Further information about London on foot

can be found at www.tfl.gov.uk

WALK YOUR BOROUGH
Further information on walking routes in Ealing
can be found at www.ealing.gov.uk/walking, Northolt Town Centre’s
We would like to thank Peter and Frances Hounsell, local historians, for their contribution to this brochure.

call 020 8825 6802 or email

Travelgreen@ealing.gov.uk Historic Walk

MOATED MANOR EXCAVATION

MOATED MANOR EXCAVATION
NORTHOLT GREEN

CROWN INN
NORTHOLT GREEN
CROWN INN

Historic Walk Travelgreen@ealing.gov.uk

call 020 8825 6802 or email
Northolt Town Centre’s
We would like to thank Peter and Frances Hounsell, local historians, for their contribution to this brochure.
can be found at www.ealing.gov.uk/walking,
Further information on walking routes in Ealing
can be found at www.tfl.gov.uk
WALK YOUR BOROUGH Further information about London on foot

WALK YOUR BOROUGH WALK YOUR BOROUGH

Northolt Walking Route Northolt Racecourse

Northolt – history and development
The earliest known settlement at Northolt was in the Anglo-Saxon period. The area north of the GWR station was the site of Northolt Racecourse.
Three graves from about 700 AD were excavated on the site of Northolt The guiding force behind the project was William A. Read, an entrepreneur from
Manor house. The earliest form of the name was Northhealum, or northern New Zealand. His aim was to provide a modern pony racing venue with good
neck of land, which is recorded in 960 AD. A small village is recorded in quality facilities that would appeal to a wide audience, including ladies.
Domesday Book (1086) when the area is known as Northala. Various spellings He negotiated a deal with the Pony Turf Club, which controlled the sport
of Northall, as distinct from Southall, appear in documents during the Middle for horses up to 10 hands.
Ages. The modern spelling first appears in the seventeenth century.

Traditionally Northolt consisted of four hamlets – The opening of the Great Western Railway’s
the village itself, West End, where the White Hart station at Northolt in 1907 started a gradual
Public House is located, Wood End to the north process of suburban development, which gathered
and Goslings End near the junction of Kensington pace after World War 1. Northolt was divided in
Road and Ruislip Road. two by the construction of Western Avenue in
1930s, which also contributed to the pace of house
The modern road network tends to obscure the building, but there was still a large amount of
old roads – Eastcote Lane, Ealing Road, Church open space by 1939. Northolt was a major centre
Road, Ruislip Road. Northolt was not located on for council house building in the post-war period.
any of the old main roads out of London, and
thus it remained fairly isolated until the building Northolt was a separate parish until 1894 when NORTHOLT RACECOURSE

of the canal in 1801 and then the railway it became part of Greenford Urban District. This in
in 1904. Northolt continued to be a largely turn was incorporated into the Borough of Ealing
agricultural area until the twentieth century. in 1928 and since 1965 Northolt has been the One of the attractions of Northolt as a venue totalizator, for tote betting which had become
In the nineteenth century concentrating on western end of the London Borough of Ealing. for a new course was the good transport links: legal in 1928. Starting gates known as Benjamin
growing hay for the London market. Cheap The population of Northolt in 1901 was only 564, trains from Paddington to Northolt, Marylebone Barriers were installed in 1935. The racecourse
supplies of manure were available from London by 1931 it had grown to 3047, but had increased to Northolt Park, Baker Street to Harrow-on-the- was a success, holding about 60 meetings a year
and could be brought by canal. dramatically to 19,201 by 1951. Hill and on the Piccadilly line to South Harrow. in the 1930s, but a failure to control costs put the
However, anticipating the trend to car use there company into receivership in 1937. Racing finally
The only significant industry to intrude into Much of the remaining open space in Northolt was parking for 6,000 vehicles. stopped in 1940 and the course became a storage
Northolt was brickmaking; brickworks operated was incorporated into the Northolt and Greenford The course opened on Whit Sunday 1929. It had depot for the nearby Greenford Ordnance depot.
beside the canal at the south end of the parish, Countryside Park in 1996 and most of this a number of innovative facilities. The famous The racecourse was taken over by Ealing Council in
near the junction between Kensington Road and walk is within the Park. There are a number of cantilevered stands were reputed to have cost half 1946 and the Racecourse housing estate was built
Ruislip Road, throughout the nineteenth century. informational boards along the route. of the total construction budget of £250,000. There on the site. The street names on the estate recall
The last one finally closed during World War II. were extensive catering facilities and an electric well known racecourses.
 Further information about London on foot
can be found at www.tfl.gov.uk
WALK YOUR BOROUGH
Further information on walking routes in Ealing
can be found at www.ealing.gov.uk/walking, Northolt Town Centre’s
We would like to thank Peter and Frances Hounsell, local historians, for their contribution to this brochure.

