Woolwich (pronounced /ˈwʊlɪtʃ/ or /ˈwʊlɪdʒ/) is a suburb in south-east London, England in the London Borough of Greenwich, on the south side of the River Thames, though the tiny exclave of North Woolwich (which is now part of the London Borough of Newham) is on the north side of the river. Greater London is the top-level administrative subdivision covering London, England. The British national grid reference system is a system of geographic grid references commonly used in Great Britain, different from using Latitude and Longitude The districts of England are a level of subnational division of England used for the purposes of local government The London Borough of Greenwich ( (Greenwich ˈgrɛnɪtʃ is an Inner London borough in south-east London, England. 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A Gazetteer of place names in the United Kingdom showing each place's County, Unitary authority or council area and its geographical coordinates List of places --> List of cities in the United Kingdom List of towns in England Lists of places This is a partial list of places in London, England See List of places in England for lists of settlements in other counties A geographic coordinate system enables every location on the Earth to be specified in three coordinates using mainly a spherical coordinate system. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland The London Borough of Greenwich ( (Greenwich ˈgrɛnɪtʃ is an Inner London borough in south-east London, England. The Thames ( is a major River flowing through southern England. North Woolwich is a place in the London Borough of Newham. It is located north of Woolwich proper which is on the south bank of the River Thames. The London Borough of Newham ( is a London borough in East London, within Greater London. Woolwich formed part of Kent until 1889 when the County of London was created. KENT (1400 AM) is a Radio station broadcasting a Adult Standards/MOR format The County of London was a ceremonial county and administrative county of England from 1889 to 1965
It is notable as a river crossing point, having the Woolwich Ferry (and the lesser-known Woolwich foot tunnel) to North Woolwich, and as the one-time home of the Woolwich Building Society (now relocated in Bexleyheath and owned by Barclays plc). The Woolwich Free Ferry is a boat service across the River Thames, London, UK, which is operated by the London Borough of Greenwich The Woolwich foot tunnel is a Tunnel crossing under the River Thames in South East London from Woolwich in the London Borough of Greenwich The Woolwich was the trading name of the Woolwich Building Society founded in 1847 as one of the first 'permanent' building societies. Bexleyheath, formerly known as "Bexley New Town" part of the London Borough of Bexley in South East London consists of a suburban development located 12 miles (19 Barclays PLC is a major global financial services provider operating in Europe, North America, the Middle East, Latin America, Australia
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History
The history of Woolwich is strongly associated with Britain's military past. It was home to the Woolwich Dockyard (founded in 1512), the Royal Arsenal (dating back to 1671), the Royal Military Academy (1741) and the Royal Horse Artillery (1793); the town still retains an army base at the Royal Artillery Barracks, and the Royal Artillery Museum. Woolwich Dockyard was an English naval dockyard founded by King Henry VIII in 1512 to build his Flagship Henri Grace a Dieu See also Woolwich Arsenal railway station, Arsenal FC The Royal Arsenal, Woolwich, originally known as the Woolwich Warren The Royal Horse Artillery (RHA is a regiment in the British Army. The Royal Artillery Barracks at Woolwich in South East London is the "home" of the Royal Artillery. Firepower The Royal Artillery Museum is a military museum in Woolwich in south-east London, England, which tells the story of the Royal Regiment The nearby Greenwich Heritage Centre also houses exhibits relating to the Royal Arsenal. Greenwich Heritage Centre is a Museum and Local history resource run by the London Borough of Greenwich, and is based in Artillery Square in the
Arsenal Football Club were founded in Woolwich in 1886 by workers at the Arsenal - the club were initially known as Dial Square, then Royal Arsenal and then became Woolwich Arsenal in 1891. They moved to Arsenal Stadium, Highbury in north London in 1913, and dropped the Woolwich prefix the following year. Arsenal Stadium was a football stadium in Highbury, North London, which was the home ground of Arsenal Football Club between 6 September 1913 Highbury is an area in the London Borough of Islington. It lies between the following places Finsbury Park, north of Highbury This is a rare example of a British football team moving from its local area, albeit relocating within the same conurbation. Royal Ordnance Factories F.C. was founded in response to Woolwich Arsenal joining the League but only lasted several years. Royal Ordnance Factories Football Club were a football club from south east London, that existed in the late 19th century
Woolwich Polytechnic, founded in 1892, merged with other local colleges and became Thames Polytechnic in 1970. Woolwich Polytechnic School for Boys (founded 1912 is a secondary school for boys in the London Borough of Greenwich, London, England, United The University of Greenwich is a " post-1992 university " located in the London Borough of Greenwich. In 1992 it was granted university status as the University of Greenwich. In the United Kingdom, the term New University has various meanings regarding British universities. The University of Greenwich is a " post-1992 university " located in the London Borough of Greenwich. In 2000, the University began a relocation to the Old Royal Naval College, several miles to the west in Greenwich town centre, leaving only an administrative presence in Woolwich. Greenwich ( ˈɡrɛnɪtʃ GREN-itch /ˈɡrɛnɪdʒ/ GREN-idge or /ˈɡrɪnɪdʒ/ GRIN-idge is a district in south-east London,
Woolwich was the start of the route of the last London tram, on 5 July 1952. A tram, tramcar, trolley, trolley car, or streetcar is a railborne vehicle, of lighter weight and construction than a Train [1] A special tram was driven through enormous crowds to New Cross, finally arriving at New Cross depot around 1am on the 6 July. New Cross is a place and an electoral ward in the London Borough of Lewisham, it is covered by London postal district SE14 [2]
Woolwich was home to the experimental Auto stacker car park. The Auto Stacker was an ill-fated but ambitious project by Woolwich Borough Council in south-east London. Officially opened in May 1961 by Princess Margaret, it was never actually used by the public and was demolished in 1962, after the council could not get it to work.
