Building foundations - Greenford

[tugstyle]

Hi all,

 

I was 'magnet fishing' near our marina in Greenford on the Paddington arm.

 

I came across a series of building foundations near the edge of the canal.

 

They were stone I think and roughly square with an open side to the canal.

 

Google Maps

 

There were also several wooden posts driven in which had been fire damaged.

 

I started pulling all sorts of metal objects out of the canal, mostly screw and nails but also the head from a lump hammer.

 

So does anyone know if these are old canal buildings or a more recent structure?

 

Does anyone have an old map?

 

If they are old I will go back and see if I can fish out anything interesting!

 

Thanks

[tugstyle]

Ok I found this:

 

Willowtree Marina stands on the site of Willowtree Wharf, one of many docks, wharves and inlets which were once found along the Paddington Branch of the Grand Union Canal.

 

For nearly 200 years the wharf was used to tranship bricks locally made from clay extracted from the surrounding land. It is said that some of the bricks were used to build Buckingham Palace. During the Great War the wharf was used for the transhipment of explosives as the site was remote from housing, yet easily accessible from London by canal and rail. During World War Two the site was further used by the GPO as a communications centre.

 

Has anyone heard of Willowtree Wharf?

 

If it was used to ship explosives maybe I should stop fishing around with a magnet!

[Steve King]

I was 'magnet fishing' near our marina in Greenford on the Paddington arm.

So does anyone know if these are old canal buildings or a more recent structure?

I seem to remember seeing some narrow gauge railway lines by the edge of the canal there back in the late 1970s or thereabouts. They curved away from the canal at the western end. I can't remember any buildings there though.

 

The promotional book 'Grand Union Canal (Including Regent's Dock) and Associated Companies' from the 1930s lists these companies 6 furlongs east of the Hayes Road at Durdan's Dock, which would be almost exactly opposite the wharf in question:

 

Sharp, Jones & Co Ltd

James Davies (Timber) Merchants Ltd

Joinery & Builders' Supply Co Ltd

 

Durdans Dock was probably where the modern warehouses are now. Perhaps inspection of the piling would reveal where the towpath bridge over the dock entrance was? I don't think there was a dock at Willowtree until the present marina was excavated? I guess the timber companies may have had sheds on the offside as well and that would explain the railway if my memory is correct.

 

One of the old b&w films might just have a view of the scene but I'm not sure if there's one that goes from London to Birmingham?

 

 

Steve

[tugstyle]

I seem to remember seeing some narrow gauge railway lines by the edge of the canal there back in the late 1970s or thereabouts. They curved away from the canal at the western end. I can't remember any buildings there though.

 

The promotional book 'Grand Union Canal (Including Regent's Dock) and Associated Companies' from the 1930s lists these companies 6 furlongs east of the Hayes Road at Durdan's Dock, which would be almost exactly opposite the wharf in question:

 

Sharp, Jones & Co Ltd

James Davies (Timber) Merchants Ltd

Joinery & Builders' Supply Co Ltd

 

Durdans Dock was probably where the modern warehouses are now. Perhaps inspection of the piling would reveal where the towpath bridge over the dock entrance was? I don't think there was a dock at Willowtree until the present marina was excavated? I guess the timber companies may have had sheds on the offside as well and that would explain the railway if my memory is correct.

 

One of the old b&w films might just have a view of the scene but I'm not sure if there's one that goes from London to Birmingham?

 

 

Steve

 

 

The timber merchants appear in this one:

 

Grand_Union Beulah Library Roll F22

 

At the 7 min mark. They appear to be on the north bank which would make sense.

 

Could be the remains of some of their wharehouses. Also might explain the numbers of screws and nails I was pulling from the canal!

[Steve King]

The timber merchants appear in this one:

 

Grand_Union Beulah Library Roll F22

 

At the 7 min mark. They appear to be on the north bank which would make sense.

 

Well spotted, and interesting to see them. The GU promo books list them at Durdan's Dock which was on the south bank. However, judging from the angle of filming - travelling west and looking to the right - as you say they were on the north bank.

 

The book 'Braunston to Brentford' (1980) notes:

 

From around 1820 extensive brickfields were developed along the arm between Southall and Northolt. Ample clay deposits were dug to make bricks for the rapidly expanding suburbs of London. When the fields were exhausted, they were filled in with rubbish brought by boat from London.

