About Old Chiswick

Before the nineteenth century, 'Old Chiswick' was the term used for the village surrounding the parish church of St Nicholas with Mary Magdelene on the north bank of the River Thames about 9 miles upriver (west) from Westminster. The area extended roughly from the borders of Chiswick House in the west to the eastern end of Chiswick Mall, and from the river, north to Mawson Lane. It was changed forever by the development of the Great West Road but enough remains to still consider this area 'Old Chiswick'.  It lies on a fine bend of the Thames in what was once the county of Middlesex - but now is part of Greater London - looking south over the river to an undeveloped stretch of the Surrey bank. It can be found easily on e-maps by searching for the postcode for the church, W4 2PH.

For example, Bowack in 1705 describes "The pleasant village of Chiswick, tho' but small, is so very pleasantly situated out of the road and free from noise, dust and hurry [....]. The Thames, taking an oblique course from Fulham and Hammersmith, but gently salutes this place, and the several little islands, or eyots, so pleasantly scattered in it, considerably weaken its force. The greatest number of houses are stretched along the Waterside from the Lyme Kiln, near Hammersmith, to the Church, in which dwell several small traders, but for the most part fishermen and watermen, who make up a considerable part of the inhabitants of this town." He adds that Chiswick Town (the current Church Street) has many handsome dwellings, some very ancient. 

History of Old Chiswick

There is perhaps no better place to start looking at this than with the handbook published by OCPS. Entitled Life and Work in Old Chiswick, it was written in 1982 by a long-standing resident of the area, Humphrey Arthure. Focusing on particular buildings and their associations in Old Chiswick, it has been updated several times, most recently in 2007. To obtain a copy, please see the OCPS publications page.A brief history can be found at the beginning of Life and Work in Old Chiswick and is quoted here:

“The village of old Chiswick dates from early times. Flint and metal implements, together with spear and arrowheads, have been dredged up from the river and several pieces of Roman pottery have been found in the Thames off Chiswick.As far back as the sixteenth century Chiswick was regarded as a healthy resort to escape to, away from the insanitary conditions in the city, hence its handsome riverside houses. Many fishermen and watermen lived near the river, and land was used to grow fruit and vegetables for the London market until comparatively recent times.The name Chiswick probably derives from the Saxon words for a cheese farm, and although it is many years since cheese was made here, the name and place are closely linked with printing, brewing and polish making, to name but three of the many industries which have been associated with the area”.

On-line histories

Gillan Clegg: http://www.doricdesign.com/Chiswickhistory/ch2013/pages/020-briefhistory.html

Victoria County History Vol 7 Middlesex: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=22557 

Edward Walford Old and New Chiswick http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=45298

Chiswick W4 History page with links: http://www.chiswickw4.com/default.asp?section=info&page=conhistory.htm

St Nicholas' Church and Parish: http://www.stnicholaschiswick.org/heritage/

Fuller's Brewery: https://www.fullersbrewery.co.uk

Thornycroft boat builders: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_I._Thornycroft_%26_Company

And there is always Thackeray's opening of Vanity Fair: http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/t/thackeray/william_makepeace/vanity/chapter1.html

OCPS resources

See our OCPS publications/resources page

Other publications/images

See the Other publications page

See the Further Images page

Other resources

See our Links page

Further Reading