Woolwich is the location of the United Kingdom's first branch of McDonald's (the 3,000th in the world), which opened in 1974. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Woolwich was chosen because it was considered to be a representative English town at the time. [3]
Woolwich once had four cinemas. Cinemaaustraliajpg|thumb|A movie theater in Australia ]]A movie theater, movie theatre, picture theatre or cinema is a venue Today, one is a bingo hall, another a nightclub, and another (which once hosted Buddy Holly) is now a pentecostal church. Charles Hardin "Buddy" Holley (September 7 1936 – February 3 1959 was an American Singer-songwriter and a pioneer of Rock and roll.
Woolwich was used as a location for the 2006 film Children of Men. Children of Men is a 2006 dystopian Science fiction Film co-written and directed by Alfonso Cuarón.
Recent development
The town centre began to decline in the 1950s. Department stores closed, being replaced by charity and pound shops. However, once redevelopment of the former Royal Arsenal site began, Woolwich started to enjoy a small renaissance. Several High Street chains previously absent from Woolwich have opened branches, and longer-established shops have been refurbished. An extension of the Docklands Light Railway is under construction (expected completion Spring 2009) and other developments are planned. The Docklands Light Railway (DLR is a Light rail system serving the redeveloped Docklands area of East London England.
In early 2007, large-scale redevelopment of the area around Love Lane, near the eastern end of Powis Street, was in the final stages of consultation. [4] The proposed project will include demolition of several buildings including the Post Office, Peggy Middleton House and Thomas Spencer Halls of Residence, and the construction of new council offices and housing, local shops and a large branch of Tesco. Tesco plc is a British -based international grocery and general merchandising retail chain A tall residential tower block is planned for General Gordon Square.
Some local residents have been concerned about the design of the development. [5] Plans exhibited to the public originally preserved the Director General public house,[6] but in the later plans by Greenwich Council the pub is to be demolished. [7].
Planning for further development around the "Woolwich Triangle" area at the other end of town is in the early stages. This development includes plans to demolish the old art deco Co-op building at the west end of Powis Street. Art Deco was a popular international design movement from 1925 until 1939 affecting the decorative arts such as Architecture, Interior design, and Industrial [8] These plans have now been made public and exhibitions of the plans held.
Some redevelopment has begun at the Riverside end of Woolwich already, with the current (June 2008) demolition of the derelict Crown and Cushion pub next to the Waterfront leisure centre, and the rapidly-progressing development of a residential block on the site of the old Union Tavern, next to Riverside House.
The 2012 Summer Olympics will include Woolwich as a venue for shooting events, and building work has begun in the barracks for the location. This combined with the optimistic redevelopment of much of Woolwich has led house prices to rise quite rapidly.
