- Hackney Marshes
infobox UK place
official_name= Hackney Marshes
map_type= Greater London
region= London
country= England
london_borough= Hackney
constituency_westminster= Hackney South and Shoreditch
post_town= LONDON
postcode_area= E
postcode_district= E9, E10
dial_code= 020
os_grid_reference= TQ375845
latitude= 51.54309
longitude= -0.017868Hackney Marshes is an area of grassland on the western bank of the River Lee in the
London Borough of Hackney . It was incorporated into theLee Valley Park in 1967. It was originally a truemarsh , but was extensively drained fromMedieval times, and rubble was dumped here from buildings damaged by air raids duringWorld War II .The principle area of the marsh lies below
Lea Bridge Road between theOld River Lea , and the Hackney Cut – an artificial channel of theLee Navigation , dug about 1770, to avoid a loop in the natural watercourse. The southern extent is marked by the A12; although the industrial land aroundHackney Stadium was originally an extension of the marsh; now to form a part of the Olympic Park for the2012 Summer Olympics .History
The marsh
The River itself was always an important waterway, being navigable to
Hertfordshire ; the Marsh was formed by the periodic flooding of the river, and so formed useful pasture, but could not be occupied permanently. Before the 10th century. the estuary of the river came as far asHackney Wick , crossed atOld Ford . Marsh Road, the continuation ofHomerton High Street, led to the marshes, and thence toTemple Mills . The Romans appear to have built a significant stone causeway across the marshes here, a periodical, the "Ambulator" of 1774, noted"there have been discovered within the last few years the remains of a great causeway of stone, which, by the Roman coins found there, would appear to have been one of the famous highways made by the Romans" [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=45254 'The northern suburbs: Haggerston and Hackney', Old and New London: Volume 5 (1878), pp. 505-24] accessed: 15 December 2006]
The river forms a natural boundary, so in 527 AD it formed the boundary between the Saxon kingdoms ofEssex andMiddlesex . In the 9th century, it formed a part of theDanelaw boundary and reputedly,King Alfred stranded an invadingViking fleet here in 895 AD. This was achieved by draining the river where it met theRiver Thames , but the increased drainage affected river navigability, until it was restored in the 17th century.By
medieval times, both sides had become counties inEngland , and attempts were made to control the flow of water through the marshes. Mills were established including the Knights Templar mill atTemple Mills . Much of the marsh was 'owned' by the Templars and used for pasture. When the Templars were abolished, the land passed to theKnights Hospitaller , and thence to the Crown during the Reformation, when monastic lands were seized. At this time, much of the land was associated with the Hackney village of LowerHomerton ; and with the large manor house atHackney Wick .Around 1770, the river was straightened by the construction of the Hackney Cut, now forming the eastern extent of the marsh. The natural watercourse, passes to the east, over the
Middlesex Filter Beds Weir , just belowLea Bridge Road . A nature reserve occupies the former Middlesex Filter beds, on the island between the two watercourses.By 1795, the former Templar mills were being used for preparing lead (submerged in urine, and heated by decaying cow dung, the lead was converted to lead oxide, and then finely ground to form a pigment for white, yellow and red
lead paint ). A new watermill was established on the Crown land of the marshes, byPrince Rupert for an improved method of boring guns, however the secret died with him in 1682, and the enterprise collapsed [Granger's Biographical History, vol. ii. p. 407. 4to. edit. Dugdale's Baronage, vol. i. p. 559] .At the end of the 19th century Hackney suffered from increased demand for building land, both for housing and to extend the factories in
Homerton . The marshes had always suffered periodic flooding from the Lee but with the introduction of mains sewerage, a flood relief sewer was constructed beneath the marshes. Most common and Lammas lands were then preserved by anAct of Parliament and passed to the control of theMetropolitan Board of Works , but the marsh remained excluded from the MBW scheme because many of the lammas rights were still exercised, predominantly grazing. This was a period of increasing arguments between landowners and groups, such as the Eton Manor Mission [About 1901, The Eton Manor Mission was formed, from premises atHackney Wick . The purpose was to use pupils fromEton College to bring "enlightenment" to the poverty stricken East End; and for those boys to come to some understanding of the situation of the poor. One strand of this peculiar meeting of opposites, was through sport on the Marshes, including running, boxing and the formation ofEton Manor F.C. ] , who were trying to use the marsh for recreation. The convert|337|acre|ha|1 of marshes were finally preserved by theLondon County Council in 1890, by purchasing the rights and landowners' interests for £75,000. They opened to the public in 1893 and were formally dedicated in 1894 [Sexby, Municipal Pks. 361-3; L.C.C. Ceremonial Pamphlets, 21 July 1894] . The LCC undertook further flood prevention, straightening some of the bends in the River, by introducing four 'cuts', the old channels being retained to form islands [ [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=22710 Hackney: Public services', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 10: Hackney (1995), pp. 108-15.] Date accessed: 13 October 2006.] .There were few houses on the marshes, but a notable exception was the White House Inn, by a bridge on the old road to
