Boston Manor Park is a large public park in the

London Borough of Hounslow The London Borough of Hounslow ( ) is a London borough in west London, England, forming part of Outer London. It is governed by Hounslow London Borough Council. The borough stretches from near Central London in the east (Chiswick) to the b ...

. A combination of woodland and open space, with an area adjoining the

Grand Union Canal The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the Canals of the United Kingdom, British canal system. It is the principal navigable waterway between London and the Midlands. Starting in London, one arm runs to Leicester and another to Birmi ...

, it was created in 1924 from part of the historic estate of the 17th-century stately home

Boston Manor House Boston Manor House is an English Jacobean manor house built in 1622 with internal alterations, intensively restored in later centuries. It was the manor house of one of the early medieval-founded manors in Middlesex. Since 1965 the manor's ...

History of the park

The Boston Manor estate is thought to date back to at least 1163 and had a series of influential owners. At one time, it was part of the estate of royal financier

Thomas Gresham Sir Thomas Gresham the Elder (; c. 151921 November 1579) was an English merchant and financier who acted on behalf of King Edward VI (1547–1553) and Edward's half-sisters, queens Mary I (1553–1558) and Elizabeth I (1558–1603). In 1565 Gr ...

, who also owned neighbouring

Osterley Park Osterley Park is a Georgian era, Georgian country estate in west London, which straddles the London boroughs of London Borough of Ealing, Ealing and London Borough of Hounslow, Hounslow. Originally dating from the 1570s, the estate contains a ...

. The house that survives in the centre of the park dates from 1623. Just under a century later, the grounds were described as comprising: "gardens, walls, walks, courts, 5 fish ponds . . . Plantation and nursery computed to be 3 acres . . . Whole being well wooded and watered." In 1670, the estate was sold for just over £5,000 to the Clitherow family, and it remained in their ownership for the succeeding 250 years. In the late 18th century, some land was sold to enable construction of the

Grand Junction Canal The Grand Junction Canal is a canal in England from Braunston in Northamptonshire to the River Thames at Brentford, with a number of branches. The mainline was built between 1793 and 1805, to improve the route from the English Midlands, Midlan ...

(later to become a section of the Grand Union Canal), with Clitherow Lock – then the second lock from the Thames – being built on the estate. By the late 19th century, this part of London had become urbanised and increasingly shabby, but the estate remained a rural island – containing fine views, historic trees, roses and kitchen garden.

Estate dispersal and park opening

In 1918, Colonel Stacey Clitherow had decided to sell the Boston Manor estate. Estate agent's particulars described a property containing glasshouses for growing melons and cucumbers, grapevines, and a 200-yard herbaceous border. The house did not reach its reserve price so, in 1923, Colonel Clitherow sold the manor and fifty acres to Brentford Urban District Council. Some land was developed as housing and the park was opened to the public on 11 September 1924. Boston park lake 2895

Park layout

Comprising an area of surrounding the manor house, the park is accessed from Boston Manor Road on the eastern perimeter. The construction of the

M4 motorway The M4, originally the London-South Wales Motorway, is the third longest motorway in the United Kingdom, running from west London to southwest Wales. The English section to the Severn Bridge was constructed between 1961 and 1971; the Welsh ele ...

in 1964-5 was the biggest alteration to the park landscape, dissecting the park from north-west to south-east perimeters. The Grand Union Canal and

River Brent The River Brent is a river in west and northwest London, England, and a tributary of the River Thames. in length, it rises in the London Borough of Barnet, Borough of Barnet and flows in a generally south-west direction before joining the Tid ...

run along the western perimeter, the canal taking in what is now known as Clitheroes or Clitheroe's Lock 99.

Features of interest

The canalside is a designated Nature Conservation Area. Notable trees include fine old cedars, some of which may date back to 18th-century plantings by the Clitherow family. A large ornamental pond is to the north of the manor house and part of the original garden wall remains. Thames Rivers Trust has undertaken work at the stepped

weir A weir or low-head dam is a barrier across the width of a river that alters the flow characteristics of water and usually results in a change in the height of the water level. Weirs are also used to control the flow of water for outlets of l ...

at the park to assist the migration of elver, installing an 'elver pass' in 2012.

Recent developments

Recent works to the park include the creation of a wildflower meadow in 2006 and the restoration of the walled garden. General upgrades have included replanting of shrubs, trees and herbaceous borders. The park first won a

Green Flag Award The Green Flag Award is an international accreditation given to publicly accessible parks and open spaces, managed under licence from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, a UK Government department, by Keep Britain Tidy, ...

in 2005.

Activities in the park

The park is under the overall management of London Borough of Hounslow and includes three tennis courts, a basketball court and children's play area. The manor house is open for tours and special events. The Brentford Festival was an annual event held in the park between 2005 and 2012, before moving to Blondin Park.

References

External links

Friends of Boston Manor on FacebookCanal & River Trust map
{{Authority control Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Hounslow History of the London Borough of Hounslow