call 020 8825 6802 or email

Travelgreen@ealing.gov.uk Historic Walk

MOATED MANOR EXCAVATION

MOATED MANOR EXCAVATION
NORTHOLT GREEN

CROWN INN
NORTHOLT GREEN
CROWN INN

Historic Walk Travelgreen@ealing.gov.uk

call 020 8825 6802 or email
Northolt Town Centre’s
We would like to thank Peter and Frances Hounsell, local historians, for their contribution to this brochure.
can be found at www.ealing.gov.uk/walking,
Further information on walking routes in Ealing
can be found at www.tfl.gov.uk
WALK YOUR BOROUGH Further information about London on foot

WALK YOUR BOROUGH WALK YOUR BOROUGH

Northolt Walking Route Northolt Racecourse

Northolt – history and development
The earliest known settlement at Northolt was in the Anglo-Saxon period. The area north of the GWR station was the site of Northolt Racecourse.
Three graves from about 700 AD were excavated on the site of Northolt The guiding force behind the project was William A. Read, an entrepreneur from
Manor house. The earliest form of the name was Northhealum, or northern New Zealand. His aim was to provide a modern pony racing venue with good
neck of land, which is recorded in 960 AD. A small village is recorded in quality facilities that would appeal to a wide audience, including ladies.
Domesday Book (1086) when the area is known as Northala. Various spellings He negotiated a deal with the Pony Turf Club, which controlled the sport
of Northall, as distinct from Southall, appear in documents during the Middle for horses up to 10 hands.
Ages. The modern spelling first appears in the seventeenth century.

Traditionally Northolt consisted of four hamlets – The opening of the Great Western Railway’s
the village itself, West End, where the White Hart station at Northolt in 1907 started a gradual
Public House is located, Wood End to the north process of suburban development, which gathered
and Goslings End near the junction of Kensington pace after World War 1. Northolt was divided in
Road and Ruislip Road. two by the construction of Western Avenue in
1930s, which also contributed to the pace of house
The modern road network tends to obscure the building, but there was still a large amount of
old roads – Eastcote Lane, Ealing Road, Church open space by 1939. Northolt was a major centre
Road, Ruislip Road. Northolt was not located on for council house building in the post-war period.
any of the old main roads out of London, and
thus it remained fairly isolated until the building Northolt was a separate parish until 1894 when NORTHOLT RACECOURSE

of the canal in 1801 and then the railway it became part of Greenford Urban District. This in
in 1904. Northolt continued to be a largely turn was incorporated into the Borough of Ealing
agricultural area until the twentieth century. in 1928 and since 1965 Northolt has been the One of the attractions of Northolt as a venue totalizator, for tote betting which had become
In the nineteenth century concentrating on western end of the London Borough of Ealing. for a new course was the good transport links: legal in 1928. Starting gates known as Benjamin
growing hay for the London market. Cheap The population of Northolt in 1901 was only 564, trains from Paddington to Northolt, Marylebone Barriers were installed in 1935. The racecourse
supplies of manure were available from London by 1931 it had grown to 3047, but had increased to Northolt Park, Baker Street to Harrow-on-the- was a success, holding about 60 meetings a year
and could be brought by canal. dramatically to 19,201 by 1951. Hill and on the Piccadilly line to South Harrow. in the 1930s, but a failure to control costs put the
However, anticipating the trend to car use there company into receivership in 1937. Racing finally
The only significant industry to intrude into Much of the remaining open space in Northolt was parking for 6,000 vehicles. stopped in 1940 and the course became a storage
Northolt was brickmaking; brickworks operated was incorporated into the Northolt and Greenford The course opened on Whit Sunday 1929. It had depot for the nearby Greenford Ordnance depot.
beside the canal at the south end of the parish, Countryside Park in 1996 and most of this a number of innovative facilities. The famous The racecourse was taken over by Ealing Council in
near the junction between Kensington Road and walk is within the Park. There are a number of cantilevered stands were reputed to have cost half 1946 and the Racecourse housing estate was built
Ruislip Road, throughout the nineteenth century. informational boards along the route. of the total construction budget of £250,000. There on the site. The street names on the estate recall
The last one finally closed during World War II. were extensive catering facilities and an electric well known racecourses.
 Further information about London on foot
can be found at www.tfl.gov.uk
WALK YOUR BOROUGH
Further information on walking routes in Ealing
can be found at www.ealing.gov.uk/walking, Northolt Town Centre’s
We would like to thank Peter and Frances Hounsell, local historians, for their contribution to this brochure.