Leyton . Originally built as part of a Lea fishery scheme, the pub is now long gone, but a bridge remains, rebuilt to supply anti-aircraft batteries duringWorld War II ."In the Marshes towards Hackney Wick were low public houses, the haunt of highwaymen and their Dulcineas. Dick Turpin [The infamous highwayman,
Small areas of the marsh have been taken for housing and sports fields, and others added. convert|35.5|acre|ha|1 were taken in 1915 to build the 'National Projectile Factory'; afterDick Turpin was said to frequent the White House Inn. A ward is named after him atHomerton University Hospital .] was a constant guest at the "White House," or "Tyler's Ferry," near Joe Sowter's cock-pit, at Temple Mills; and few police-officers were bold enough to approach the spot".World War I , in 1922 this site was used to create the Mabley Green recreation ground. A further convert|22.5|acre|ha|1, were taken in 1937 for the building of the Kingsmead Estate. The Lesney die cast model factory was built on theHomerton side of the Lee Navigation in the 1940s, having success for many years with their "Matchbox" brand. The factory was a major local employer and closed in 1990.port
In 1881, old boys from
Homerton College , then inHomerton founded the Glynn Cricket Club and Clapton FC here, when the football team moved to a purpose built field on theLeyton side of the marsh, they becameLeyton FC . Today the marshes provide many pleasant walks, in reach of the inner city, but the most famous use of Hackney Marshes is forSunday league football [ [http://www.hackneyandleytonfootballleague.co.uk Hackney & Leyton Sunday League Football website] accessed : 12 Nov 2006] , with 88 full-size football pitches marked out. On a typical Sunday, over 100 matches are played by amateur teams in several local leagues. This led in 2006 to a dispute between theLondon Borough of Hackney andNike, Inc. over the company's use of the borough logo on their sportswear. The dispute was settled with payment of £300,000 going to support local youth sports groups [ [http://society.guardian.co.uk/localgovt/story/0,,1870454,00.html Nike scores own goal on Hackney Marshes - Clare Dyer] in Society Guardian 12 Sept 2006 (accessed : 23 Oct 2006)] .London Olympics 2012
Part of the London Olympic park for the Summer Olympics of 2012 will be built on Hackney Marshes. This has caused some controversy with local residents' groups, [ [http://sport.guardian.co.uk/london2012/story/0,14213,1414889,00.html Protest stirs in troubled east - Paul Kelso in The Guardian February 15, 2005] date accessed: 30 October 2006] [ [http://www.clubplan.org/CMS/page.asp?org=2673&name=Olympics1 Hackney Development Forum] date accessed: 30 October 2006] who have expressed concerns that East Marsh is to be tarmaced and used as a disabled coach park for the games. This is a temporary measure, and promises are in place for their complete restoration, after the games, together with considerable investment to improve facilities for amateur sport on the marshes.
Arena fields, however, will be taken by the games permanently; this area is to be replaced by parkland of comparable size and value, on the Hackney side, at the end of the games. It will not be possible to reinstate the loss of mature and varied trees that the plans entail; or to compensate for the disruption caused to wildlife by construction.
The natural course of the River Lee, forms the borough boundary with Redbridge and Newham (except for East Marsh, which lies between the river and
Temple Mills ). The Olympic plans include upgrading this watercourse and improving public access. Principle building works for the Olympics will be south of the A12, on industrial land around the formerHackney Stadium .The plans can be viewed at the London2012 website; [ [http://www.london2012.org/NR/rdonlyres/C27233BA-E663-4FD8-8EC8-A7896B547EFD/0/Theme_14_transport.pdf London2012 website] ; see page 17, "North spectator transport facility")] this can be compared with a map of Lee Valley Park [ [http://www.leevalleypark.org.uk/en/maps/pdfs/leevalley9.pdf Map of Hackney Marsh at Lee Valley Park site] ] to see the impact.
Music, literature and film
*The celebrated
cockney music hall performerGus Elen sang a song entitled "If It Wasn't for the 'Ouses In Between" which included the following chorus:"Oh it really is a wery pretty garden
AndChingford to the eastward could be seen;
'Wiv a ladder and some glasses,
You could see to 'Ackney Marshes,
If it wasn't for the 'ouses in between."
*In 1977, a 15 minute film was made celebrating the football on the marshes, by John Smith, and adapted for television the following year. [ [http://www.canyoncinema.com/S/SmithJohn.html "John Smith filmography"] accessed18 July 2008 ]
*In 1997, Nike presented a selection of Premiership players turning out for the Sunday League teams to the soundtrack of Blur's "Parklife".
*The 2005 film "Bullet Boy " (Saul Dibb) used the marshes and local streets, as a location.Notes and References
Education
Transport
Nearest Places
*
Hackney Wick
*Homerton
*Leyton
*Stratford
*Lower Clapton Railway Stations
"The area is not well served by transport, although boasts many buses. Access to the Olympic Park is intended to be served by Stratford".
Walking and Cycling
Nearby,
Hackney Wick is on theCapital Ring walking route, much of which is accessible to cyclists. The River Lee, and local canals, have a tow path which is accessible for both walking and cycling. The River Lee provides a continuous route toHertfordshire for the particularly determined."Some towpaths in the area may have restricted use during construction and the period of the Olympic games"
ee also
*
Lower Lea Valley
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