Lee Navigation - Angel Road industry
Lee Navigation
The Lee Navigation flows south
Salomon’s Brook flows south
This is where the Lea Navigation passes under the rebuilt and vastly busy North Circular Road. It was and is surrounded by industries of all sorts - and in particular it once had a series of nationally famous furniture manufacturers, along with armaments, food, lino and much else. Today the area is dominated by the massive chimney of the London Waste Destructor.
Post to the east Chingford Mill
Post to the south Wild Marsh
Post to the north Marshside
Post to the west Edmonton
Advent Way
The London Bread and Cake Company Ltd was formed from Superslice Ltd. Superslice was founded in 1882 in Holborn, with a bakery which supplied caterers. The factory unit is capable of producing up to 7,000 rolls and 1,000 loaves per hour.
London Waste Eco Park. Destructor – refuse incineration plant. This is now run by London Waste . It was built in 1971 to generate electricity by the Greater London Council. It is clad in corrugated metal sheeting, with a cylindrical concrete chimney containing two flues. It produces electricity from burning mainly domestic rubbish. A large composting facility opened on the site in 2006, allowing green and kitchen waste from local homes to be converted into compost.
Albany Road
Gas works gate posts at the southern end
Angel Road
This was called Watery Lane in 1557 and later Marsh Lane and was a road along Pymme's brook to Edmonton marsh. In 1924-7 it was transformed into the North Circular Road. There was no through west/east route from Edmonton until the Lea was bridged in the 19th and the Lea, was crossed at Cook's ferry. By 1865 the Lea had been bridged. At the junction of Montagu Road with Angel Road there was still only a ford over Pymmes Brook in 1865.
Road bridge over the Railway. An early reinforced concrete bridge of 17 spans built in 1908. Replaced in the early 1960s.
Lea Valley Viaduct. This now-demolished road viaduct crossed the long valley including the river and the Navigation undertaken by Owen Williams and Maxwell Ayrton. It included a series of structurally redundant monumental pylons. The pylons were demolished in the 1970s and the whole bridge demolished in the 1980s and replaced with the current motorway standard road.
Blue Anchor. 19th pub which stood west of the railway station before the construction of the current North Circular
Ash Wharf – timber yard
Bleak Hall Bridge – this took the North Circular over the Lea Navigation before more recent road widening.
Angel Road Works. Government factory to produce rifle cartridges for the Russian Government. The premises were later used by the Royal Air Force. This site is likely to have been to the west of the Eley works near the railway.
Angel Road Works. Straker Squire Motor Car Company. This Bristol based car and bus manufacturing company moved here in 1919 remaining until the late 1920s.
Trollope and Colls, Ltd.factory, making sea-mines for the Admirality during the Great War
Conduit Lane
Angel Road Station. The station is on the Tottenham Hale branch of the Lea Valley Lines operated by Greater Anglia. This now runs between Ponders End and Northumberland Park. Difficult to find, it is hidden underneath the A 406, Angel Road, North Circular. The only access is from a staircase from Conduit Lane – a motorway standard slip. It was originally Built by the Northern and Eastern Railway on a line which ran from Stratford to Broxbourne, and it was leased to the Eastern Counties Railway and called ‘Edmonton; - although it is a mile and a half away from the centre. In 1849 a branch was built from it to Enfield and, another Edmonton Station was opened, and so the name was here changed to Water Lane and then in 1864, it became Angel Road. In 1872 a connection was built between the other Edmonton Station and Liverpool Street – making this route an unattractive option. Until the 1880s it was very isolated. It was rebuilt in 1908 along with a bridge above it which took the upgraded Angel Road. Less and less trains ran on the line to Edmonton and it was closed at the start of the Second World War. In the 1950s it was resurrected to allow engineering works on other lines
Sidings
Goods shed. The remains of a loading dock and the old track bed could be seen in the 1990s.
Angel Road Junction Signal Box was at the point where the lines parted north of the station – for Edmonton proper and the other to Ponders End. Drivers heading towards Edmonton had to have a single-line token before leaving.
