Farringdon, London

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Farringdon
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Farringdon
Location within Greater London
OS grid reference TQ315818
London borough
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Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town LONDON
Postcode district EC1
Dialling code 020
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UK
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51°31′15″N0°06′13″W / 51.520905°N 0.103675°W / 51.520905; -0.103675

Farringdon is an area in London and is located in the London Borough of Islington. It lies just north of the border with the City of London in Central London and close to Holborn. The term is used to describe the area around Farringdon station.

Contents

Historically the district corresponded to southern Clerkenwell and the small parish of St Sepulchre Middlesex. The area's name is a back-formation: It takes its name from the station, which was in turn named after Farringdon Street. To the south lie the City of London wards of Farringdon Within and Farringdon Without. The City Wards, which were once a single unit, are unconnected to the distinct area of Farringdon to their north, though there is an etymological connection.

History

Toponymy

The Metropolitan Railway and the Fleet Ditch: February 1862 Building the underground.png
The Metropolitan Railway and the Fleet Ditch: February 1862

There are numerous places in England called Farringdon; all meaning fern covered hill. William and Nicholas de Faringdon, whose name is likely to have originated from one of these places, were two related prominent citizens and Aldermen in the early 13th century. [1] Nicholas purchased the area of the Farringdon ward of the City of London in 1279 and became its Alderman in 1281. [2] In 1394 the ward was split into the still extant Farringdon Within [3] and Farringdon Without. [4]

Farringdon Street was built by covering part of the River Fleet in the Farringdon Without Ward of the City. The street was named after either the Ward [2] or after the Nicholas de Faringdon. [1] Farringdon Road was an extension of Farringdon Street, also built over the River Fleet, but lying northward, beyond the City.

Farringdon Station was built close to Farringdon Road, and originally named Farringdon Street Station. [5] The presence of the railway station has led to the surrounding areas of southern Clerkenwell being referred to as Farringdon.

Farringdon station under British Rail with a Network SouthEast livery British Rail Class 319 on a Thameslink service Farringdon station - geograph.org.uk - 733756.jpg
Farringdon station under British Rail with a Network SouthEast livery British Rail Class 319 on a Thameslink service

Administration

Farringdon station and its environs historically corresponded to southern Clerkenwell and three much smaller areas; the parish of St Sepulchre Middlesex, Charterhouse and Glasshouse Yard.

When the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury was formed in 1900, Clerkenwell and the other areas were absorbed into the new borough. [6] [7] In 1965 the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury became part of the new London Borough of Islington. [8] [9]

Street name etymologies

Geography

The station and its immediate environs are located in the southern extremity of the London Borough of Islington, adjacent to the northern boundary of the City of London and the eastern boundary of the London Borough of Camden. [48]

Boundaries

Farringdon has no formally defined boundaries, but can be approximated as extending to Clerkenwell Road to the north, Goswell Road and Aldersgate Street to the east, Charterhouse Street, Charterhouse Square and Carthusian Street to the south and Farringdon Road to the west.

Boundary with the City

A map based on Stow c 1600 [49] shows the Fagswell Brook south of Cowcross Street as the northern boundary of the City. At Long Lane, by the brook, were the now lost ornamental boundary markers known as West Smithfield Bars, first documented in 1170 [50] and 1197. [51]

Until 1993, a small triangle of land south of Cowcross Street was within the City of London and formed part of the Farringdon Without ward. [52] [53] The boundary between the City of London and the London Borough of Islington was locally realigned in 1993 with small exchanges of land between each; in this area the boundary was moved slightly south to align with Charterhouse Street. [54] [55]

