall Dovecote is situated in a green area at the bottom of Friday Hill and can be viewed by entering the Pimps Hill Nature Reserve. The dovecote, which had nesting space for 250 birds, belonged to Pimp Hall (originally Pympe's Hall), one of three manor houses around Chingford. In 1838 the estate was taken over and became part of the Chingford Earls estate. The farmhouse associated with it survived until just before World War II. This dovecote is depicted in the Mosaic. It is the fourth down on the left hand side. There is a local legend telling how on one occasion Charles II was out hunting in Epping Forest and was caught in a snowstorm. He took shelter in Pimp Hall and was so delighted with the food offered him that he jocularly drew his sword and knighted the joint of beef declaring that it was now Sir Loin. Either this story caused the nearby pub on Friday Hill to be called "The Sirloin" or vice versa.
Chingford Old Town Hall, dating from 1929, is on The Ridgeway in Chingford. It has more recently been known as the Chingford Municipal Offices. As at October 2011, it is in the final stages of being sold to property developers.[3]
Chingford is within the Chingford and Woodford Green UK Parliament constituency which consists of the six Chingford wards in the Borough of Waltham Forest and two wards in the Borough of Redbridge. Iain Duncan Smith has been the sitting MP since 1992.
Former MPs include Norman Tebbit, Leah Manning, Stan Newens, and Winston Churchill (when Chingford was in the Epping constituency).
Chingford is part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest, which also includes the areas of Walthamstow, Leyton, and Leytonstone. Chingford consists of six council wards, namely:
Each ward is represented by three councillors; at present all of the councillors in Chingford represent the Conservative Party. The London Borough of Waltham Forest is presently controlled by the Labour party.
Chingford falls within the North East constituency of the London Assembly, which is currently represented by Jennette Arnold of the Labour party.
When Chingford was a municipal borough, before 1965, its politics were dominated by the Chingford Ratepayers' Association, which was nominally independent, but against whom the Conservative Party did not field candidates.
Chingford Athletic Football Club was formed as recently as the summer of 2007 and have 2 teams playing in the Essex Olympian League, whilst 1 play in the feeder league to this, being the Ilford & District League. They currently have 3 Saturday Mens teams, with the Essex Olympian sides playing at Wadham Lodge Sports Ground, Walthamstow.[4]
Chingford's oldest football club is Egbertian FC, formerly Old Egbertian FC which was started by former pupils of the St Egberts College, Chingford. The club was formed in 1928 and is one of the oldest clubs to be affiliated to the Amateur Football Alliance (AFA). The club plays in Amateur Football Combination, which is purported to be the biggest league in the world comprising 103 clubs and some 355 teams. The league places great emphasis on the attitude and spirit that the game is played in while insisting its member clubs maintain these same principles. In season 2006/07 the club won their first cup competition in their history when they won the LOB Intermediate Cup.
Chingford Rugby Club was also founded in 1928, having their ground at Waltham Way, Chingford.[5] When the leagues commenced in 1987 they were placed in London 3 North East. In 1989-1990, the club not only won the Essex Cup but gained promotion to London 2 North, where they stayed until 1997. They then remained in London 3 North East until 2004-05, when they won not only the Essex Cup but also the league title, remaining unbeaten all season. 2008-9 saw them secure the Essex Senior Cup beating both semi-finalists Southend and finalists Barking (both are national league sides) in dramatic fashion away from home. A league restructure sees them playing in London 1 North from 2009, one step below national level.
King George Sailing Club [1] was founded in the 1970s to provide dinghy sailing and windsurfing on the largest and best sailing water in the north and east of London. The Club enjoys facilities both on and off the water and has an active membership engaged in racing, learning to sail, casual sailing, and windsurfing. In recognition of their good facilities and encouragement of youth sailing, the Royal Yachting Association has awarded the club Volvo Champion Club status.
Chingford is served by a railway station which is the terminus of the branch line from Liverpool Street station in the City of London. There is also a station at Highams Park.
The town is served by many bus routes, linking it to Walthamstow, Loughton, Leyton, Woodford, Waltham Abbey and Harlow. The town is also served by the N26 night bus from Trafalgar Square. The North Circular Road skirts the southern part of the town, and gives motorists good access to the north and east of London. The London LOOP walk passes through Chingford on its way from Enfield Lock to Chigwell, passing close to Sewardstone and Gilwell Park on the edge of Epping Forest.
Most bus routes are London Buses routes, apart from route 505 which does not accept any form of London ticketing (i.e. Oyster cards or travelcards).
Also see List of bus routes in London and List of bus routes in Essex.
The London Underground stations nearest to Chingford include:
Chingford secondary schools include:
Chingford rugby club
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| Section 18: | London Outer Orbital Path | Section 19: |
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| Enfield Lock | Chingford | Chigwell |