Hanwell GuideHanwell, W7 · A to Z
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A short history of Hanwell

From a Domesday village to a London suburb, using the council's local history pages and Historic England's listings.

Hanwell's name is thought to come from hana, a cock, and weille, a stream. It was a village from the fifth and sixth centuries and is mentioned in the Domesday Book, with farmland, meadow, pigs and a mill, and about 100 people. (Ealing Council)

Timeline

  1. 1086Domesday Book. Most villagers worked the land; there were also three craftsmen and two slaves. (Ealing Council)
  2. Mid-1100sThe first time a church is known at Hanwell. (VCH) See St Mary's.
  3. MedievalA six-arch bridge carries the road over the River Brent. Two of its outer arches survive inside today's Hanwell Bridge on the Uxbridge Road. (Historic England)
  4. 1484William Hobbayne gives lands in Hanwell, worth £6 a year, to help the local poor. (Ealing Council)
  5. 1781A charity school is set up. The medieval church is pulled down; a new brick church opens in 1782. (Ealing Council; VCH)
  6. 1786Jonas Hanway, traveller, writer and charity founder, best known for promoting the umbrella, dies and is buried at St Mary's. (Ealing Council)
  7. 1793–1805The Grand Junction Canal, now the Grand Union, is authorised and built, with the Hanwell flight of locks. (Historic England) See the canal.
  8. 1801Hanwell has 817 residents and 130 houses. (Ealing Council)
  9. 1829The county lunatic asylum, designed by William Alderson, is built. It is now St Bernard's Hospital. (Historic England) See St Bernard's.
  10. 1836–38Brunel's Wharncliffe Viaduct is built in 1836–37. The Great Western Railway opens on 4 June 1838, with four trains each way a day. (Historic England; Ealing Council) See the viaduct.
  11. 1841–42The present St Mary's Church is built, by G. G. Scott and Moffatt. (VCH; Historic England)
  12. 1856The Central London District School, known as the Cuckoo School, opens for poor children from central London. Its most famous pupil was Charlie Chaplin. (Ealing Council)
  13. 1859Brunel's Three Bridges at Windmill Lane opens, where canal, railway and road cross. (Historic England)
  14. c. 1875–77Hanwell station is rebuilt when the tracks are increased to four. Historic England calls it the least altered example of that rebuilding. (Historic England) See Hanwell station.
  15. 1891–92Hanwell's local council buys Cherington House, and moves in the next year. (Ealing Council)
  16. 1901Trams run from London to Southall through Hanwell, and demand for housing grows. (Ealing Council)
  17. 1921The population reaches 20,485, mostly through growth after 1891. (Ealing Council)
  18. 1926Hanwell becomes part of Ealing. (Ealing Council)
  19. 1930sA housing estate is built on the grounds of the Cuckoo School. (Ealing Council) The school buildings are now Hanwell Community Centre. (Ealing Council)
  20. 1937The Clock Tower on Hanwell Broadway is unveiled on 7 May. (Ealing Council) See the Clock Tower.
  21. 1951King George V Playing Field, formerly Poor's Piece, opens on 22 May. (Ealing Council)
  22. 1973–76The Brent River and Canal Society forms and campaigns for a continuous park along the Brent. The council accepts its proposals in 1976. (Ealing Council)
  23. 2002The Clock Tower is restored for the Queen's Golden Jubilee. (Ealing Council)

Places to read more about

Find out more

Some of the council's history pages draw on information from the borough archivist. Start from Hanwell local history on the council's website. Listing descriptions are from the National Heritage List for England.

Sources: Ealing Council: Hanwell local history, British History Online: Victoria County History, Middlesex vol. 3: Hanwell, churches, Historic England: Hanwell Bridge, Uxbridge Road, list entry 1079347, Historic England: Hanwell flight of locks and brick boundary wall, list entry 1001963, Historic England: St Bernard's Hospital, list entry 1079364, Historic England: Wharncliffe Viaduct, list entry 1358811, Historic England: Windmill Bridge (Three Bridges), list entry 1002020, Historic England: Hanwell Station buildings, list entry 1358787, Historic England: Church of St Mary, Church Road, list entry 1079453, Ealing Council: Other notable buildings: Cherington House, Ealing Council: Hanwell parks: other parks in Hanwell, Ealing Council: Other notable buildings: Hanwell Clock Tower, Ealing Council: Hanwell parks: King George V Playing Field, Ealing Council: Conservation sites: Brent River Park. Last checked 24 Oct 2026.