Seven Sisters, London

Last updated

Seven Sisters
Greater London UK location map 2.svg
Red pog.svg
Seven Sisters
Location within Greater London
Population15,968 (2011 Census Ward) [1]
OS grid reference TQ334888
London borough
Ceremonial county Greater London
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town LONDON
Postcode district N15
Dialling code 020
Police Metropolitan
Fire London
Ambulance London
UK Parliament
London Assembly
List of places
UK
England
London
51°34′56″N0°04′25″W / 51.582214°N 0.073708°W / 51.582214; -0.073708

Seven Sisters is a district of Tottenham, north London, England, at the eastern end of Seven Sisters Road, which runs from Tottenham High Road to join the A1 in Holloway.

Contents

Etymology

The seven sisters of Tottenham by John Greenwood (1790) The seven sisters of Tottenham.jpg
The seven sisters of Tottenham by John Greenwood (1790)

The Dorset map of 1619 [2] shows the area known today as Seven Sisters named as Page Greene. However, by 1805 the first series Ordnance Survey map was showing the area as Seven Sisters. [3]

The name is derived from seven elms which were planted in a circle with a walnut tree at their centre on an area of common land known as Page Green. [4] The clump was known as the Seven Sisters by 1732. [5]

High Road, Seven Sisters Seven Sisters 070710 0024.jpg
High Road, Seven Sisters

In his early-seventeenth-century work, The Briefe Description of the Towne of Tottenham Highcrosse, local vicar and historian William Bedwell singled out the walnut tree for particular mention. He wrote of it as a local 'arboreal wonder' which 'flourished without growing bigger'. He described it as popularly associated with the burning of an unknown Protestant. [6] There is also speculation that the tree was ancient, possibly going back as far as Roman times, perhaps standing in a sacred grove or pagan place of worship. [7]

The location of the seven trees can be tracked through a series of maps from 1619 on. [8] From 1619 they are shown in a position which today corresponds with the western tip of Page Green at the junction of Broad Lane and the High Road. [9] With urbanisation radically changing the area, the 'Seven Sisters' had been replanted by 1876, still on Page Green, but further to the east. [5] Contemporary maps show them remaining in this new location until 1955. [8]

The current ring of hornbeam trees on Page Green Common [10] was planted in 1997 in a ceremony led by five families of seven sisters. [7]

History

Seven Sisters is on the route of Ermine Street, the Roman road connecting London to York. At the time of Domesday, the area was within the Manor of Tottenham held by Waltheof II, Earl of Northumbria, the last of the great Anglo-Saxon Earls. [11]

In the medieval period a settlement grew up at Page Green and the woodland was increasingly cleared for agriculture. In the early decades of the nineteenth century, the Seven Sisters Road was constructed and the area saw the construction of a number of large houses, including Suffield Lodge, Seven Sisters House and Grove Place. [12] These fine buildings soon fell victim to the spread of Victorian London and by the third quarter of the century the area had been almost completely built over. [5]

Seven Sisters today

Seven Sisters Market Seven Sisters 070710 0012.jpg
Seven Sisters Market

Today Seven Sisters is a multi-cultural area strongly influenced by its location on key road and underground rail routes. Immediately above the tube station is an early-Edwardian department store building, formerly occupied by Wards Furnishing Stores, which traded until 1972. Part of the building, known locally as Wards Corner became an indoor market with a strong Latin American flavour, known as "Latin Village" or "Pueblito Paisa". [13] [14] The site had been under threat of demolition since 2004 (see section Plans for development below); there were plans to redevelop it in 2018, [15] but this action was resisted, and cancelled in August 2021. [16]

The Clyde Circus Conservation Area stretches between the busy local shops of West Green Road and Philip Lane. Most of the residential streets between are in the Conservation Area, but not the more modern Lawrence Road and Elizabeth Place. [17]

Residents of the Clyde Circus Conservation Area are brought together by the Clyde Area Residents Association (CARA), which holds an annual street party. Its sister group, the Fountain Area Residents Association (FARA), covers residents to the south of West Green Road, namely those in Kirkton Road, Roslyn Road, Seaford Road, Elmar Road, Turner Avenue, Brunel Walk, Avenue Road and Braemar Road. [18] Recent successful projects organised by FARA members include the creation of a community garden at the site of a dated pedestrian ramp. [19]

Another community project is the Avenue Orchard. [20] The local community utilised wasteland behind a concrete wall on Avenue Road for planting apple trees, and held a workshop with local artists to source ideas for how to improve the look and feel of the wall and area around the Avenue Orchard. [21]

Plans for development

The old Wards Corner building above the tube station was earmarked for development in 2004, when Haringey Council published a development brief. [22] In August 2007 Haringey Council entered into a Development Agreement with developer Grainger plc. Grainger's plan to demolish the existing buildings on the site and replace them with a new mixed-use development of retail and residential units was met with local opposition. The Wards Corner Coalition (WCC) [23] campaigned for the existing buildings and Latin American market to be retained and improved. The WCC mounted a legal challenge against the plans and, in June 2010, the Court of Appeal quashed the planning permission. [24]