call 020 8825 6802 or email

Travelgreen@ealing.gov.uk Historic Walk

MOATED MANOR EXCAVATION

MOATED MANOR EXCAVATION
NORTHOLT GREEN

CROWN INN
NORTHOLT GREEN
CROWN INN

Historic Walk Travelgreen@ealing.gov.uk

call 020 8825 6802 or email
Northolt Town Centre’s
We would like to thank Peter and Frances Hounsell, local historians, for their contribution to this brochure.
can be found at www.ealing.gov.uk/walking,
Further information on walking routes in Ealing
can be found at www.tfl.gov.uk
WALK YOUR BOROUGH Further information about London on foot

WALK YOUR BOROUGH WALK YOUR BOROUGH

Northolt Walking Route Northolt Racecourse

Northolt – history and development
The earliest known settlement at Northolt was in the Anglo-Saxon period. The area north of the GWR station was the site of Northolt Racecourse.
Three graves from about 700 AD were excavated on the site of Northolt The guiding force behind the project was William A. Read, an entrepreneur from
Manor house. The earliest form of the name was Northhealum, or northern New Zealand. His aim was to provide a modern pony racing venue with good
neck of land, which is recorded in 960 AD. A small village is recorded in quality facilities that would appeal to a wide audience, including ladies.
Domesday Book (1086) when the area is known as Northala. Various spellings He negotiated a deal with the Pony Turf Club, which controlled the sport
of Northall, as distinct from Southall, appear in documents during the Middle for horses up to 10 hands.
Ages. The modern spelling first appears in the seventeenth century.

Traditionally Northolt consisted of four hamlets – The opening of the Great Western Railway’s
the village itself, West End, where the White Hart station at Northolt in 1907 started a gradual
Public House is located, Wood End to the north process of suburban development, which gathered
and Goslings End near the junction of Kensington pace after World War 1. Northolt was divided in
Road and Ruislip Road. two by the construction of Western Avenue in
1930s, which also contributed to the pace of house
The modern road network tends to obscure the building, but there was still a large amount of
old roads – Eastcote Lane, Ealing Road, Church open space by 1939. Northolt was a major centre
Road, Ruislip Road. Northolt was not located on for council house building in the post-war period.
any of the old main roads out of London, and
thus it remained fairly isolated until the building Northolt was a separate parish until 1894 when NORTHOLT RACECOURSE

of the canal in 1801 and then the railway it became part of Greenford Urban District. This in
in 1904. Northolt continued to be a largely turn was incorporated into the Borough of Ealing
agricultural area until the twentieth century. in 1928 and since 1965 Northolt has been the One of the attractions of Northolt as a venue totalizator, for tote betting which had become
In the nineteenth century concentrating on western end of the London Borough of Ealing. for a new course was the good transport links: legal in 1928. Starting gates known as Benjamin
growing hay for the London market. Cheap The population of Northolt in 1901 was only 564, trains from Paddington to Northolt, Marylebone Barriers were installed in 1935. The racecourse
supplies of manure were available from London by 1931 it had grown to 3047, but had increased to Northolt Park, Baker Street to Harrow-on-the- was a success, holding about 60 meetings a year
and could be brought by canal. dramatically to 19,201 by 1951. Hill and on the Piccadilly line to South Harrow. in the 1930s, but a failure to control costs put the
However, anticipating the trend to car use there company into receivership in 1937. Racing finally
The only significant industry to intrude into Much of the remaining open space in Northolt was parking for 6,000 vehicles. stopped in 1940 and the course became a storage
Northolt was brickmaking; brickworks operated was incorporated into the Northolt and Greenford The course opened on Whit Sunday 1929. It had depot for the nearby Greenford Ordnance depot.
beside the canal at the south end of the parish, Countryside Park in 1996 and most of this a number of innovative facilities. The famous The racecourse was taken over by Ealing Council in
near the junction between Kensington Road and walk is within the Park. There are a number of cantilevered stands were reputed to have cost half 1946 and the Racecourse housing estate was built
Ruislip Road, throughout the nineteenth century. informational boards along the route. of the total construction budget of £250,000. There on the site. The street names on the estate recall
The last one finally closed during World War II. were extensive catering facilities and an electric well known racecourses.
 Start at Northolt Underground station. Turn right 5 GRAND UNION CANAL 10 NORTHOLT VILLAGE GREEN Facing the Willow Cottages across the Green is
out of the station and walk down the hill to the The Crown Inn.
pedestrian crossing. Cross over Mandeville Road, This stretch of canal was opened in 1801 as part of the The centre of the old village is overlooked by the parish
turn right and you will see the Clock Tower in Paddington arm of the Grand Junction Canal, which became church. Northolt Village Green was designated a Conservation
front of you part of the Grand Union Canal in 1929. This joins the main area in 1969. A stream meanders through the Green beside 15 THE CROWN INN
route of the Grand Union Canal at Bulls Bridge, Southall. The the road. A number of historic buildings border the Green:
canal was important for the economic development of the the first group comprises Herbert’s Cottages, Well Cottage An inn has stood in this position since the early eighteenth
1 CLOCK TOWER century and the original building has been added to and
area, in particular carrying hay and bricks into London. and Fern Cottage.
modified in the Victorian and Edwardian periods. It has been
Mandeville Road was built in the 1930s to link Northolt a popular refreshment point for walkers and cyclists over
village to the new Western Avenue, and at the same time the years.
the large rectangular pond of Moat Farm was filled in.
Where it joined the old Ealing Road a triangular open
space was created which became Mandeville Green.
The clock tower was erected to celebrate the accession
of King George VI in 1937.

