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Spelthorne Hundred: Feltham

FELTHAM

Felteham (xi cent.); Feltenham, Felthenham (xvii cent.).

Feltham lies to the south of the main road from Hounslow to Staines, which runs just beyond and parallel with the northern boundary of the parish, The country is almost level, with a slight upward trend from south to north, but the highest point reached is only 73 ft. above ordnance datum. The River Crane forms part of the eastern boundary, and 'the Queen's or Cardinal's River' (v.s. East Bedfont) flows diagonally across the northern part of the parish, passing under the railway near the station, and a few hundred yards farther under the Feltham-Hounslow road, by a bridge which was built about 1800. Of the 1,789½ acres in Feltham, about two-thirds are composed of arable land, and 371 acres are laid down in permanent grass. There are only 20 acres of woodland, and these lie mostly about the private houses in the north-east. The parish was inclosed in 1800 with Hanworth and Sunbury. Until that date Hounslow Heath extended over the eastern part of the parish, and apparently the only roads which then existed were those from Ashford and from Hanworth. Even what is now the principal road, that which leads from the village to Hounslow, was not constructed till after this date. The cross-road from Hatton, and the ways leading west from St. Dunstan's Church towards Bedfont and south through Feltham Hill, were also laid out at this time, the two latter following the courses of ancient tracks.

The village is long and straggling, and extends for over a mile along the road to Hounslow. The older part lies towards the south, about the parish church of St. Dunstan. The houses stand close on to the narrow road**, which curves sharply to the right, and then with a right-angled turn to the left proceeds past Feltham Farm to the central portion of the village. It is here known as the High Street, and widens out slightly before reaching the Red Lion Hotel, just beyond which a large pond lies to the right of the road. Northwards again are the more modern houses and shops, which are increasing year by year. Farther to the northwest is Southville, which at present consists of two streets of workmen's houses. The modern buildings lie within easy reach of the station, which is on the Windsor branch of the London and South Western Railway.

The spiritual needs of this growing population have been met by the erection of St. Catherine's Church, which was built in 1880 as a chapel of ease to the parish church, which stands at the upper end of the village. A north porch was added in 1890, and the tower and spire in 1898. There are two large Congregational chapels, one of which was founded in 1805 and rebuilt in 1865, while the second was built in 1905. A Wesleyan chapel was erected in 1870, and a Baptist chapel in the same year. A cemetery, extending over 1½ acres, was formed in 1880 at a cost of about £1,400. It has no mortuary chapels, and is now under the control of the Urban District Council. The convent of SS. Mary and Scholastica, belonging to an Anglican community of nuns living under the rule of St. Benedict, was founded in 1868 by Father Ignatius. It was supported mainly by the sale of plain needlework and church embroidery worked by the sisters, and there was a small orphanage and day school attached to it. The establishment was broken up and removed in 1873.

The hamlet of Feltham Hill lies on the southern borders of the parish, and is composed mainly of a few private houses standing in their own grounds. Mr. Alfred William Smith, one of the chief landowners in Feltham, lives at The Park in Feltham Hill. The old Manor House at Feltham is the residence of another landowner, Mr. Robert Smith.

William Wynne Ryland, the well-known engraver, who was the first to use the chalk or dotted line in his art, is buried in the churchyard. He was executed at Tyburn in 1793 for forging bonds of the East India Company. Mrs. Frances Marie Kelly (Charles Lamb's 'Barbara S-'), actress and founder of the School of Acting in Dean Street, Soho, spent the last years of her life at Ross Cottage, and is buried at Feltham. She died in 1882.

The parish is known chiefly for the Middlesex Industrial School for Boys, which occupies a large tract of ground in the south-west between the roads to Ashford and to East Bedfont. It was built in 1859 to hold about 1,000 boys, and consists of a large principal building, a chapel, infirmary, workshops, gas factory, residences for officers, and other detached buildings. About 70 acres of land are cultivated by the institution. There are ivory works near the village, and a cartridge factory stands on the banks of the River Crane. Saw mills have been erected near the station, and there is a large gravel pit lying near the railway line. A considerable portion of the parish is cultivated by nursery and market gardeners. The soil is gravel on a subsoil of gravel. The following place-names occur:-Swanne, Fullers and Loom Pit Closes, Mark Corner, the Greth.

Sponsor: Victoria County History

Publication: A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 2

Author: William Page

Year Published: 1911

Citation

'Spelthorne Hundred: Feltham', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 2: General; Ashford, East Bedfont with Hatton, Feltham, Hampton with Hampton Wick, Hanworth, Laleham, Littleton (1911), pp. 314-319. URL:

http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=22203 Date accessed: 08 December 2009

** the bold area shows a narrative of where in Feltham I live!

Just for jokes....

"At night it is known for the electronic gates to be left open, allowing the possibility of a free ride on the train (this is not condoned), as well as allowing local youngsters to congregate on the platform and engage in freestyle rapping battles."

(from http://en.allexperts.com/e/f/fe/feltham_railway_station.htm)

Old Photos - 1910

PHOTO 1. Taken from Bedfont Lane, looking towards Bedfont. The 'Railway Tavern' pub on the left was demolished with the construction of the new Feltham Development. The building in the background are now the site of a car park and a parade of shops.

PHOTO 2. The same view today, the pub and the row of houses have been demolished, the footbridge has been replaced by a

concrete one and the level crossing gates have been replaced by electronic ones

PHOTO 3. Taken from the footbridge looking London-bound. The building in the right of the picture is now the site of Blockbusters and McDonalds.

PHOTO 4. This is from the same view as the picture above. The signal box has been demolished and the sidings have been removed in order for the platform to be extended. The level crossing gates have been replaced and the house has been demolished, and Blockbuster is now situated there. You can also now see the new station building in the left of this picture

A bit of History....

Feltham was a very small, remote, agricultural village, completely surrounded by Hounslow Heath. The village was centred around St Dunstan's Church and St Dunstan's Road. It was not until 1848, with the construction of the railway line through Feltham that the centre moved to the new High Street and the area around Feltham Green and Feltham Pond

In 1848, the London and South Western Railway extended their line from Richmond to Datchet, through Feltham. The population of Feltham in 1851 was 1,109, an increase of only 80 since 1841, but by 1861 it had increased to 1,837. This shows that building developments throughout the 1850s followed the opening of the railway line.

By the 1880s the population was over 3000, with most people living in the area around Feltham Station.

(information from 'Feltham, Hanworth and Bedfont - A Pictorial History' by Andrea Cameron 2002)

Maps

As you zoom in on Feltham the townscape really starts to show. With the first two images it really is alot to do with geography, that's why i labelled the key points near to Feltham. Even in the second map you can see the town starting to come into view but the road layouts shown in map 3 show that the town is really not that big and that it is all quite compact in some areas, apart from the various green areas.

Post 3

This is a South West Trains network map of the area. It shows Feltham (highlighted in the circle) and London Waterloo. The close proximity to London was one of the main reasons why the station became popular from the end of the 19th Century and commuter volume is still increasing today as you can see below:

Yearly Usage
2004 / 2005 1.864million
2005 / 2006 1.967million
2006 / 2007 3.014million
2007 / 2008 3.374million

(figures from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feltham_railway_station)