 Dr Houghton at St Andrew's church on July 13 | More than 50 people turned up for Fora's first public event -- a virtuoso talk by Neil Houghton on the history and architecture of the area. Dr Houghton, of the Leyton and Leytonstone History Society, probably knows more about this than anyone else. He said the area's history went back more than 2,000 years. There had been three man-made trackways in the Leytonstone neighbourhood before the Romans came. For most of the time, it had been a rural and agricultural area, given over to sheep and cattle. James Lane, of which there is documentary evidence back to 1484, was originally a sheep walk. But in the late 19th century there began the fastest-growing suburban development in the country. For Dr Houghton, this meant there existed many interesting buildings in the area -- a rich range which he described as rare in London. Several were shown on screen. |
 One of the pictures shown. A postcard view of around 1905, looking down towards the church spire apparently from between James Lane and Forest Glade. Click here to see it bigger |
Dr Houghton gave information about the Georgian houses along Whipps Cross Road, and highlighted the history of two grand houses in the area, now since demolished --Forest House and Wallwood House. He also praised the architecture of St Andrew's church, which is now a Grade II listed building. Being an organist himself, he delighted the audience by playing a piece composed by a former famous organist at St Andrew's. Some things you may not know, and mentioned in the talk: - The Hollow Ponds were used as the supposed site of the Battle of Waterloo in a very early film.
- A relative of Oliver Cromwell lived in the area at the time he ruled England.
People who stayed at Wallwood House included the engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the poet Robert Southey, and the composer Felix Mendelhson. . |