Derby Road
Site of a works owned by Belling in 1913
Eley Industrial Estate
Eley Brothers made firearms cartridges here. They had bought the patent rights to a "wire cartridge" in 1828. This was a wire cage which held the shot during the first stages of its flight. They had factories in central London from 1828 and from the mid-1830s expanded their range and worked with Samuel Colt. They opened a factory at Tile Kiln Lane, Edmonton, London by 1865 moving to Angel Road in 1894. There were many difficulties but in 1907 a 107 ft. shot tower was built. After the Great War they became part of Nobel Industries. The Angel Road factory closed in 1921 and became the Kynoch Works. The shot tower was demolished in the late 20th.
Parker Knoll works in what was the B and I Nathan furniture factory. Parker Knoll dates from the 1860s and have factories in a number of areas. This factory was closed in the early 21st and production moved
B. and I Nathan furniture factory. Barnett Nathan, of Russian origin, made furniture in Hackney Road in 1916, and also made munitions boxes for the Government. The Company grew steadily and in the 1930's moved to Angel Road. After the Second World War the company introduced new lines of furniture and eventually moved production to Yorkshire.
Beautility. Furniture company which was founded by Russians in the 1890s and moved from Hackney to Angel Road in the 1930s
Tesco – in 1934 Tesco founder, Jack Cohen, bought land here for a factory and headquarters building.
Herbert and Sons. Angel Road Works. The company, which made scales, was founded in the 18th in the City. They moved to this purpose built works in 1937 and in 1971 moved away to Haverhill.
The Century Glass Works opened a London showroom in 1947 focussing in exports. They made glassware items including glass for the catering trade.
First Avenue
Metal Waste and Recycling. Headquarters of firm with outlets throughout the company and with specialist equipment on site.
Gibbs Road
Bio mass plant – converting wood to energy
Harbet Road
Sheer Metalcraft Ltd was formed in 1941 in Hackney with later premises at Harbet House Angel Factory Colony. Called Sheer Pride Ltd from 1962. The company was subject to a number of take overs and moved to Wales in the 1980s.
Allen Engineering. Moved there in 1957. Made glow plugs and diesel parts
The Trusty Manufacturing Co Ltd, making the Trusty Pavemaster children’s scooter and a range of juvenile bicycles in 1957
Kenninghall Road
Kenninghall Open Space
Kynoch Road
Named from Kynoch who took over the Eely factory in the 1920s
Coca Cola factory. Established in 1974
Lee Park Road
Private road from the leisure centre
Lea Navigation
Bleak Hall Lock or Edmonton Lock. This was built in 1776 and it was removed in 1863.The site lies under the viaduct
Meridian Way
Through road to Waltham Cross built in the 1990s.
Montague Road
Once called Jeremy's Green Lane
Level Crossing - the line from Angel Road to Edmonton crossed Montague Road. This was the site of a crossing keeper's cottage, known as 'The Gatehouse'. There is now a footpath over some parts of the old line.
Nobel Road
Named from the Nobel company who took over the Eely works
Silvermere Drive
Angel Works. Ridley, Whitley and Co established their linoleum factory here in the 1860s. The Vicwardian factory has brick built water tower with an iron tank on top.
Towpath road
Mile marker on the Lee Navigation on Towpath Road. This may not have been the original position as the 6 mile point should be where Bleak Hall Bridge used to be before the North Circular Road was widened
Sources
Walford Highgate to the Lea
Walford Village London
Victoria County History
Thames Basin Archaeology Group. Industrial Archaeology in London
Pevsner & Cherry London North
GLIAS Newsletter
Wilson. Industrial London
Superslice web site
North London Waste Authority web site
Edmonton Incinerator Wikipedia web site
Leaflets on the Destructor - Greater London Council
Carr & Smith. Industrial Archaeology of Hertfordshire and the Lea Valley
Enfield Archaeology Society. Industrial Archaeology in Enfield
London Railway Record articles
Signal Box Forum web site
Parker Knoll web site
Beautility web site
Tesco web site
Herbert & Sons web site
Century Glass web site
Metal Waste and Recycling web site
Sheer Metalcraft website
Allen Engineering website
Trusty memories web site
Coca Cola web site
Lee and Stort Navigation web site
The Lee Navigation flows south
Salomon’s Brook flows south
This is where the Lea Navigation passes under the rebuilt and vastly busy North Circular Road. It was and is surrounded by industries of all sorts - and in particular it once had a series of nationally famous furniture manufacturers, along with armaments, food, lino and much else. Today the area is dominated by the massive chimney of the London Waste Destructor.
