Riverside. South bank West of the Tower. Harrods Village

Riverside. South bank West of the Tower.  Harrods Village

This post shows sites to the south of the river only. North of the river is Fulham Palace Road and riverside

Post to the south Barn Elms and Fulham Bishops Park
Post to the west Castelnau
Post to the north Central Hammersmith

London Wet Land Centre
Water works. The site of the Wet Land Centre was previously that of the West Middlesex Waterworks Co who opened this site in 1838 as an extension of their works across the river in Hammersmith.  The reservoirs being filled by the Thames at high tide by gravity and water then being pumped across the river to Hammersmith. This north east corner of the site appears to have been covered by half of a reservoir and a number of filter bed added in the 1890s. These were drained and covered in the early 1970s
 London Wetland Centre, This reserve is managed by the Wildfowl and Wetland Trust. The site is formed of four disused 19th reservoirs. The centre opened in 2000, and in 2002 part was designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest as the Barn Elms Wetland Centre. The area of the centre covered by the square is that in the north east corner adjacent to the river. This appears to be the Reservoir Lagoon, Grazing Marsh and Waderscope

Riverside Tow Path, South Bank
Hammersmith Bridge Works - Cowan’s soap and candle factory, sugar refinery and animal charcoal works. The sugar refinery using beet rather than cane. These were on the site later used by Harrods. They were built by Lewis Cowan in 1857. It closed in 1892
Charles Harrod Court is the converted soap factory
Richard Burbidge Mansions is the converted candle factory. He was the managing director of Harrods when they opened the depository here. He lived in Barnes,
Harrods Depository. At the end of the 19th century, Harrods, decided to open a depository where people could store furniture and possessions - particularly for those going abroad. They bought the site in 1893 and it opened with a grand carnival in aid of Holy Trinity Church. It has Distinctive domes on its roof. There were three long blocks and one ground floor room where twelve cast-iron columns are all slightly different. In the other half of the block cast-iron sheets have been inserted to replace and increase the number of original floors. Containers were lifted and stored here. There is an early 'container' in the grounds, and a huge exterior furniture lift on the riverside block. There was also a gas storage area. The main building is said to have incorporated material from the old Piccadilly tube station – and the terracotta frontage was added in o1913 intended to harmonise with Harrods’ Knightsbridge store. The frontage was designed by William George Hunt, and the building which is now flats is named after him. It was converted to housing in 2000 as gated Harrods Village
Harrods Wharf with a narrow gauge railway leading to the front block.


Riverview Gardens
They are on the sitter of Cowan’s Bank or Cowan’s Field where an annual Boat Race Fair took place

Sources
GLC Thames Guidelines
GLIAS Newsletter
History of Metropolitan Water Board
London Wetlands Centre. Web site
Riverview Gardens Web site

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