Turn left into Court Farm Road. On the right hand side
is a passage way with a Northolt and Greenford
Countryside Park signboard. Follow the path, which
leads into Belvue Park.

2 BELVUE PARK Continue along the towpath, passing under the A40
The old manor site and land surrounding it was purchased Western Avenue. On the south side of the bridge leave Continue along the east side of the Green to reach a
in 1928 by Ealing Borough from a developer who had the towpath and take the footpath to the left leading pair of semi-detached houses with an extension to the
proposed to put a row of houses right over the moated site. towards Marnham Field. north side.
The Council turned the land into Belvue Park.
16 THE OLD POST OFFICE AND VILLAGE SHOP
A small wooden bridge provides access to the site of 6 MARNHAM FIELD
Northolt Manor House. This building was once the village shop and post office
Marnham Field is named after the Marnham family of operated first by the Hinge family and then by the Ravens.
Greenford who made charitable gifts of land for the benefit
of the poor in the eighteenth century. The land was used in Between the shop and the corner of Court Farm Road is
3 MOATED MANOR SITE first half of the twentieth century as a rubbish tip and the 11 DEYNTE’S COTTAGE another group of old cottages: Ivy Cottage, built about
The Manor of Northolt was given by William the Conqueror land became overgrown. It has been cleared and restored as 1820, Judges Cottages, and set back from the road, the
part of the Countryside Park, and many new trees have been The cottage, set back from the road and to the right of the Nook, which dates from 1850.
to Geoffrey de Mandeville after the Conquest in 1066. It was
planted on the site. pathway into the church, was built in 1887 by the Shadwell
one of many manors he owned and he is unlikely to have
family, who were Lords of the Manor of Northolt between
spent much time in Northolt. It later passed to other families
From Marnham Field look across the A40 to the 1827 and 1919. It replaced earlier cottages, one of which
with connections with the City of London. The Le Boteler
Campanile of the Aladdin building. had been occupied by Henry Deynte, a manor official in the
family were the first to build a stone manor house at Northolt
fifteenth century.
in 1231. The Manor reached the peak of its prosperity in
1346 when Simon Francis a city merchant rebuilt the house
Cross the road where a drive leads to the Northolt
on a larger scale with a great hall and other living quarters. 7 ALADDIN BUILDING Village Community Centre.
The interior was of high quality with decorative brickwork
and a floor of distinctive red and white patterned tiles. When the Western Avenue was built it was expected that it
A moat was also dug and this survived as a feature in the would be lined with factories like the Great West Road. This
landscape long after the buildings had been pulled down. did not materialise and the Aladdin factory stands in isolated 12 NORTHOLT VILLAGE COMMUNITY CENTRE
The manor house site was excavated between 1950 and splendour. Built in 1931 in an Italianate style, the campanile (MANOR FARM HOUSE)
the 1970s and the finds were donated to Gunnersbury Park had a tank that stored water from its own artesian well.
Museum. The ground plan of the mediaeval manor is now The factory made oil lamps and heaters. An Ordnance depot The Shadwells built the present house on the site of a
laid out on the site. occupied the land behind the factory during World War II, sixteenth century farmstead in 1850. The Farm was purchased Cross the Ealing Road and turn right walking towards
and this site is now the Metropolitan Business Centre. by a housing developer in 1919 who proposed to build a Mandeville Green.
The adjoining Parish Church is visible through trees. Garden City in Northolt, but the scheme fell through. The
Follow the path round to reach the church. Turn round and follow the left path towards the canal. house is now the Northolt Village Community Centre.
Cross the canal by the wooden bridge which has a green Northolt Model Railway Club meets in the centre and a
man carved into the woodwork. This takes you through railway track runs through the grounds. 17 THE OLD PLOUGH INN
land once part of Smith’s Farm. Follow the path that
4 ST MARY’S CHURCH The building dates from about 1850 and was the Plough
skirts the side of the housing estate, into Horse Shoe Cross over the road, and follow the path towards the
Public House until the building of the new Plough Inn in
A priest is recorded at Northolt in Domesday book and Crescent. Follow this road to Kensington Road. Church. Turn left towards the Memorial Hall.
1940. After that it was the public library until the 1960s
there was some sort of Church by 1140. The present church The Northala mounds are in front of you and farmhouse
and was then converted into flats.
has some remnants of thirteenth century fabric but more of Smith’s Farm to your right.
survives from the next century. The font was given by Nicholas 13 MEMORIAL HALL
Brembre, one of the Lords of the Manor in the fourteenth
century. The church originally consisted of the nave, and the 8 There have been several buildings on this site, including a
SMITH’S FARM
chancel and bell tower were added in the sixteenth century. half-timbered building used as the poor house, which became
The gallery was built at the beginning on the eighteenth Smith’s Farm was the last working farm in the area. redundant in the 1830s. The first National schoolhouse was
century. There are memorials, amongst others, to members The surviving nineteenth farmhouse recalls the days when built on the site about 1840 and this was replaced by the
of the Shadwell family who were Lords of the Manor in the there were many farms in the area and the economy was present building in 1868. The building became inadequate
nineteenth century. The Church had become rather dilapidated largely agricultural. Some of the land of Smith’s Farm was by the early twentieth century and a new Northolt Primary
in recent years but has recently been nicely restored. sold off for the neighbouring housing estate. School was built in West End Lane in 1907. Since 1927 the
There are brick buttresses at the west end from the building has been the Memorial Hall, run by the Northolt War
eighteenth century designed to stabilise the building. Cross the road to the entrance to the Northala Fields Memorial Hall and Village Green Trust.
& Mounds.

