Alexandra Palace, a few minutes walk from Wood Green station

Wood Green is a suburban district in the borough of

Haringey The London Borough of Haringey (pronounced , same as Harringay) is a London borough in North London, classified by some definitions as part of Inner London, and by others as part of Outer London. It was created in 1965 by the amalgamation of ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, England. Its postal district is N22, with parts in N8 or N15. The

London Plan The London Plan is the statutory spatial development strategy for the Greater London area in the United Kingdom that is written by the Mayor of London and published by the Greater London Authority. The regional planning document was first pu ...

identifies it as one of the metropolitan centres in Greater London, and today it forms a major commercial district of

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshire. The term ''nor ...

. Formerly lying within the western part of

Tottenham Tottenham () is a town in North London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Wal ...

and within the county of

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...

, it became part of both Haringey and Greater London in 1965. Wood Green lies directly to the east of Alexandra Palace. It is from Charing Cross in central London.

Toponymy

The name Wood Green derives from ‘Woodlegh’ or 'Woodlea', a Saxon word meaning open ground near a wood, which in this case relates to an opening in Tottenham Wood, an extensive area of woodland which formerly covered most of this area and westward to Muswell Hill. The earliest surviving written record of ‘Woodlegh’ is a reference in documentation dating from 1256, which relates to a grant for Ducketts Manor, (a sub-manor of Tottenham) which used to be located just to the east of the present-day Wood Green High Road, roughly opposite the junction of Alexandra Road and the High Road.

History

Records suggest that settlement around Wood Green did not start till after the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Con ...

. There is some limited evidence of

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

presence in the Wood Green area but none of any Saxon settlement. However, from the latter part of the 14th century, a number of estates developed around Wood Green. This included the Manor of Ducketts and a handful of smaller estates. In the early Seventeenth Century, the lord of Tottenham Manor, the

Earl of Dorset Earl of Dorset is a title that has been created at least four times in the Peerage of England. Some of its holders have at various times also held the rank of marquess and, from 1720, duke. A possible first creation is not well documented. Abou ...

, conducted a major survey of his land. It showed that Wood Green, at the time roughly the Western half of

, had only sixteen houses and 50 inhabitants. “Round House” or “Mushroom House”, Wood Green, London

At around the same time as the Dorset Survey, the New River was constructed through Wood Green. Winding through the area, the river looped across Chitts Hill and then passed along the northern side of Wood Green Common before turning south. The proximity of Wood Green to the new watercourse enhanced the area's reputation and between the 17th and early 19th Century, several large properties were constructed in the area, initially as country retreats for wealthy Londoners. Such dwellings included Cherson House, Wood Green Cottage, Moat Cottage and the Grange, all of which were situated on the fringes of Wood Green Common and dated from the 17th Century. Later, Wood Green House (c. 1780), Chitts Hill House (c. 1805) and Bounds Green House were constructed at the perimeter of the common. Despite the development of these dwellings, by 1798 the population of Wood Green stood at just 100 inhabitants and remained scattered. It was centred at this period on Wood Green Common. Prickett and Ellis Particulars

At the same time as the population was growing so was the traffic along

Green Lanes Green Lanes may refer to: *A green lane (road), a type of road, usually an unpaved rural route. *Green Lanes (London), a major road running through north London * Harringay, a neighbourhood in the London Borough of Haringey The London Borough o ...

. As a result, Wood Green's first inn and recognisable business appeared. In 1770 George Chesser established a blacksmith's shop on the corner of

and Lordship Lane (later known as Spouter's Corner). In 1781, the Three Jolly Butchers coaching inn was opened on the west side of Green Lanes between Lordship Lane and

Bounds Green Road Bounds Green Road (A109) is a road in the London Borough of Haringey that runs from the junction of Station Road and the North Circular Road in Bounds Green, to the High Road in Wood Green. Notable buildings Among the notable buildings in the ...

