LEYTONSTONE

'Leytonstone' is a place in the London Borough of Waltham Forest, in East London, England.

Contents

History

Notable features

Notable people associated with Leytonstone

Lifestyle

Transport and locale

Nearby places

Nearest tube station

Nearest railway station

External links

History

The main thoroughfare in Leytonstone, High Road Leytonstone, which runs the length of Leytonstone to Stratford is an ancient pathway dating to pre-Roman times. Roman archaeological features have been found in the area.
The name Leytonstone - in early documents ''Leyton-Atte-Stone'' - may derive from the large stone standing at the junction of Hollybush Hill and New Wanstead; in the 18th-century an obelisk was mounted on top of it, and it has been claimed that it is the remains of a Roman milestone.
Two of the obelisk's inscriptions are still just legible: others are not.
:''"To Epping XI Miles through Woodford, Loughton"''
:''"To Ongar XV Miles through Woodford Bridge, Chigwell, Abridge"''
It has been claimed that High Road Leytonstone is a prehistoric pathway dating from before the Romans built a road along the same route to London. However Roman roads have since been found during excavations.
The earliest known cartographic reference to Leytonstone is dated from 1545. It was part of Essex until 1965.
Leytonstone was the centre of protests against the construction of the M11 link road, in 1990. The protesters' final stand was staged at Claremont Road, Leytonstone and was ended by the forced eviction of protestors in 1994.

Notable features

★ Epping Forest boundaries reach Leytonstone in wooded areas called Hollow Ponds and Wanstead Flats.

★ Whipps Cross University Hospital

★ Dagenham & Redbridge football club is an amalgamation of several amateur football clubs, including Leytonstone F.C., who played along Leytonstone High Road. The Wanderers F.C. also originated from Leytonstone but played in several other venues round London.

Notable people associated with Leytonstone

★ Alfred Hitchcock was born and raised in the area; the entrance to Leytonstone tube station has a number of murals depicting scenes from his films. There is a pub and hotel named after him in Whipps Cross Road.

★ One infamous person who reputedly passed through Leytonstone, staying at the Green Man pub (now O'Neill's), was Essex-born highwayman Dick Turpin. Turpin allegedly passed through Leytonstone to Epping Forest en route to Norwich, and eventually to his appointment with the hangman in 1739.

★ Damon Albarn

★ David Beckham

★ Boy Kill Boy (Band)

★ Cornelius Cardew

★ Fanny Craddock

★ Curtis Davies

★ John Drinkwater

★ Ken Farnes

★ Joanne Fenn

★ Graham Gooch

★ Steve Harris

★ Patrick Haseldine

★ Sydney Horler

★ Justin Hoyte

★ Derek Jacobi

★ Colin Kazim-Richards

★ Natasha Little

★ Morell Mackenzie

★ Tony Robinson

★ Jonathan Ross and his brother Paul Ross

★ Rita Simons

★ Talvin Singh

★ Meera Syal

★ Sean MacStiofain

Lifestyle

Leytonstone spans a transition zone between some of the more deprived areas of east London and the more affluent areas on the Essex borders. In the south - the areas known as Cann Hall and Cathall - there is a large amount of council housing, incomes tend to be low, and a gang culture has developed. In March 2007, 56% of young people surveyed said that they felt unsafe [1], and indeed, in April 2007 a teenager was stabbed to death there. However, in the northern part of Leytonstone, especially Upper Leytonstone, Bushwood, and near Wanstead Park, most houses are privately-owned and can be highly sought-after, with prices having risen rapidly in recent years.

Transport and locale

Nearby places

★ Epping Forest

★ Forest Gate

★ Leyton

★ Snaresbrook

★ Stratford

★ Temple Mills

★ Walthamstow

★ Wanstead

Nearest tube station

★ Leytonstone tube station

★ Leyton tube station

Nearest railway station

★ Leytonstone High Road railway station

External links

★ The Leytonstone Festival

★ A brief history of Leytonstone

★ Woodhouse Players