In 2012, Grainger submitted revised plans for the site. [25] Haringey Council granted planning permission for the revised plans on 12 July 2012. [26] After protests, the plan was definitively cancelled in August 2021. [16]

In addition to the Wards Corner plans, further projects for regeneration in Seven Sisters are planned. Haringey Council's 'Plan for Tottenham' [27] sets out the council's long-term vision for the area. Plans to regenerate Lawrence Road were put out for consultation and are now partly implemented. [28] Transport for London has completed a major project to improve the Tottenham Hale Gyratory – a busy one-way system that used to pass Seven Sisters station – converting it to a slower, pedestrian-friendly, two-way road. [29]

Education

Nearest places

Nearest railway stations

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stanmore</span> Human settlement in England

Stanmore is part of the London Borough of Harrow in Greater London. It is centred 11 miles (18 km) northwest of Charing Cross, lies on the outskirts of the London urban area and includes Stanmore Hill, one of the highest points of London, at 152 metres (499 ft) high. The district, which developed from the ancient Middlesex parishes of Great and Little Stanmore, lies immediately west of Roman Watling Street and forms the eastern part of the modern London Borough of Harrow.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wood Green</span> District in England

Wood Green is a suburban district in the borough of Haringey in London, England. Its postal district is N22, with parts in N8 or N15. The London Plan identifies it as one of the metropolitan centres in Greater London, and today it forms a major commercial district of north London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enfield Chase</span> Human settlement in England

Enfield Chase is an area of Enfield that is named for a former royal hunting ground. It comprises the majority of the open countryside within the London Borough of Enfield, and land north of the M25 within Hertfordshire. At the time of a survey by Francis Russell in 1776-7, the Chase extended from Monken Hadley in the west to Bulls Cross in the east, and from Potters Bar to Southgate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bush Hill Park railway station</span> London Overground station

Bush Hill Park is a London Overground station on the Enfield Town branch of the Lea Valley lines, serving the neighbourhood of Bush Hill Park in the London Borough of Enfield, north London. It is 9 miles 69 chains (15.9 km) down the line from London Liverpool Street and is situated between Edmonton Green and Enfield Town, the terminus.

South Tottenham is an area of the London Borough of Haringey, north London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitefield's Tabernacle, Moorfields</span> Church in London, England

Whitefield's Tabernacle, Moorfields is a former church at the corner of Tabernacle Street and Leonard Street, Moorfields, London, England. The first church on the site was a wooden building erected by followers of the evangelical preacher George Whitefield in 1741. This was replaced by a brick building in 1753. Following Whitefield's death in 1770, John Wesley preached a sermon, "On the death of the Rev. Mr George Whitefield", both here and at Whitefield's Tabernacle, Tottenham Court Road.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Moselle (London)</span>

The River Moselle, also referred to as Moselle Brook, is in North London and flows through Tottenham towards the Lea Valley. The river was originally a tributary of the River Lea, but it now flows into Pymmes Brook, another Lea tributary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enfield Wash</span> Human settlement in England

Enfield Wash is an area in the London Borough of Enfield, North London. It is approximately located in the area either side of Hertford Road between Ordnance Road/Turkey Street and Bell Lane/Hoe Lane.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woodside High School, Wood Green</span> Academy in Wood Green, London, England

Woodside High School is a mixed 11–16 comprehensive school located in the Wood Green area of the London Borough of Haringey, England. With a student roll of 1200, the school has been judged by Ofsted as outstanding for two consecutive inspections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Green, London</span> Sub-district of Tottenham, north London

West Green is a district in north London, England, in the United Kingdom; within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located 5.7 miles (9.22 km) north of Charing Cross.

Northumberland Park is a ward in the Tottenham area of London Borough of Haringey, in Greater London, England. It is largely residential, consisting of houses and flats. It is the location of Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the home ground of Tottenham Hotspur F.C. The ward is represented by three Labour councillors. It is named after the Northumberland family who originally owned the land, the family included Harry Hotspur, who Tottenham Hotspur Football Club are named after.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tottenham</span> Human settlement in England

Tottenham is a town in north London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred 6 mi (10 km) north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Walthamstow, across the River Lea, to the east, and Stamford Hill to the south, with Wood Green and Harringay to the west.

Greentrees Hospital was a hospital in Palmers Green, North London. Situated in Tottenhall Road, the hospital was built in 1902 as the Southgate Isolation Hospital, commissioned by Southgate Urban District Council.