. During the early decades of the 19th Century, the number of inhabitants in the area began to increase significantly. By the middle of the nineteenth century the population had increased to 400 and the centre of Wood Green's gravity had moved north and east with most development taking place in a triangle directly north of St Michael's Church. By the time of the publication of the 1869

Ordnance Survey Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of 1745. There was a ...

map, Clarence Road, Truro Road, Nightingale Road, Finsbury Road and Commerce Road were all laid out and were becoming increasingly built up. The opening of the Great Northern Railway Line station at Wood Green in 1859 encouraged further development. By the end of the nineteenth century, much of Wood Green had been built up. What remained was built over during the first part of the twentieth century. The Victorian development was both residential and commercial in nature. Wood Green's industrial development was centred on the area bounded by Wood Green Common, the Great Northern Railway, Turnpike Lane and the High Street. Amongst the first companies to arrive in the early 1860s was E Welch & Co Tobacco Manufacturer. Then in short order came the Hornsey Steam Laundry, Henry A. Ivory & Co Piano Manufacturers and Davis and Timmins Screw Factory. In 1880, Barratts arrived and grew to be one of the biggest confectionery manufacturers of the twentieth century. As Wood Green's population grew, so did its high street. The earliest retail developments had been in Commercial Road and Finsbury Road during the 1860s. However, by the early 1880s retail activity was clearly shifting to the High Road. At first, it focussed on the area between White Hart Lane and Truro Road. As the population grew, retail growth south of Lordship Lane began to exceed that north of it and by the end of the first decade of the twentieth Wood Green, High Street had become a popular shopping centre for North London. By 1976 Wood Green was the largest shopping centre in north London with a turnover of more than £20m. River Park House, Wood Green High Road

With the reorganisation of local government in the 1960s, Haringey Council was formed from the former boroughs of

Wood Green Wood Green is a suburban district in the borough of London Borough of Haringey, Haringey in London, England. Its postal district is N22, with parts in N8 or N15. The London Plan identifies it as one of the metropolitan centres in Greater Lond ...

Hornsey Hornsey is a district of north London, England in the London Borough of Haringey. It is an inner-suburban, for the most part residential, area centred north of Charing Cross. It adjoins green spaces Queen's Wood and Alexandra Park to the ...

and

. The new unified administration wanted to reinvent Wood Green as a ‘Heart for Haringey’. It was one of a number of new suburban centres intended to counteract the pull of Central London. The Shopping City was constructed between 1976 and 1981.

Governance history

Up to the nineteenth century, Wood Green came under the governance of the Manor and Parish of Tottenham. Tottenham developed from a parish in Middlesex into an Urban sanitary district in 1875, after a local board of health had been established in 1850. In 1888, the

Municipal Borough of Wood Green Wood Green was a local government district in south east Middlesex from 1888 to 1965. History Until 1888, Wood Green was part of Tottenham, and was included in the district of the Tottenham Local Board in 1850. Pressure from residents of the are ...

was created as an urban district, and later a

municipal borough Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...

, of

. In 1965, under the

London Government Act 1963 The London Government Act 1963 (c. 33) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which created Greater London and a new local government structure within it. The Act significantly reduced the number of local government districts in the ...

, the Municipal Borough of Wood Green was abolished and its area merged with that of the

Municipal Borough of Tottenham Tottenham () was a local government district in north east Middlesex from 1850 to 1965. It was part of the London postal district and Metropolitan Police District. History In 1850 a local board of health was established for the civil parish of T ...

and the

Municipal Borough of Hornsey The Municipal Borough of Hornsey was a local government district in east Middlesex from 1867 to 1965. History In 1867, a Local Board was formed for part of the civil parish of Hornsey. The rest of the parish was already under South Hornsey Loca ...

to form the present-day

London Borough of Haringey The London Borough of Haringey (pronounced , same as Harringay) is a London borough in North London, classified by some definitions as part of Inner London, and by others as part of Outer London. It was created in 1965 by the amalgamation o ...

. The constituency of

was created in 1918 and existed until 1983 when it was split. Some of the constituency was transferred to the neighbouring seat of

, but most was merged with the

parliamentary constituency to form the Hornsey and Wood Green parliamentary constituency. Since 2015, the seat has been represented in the House of Commons by the Labour Party

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

(MP)

Catherine West Catherine Elizabeth West (born 14 September 1966) is a Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. She was first elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Hornsey and Wood Green in May 2015. Early life and education West was born on 14 ...

Post-war

In mid century, Wood Green was known locally as the "Golden Mile of North London". Some shops and buildings were demolished in the 1960s and buildings were cleared to construct Shopping City, now known as

The Mall Wood Green The Mall Wood Green is a large shopping centre and residential complex in Wood Green, north London. It was originally known as Wood Green Shopping City. The Mall had over 100 retail shops, seven of them anchor stores, 45 market stalls, and an a ...

, which is one of London's major shopping centres.