9 NORTHALA FIELDS & MOUNDS Adjacent is the site of new Plough Inn now surrounded
by wooden hoardings.
Northala Fields is a new open space which opened in 2008.
The four conical mounds were created from rubble from the
original Wembley Stadium and the new White City shopping
centre, and help reduce visual and noise pollution from the 18 THE NEW PLOUGH INN
A40. A network of six interconnecting fishing lakes and other
This imposing public house of red brick with a thatched roof
leisure areas are situated behind the mounds.The tallest
was opened in 1940 but suffered a disastrous fire in 2009
mound has a spiral path to the summit where there is a
and has been demolished. (At the present time it is not clear
viewing platform providing a 360-degree panoramic view of
whether it will be rebuilt.)
the surrounding area as far as the London Eye, Canary Wharf Just in front of the Memorial Hall is a row of single
and Crystal Palace. storey cottages.
Leave the church, turn right and walk to the west end
of the church, which gives a view over the churchyard The path has a gentle gradient suitable for most people,
sloping down towards the village green. Return to the but the gravel surface may be difficult for buggies
main door and return along the path to Belvue Park. and wheelchairs. Please note the path ascends in an 14 WILLOW COTTAGES
Turn left and follow the path down the hill towards anti-clockwise direction. This modest building is a reminder of the spartan living
Rowdell Road. Cross the road and take the footpath in conditions experienced by agricultural labourers in earlier
front of you. This leads to the Grand Union Canal. Leave the mounds and return to the entrance in centuries. Willow cottages had become run down and
Cross the bridge and turn right on to the towpath. Kensington Road. Turn left, cross the road and walk condemned for their want of sanitary facilities, but have
along Kensington Road under the A40. Turn right into been preserved as part of the Rest Garden.
Rowdell Road, cross the road at the pedestrian crossing,
turn left, then right into Ealing Road and take the
footpath towards the Church.
 Further information about London on foot
can be found at www.tfl.gov.uk
WALK YOUR BOROUGH
Further information on walking routes in Ealing
can be found at www.ealing.gov.uk/walking, Northolt Town Centre’s
We would like to thank Peter and Frances Hounsell, local historians, for their contribution to this brochure.

