There’s so much more to Walthamstow than just its famous mile-long Market. The grand tombs in St Mary’s Churchyard offer a bit of a clue. Starting at the teenage home of William Morris, later home to publisher Edward Lloyd, who brought to us the tale of Sweeney Todd, and today home to the William Morris Gallery, this Guided Walk takes in a set of mews built by a local butcher/property developer, a theatre hidden within a school and a remnant from Robert Smirke’s General Post Office before visiting the real and original Walthamstow Village with its Ancient House, almshouses, workhouse and church to hear how Lord Mayor of London George Monoux was a great benefactor to the area and finishing in an industrial park which is not only home to the jaw dropping God’s Own Junkyard but the Wild Card Brewery and Mother’s Ruin Gin Palace too.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at William Morris Gallery (outside front entrance), 531 Forest Road, London E17 4PP
This walk with Rob Smith from Royal Victoria Dock to Pontoon Dock looks at the vast Royal group of docks, built for steamships by entrepreneur engineers and at some of the industry that was created by the docks. Rob will also talk about the dock workers strike of 1889 and the creation of the Port of London Authority. One of a series of walks by Rob covering different periods in the development of the Port of London from the Romans to Canary Wharf, uncovering some of the legacy of the Port of London through street names, mooring posts, cranes, plaques etc. and using old maps and photographs.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Royal Victoria DLR Station, Seagull Lane, London E16 1BZ
As recently as 1979, 85% of the area around what is now Canada Water was occupied by the waters of the Surrey Commercial Docks. Since then there has been a radical transformation, the former docks and timber storage ponds becoming woodland, parks, housing and shops. A new phase of development is bringing change again. On this Guided Walk, Rob will find the buildings from the old docks that have survived, explain how the docks worked and tell the story of their complex history. He will also explain how this part of London transformed into Docklands and why it is different to Canary Wharf, its neighbour on the other side of the river.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Canada Water Station, Deal Porter Way, London SE16 2YS
