North End is a district in the city of Portsmouth, located on Portsea Island in Hampshire. The area developed rapidly as a part of the city after a horse-drawn tram route was opened between Portsmouth and Cosham. The area is mainly residential, being composed of mainly late Victorian to early 20th-century buildings.
North End's name is derived from its origin as a northern expansion of the (then) village of Kingston, forming the "northern end" of Kingston.
North End is built on land which was formerly Stubbington Farm, part of which retains the street name of Stubbington Avenue.[ citation needed ] The housing around the Laburnum Grove area of North End was developed in the late 1890s. [1] Many of the houses were originally externally decorated with tiles sourced from the Blackwall Tunnel and some named the street Lavatory Lane as a result. Laburnum Grove itself was a popular area for Royal Navy officers to live and was also historically referred to as Brass-Button Alley. [1]
The Odeon cinema, opened in 1936 and was built in the Art Deco style by Andrew Mather. [2] The cinema was a prominent local landmark in the area until it closed on January 10, 2008, after Odeon sold the cinema to a property developer. The foyer of the building was converted for retail use and turned into an OJ's Discount Store in December 2008. In April 2012, Sainsbury's announced they would take over the space and convert the foyer in addition to it's neighbouring retail units into a Sainsbury's Local store, which opened in December 2012. The store closed in October 2019 [3] and since 2020, a Polish supermarket has accompanied the space. The auditorium buildings remained intact, although in extremely poor condition, and planning permission was soon granted to demolish the structure and replace it with new housing. In April 2023, building work commenced. [4]
North End is bounded to the west by Stamshaw, to the south by Buckland and Kingston, to the east by Copnor and by Hilsea to the north.
North End is part of the Portsmouth North Parliamentary constituency.
North End continues to support a wide range of small traders, supermarkets and other retailers, as well as a variety of pubs and budget fast food outlets.
A public library operates near the junction of North End with Gladys Avenue.
Stamshaw Junior School is a junior school on North End Avenue in North End.
Meredith infant school and Isambard Kingdom Brunel Middle School were adjacent schools in North End that closed in 2009. [5] [6] The two schools later merged with the New Horizons Primary School on Portchester Road. [7]
There are two main Anglican churches in the area:
There is a Roman Catholic church on Gladys Avenue, Corpus Christi and St Joseph. [9] It was built between 1892 and 1904 with a significant pause after 1893. [10] The Church’s altar was previously used at a Convent in Ryde. [10]
There is also a Baptist church on Powerscourt road in a building that previously belonged to the Bible Christian Methodist Church. [11] [10] A previous Baptist church existed at 21 London Road which was built in 1894 but closed in 2001. The building was eventually sold to the Barracuda Group in 2004 and reopened as a public house named "The Lanyard" in January 2005, later renamed "The Grapes" and "Antique Bar". Currently, the building is home to a Darts lounge. [12]
Portsmouth is a port city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent. This means Portsmouth is the only English city not located primarily on the mainland. Located 74 miles (119 km) south-west of London, 50 miles (80 km) west of Brighton and Hove, and 22 miles (35 km) south-east of Southampton; Portsmouth is part of the South Hampshire conurbation. It is the most densely populated city in the United Kingdom, with a population last recorded at 208,100.
Whale Island is a small island in Portsmouth Harbour, close by Portsea Island. It is home to HMS Excellent, the oldest shore training establishment within the Royal Navy, and the location of the Navy Command Headquarters. The island is linked to Portsea Island and thence to the mainland by road bridges.
The fortifications of Portsmouth are extensive due to its strategic position on the English Channel and role as home to the Royal Navy. For this reason, Portsmouth was, by the 19th century, one of the most fortified cities in the world. The fortifications have evolved over the centuries in response to changes in tactics and technology and the area defended has increased. While the first defences focused on Portsmouth harbour, in step with the fortifications of Gosport, later defensive structures protected the whole of Portsea Island and an increasing distance inland. At the same time, the fortifications of Portsmouth and Gosport became part of the wider fortifications of the Solent. Old Portsmouth, on the southwest corner of Portsea Island, has been walled for much of its history.
The Hilsea Lines are a line of 18th- and 19th-century fortifications built at Hilsea to protect the northern approach to Portsea Island, an island off the southern coast of England which forms the majority of the city of Portsmouth and its key naval base. They are now used as a greenspace and leisure area, also known locally as Foxes Forest.
Portsea Island is a flat and low-lying natural island 24.5 square kilometres in area, just off the southern coast of Hampshire in England. Portsea Island contains the majority of the city of Portsmouth.
Portsmouth North is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Penny Mordaunt, the current Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Council. She is a Conservative MP.
The Southsea Railway was a short railway branch line. It was built to give easier access from the jointly operated main line railway approaching Portsmouth to the Clarence Pier from which Isle of Wight ferries sailed. In 1879 the extension of the main line railway to Portsmouth Harbour station, where direct transfer from train to steamer was possible, eliminated most of the steamer business at Clarence Pier. Undeterred, promoters interested in developing Southsea projected the Southsea Railway, connecting a new Fratton station on the main line, with Southsea. The line was opened on 1 July 1885. Its independent promoters believed that it could be a main line terminus for London trains, and they constructed the line lavishly in consequence.
Tipner is a residential district of Portsmouth, located on the north western corner of Portsea Island in southern England. It includes a housing estate, built during the 1930s, that used to function as married quarters for the Royal Navy, a yachting club, allotments, a primary school, The Harbour special school, and indoor and outdoor rifle ranges. There is a nearby sports centre at Alexandra Park. Tipner is bounded to the north and west by the M275 motorway and Tipner Lake. To the south is Stamshaw.
Stamshaw is a residential district of Portsmouth, located on the north western corner of Portsea Island in southern England.
Copnor is an area of Portsmouth, England, located on the eastern side of Portsea Island. The population of Copnor Ward at the 2011 Census was 13,608. As Copenore, it was one of the three villages listed as being on Portsea Island in the Domesday book.
Paulsgrove is an area of northern Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. Initially a small independent hamlet for many centuries, it was admitted to the city limits in 1920 and grew rapidly after the end of the Second World War.
Hilsea is a district of the city of Portsmouth in the English county of Hampshire. Hilsea is home to one of Portsmouth's main sports and leisure facilities – the Mountbatten centre. Trafalgar School is also in Hilsea. It is also the home of Portsmouth rugby football club
Landport is a district located on Portsea Island and is considered the city centre of modern-day Portsmouth, England. The district is centred around Commercial Road and encompasses the Guildhall, Civic Centre, Portsmouth and Southsea Station and Commercial Road central shopping area. The original historic old town of Portsmouth lies to the south of Landport and is now known as Old Portsmouth. The district of Portsea lies to the West; Somers Town and Southsea are to the south; Fratton lies to the East and the Kingston Crescent area to the north.
Trafalgar School is a coeducational secondary school located in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. The school is on London Road in the Portsmouth northern sub district of Hilsea. The current comprehensive school, established in 1975, was the product of an amalgamation of four separate secondary schools in the west of the City of Portsmouth. Formerly a boys' school, the school became coeducational in September 2015.
Portsbridge Creek, known officially as Portsea Creek and informally as Ports Creek, Port Creek, Portcreek and Canal Creek,, is a tidal waterway just off the southern coast of England that runs between Portsea Island and the mainland from Langstone Harbour to Tipner Lake.