Palmers Green

infobox UK place
country = England
map_type = Greater London
latitude = 51.6178
longitude = -0.1092
region= London
population=
official_name= Palmers Green
constituency_westminster= Enfield Southgate
post_town= LONDON
postcode_area= N
postcode_district= N13
london_borough= Enfield
dial_code= 020
os_grid_reference= TQ309927

Palmers Green is a place in the London Borough of Enfield. It is a suburban area situated 7.6 miles (12.2 km) north of Charing Cross. Postally, it is in London N13. Palmers Green today is home to the largest population of the Cypriot community outside of Cyprus. Fact|date=April 2008

History

The area of Palmers Green was once a minute hamlet in the parish of Edmonton, formed at the junction of Green Lanes and Fox Lane. Its population was very small, the village being no more than a few isolated houses in the mid 17th century. There is a mention of a Palmers Field in 1204 and a Palmers Grove in 1340 in local records. Palmers Green was mentioned as a highway in 1324 (in Westminster Abbey Muniments).

By 1801 the area had grown to a village of 54 buildings, including two inns (according to the Middlesex Record Office). In 1871 the railway line from Wood Green to Enfield was opened and a station was built in Aldermans Hill to serve Palmers Green (half a mile away from the nearest houses).

The area remained largely undeveloped for thirty more years, as local landowners refused to sell their large estates for building. In 1902 large tracts of land were sold for building, and the area began to develop rapidly. The first large-scale developments were on the old park estate between Fox Lane and Aldermans Hill, and the Hazelwood Park Estate between Hazelwood Lane and Hedge Lane. Within this development, the building which serves as Hazelwood Infant School and Hazelwood Junior School was built in Hazelwood Lane in 1908.

Today it is a leafy, residential suburb just north of Wood Green. It has now become very popular with young families spilling over from Muswell Hill due to its very large Victorian terraced houses with big gardens. The local primary school had an "outstanding" report from ofsted in 2008. Pick of the roads are Elvendon Road and Natal Road. It's a quiet, leafy, up and coming area with its own tennis club!

Notable local buildings include Broomfield House and Truro House, both sadly in a state of some neglect. The library (formerly Southgate Town hall) is intact but is often the subject of redevelopment rumours. The former Pilgrims Rest (reflecting the Palmers notation - "medieval pilgrim who carried a palm branch as a token of having visited the Holy Land") has already been demolished for housing. The Fox public house has stood in its present guise since 1904.

Stevie Smith, the poet and novelist, lived in Palmers Green from 1905 until her death in 1971, also that year, Joe Strummer shared a flat at 18 Ash Grove with Tymon Dogg and several others. Paul Scott, the author of "The Jewel in the Crown" trilogy was born in Palmers Green on March 25th, 1920. Stephen Twigg and Michael Portillo are former high-profile MPs for the area. Victoria Cross recipient Alfred Herring lived locally. Local author Douglas Hill was killed by a bus on a zebra crossing at The Triangle in 2007.

The Intimate Theatre was opened in a building that had been built in 1931 as a St. Monica's Church Hall. Among the actors who performed there were Richard Attenborough, Vivien Leigh, Roger Moore and David Bowie (mime production). It is no longer a repertory theatre, and although the building is no longer used exclusively for theatrical performances, it is still often referred to as the Intimate Theatre.

An electric tramway along Green Lanes as far as Winchmore Hill was developed in 1907 helping to further develop the area. The tramway is now long gone.

Palmers Green today

Today a large parade of shops known as Palmers Green Shopping Centre exists along Green Lanes, with many restaurants, pubs, clothing shops, independently owned cafes and beauty salons. A Woolworths General Store, Superdrug, Wetherspoons (The Alfred Herring), Morrisons, Marks and Spencers, WHSmith, The Carphone Warehouse and Starbucks are also present. Palmers Green High Street was used to film the fast-paced Knight Bus sequence in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/pictures/galleries/newsid_2908000/2908289.stm CBBC Newsround | GALLERIES | Exclusive pix of Potter filiming ] ] The Fox Pub was featured which is also the site of the Electric Mouse comedy venue. Broomfield House remains a burnt-out shell despite numerous redevelopment proposals and an appearance on BBC2's "Restoration" programme.

A train service operated by First Capital Connect runs to Moorgate, Kings Cross and Hertford North. The station is the location for a Sunday farmers market and also the Waiting Room cafe, a small platform coffee counter and occasional art exhibitions in a second waiting room.

Proposals to widen the North Circular Road single-lane section at Bowes Road/New Southgate may soon come to fruition after over 20 years of discussion. Public access to the New River has been improved recently with waterside paths and access gates.

Transport and locale

A good train service runs from Palmers Green railway station, operated by First Capital Connect, running to Moorgate, Kings Cross and Hertford North. Bus routes 121, W6, 329, N29 and W9 operate locally. The North Circular and A10 are the main trunk roads. The A111 through Southgate gives access to the M25 J24.

Nearest places

* Winchmore Hill
* Edmonton, London
* Tottenham
* Wood Green
* Muswell Hill
* Bowes Park
* Southgate

Nearest tube stations

* Arnos Grove tube station
* Bounds Green tube station
* Southgate tube station

Nearest railway station

* Palmers Green railway station
* Bowes Park railway station
* Winchmore Hill railway station

Education

* Hazelwood Primary School
* Firs Farm Primary
* Oakthorpe Primary
* Palmers Green High School (Independent)
* St Michael at Bowes CE Junior
* Tottenhall Infant

Churches

* Saint Monica's Church, Palmers Green (Roman Catholic)
* St John's Church (Anglican)
* Palmers Green Baptist Church
* Palmers Green United Reformed Church

References

Bibliography

*"Once Upon a Time in Palmers Green" by Alan Dumayne
*"Intimate Memories" by Geoff Bowden

External links

* [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=26938 A History of Edmonton Social Life from British History Online, including some history of Palmers Green social life]
* [http://www.millenniumschools.co.uk/pub/enfield/hazelwood-inf/ The official site of Hazelwood Infant School]
* [http://www.millenniumschools.co.uk/pub/enfield/hazelwoodjnr/ The official site of Hazelwood Junior School]
* [http://www.pghs.co.uk/ The official site of Palmers Green High School]
* [http://www.enfield.gov.uk/children%20and%20young%20people/schools/Primary%20Schools%20in%20N11%20N13%20N14%20and%20N21.htm Schools in or near Palmers Green]