Interior Photos

Ealing

A map of Ealing in 1868 which shows it to be almost entirely rural.

However, Ealing in 2010 is very different...

The London Borough of Ealing is made up of seven main areas: Acton, Ealing, Greenford,Hanwell, Northolt, Perivale, Southall. Located in West London, Ealing has a rich cultural history and has become a preferred destination for shopping, dining, entertainment and nightlife.

Home to around 310,000 residents and 13,365 businesses, Ealing is London’s third largest borough. Recent investments into regeneration projects are responsible for the thriving economy and increased employment opportunities.

Leisure, arts and culture are supported with the popular Ealing Summer Festival in its 24th year and the Gunnersbury Park Museum and PM Gallery & House showcasing a variety of historical and contemporary exhibitions. Questors Theatre, the largest community theatre in Europe, features around twenty shows a year, and plays host to a regular programme of visiting companies.

Ealings many Parks and open spaces provide residents and visitors choice for a scenic escape. The summit of Horsenden Hill is the highest point in the borough and provides stunning views on a clear day.

Children will love visiting the Brent Lodge Animal Centre. Known locally as the Bunny Park, the centre houses a wide variety of animals including exotic birds and mammals such as rhea and mongooses, domestic species including goats and rabbits and an indoor area with monkeys, reptiles, spiders and more.

A day in Southall is an experience in itself. Treat yourself to one of the Punjabi, Sri Lankan, Pakistani and South Indian restaurants, then pay a visit to Sri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara, the largest Sikh Temple outside India.

There are many more places to see and things to do across the borough, including regular and seasonal events. Whether you’re a visitor or a resident, the borough is worth exploring. 

Information taken from http://www.ealing.gov.uk on Ealing

Area history

What is now the London Borough of Ealing was once forest and countryside. There were Stone Age people here, but no evidence of fixed settlements until the Saxons arrived in, perhaps, the sixth and seventh centuries and the county of Middlesex was formed. At the time of the Domesday Book, in 1086, the first written evidence appears for the manors of Greenford and Hanwell. Southall, Acton and Ealing were parts of larger manors and so not recorded individually.

In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the basic unit of local government was the parish. Ealing, Hanwell, Acton and Southall all lay on the main road from London to Oxford, and travellers passed through these villages frequently. Greenford, Perivale and Northolt, were rather off the beaten track and remained small villages until after the First World War.  But even Ealing was small, with only 428 residents in 1598.

Life for most people revolved around agriculture. There were also a few craftsmen and traders, but little industry. Commerce was stimulated by the Grand Junction Canal, which cut through Southall, Greenford and Perivale at the end of the eighteenth century. The coming of the railways in 1838 had little initial impact, as the small villages grew into small towns as population slowly rose.

However, by the end of the nineteenth century, improved communications, in the form of trams, buses and trains had made access to and from London so much easier. Many residents worked in London, travelling there and back each day. Ealing became a desirable residential centre, whilst Acton and Southall became hives of large-scale industry. Greenford, Perivale and Northolt remained small agriculture villages. Less than 100 people lived in Perivale in 1901.

After the First World War, Ealing, which became a borough in 1901 (the first in Middlesex) began to expand. In 1926, Hanwell, Greenford and Perivale became incorporated into Ealing and these were joined by Northolt in 1928. Acton and Southall became boroughs in their own right in 1921 and 1936, respectively. The expansion of industry in Greenford and Perivale was spectacular in the 1920s and 1930s, helped by the building of the Western Avenue in the 1930s, and more industries came to Acton and Southall.

Fortunately the bombing of World War Two was less severe here than elsewhere in London. After the War, the remaining rural portion of Ealing and Northolt was built upon as council houses were built in order to house people. Another key feature of the post War period was the large-scale immigration of people from India, Pakistan, Poland, the Caribbean and many other countries. In 1965, the old boroughs of Ealing, Acton and Southall were abolished and they were merged into one new local authority the London Borough of Ealing.