Entertainment history

The Alexandra Palace, which is within Wood Green parish, played a leading role in the development of public service television. It is now an events and entertainment venue hosting exhibitions, concerts and sporting events. Wood Green also played its part in the history of commercial television in the UK. In 1955, with the opening of

Lew Grade Lew Grade, Baron Grade, (born Lev Winogradsky; 25 December 1906 – 13 December 1998) was a British media proprietor and impresario. Originally a dancer, and later a talent agent, Grade's interest in television production began in 1954 ...

's London weekend franchise

Associated Television Associated Television was the original name of the British broadcaster ATV, part of the Independent Television (ITV) network. It provided a service to London at weekends from 1955 to 1968, to the Midlands on weekdays from 1956 to 1968, and ...

(ATV), the Wood Green Empire in Lymington Avenue was home to variety programmes on Independent Television ( ITV); one of which was ''The Arthur Haynes Show'', starring the host himself and his straight man

Nicholas Parsons Christopher Nicholas Parsons (10 October 1923 – 28 January 2020) was an English actor, straight man and radio and television presenter. He was the long-running presenter of the comedy radio show '' Just a Minute'' and hosted the game show '' ...

. Only the frontage of The Wood Green Empire survives. It is now a branch of the Halifax. The now-demolished bus depot at Wood Green was used for

location filming In geography, location or place are used to denote a region (point, line, or area) on Earth's surface or elsewhere. The term ''location'' generally implies a higher degree of certainty than ''place'', the latter often indicating an entity with an ...

London Weekend Television London Weekend Television (LWT) (now part of the non-franchised ITV London region) was the ITV network franchise holder for Greater London and the Home Counties at weekends, broadcasting from Fridays at 5.15 pm (7:00 pm from 1968 un ...

for their 1970s situation comedy ''

On The Buses ''On the Buses'' is a British television sitcom that was broadcast on ITV from 1969 to 1973. It was created by Ronald Chesney and Ronald Wolfe, who wrote most of the episodes. It spawned three spin-off feature films and a stage version. Desp ...

''.

21st century

As of 2018, Wood Green is the focus of two major regeneration programmes by the

. The Haringey Heartlands initiative covers an area to the west of the town centre, including the former Clarendon Gas Works, Olympia Trading Estate and land on Western Road. The programme aims to transform the area into a mixed sub-neighbourhood, with 1,700 homes, along with retail and office space. There are also plans for new public open space including a 'civic boulevard' linking the east and west of Wood Green and a public square for events and activities. The wider area of Wood Green is the focus of a second significant regeneration plan entering the final stages of consultation in early 2018. The Wood Green Area Action plan would see the transformation of Wood Green Town Centre with the creation of 6,400 new homes, 4,000 new jobs and a redeveloped town centre with a significant amount of high-rise building. ''Blue House Yard'' is a redevelopment of a former carpark including creative work and retail space, a public square for markets and events. Wood Green is also one of the suggested stations on the new Crossrail 2 transport development.

Geography

Wood Green stretches from Turnpike Lane in the south to the borough boundary in the north. Its eastern and western boundaries have changed over time and today people have varying senses of what exactly is included in Wood Green. One definition sees the western boundary as formed by the Great Northern Railway Line. Others argue that Alexandra Park is still within Wood Green's boundaries. Less contentious is the eastern boundary. A common definition would roughly describe it by a line running from the southwestern corner of Tottenhall Park, to the junction of The Roundway and Lordship Lane, then along Downhills Way as far as Belmont Avenue. This part of the boundary is completed by a line running in a northwesterly direction as far as Westbury Avenue. The area rises from 66 ft (20 m) to 98 ft (30 m) above sea level.

Locale

The shopping area and residential areas of Wood Green all offer quite different identities. The area to the west of the High Road, near Alexandra Palace, was developed as a mainly middle-class residential area, whereas the area to the east, towards Tottenham, mainly comprises smaller dwellings that were either built for railway workers in the 19th century or as social housing in the 20th. The high street and the

shopping mall A shopping mall (or simply mall) is a North American term for a large indoor shopping center, usually anchored by department stores. The term "mall" originally meant a pedestrian promenade with shops along it (that is, the term was used to refe ...

host a variety of shops. There are regeneration plans approved for the old Marks and Spencer, and BHS buildings. There are a number of new restaurants which have opened along the High Street in recent years. Behind the high street, Wood Green's streets include a high proportion of attractive high-quality Victorian houses. To the north and west of the tube station, a large number of green spaces weave through the streets and a number of larger open green areas remain. Haringey Civic Centre on Wood Green High Road is the official seat of the London Borough of Haringey and contains the council chambers. It was opened in 1958 and is a