Willow Tree Wharf remains on the west bank, with narrow-gauge rails that used to lead into the brickfields. There were private arms into the fields slightly further north, but the area was recently landscaped by the local authority. The West End Brick Company continued in production until the 1930's.

 

Alan Faulkner's 'The Grand Junction Canal' (1972) has a diagram (p202) of the local docks and depicts Durdan's Dock/135yds but then confusingly shows Willow Tree Dock/1075yds (aka Hewitt's Dock, and forked at the end) further east of the present Willow Tree Marina location. Willow Tree Wharf and Willow Tree Dock could have been separate locations of course. Neither of the GU promo books shows either of them.

 

Perhaps the detailed Godfrey maps cover this area and would reveal more accurate detail.

 

 

Steve

[debbifiggy]

The timber merchants appear in this one:

 

Grand_Union Beulah Library Roll F22

 

At the 7 min mark. They appear to be on the north bank which would make sense.

 

Could be the remains of some of their wharehouses. Also might explain the numbers of screws and nails I was pulling from the canal!

I can;t get the video to work. What am I doing wrong? I'd love to see this.

D

[tugstyle]

I can;t get the video to work. What am I doing wrong? I'd love to see this.

D

 

You need flash installed to watch it.

 

Try installing it from here:

 

flash link

[owen]

You need flash installed to watch it.

 

Try installing it from here:

 

flash link

what a sight to see so many boats working it would be nice to see that come back again

[IamMozzy]

As a child, I lived in the flats opposite this marina, during the fifties and sixties, on the Southall side in Cranleigh Gardens. The Yeading Marina was not there then, but there was a concrete embankment, some of which appears to be still there, there was an embankment a few yards in from the canal, which was cut through in a couple of places with railway lines. The embankment was of the type which was possibly to protect workers unloading from the canal, if they were straffed by enemy aircraft. I remember a large chimney behind the present marina, which still had camouflage paint on it in the fifties. Durdans Dock would have been just to the left (from your side) of your present marina and the 'White Bridge' was still there in the fifties. The dock was in a direct line from Cranleigh play park gates out to the canal, it served The Vulcan Iron & Metal Works, which was where the flats are now. So the factory road which you can see from the marina, would be almost directly over the dock.

 

The following link shows the bridge in bottom left with the bridge clearly visible set back slightly, hence no visible foundations. The dock is clearly visible on magnification with water still in it in 1937. There were two small 'lakes' where the park now is, one of which can just be seen. They may once have had something to do with the dock.

 

http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/image/epw054018?search=southall&ref=46

 

This next link shows a shot toward Spikes bridge direction and the larger lake can clearly be seen, bottom centre. Where the park now is. Magnification shows water in the dock with the canal running down to bottom right.

 

http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/image/epw054017?search=ealing&ref=495

 

As an aside we used to build rafts to get across to your side, the land was almost derelict, there were still pill boxes from the war. There were cows there as well. The lake which is still there was full of rubbish, carboys drums etc. The children's story was to keep away as it was poisonous. Further along towards Northolt, opposite Durdans Park, there were derelict cuts which had sunken barges in them, and behind were deserted rhubard fields. Filled in now of course. I could go on, but hope this was of use to you or someone else. The land opposite Durdans Park was heavily contaminated, with industrial waste from wartime, gas masks and all sorts in there, I was surprised when they built there. And unsurprised when the housing appeared on the news as making people ill.

 

Best Regards

[Derek R.]

http://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=16&lat=51.52498&lon=-0.37405&layers=6

 

On the left hand side of the page. slide the transparency button across to see the area as it is in modern times.

From the No.2 field, select the drop down menu to choose a different set of maps/time span.

 

 

Beaulah Library F22, it's the 1934 silent movie:

 

https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Beaulah+Library+F22&ia=videos&iai=HUIhtcNr4vQ

Edited December 30, 2014 by Derek R.

[onionbargee]

Was a shame that the Greenford Heinz factory wharf went about 10 years ago, all the cast iron Collums and gates were demolished and nothing is left now.

[matty40s]

welcome to the forum Mozzy, and thanks for that fascinating information

[zenataomm]

A very unclear aerial photo of the same spot the OP was referring to.

This is 1945, you can't see any buildings but there appears to be a canal arm.