Famous residents
- William Barefoot, born to Plymouth Brethren family, became the first socialist mayor of Woolwich in 1925. William Barefoot (1872&ndashNovember 1941 was a notable local politician in south-east London during the early part of the 20th century The Plymouth Brethren is a Conservative, Evangelical Christian movement, whose history can be traced to Dublin, Ireland
- Mathematician Peter Barlow taught at the Royal Military Academy in Woolwich and his son Peter W. Barlow, civil engineer, was born here in 1809. For the Coronation Street character of the same name see Peter Barlow (Coronation Street Peter Barlow ( October 15 Peter William Barlow ( 1 February 1809 - 19 May 1885) was an English Civil engineer, born at Woolwich, particularly A civil engineer is a person who practices Civil engineering, one of the many engineering professions
- Hubert Bland, early socialist and co-founder of the Fabian Society, was born in Wood Street, now Woodhill in 1855. Hubert Bland ( 3 January 1855 - 14 April 1914) was an early English Socialist and one of the founders of the Fabian Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution The Fabian Society is a British Intellectual Socialist movement whose purpose is to advance the principles of Social democracy via Gradualist
- Tom Cribb, English bare-knuckle boxing champion in the early 19th century, retired to, died, and was buried (1848) in Woolwich. Tom Cribb ( 1781 - 11 May 1848) was an English Bare-knuckle boxer of the 19th century so successful that he became world
- Andy Fordham, 2004 World darts champion, was publican of the Queen's Arms public house in Woolwich. Andy Fordham (born February 2, 1962 in London) is an English darts player also known by his nicknames The Viking or Frist
- Julius Francis, heavyweight boxer (who fought Mike Tyson in January 2000)
- General Charles George Gordon of Khartoum was born at 29 Woolwich Common and educated at the Royal Military Academy. Julius Francis (born December 8, 1964 in Peckham, London, England) is a former British Heavyweight champion boxer - who participated Boxing (sometimes also known as English boxing or pugilism) is a Combat sport in which two participants generally of similar weight, Major-General, CB ( 28 January 1833 &ndash 26 January 1885) known as Chinese Gordon, Gordon Pasha
- John Henry Hayes, politician, was born in Woolwich. John Henry Hayes (born 23 June 1958) British Politician. He is Conservative Member of Parliament for South Holland A politician (from Greek " Polis " is an individual who is involved in influencing public decision making through the influence of Politics or a person
- Richard Lovelace, poet. Richard Lovelace (1618–1657 was an English poet in the seventeenth century
- Scott Maslen, actor who plays DC Phil Hunter in ITV's The Bill, was born and raised in Woolwich. Scott Alexander Maslen (born June 25 1971 in London, England) is an English actor best known for his portrayal as DS Phil Hunter Independent Television (generally known as ITV) is a public service network of British commercial television broadcasters set up under the Independent The Bill is a long-running British Television Police procedural, named after a slang term for the police.
- Henry Maudslay, engineer and tool-maker, was born in Salutation Alley (now demolished) and buried in the parish churchyard of St Mary Magdalen's. Henry Maudslay ( August 22, 1771 – February 14 1831) was a British Machine tool innovator Tool and die maker St Mary Magdalen Woolwich is an Anglican church dedicated to Mary Magdalen in Woolwich, sited at the extremity of a spur reaching northwards towards the
- Thomas Paine, author of the Rights of Man and The Age of Reason, spent a short time living in Woolwich. Thomas Paine (January 29 1737 &ndash June 8 1809 was an English Pamphleteer, Revolutionary, radical, Inventor, and Intellectual Rights of Man (1787 by Thomas Paine, posits that popular political revolution is permissible when a government does not safeguard its people their natural rights The Age of Reason Being an Investigation of True and Fabulous Theology, a Deistic treatise written by eighteenth-century British radical and American
- Diarist Samuel Pepys lodged in Woolwich during 1665 to escape the Great Plague of London. Samuel Pepys, FRS (23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703 was an English naval administrator and Member of Parliament, who is now most famous for The Great Plague (1665-1666 was a massive outbreak of Disease in England that killed 75000 to 100000 people up to a fifth of London 's population
- Ollie Raison former breakfast radio presenter on Perths 92. 9 in Australia, was born in Woolwich
- Oswald Hope Robertson, the medical pioneer who invented blood banks, was born in Woolwich in 1886. Oswald Hope Robertson ( 2 June 1886 – 23 March 1966) was an English -born medical scientist who pioneered the idea of Blood banks
- David Sheppard, former England cricket captain, was bishop of Woolwich from 1969 to 1975. This article is about the cricketer and Bishop of Liverpool David Sheppard. The England cricket team is the national cricket team which represents England and Wales. Cricket is a bat-and-ball team Sport that originated in England and is now played in more than 100 countries A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight
- John Wilson, the 'Spurgeon of Woolwich', was a notable Baptist preacher in the 1930s and served a congregation of 3,000 members