call 020 8825 6802 or email

Travelgreen@ealing.gov.uk Historic Walk

MOATED MANOR EXCAVATION

MOATED MANOR EXCAVATION
NORTHOLT GREEN

CROWN INN
NORTHOLT GREEN
CROWN INN

Historic Walk Travelgreen@ealing.gov.uk

call 020 8825 6802 or email
Northolt Town Centre’s
We would like to thank Peter and Frances Hounsell, local historians, for their contribution to this brochure.
can be found at www.ealing.gov.uk/walking,
Further information on walking routes in Ealing
can be found at www.tfl.gov.uk
WALK YOUR BOROUGH Further information about London on foot

WALK YOUR BOROUGH WALK YOUR BOROUGH

Northolt Walking Route Northolt Racecourse

Northolt – history and development
The earliest known settlement at Northolt was in the Anglo-Saxon period. The area north of the GWR station was the site of Northolt Racecourse.
Three graves from about 700 AD were excavated on the site of Northolt The guiding force behind the project was William A. Read, an entrepreneur from
Manor house. The earliest form of the name was Northhealum, or northern New Zealand. His aim was to provide a modern pony racing venue with good
neck of land, which is recorded in 960 AD. A small village is recorded in quality facilities that would appeal to a wide audience, including ladies.
Domesday Book (1086) when the area is known as Northala. Various spellings He negotiated a deal with the Pony Turf Club, which controlled the sport
of Northall, as distinct from Southall, appear in documents during the Middle for horses up to 10 hands.
Ages. The modern spelling first appears in the seventeenth century.

Traditionally Northolt consisted of four hamlets – The opening of the Great Western Railway’s
the village itself, West End, where the White Hart station at Northolt in 1907 started a gradual
Public House is located, Wood End to the north process of suburban development, which gathered
and Goslings End near the junction of Kensington pace after World War 1. Northolt was divided in
Road and Ruislip Road. two by the construction of Western Avenue in
1930s, which also contributed to the pace of house
The modern road network tends to obscure the building, but there was still a large amount of
old roads – Eastcote Lane, Ealing Road, Church open space by 1939. Northolt was a major centre
Road, Ruislip Road. Northolt was not located on for council house building in the post-war period.
any of the old main roads out of London, and
thus it remained fairly isolated until the building Northolt was a separate parish until 1894 when NORTHOLT RACECOURSE

of the canal in 1801 and then the railway it became part of Greenford Urban District. This in
in 1904. Northolt continued to be a largely turn was incorporated into the Borough of Ealing
agricultural area until the twentieth century. in 1928 and since 1965 Northolt has been the One of the attractions of Northolt as a venue totalizator, for tote betting which had become
In the nineteenth century concentrating on western end of the London Borough of Ealing. for a new course was the good transport links: legal in 1928. Starting gates known as Benjamin
growing hay for the London market. Cheap The population of Northolt in 1901 was only 564, trains from Paddington to Northolt, Marylebone Barriers were installed in 1935. The racecourse
supplies of manure were available from London by 1931 it had grown to 3047, but had increased to Northolt Park, Baker Street to Harrow-on-the- was a success, holding about 60 meetings a year
and could be brought by canal. dramatically to 19,201 by 1951. Hill and on the Piccadilly line to South Harrow. in the 1930s, but a failure to control costs put the
However, anticipating the trend to car use there company into receivership in 1937. Racing finally
The only significant industry to intrude into Much of the remaining open space in Northolt was parking for 6,000 vehicles. stopped in 1940 and the course became a storage
Northolt was brickmaking; brickworks operated was incorporated into the Northolt and Greenford The course opened on Whit Sunday 1929. It had depot for the nearby Greenford Ordnance depot.
beside the canal at the south end of the parish, Countryside Park in 1996 and most of this a number of innovative facilities. The famous The racecourse was taken over by Ealing Council in
near the junction between Kensington Road and walk is within the Park. There are a number of cantilevered stands were reputed to have cost half 1946 and the Racecourse housing estate was built
Ruislip Road, throughout the nineteenth century. informational boards along the route. of the total construction budget of £250,000. There on the site. The street names on the estate recall
The last one finally closed during World War II. were extensive catering facilities and an electric well known racecourses.