Post to the west Edmonton
Advent Way
The London Bread and Cake Company Ltd was formed from Superslice Ltd. Superslice was founded in 1882 in Holborn, with a bakery which supplied caterers. The factory unit is capable of producing up to 7,000 rolls and 1,000 loaves per hour.
London Waste Eco Park. Destructor – refuse incineration plant. This is now run by London Waste . It was built in 1971 to generate electricity by the Greater London Council. It is clad in corrugated metal sheeting, with a cylindrical concrete chimney containing two flues. It produces electricity from burning mainly domestic rubbish. A large composting facility opened on the site in 2006, allowing green and kitchen waste from local homes to be converted into compost.
Albany Road
Gas works gate posts at the southern end
Angel Road
This was called Watery Lane in 1557 and later Marsh Lane and was a road along Pymme's brook to Edmonton marsh. In 1924-7 it was transformed into the North Circular Road. There was no through west/east route from Edmonton until the Lea was bridged in the 19th and the Lea, was crossed at Cook's ferry. By 1865 the Lea had been bridged. At the junction of Montagu Road with Angel Road there was still only a ford over Pymmes Brook in 1865.
Road bridge over the Railway. An early reinforced concrete bridge of 17 spans built in 1908. Replaced in the early 1960s.
Lea Valley Viaduct. This now-demolished road viaduct crossed the long valley including the river and the Navigation undertaken by Owen Williams and Maxwell Ayrton. It included a series of structurally redundant monumental pylons. The pylons were demolished in the 1970s and the whole bridge demolished in the 1980s and replaced with the current motorway standard road.
Blue Anchor. 19th pub which stood west of the railway station before the construction of the current North Circular
Ash Wharf – timber yard
Bleak Hall Bridge – this took the North Circular over the Lea Navigation before more recent road widening.
Angel Road Works. Government factory to produce rifle cartridges for the Russian Government. The premises were later used by the Royal Air Force. This site is likely to have been to the west of the Eley works near the railway.
Angel Road Works. Straker Squire Motor Car Company. This Bristol based car and bus manufacturing company moved here in 1919 remaining until the late 1920s.
Trollope and Colls, Ltd.factory, making sea-mines for the Admirality during the Great War
Conduit Lane
Angel Road Station. The station is on the Tottenham Hale branch of the Lea Valley Lines operated by Greater Anglia. This now runs between Ponders End and Northumberland Park. Difficult to find, it is hidden underneath the A 406, Angel Road, North Circular. The only access is from a staircase from Conduit Lane – a motorway standard slip. It was originally Built by the Northern and Eastern Railway on a line which ran from Stratford to Broxbourne, and it was leased to the Eastern Counties Railway and called ‘Edmonton; - although it is a mile and a half away from the centre. In 1849 a branch was built from it to Enfield and, another Edmonton Station was opened, and so the name was here changed to Water Lane and then in 1864, it became Angel Road. In 1872 a connection was built between the other Edmonton Station and Liverpool Street – making this route an unattractive option. Until the 1880s it was very isolated. It was rebuilt in 1908 along with a bridge above it which took the upgraded Angel Road. Less and less trains ran on the line to Edmonton and it was closed at the start of the Second World War. In the 1950s it was resurrected to allow engineering works on other lines
Sidings
Goods shed. The remains of a loading dock and the old track bed could be seen in the 1990s.
Angel Road Junction Signal Box was at the point where the lines parted north of the station – for Edmonton proper and the other to Ponders End. Drivers heading towards Edmonton had to have a single-line token before leaving.
