Hornsey
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Coordinates: 51°35′14″N 0°07′19″W / 51.587131°N 0.121950°W
Hornsey is a district in London Borough of Haringey in north London in England. Whilst Hornsey was formerly the name of a parish and later a municipal borough of Middlesex, today, the name refers only to the London district. It is an inner-suburban area located 6.2 miles (10 km) north of Charing Cross.
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[edit] Locale
The boundaries of Hornsey neighbourhood today are not clearly defined. Since Hornsey Borough was abolished in 1967, the name may refer either to the N8 postal district which includes Crouch End and part of Harringay, or to an area centred around Hornsey High Street, at the eastern end of which is the churchyard and tower of the former parish church which used to be the administrative centre of Hornsey.
To the north of Hornsey High Street, and immediately to its south, the area is largely public sector housing, save for the more upmarket development by the New River. Between the eastern end of the High Street and the bottom of Muswell Hill, the character of the area changes dramatically. Much of this part is the Warner Estate built up with large well-appointed late Victorian houses. To the south east of the High Street is Priory Park, a pleasant urban green space.
The High Street itself, although retaining some of its character has suffered the fate of many similar suburban strips. The eastern section retains strong echoes of its rural past and hosts the 13th Century tower which is all that remains of St Mary's Church.
[edit] History
The name Hornsey originated from a Saxon chieftan named Haering; 'Haering's Hege was Haering's enclosure [1]. It shares this derivation with Haringey which is a modern variant now applied more specifically to the Borough.
Much of Hornsey was built up in Edwardian times, but the tower of the original parish church still stands in its ancient graveyard in Hornsey High Street, at the centre of the old village. Other notable places are the Doragh Gasworks, the former Hornsey Town Hall in Crouch End, and Highpoint and Cromwell House in Highgate.
In 1968 Crouch End was briefly the scene of a student revolt at Hornsey College of Art.
The Lotus Car was first built where the Wishing Well Pub now stands on Tottenham Lane N8
[edit] Education
- For details of education in Hornsey see the London Borough of Haringey article.
[edit] Hornsey in Literature, on Film & TV
In Jonathan Coe's 1987 debut novel The Accidental Woman, the protagonist Maria shares a flat in Hornsey with two women for several years.
[edit] Notable current and former residents
Former residents include poets A.E. Housman and Thomas Moore, publisher Andrew Melrose, eminent theatre architect Frank Matcham, soviet communist apologists William Peyton Coates and Zelda Coates. Actor Bob Hoskins grew up here. The once-famous poet Samuel Rogers, a friend of Byron and Dickens, is buried in Hornsey churchyard.
Other notable residents are:
- Sway DaSafo
- Lilian Harvey
- Edward Albert Sharpey-Schafer
- Colin Chapman, founder of Lotus Cars
- Simon Pegg, actor
- Jazzie B, musician
[edit] Transport and locale
[edit] Nearest places
[edit] Nearest tube station
[edit] Nearest railway stations
[edit] Notes
[edit] External links
- Hornsey Historical Society
- The Colin Chapman Museum and Education Centre - includes a history of Lotus in Hornsey.
- Local community website used by Hornseyites - Harringay Online
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