Chingford

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Template:Infobox London place Chingford is a town in the London Borough of Waltham Forest.

It is a suburban development situated 10 miles (16.1 km) north east of Charing Cross and on the edge of Epping Forest.

To the north and east of Chingford is Epping Forest and the boundary with Essex. To the west is the King George's Reservoir and the River Lea.

1 History
2 Landmarks
3 Transport
4 Districts
5 Politics
6 External links

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History

It is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Chingford, named after the River Ching.

There were early villages at Chingford Green (North Chingford) and Chingford Hatch, but only the occupants on the bank of the river (today's Sewardstone Road) saw much in the way of traffic, being on the route from Waltham Abbey to Stratford via Walthamstow. The development of Chingford into a London Suburb was therefore rather late, as these small villages and farms were until the latter part of the 19th century rather isolated, not being on any major highways. This changed when the Epping Forest Act of 1878 gave the Corporation of London responsibility for the forest and in 1882 Queen Victoria arrived to officially open it up to the public. Chingford became an Urban District until the 1960s, when it became part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest. The town is now mostly of modern construction, with extensive development taking place in the inter-war years. There is a large shopping area at Chingford Mount, with a smaller selection of shops at North Chingford, along Station Road.

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Landmarks

Image:Hunting Lodge Chingford.JPG One notable local landmark is Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge, which stands on the border of Epping Forest, and dates back to the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, although it has been heavily altered over time. The building is open to the public.

A granite obelisk at Pole Hill was erected in 1824 under the direction of the Astronomer Royal, The Rev. John Pond M.A., to mark true north for the Royal Observatory, which was then at Greenwich, south of the Thames. It was placed on high ground along the line of the Greenwich Meridian, but when this was recalculated later in the 19th century, the obelisk was deemed to have been erected 19 feet west of the true meridian line.

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Transport

Chingford is served by a railway station which is the terminus of a branch line from Liverpool Street station in the City of London. There is also a station at Highams Park. The town is served by many bus routes, linking it to Walthamstow, Leyton and Woodford. The North Circular Road skirts the southern part of the town, and gives motorists good access to the north and east of London. The London LOOP walk passes through Chingford on its way from Enfield to Chigwell.

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