Derby Road
Site of a works owned by Belling in 1913
Eley Industrial Estate
Eley Brothers made firearms cartridges here. They had bought the patent rights to a "wire cartridge" in 1828. This was a wire cage which held the shot during the first stages of its flight. They had factories in central London from 1828 and from the mid-1830s expanded their range and worked with Samuel Colt. They opened a factory at Tile Kiln Lane, Edmonton, London by 1865 moving to Angel Road in 1894. There were many difficulties but in 1907 a 107 ft. shot tower was built. After the Great War they became part of Nobel Industries. The Angel Road factory closed in 1921 and became the Kynoch Works. The shot tower was demolished in the late 20th.
Parker Knoll works in what was the B and I Nathan furniture factory. Parker Knoll dates from the 1860s and have factories in a number of areas. This factory was closed in the early 21st and production moved
B. and I Nathan furniture factory. Barnett Nathan, of Russian origin, made furniture in Hackney Road in 1916, and also made munitions boxes for the Government. The Company grew steadily and in the 1930's moved to Angel Road. After the Second World War the company introduced new lines of furniture and eventually moved production to Yorkshire.
Beautility. Furniture company which was founded by Russians in the 1890s and moved from Hackney to Angel Road in the 1930s
Tesco – in 1934 Tesco founder, Jack Cohen, bought land here for a factory and headquarters building.
Herbert and Sons. Angel Road Works. The company, which made scales, was founded in the 18th in the City. They moved to this purpose built works in 1937 and in 1971 moved away to Haverhill.
The Century Glass Works opened a London showroom in 1947 focussing in exports. They made glassware items including glass for the catering trade.
First Avenue
Metal Waste and Recycling. Headquarters of firm with outlets throughout the company and with specialist equipment on site.
Gibbs Road
Bio mass plant – converting wood to energy
Harbet Road
Sheer Metalcraft Ltd was formed in 1941 in Hackney with later premises at Harbet House Angel Factory Colony. Called Sheer Pride Ltd from 1962. The company was subject to a number of take overs and moved to Wales in the 1980s.
Allen Engineering. Moved there in 1957. Made glow plugs and diesel parts
The Trusty Manufacturing Co Ltd, making the Trusty Pavemaster children’s scooter and a range of juvenile bicycles in 1957
Kenninghall Road
Kenninghall Open Space
Kynoch Road
Named from Kynoch who took over the Eely factory in the 1920s
Coca Cola factory. Established in 1974
Lee Park Road
Private road from the leisure centre
Lea Navigation
Bleak Hall Lock or Edmonton Lock. This was built in 1776 and it was removed in 1863.The site lies under the viaduct
Meridian Way
Through road to Waltham Cross built in the 1990s.
Montague Road
Once called Jeremy's Green Lane
Level Crossing - the line from Angel Road to Edmonton crossed Montague Road. This was the site of a crossing keeper's cottage, known as 'The Gatehouse'. There is now a footpath over some parts of the old line.
Nobel Road
Named from the Nobel company who took over the Eely works
Silvermere Drive
Angel Works. Ridley, Whitley and Co established their linoleum factory here in the 1860s. The Vicwardian factory has brick built water tower with an iron tank on top.
Towpath road
Mile marker on the Lee Navigation on Towpath Road. This may not have been the original position as the 6 mile point should be where Bleak Hall Bridge used to be before the North Circular Road was widened
Sources
Walford Highgate to the Lea
Walford Village London
Victoria County History
Thames Basin Archaeology Group. Industrial Archaeology in London
Pevsner & Cherry London North
GLIAS Newsletter
Wilson. Industrial London
Superslice web site
North London Waste Authority web site
Edmonton Incinerator Wikipedia web site
Leaflets on the Destructor - Greater London Council
Carr & Smith. Industrial Archaeology of Hertfordshire and the Lea Valley
Enfield Archaeology Society. Industrial Archaeology in Enfield
London Railway Record articles
Signal Box Forum web site
Parker Knoll web site
Beautility web site
Tesco web site
Herbert & Sons web site
Century Glass web site
Metal Waste and Recycling web site
Sheer Metalcraft website
Allen Engineering website
Trusty memories web site
Coca Cola web site
Lee and Stort Navigation web site
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