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

Demography

Wood Green does not fit neatly into wards. However, a significant part of the area is contained within the Noel Park and Woodside wards. The population of those wards is given as 28,453 in the 2011 Census. The same census reports that white groups make up 55% of the population of

Noel Park Noel Park in north London is a planned community built in the late 19th and early 20th centuries consisting of 2,200 model dwellings, designed by Rowland Plumbe. It was developed as the Noel Park Estate on a tract of land on the edge of north ...

ward. The figures for the Woodside ward are 30% White Other, 23% White British, 14% Asian, 8% Black African, 6% Black Caribbean, 3% Black Other, 3% White Irish, 1% Arab and other ethnic groups. P1020775a

Economy

Wood Green is a busy urban

activity centre Activity centre is a term used in urban planning and design for a mixed-use urban area where there is a concentration of commercial and other land uses. For example, the central business districts of cities (CBD) are also known as “Central Activ ...

with a sizeable shopping area with two cinemas, bars, nightclubs, numerous restaurants and cafes and a shopping area, The Mall, close to the

tube station The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Und ...

. The High Road, the main shopping spine, stretches from the Wood Green tube station to the next stop on the Piccadilly line, Turnpike Lane, and is lined with shops along its route. It joins with

at both its northern and southern ends. As of 2012, Wood Green has of total town centre floorspace. The Chocolate Factory was set up by Haringey Arts Council in 1996 to develop artists' studios and now has a second building. The project houses 200 local artists, music, film and multimedia studios, photographic studios, and several performing arts organisations.

Green Spaces

* Alexandra Park *Avenue Gardens (Station Road/Park Avenue) *Barratt Gardens (Station Road/Mayes Road) *Caxton Gardens (Station Road/Mayes Road) *Chapmans Green (Lordship Lane/Perth Road) *Cranbrook Park (Cranbrook Park/St Alban's Crescent) *Crescent Gardens (High Road/Stuart Crescent) *Finsbury Gardens (Finsbury Road) *King George VI Memorial Garden (High Road/Stuart Crescent) *Nightingale Gardens (Bounds Green Road) *Riversdale Gardens (White Hart Lane/Newnham Road) *Russell Park (Russell Avenue) *Trinity Gardens (Bounds Green Road) *White Hart Lane Recreation Ground (White Hart Lane) *Wood Green Common (Station Road) *

Woodside Park Woodside Park is a suburban residential area in London. It is located in the London Borough of Barnet, in the North Finchley postal district of N12. Description The area to the east of the tube station consists predominantly of large Vict ...

(High Road)

Transport

London Underground

Wood Green tube station Wood Green is a London Underground station on the Piccadilly line. The station is between Turnpike Lane and Bounds Green stations and is in Travelcard Zone 3. It is located at junction of High Road, Wood Green and Lordship Lane. It serves W ...

is at the northern end of Wood Green High Road and

Turnpike Lane tube station Turnpike Lane is a London Underground station at Turnpike Lane in the London Borough of Haringey in north London, England. The station is on the northeastern part of Piccadilly line between Manor House and Wood Green. The station was opene ...

and its southern. Both are on the Piccadilly line.

Railway

Alexandra Palace (named Wood Green until 1982) is on the East Coast Main Line. It has services in to Kings Cross and

Moorgate Moorgate was one of the City of London's northern gates in its defensive wall, the last to be built. The gate took its name from the Moorfields, an area of marshy land that lay immediately north of the wall. The gate was demolished in 1762, bu ...

and out to Hertford and

Welwyn Garden City Welwyn Garden City ( ) is a town in Hertfordshire, England, north of London. It was the second garden city in England (founded 1920) and one of the first new towns (designated 1948). It is unique in being both a garden city and a new town and ...

Bowes Park Bowes Park () is situated on the borders of Wood Green, Palmers Green and Bounds Green in London, England. The postcodes for Bowes Park are N13 and N22. The border between the London boroughs of Enfield and Haringey goes through the area. Bow ...

serves the Hertford Loop Line branch of the East Coast Main Line.

Buses

London Buses routes 29, 67, 121, 123 (24-hour operation, weekends),

141 141 may refer to: * 141 (number), an integer * AD 141, a year of the Julian calendar * 141 BC __NOTOC__ Year 141 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Caepio and Pompeius (or ...

, 144, 184, 221, 230, 232, 243 (24-hour operation), 329, N29, N91, W3 and W4 serve the area.