Transport

The redevelopment and expansion of Farringdon station has had a significant effect on the local area. The station is served by the Thameslink north-south rail route and since May 2022 the east-west Elizabeth line service which required the construction of additional station entrances. [56] [57] The Crossrail project to construct the Elizabeth line was delayed by a number of years, having been due to open in December 2018. [58] A proposed upgrade of the Thameslink route would also affect the local area, including the construction of further station entrances, the pedestrianisation of Cowcross Street and the demolition of several buildings. [59]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Mills, A., Oxford Dictionary of London Place Names (2000)
  2. 1 2 Smith, A., Dictionary of City of London street names (1970)
  3. ↑ Victorian London – Farringdon Within. Retrieved 26 October 2006.
  4. ↑ Victorian London – Farringdon Without. Retrieved 26 October 2006.
  5. ↑ Rose, Douglas (1999). The London Underground: A diagrammatic history. Capital Transport Publishing. ISBN   1-85414-219-4.
  6. ↑ Youngs, Frederic A. (1979). Guide to the local administrative units of England. London: Offices of the Royal Historical Society. ISBN   0-901050-67-9. OCLC   6742142.
  7. ↑ Vision of Britain Archived 30 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine – Historic boundaries of the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury. Retrieved 28 October 2006.
  8. ↑ Islington London Borough Council, Islington development plan (1978)
  9. ↑ Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England, Frederic A Youngs Jr, Volume 1: Southern England, ISBN   0-901050-67-9, Published by the Royal Historical Society
  10. 1 2 "British History Online – Britton Street" . Retrieved 11 October 2017.
  11. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p19
  12. ↑ Mills, A.D. (2010). A Dictionary of London Place-Names. Oxford University Press. p. 4. ISBN   9780199566785.
  13. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p6
  14. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p20
  15. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p44
  16. 1 2 Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p42
  17. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p287
  18. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p57-8
  19. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p60
  20. 1 2 3 Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p82
  21. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p65
  22. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p84
  23. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p100-01
  24. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p106
  25. 1 2 Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p287-8
  26. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p118
  27. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p128-9
  28. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p124
  29. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p136
  30. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p134
  31. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p143
  32. ↑ "Goswell Road". Golden Lane Estate. Retrieved 10 May 2007.
  33. ↑ "Smithfield Fair". Barbican Living. Archived from the original on 10 February 2006. Retrieved 11 May 2007.
  34. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p147
  35. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p144
  36. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p154
  37. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p167
  38. ↑ "British History Online – St John's Gate and St John's Lane" . Retrieved 11 October 2017.
  39. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p249-50
  40. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p246
  41. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p253
  42. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p274
  43. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p280
  44. ↑ "British History Online – St John Street: East side" . Retrieved 11 October 2017.
  45. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p327
  46. ↑ Fairfield, S. The Streets of London – A dictionary of the names and their origins, p322
  47. ↑ Bebbington, G. (1972) London Street Names, p327-8
  48. ↑ Islington London Borough Council Archived 5 July 2010 at the Wayback Machine – High detail map with City/Islington boundary shown (PDF). Retrieved 26 October 2006.
  49. ↑ Ekwall, E., Street-names of the City of London (1954)
  50. ↑ 'St John Street: Introduction; west side', in Survey of London: Volume 46, South and East Clerkenwell, ed. Philip Temple (London, 2008), pp. 203-221. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-london/vol46/pp203-221 [accessed 27 July 2020].
  51. ↑ London, its origin and early development William Page 1923 (including reference to the primary source). Link: https://archive.org/details/londonitsorigine00pageuoft/page/178/mode/2up/search/bishopsgate
  52. ↑ Corporation of London, City of London unitary development plan (1984)
  53. ↑ Corporation of London, City of London unitary development plan (1989)
  54. ↑ OPSI Archived 20 June 2010 at the Wayback Machine – The City and London Borough Boundaries Order 1993. Retrieved 20 October 2006.
  55. ↑ Corporation of London, City of London unitary development plan (1993)
  56. ↑ Crossrail Archived 28 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine – Farringdon (PDF). 28 October 2006
  57. ↑ "Phased Opening". Crossrail. Archived from the original on 22 September 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
  58. ↑ An inews article on the further delays to the Crossrail (Elizabeth line) project https://inews.co.uk/news/crossrail-when-open-route-map-opening-date-stations-london-new-elizabeth-line-1422161
  59. ↑ Network Rail Archived 27 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine – Statement of Case (PDF). Retrieved 28 October 2006.
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