St Ann's is a neighbourhood in Tottenham, north London, England, in the London Borough of Haringey. It is located to the east of Harringay and West Green and is within, but distinct from, St Ann's ward.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Potters Bar Old Baptist Church</span>

The Potters Bar Old Baptist Church, as it is now known, is a former church in Hertfordshire, England. It was designed by W. Allen Dixon in 1868. Dixon specialised in church architecture and Baptist churches in particular.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Fox, Palmers Green</span>

The Fox is a public house in Palmers Green, north London, on the corner of Green Lanes and Fox Lane. A Fox pub and hotel has stood on the site for over 300 years. In 2004, The Fox featured in the film of J.K. Rowling's novel Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. In 2015, The Fox was the first Asset of Community Value to be registered in the London Borough of Enfield.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ye Olde Cherry Tree</span> Pub in Southgate, London

Ye Olde Cherry Tree is a grade II listed public house on the corner of The Green and The Mall in Southgate, north London, which dates from around 1695.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White Hart Lane (ward)</span> Electoral ward in the London Borough of Haringey

White Hart Lane is an electoral ward mainly in Tottenham, London Borough of Haringey, London, with some parts located in neighbouring Wood Green and Palmers Green. The ward is represented by three Labour councillors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tottenham Town Hall</span> Municipal building in London, England

Tottenham Town Hall is a municipal building in Town Hall Approach Road, Tottenham, London. It is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Meehan House</span> Municipal building in London, England

George Meehan House is a municipal building in High Road, Wood Green, London. It is surrounded by a public park known as Woodside Park and is a locally listed building.

References

  1. ↑ "Haringey Ward population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  2. ↑ See Tottenham article
  3. ↑ 1805 Ordnance Survey map on Vision Of Britain website Archived 1 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine showing Seven Sisters.
  4. ↑ Just by the green was a tavern called the Seven Sisters.
  5. 1 2 3 Tottenham: Growth before 1850', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 5: Hendon, Kingsbury, Great Stanmore, Little Stanmore, Edmonton Enfield, Monken Hadley, South Mimms, Tottenham (1976)
  6. ↑ W. Bedwell, Brief Description of Tottenham (1631), reprinted in W. J. Roe, Ancient Tottenham, 119, referenced in Tottenham: Growth before 1850', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 5: Hendon, Kingsbury, Great Stanmore, Little Stanmore, Edmonton Enfield, Monken Hadley, South Mimms, Tottenham (1976), pp. 313-317
  7. 1 2 "Tree Trust for Haringey". www.ttfh.org.uk. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  8. 1 2 Seven Sisters / Page Green and South Tottenham Conservation Area Archived 27 February 2010 at the Wayback Machine on the Haringey Council website.
  9. ↑ a.Google Maps Satellite view. b.Google Maps Street view.
  10. ↑ Masey, Anthea (11 August 2017). "Priced out of Hackney? This well-connected spot is just the ticket for buyers and renters". www.standard.co.uk. Retrieved 17 March 2021.
  11. ↑ T. F. T. Baker & R. B. Pugh (Editors) (1976). A History of the County of Middlesex, Volume 5: Hendon, Kingsbury, Great Stanmore, Little Stanmore, Edmonton Enfield, Monken Hadley, South Mimms, Tottenham. British History Online.{{cite book}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  12. ↑ The development of the area is well visualised through a series of maps provided in the appendix of the archaeology report of the proposed Wards Corner redevelopment [ permanent dead link ]
  13. ↑ "Latin Village: Pueblito Paisa, Wards Corner". Open House London. 2021. Retrieved 8 February 2022.
  14. ↑ Johnston, Ian (6 August 2020). "'We're far from home, but here we have a little corner to ourselves': Latin Village protesters call for market to be reopened". The Independent.
  15. ↑ Townsend, Mark (10 February 2018). "'To close Pueblito Paisa would be a massive injustice'". The Guardian.
  16. 1 2 Chakrabortty, Aditya (19 August 2021). "A community in the heart of Tottenham has shown how to fight the developers – and win". The Guardian.
  17. ↑ Clyde Circus Archived 29 July 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  18. ↑ Fountain Area Residents Association Archived 17 January 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  19. ↑ "Fara project - Revamp the Ramp" . Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  20. ↑ Avenue Road Orchard Archived 19 March 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  21. ↑ Avenue Art Project Archived 19 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  22. ↑ Development Brief Archived 20 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  23. ↑ "wardscorner - home". wardscorner.wikispaces.com. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  24. ↑ "Community celebrates Wards Corner victory". Tottenham Independent. 24 June 2010. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  25. ↑ McDonnell, Graham. "Seven Sisters Regeneration - Part of Tottenham Regeneration Vision". sevensistersregeneration.co.uk. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  26. ↑ London Borough of Haringey, I. T. S. (5 April 2005). "Online Planning Applications: Haringey Council" . Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  27. ↑ "Vision for Tottenham unveiled - Haringey Council". www.haringey.gov.uk. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  28. ↑ Bellway: Lawrence Road Archived 12 April 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  29. ↑ Tottenham Hale Gyratory
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.