The Ordnance Survey
The Ordnance Survey was established in 1791 and the survey commenced in 1794 the first sheets to a scale of one inch to a mile were published in 1801. We …
Articles
This section contains a wide range of articles about the history of the area.
Campaign for St Mary’s Tower, Hornsey
The tower was built as part of the medieval church of St Mary when Hornsey was a small rural village in Middlesex. The lower part of the tower is medieval, …
What’s in a name – Hornsey, Harringay or Haringey?
Hornsey, established as a settlement in the pre-Conquest county of Middlesex, is a name with Anglo Saxon origins and derives from the Old English name Heringes-hege (with the ‘g’s pronounced …
A Brief History of St Mary’s Church and Tower
Today, all that remains of St Mary’s Church is its bell tower, standing in the former churchyard, a little back from Hornsey High Street. St Mary’s Tower is a focal …
A Brief History of Hornsey Historical Society
There had been talk of the need for a local history society in Hornsey as long ago as 1909 but despite early efforts nothing was achieved until 1971. On 29th …
A Brief History of Stroud Green
The name Stroud Green signifies a wet, marshy place, overgrown with brushwood and liable to flooding. Stroud Green, near Highbury, was first mentioned in 1403 when it was no more …
A Brief History of Muswell Hill
Until the end of the 19th century Muswell Hill remained a rural area of pasture, woods and open spaces situated on the edge of a glacial plateau overlooking the Thames …
A Brief History of Hornsey Village
The village of Hornsey has been submerged for well over a century in the suburbs of North London. Its name is of Saxon derivation and its history probably goes back …
A Brief History of Highgate
The name Highgate has for centuries been taken as a simple statement of fact: ‘high-gate’, i.e. the former tollgate between the High Street and North Road at the highest point …
A Brief History of Harringay
The name of the London Borough of Haringey and its relation to district of Harringay causes much confusion. Before 1965 no such confusion existed since the London Borough of Haringey …