Enfield Wash is an area in the

London Borough of Enfield The London Borough of Enfield () is a London boroughs, London borough in Greater London, England. The main communities in the borough are Edmonton, London, Edmonton, Enfield, London, Enfield, Southgate, London, Southgate and Palmers Green. Enfi ...

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames and the City of London. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshi ...

. It is approximately located in the area either side of Hertford Road between Ordnance Road/Turkey Street and Bell Lane/Hoe Lane.

History

Enfield Wash was where

Elizabeth Canning Elizabeth Canning (married name Treat; 17 September 1734 – June 1773) was an English maidservant who claimed to have been kidnapped and held against her will in a hayloft for almost a month. She ultimately became central to one of the most f ...

(later married name Treat; 17 September 1734 – June 1773), an English maidservant claimed to have been kidnapped, held in a hayloft for almost a month and threatened with prostitution. These events became one of the most celebrated English criminal mysteries of the 18th century, and a

cause célèbre A ( , ; pl. ''causes célèbres'', pronounced like the singular) is an issue or incident arousing widespread controversy, outside campaigning, and heated public debate. The term is sometimes used positively for celebrated legal cases for th ...

at the time. Magistrate and author

Henry Fielding Henry Fielding (22 April 1707 – 8 October 1754) was an English writer and magistrate known for the use of humour and satire in his works. His 1749 comic novel ''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'' was a seminal work in the genre. Along wi ...

was consulted on the matter. Mother Well's house was opposite the Sun and Woolpack public house, formerly the Sun and Punchbowl. The United society, the first friendly society, began to meet in the Sun and Woolpack inn, Enfield Wash, in 1794. The road crosses Turkey Brook at the Woolpack Bridge, where there was a footbridge from the 17th century, but it was not until 1821 that a proper bridge for carts was provided by the Turnpike Trust that managed Enfield Highway. The road at Enfield Wash, and the settlement, was known as '‘Horsepoolstones’ until the 18th century. Turkey Brook was also known as Maiden Brook and sometimes Wash Brook. According to legend, Bell Lane is haunted by a phantom

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

. It is reputed to appear on moonless nights before Christmas, and to travel several feet above the road.

Etymology

Enfield Wash was first recorded in 1675 and on the

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

map of 1822, from

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

'a place that floods': historically there was probably a

ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

here where

Ermine Street Ermine Street is a major Roman road in England that ran from London (''Londinium'') to Lincoln ('' Lindum Colonia'') and York ('' Eboracum''). The Old English name was ''Earninga Strǣt'' (1012), named after a tribe called the ''Earninga ...

crossed

Turkey Brook Turkey Brook, also known as Maidens Brook for part of its length, is a river in the northern outskirts of London. It rises in Potters Bar, Hertfordshire, and flows broadly eastwards to merge with the River Lee Navigation near Enfield Lock. To ...

.Mills. A. D. ''Oxford Dictionary of London Place Names'' (2001) pp3,77

Transport and locale

Nearest places

Enfield Lock Enfield Lock is an area in the London Borough of Enfield, north London. It is approximately located east of the Hertford Road between Turkey Street and the Holmesdale Tunnel overpass, and extends to the River Lee Navigation, including the En ...

Enfield Highway Enfield Highway is an area in the London Borough of Enfield, north London. It is roughly located in the area either side of Hertford Road (Enfield Highway) between Hoe Lane and The Ride. Etymology Enfield Highway is marked thus on the Ordnance ...

Freezywater Freezywater is a neighbourhood of the traditional broad definition of Enfield in the London Borough of Enfield, North London. It has a border with Hertfordshire. It is between Bullsmoor to the west, Enfield Lock to the east, Enfield Wash to th ...

Bulls Cross Bulls Cross is a road and Hamlet (place), hamlet in Enfield, London, Enfield, England, on the outskirts of North London, north London, forming part of the Metropolitan Green Belt. Although it now lies within the ceremonial county of Greater Lond ...

Nearest railway stations

* Enfield Lock railway station *

Turkey Street railway station Turkey Street is a station on the Weaver line of the London Overground, located in the Bullsmoor area to the north of Enfield in north London. It is down the line from London Liverpool Street and is situated between and stations on the So ...

Parks and open spaces

On what had been College Farm,

Albany Park, Enfield The London Borough of Enfield is the northernmost of the Outer London boroughs. The borough lies within the Metropolitan Green Belt, and several of its 123 or more parks and open spaces are part of it. The ancient Enfield Chase, remnants of which ...

, the park was created circa 1902, probably so named to commemorate

Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany Prince Leopold, Duke of Albany (Leopold George Duncan Albert; 7 April 185328 March 1884) was the eighth child and youngest son of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Leopold was later created Duke of Albany, Earl of Clarence, and Baron Arklow. He ...

, the youngest son of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

, who died in 1884. The

London Outer Orbital Path The London Outer Orbital Path—more usually the "London LOOP"—is a 150-mile (242 km) signed walk along Rights of way in England and Wales, public footpaths, and through parks, woods and fields around the edge of Outer London, Englan ...

(Section 17) follows the course of

which flows west–east through the park.

Schools

Albany School, which was in Bell Lane, adjacent to Albany Park, was opened as a coeducational

secondary modern school A secondary modern school () is a type of secondary school that existed throughout England, Wales and Northern Ireland from 1944 until the 1970s under the Tripartite System. Secondary modern schools accommodated the majority (70–75%) of pupil ...

in 1939, and was converted to a

comprehensive school A comprehensive school is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–16 or 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is restricted on the basis ...

in 1967. It closed in 2009 and a new

academy An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

, Oasis Academy Hadley, was opened by the

Oasis Trust Oasis Charitable Trust, commonly known as Oasis, is a United Kingdom-based Christian registered charity. It was founded by the Reverend Steve Chalke in September of 1985. Chalke had been assistant minister at Tonbridge Baptist Church, Kent, for ...

on the site. However, the academy relocated to

Ponders End Ponders End is the southeasternmost part of Enfield, London, Enfield, North London, north London, England, around Hertford Road west of the Lee Navigation, River Lee Navigation. It became Industrial suburb, industrialised through the 19th centur ...

in 2013. In 2015 Ark John Keats Academy, an all through school for pupils aged 4–18 opened on the site.Oasis Academy in NE Enfield
Retrieved 5 February 2009

Politics

Enfield Wash is part of the Enfield North parliamentary constituency. The current MP is the Labour politician

Feryal Clark Feryal Demirci Clark (; ' Demirci; born 6 January 1979) is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Enfield North since 2019. She has also served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for AI and Dig ...

References

{{LB Enfield Places in Enfield, London Areas of London Districts of the London Borough of Enfield