Public services

Wood Green Crown Court Wood Green Crown Court is a Crown Court venue on Lordship Lane, Wood Green, which deals with criminal cases. In 2013, a juror in a sexual case being heard at Wood Green was jailed for two months after being found guilty of contempt of court for ...

is on Lordship Lane.

Education

Schools include:

Primary

*Belmont Primary *Noel Park Primary *Alexandra Primary *Earlham Primary *Lordship Lane Primary *Nightingale Primary *St Michael's C of E Primary *St Paul's RC Primary *Rhodes Avenue

Secondary

* Heartlands High School * Alexandra Park School * St Thomas More Catholic School * Woodside High School

Drama

Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, formerly Mountview Theatre School, is a drama school in Peckham, south London, England, founded in 1945. The Academy provides specialist vocational training in acting and musical theatre, as well as production ...

Places of Worship

St Michael's Church of England Church was built in 1844 and became an independent parish in 1866. St Paul's Roman Catholic Church was first founded in Station Road in 1882, and was rebuilt in 1971. Wood Green Fatih Mosque is on Caxton Road, sharing premises with Haringey Council of Asian People.

Sport

There are a number of sports facilities in the local area. Indoor and outdoor tennis, all-weather football, an athletics track and gym are available at New River Stadium. The local parks offer a variety of options for running and other sports, and many also have tennis courts. There are various gyms in the Wood Green area.

London Skolars The London Skolars are a professional rugby league club based at the New River Stadium, Wood Green, Haringey in north London. They were founded in 1995 and have been professional since 2003, operating in the Betfred League 1. They also run an ...

is a semi-professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 11 ...

team that compete in the Kingstone Press League 1 based at

New River Stadium White Hart Lane Community Sports Centre, also known as the New River Stadium is a rugby league and athletics stadium in Wood Green, Haringey, north London, England that is home to London Skolars rugby league club, Enfield and Haringey Athletic C ...

in Wood Green. They annually hold the Middlesex 9s

tournament which also takes place at the New River Stadium.

Notable people

Notable appearances

* Nick Hornby's book, '' High Fidelity'' *

Razorlight Razorlight are an English indie rock band, formed in 2002 in London by lead singer and guitarist Johnny Borrell. Along with Borrell, the current line-up of the band is composed of founding members Björn Ågren on guitar and bassist Carl Delemo ...

' s song "Los Angeles Waltz" *

Mark Knopfler Mark Freuder Knopfler (born 12 August 1949) is a British singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. Born in Scotland and raised in England, he was the lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of the rock band Dire Straits. He pursued a s ...

's song "Junkie Doll" *

Pablo Gad Pablo Gad is a British Roots reggae singer and songwriter. He is considered one of the UK's most militant and outspoken vocalists in roots reggae music. Biography Pablo Gad was born in Jamaica and came to live in the United Kingdom in 1974. Wit ...

's song "Black Before Creation" *

Sway DaSafo Derek Andrew Safo (born 5 September 1982), better known by his stage name Sway or Sway DaSafo, is a British rapper of Ghanaian descent. He is also a producer, having established Dcypha Productions, signed to Island/Universal (label founder). ...

's song " Up Your Speed" *

Juan Maria Solare ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking communities around the world and in the Philippines, and also (pronounced differently) in the Isle of Man. In Spanish, ...

's composition "Woodgreen Walk" for Horn and Cello, 2011 *

Chris Barber Donald Christopher "Chris" Barber OBE (17 April 1930 – 2 March 2021) was an English jazz musician, best known as a bandleader and trombonist. He helped many musicians with their careers and had a UK top twenty trad jazz hit with "Petite Fle ...

jazz night at the Fisherman's Arms, captured in the film ''Mamma Don't Allow'' (1956)

Gallery

File:Wood Green public library.JPG, Wood Green public library File:St Mary's Greek Orthodox Church, Wood Green 12.JPG, St Mary's Greek Orthodox Church File:Vue cinema Wood Green 02.JPG, Vue cinema File:Haringey Civic Centre.JPG, Haringey Civic Centre

References

External links

Wood Green Empire, Theatre of Varieties

Haringey Flickr Group

Wood Green Parish.com

Chocolate Factory Artists

Harringay Online
– for forum conversations about Wood Green and in particular for its wide selection of historical images and history articles on Wood Green and other local areas.
The History of Wood Green – Hornsey Historical Society
{{Authority control Areas of London Districts of the London Borough of Haringey Metropolitan centres of London Places formerly in Middlesex