- Ian Wright, the Arsenal footballer and later a television personality, was born and raised in Woolwich. Charles Haddon Spurgeon, commonly CH Spurgeon, ( June 19, 1834 &ndash January 31, 1892) was a British Reformed Baptist is a term describing individuals belonging to a Baptist church or a Baptist denomination. Ian Edward Wright, MBE (born 3 November 1963 in Woolwich, London) is an English former professional footballer who won the Golden Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a Team sport played between two teams of eleven players and is widely considered
- Afrikan Boy, rapper that has worked with M.I.A., a Sri Lankan female rapper. Afrikan Boy (born 28 March 1989) is a grime / Afrobeat / new wave MC from Woolwich, London,
Education
- For education in Woolwich see the main London Borough of Greenwich article
Transport and locale
Nearest places
Nearest tube station
Nearest railway stations
Docklands light railway
- King George V station is close to the north side of the Woolwich foot tunnel. The London Borough of Greenwich ( (Greenwich ˈgrɛnɪtʃ is an Inner London borough in south-east London, England. Charlton is an area and an electoral ward south-east London, in the London Borough of Greenwich, located between Greenwich and Woolwich Eltham is a district in the London Borough of Greenwich. It is a suburban development situated east south-east of Charing Cross. This article is about the district in London For other places names Plumstead see Plumstead (disambiguation Plumstead is a place and electoral Thamesmead is a " New town " in London, England built on the southern bank of the River Thames, 9 Kidbrooke is an area within the London Borough of Greenwich. It takes its name from the Kyd Brook, a watercourse which runs from Orpington to Lewisham North Greenwich is a station on London Underground 's Jubilee Line, opened in 1999 Woolwich Arsenal station is a Railway station located in Woolwich in the London Borough of Greenwich. Woolwich Dockyard railway station is in Woolwich in the London Borough of Greenwich. Plumstead railway station serves the suburb of Plumstead, in the London Borough of Greenwich, east of Woolwich Arsenal. King George V DLR station is a station on the Docklands Light Railway which opened on 2 December 2005 and named for King George V Dock, The Woolwich foot tunnel is a Tunnel crossing under the River Thames in South East London from Woolwich in the London Borough of Greenwich
- A new Docklands Light Railway station is under construction next to the existing Woolwich Arsenal railway station. The Docklands Light Railway (DLR is a Light rail system serving the redeveloped Docklands area of East London England.
River
The free Woolwich Ferry service operates across the River Thames to North Woolwich in the London Borough of Newham carrying trucks, cars, cyclists and pedestrians during the day until 8pm on Weekdays. The Woolwich Free Ferry is a boat service across the River Thames, London, UK, which is operated by the London Borough of Greenwich The Thames ( is a major River flowing through southern England. The London Borough of Newham ( is a London borough in East London, within Greater London. A two boat service runs on Mondays to Saturdays and Sundays only has a one boat service. Woolwich foot tunnel is also available for use by pedestrians (and cyclists pushing their cycles) at any time. The Woolwich foot tunnel is a Tunnel crossing under the River Thames in South East London from Woolwich in the London Borough of Greenwich It is served by lifts during traditional shopping hours.
London River Services, operated by Thames Clipper, provide a peak hour, seven days a week service to central London (Savoy Pier) from Woolwich Arsenal Pier (adjacent to the Royal Arsenal residential development). London River Services is an arm of Transport for London (TfL which manages passenger transport on the River Thames in London, UK. Thames Clipper is a water-bus service operating in London on the River Thames. The Savoy Pier is located just to the south of the Savoy Hotel on the river Thames, and not far from the site of the old Savoy Wharf. Woolwich Arsenal Pier, also known as the Royal Arsenal Pier Woolwich, is a Pier on the River Thames, in Woolwich in the London Borough
The Thames flood barrier is located a mile upstream from the tunnel and ferry. The Thames Barrier is a flood control structure on the River Thames, constructed between 1974 and 1984 at Woolwich Reach and first used defensively in 1983
See also
- Royal Ordnance Factory
- Princess Alice - a passenger steamer sunk off North Woolwich pier on 3 September 1878 (a memorial to those lost can be found in Woolwich Old Cemetery, Kings Highway, Plumstead)
- The Auto stacker
References
- ^ BBC on this day: 6 July accessed 23 Apr 2007
- ^ Greenwich Guide, day by day accessed 23 Apr 2007
- ^ Interview with McDonalds UK CEO Evening Standard 16th December 1991 accessed 23 Apr 2007
- ^ Love Lane Woolwich
- ^ Local resident concerns
- ^ Director General public house
- ^ Change of plans
- ^ Coop site redevelopment
External links
- Hidden London page about Woolwich. SS Princess Alice was a Thames river steamer which sank after a collision in 1878 with the loss of an estimated 640 lives North Woolwich is a place in the London Borough of Newham. It is located north of Woolwich proper which is on the south bank of the River Thames. Events 36 BC - In the Battle of Naulochus, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, Admiral of Octavian, defeats Sextus Pompeius Year 1878 ( MDCCCLXXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common This article is about the district in London For other places names Plumstead see Plumstead (disambiguation Plumstead is a place and electoral The Auto Stacker was an ill-fated but ambitious project by Woolwich Borough Council in south-east London.
- History of the Royal Artillery Theatre, Woolwich
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