Walks
FUTURE WALKS:
Once a tiny hamlet on the ancient highway between Epping and London, then a desirable country retreat for merchants and financiers, Leytonstone developed as we know it today when the railway came. As we walk along the High Road, we will see glimpses of its past in some surprising places! We hear about the woman who set up an industrial school for girls; the internationally renowned naturalist, known as the “Queen of Slime Mould”; the cancer specialist who courted controversy when he treated the heir to the throne of Germany; as well film maker Alfred Hitchcock and highwayman Dick Turpin.
Guide: Sue McCarthy
Meet at Leytonstone High Road Station, London E11 4RE
This fifty-minute Virtual Walk, hosted online via Zoom video conferencing, explores the fascinating Thames Estuary, a place London has always relied on but which remains a mystery to many Londoners. Starting in East London and following the river to the sea. Your guide Rob Smith will tell you some of the stories from the history of the area, and tell you about places to visit in real life: forts built to defend London from invasion, container ports that bring goods to our shops today, hidden places for wildlife, genteel Georgian towns that have grown up a bit today, Saxon settlements and World War Two sea forts.
Virtual Guide: Rob Smith
Online Event
This walk with Rob Smith from Royal Victoria Dock to Pontoon Dock looks at the vast Royal group of docks, built for steamships by entrepreneur engineers and at some of the industry that was created by the docks. Rob will also talk about the dock workers strike of 1889 and the creation of the Port of London Authority. One of a series of walks by Rob covering different periods in the development of the Port of London from the Romans to Canary Wharf, uncovering some of the legacy of the Port of London through street names, mooring posts, cranes, plaques etc. and using old maps and photographs.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Royal Victoria DLR Station, Seagull Lane, London E16 1BZ
In 1514 the warship Great Harry - the pride of Henry VIII's fleet - was constructed at Woolwich Dockyard which went on to be the site of shipbuilding and repairing for nearly 350 years with huge store houses, dry docks and a ropery which was one of the largest in the world. In 1869 the dockyard closed but you can still find traces of it and this Guided Walk will reveal its remaining features and tell the stories of the ships built there and the people who worked there. We will also explore the industrial area that replaced the dockyard and has its own story to tell.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Woolwich Dockyard Station, Belson Road, London SE18 5JY
In the 1980 classic thriller The Long Good Friday, Bob Hoskins’ character, Harold Shand, gives his view on the future of Docklands: “I believe this is the decade in which London will become Europe's capital. Having cleared away the outdated, we've got mile after mile and acre after acre of land, for our future prosperity. No other city in the world... has got right in its centre, such an opportunity... for profitable progress.” While things don't go well for Harold - his vision of the future proves fairly accurate and the old docks are redeveloped and London does host the Olympics. On this Guided Walk, Rob visits many of the East London locations from the film -- some recognisable, some changed beyond Harold's wildest dreams -- and also talks about the recent history of Docklands that brought the changes about.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Tower Hill Tube Station, Trinity Square, EC3N 4DJ
Blackwall in London’s Docklands has as much maritime history as Greenwich – it’s just that you have to look a bit harder to find it. In this two-hour Guided Walk, Rob Smith uses fragments of the old dockyard and street names to tell the story of the East India Company, who made Blackwall their home for almost 250 years. You will hear stories of bravery, greed and ingenuity. The walk also visits the Leamouth Peninsula, one of the most unusual places on the Thames with a maritime history of its own. Rob will also tell the stories of some of the ships built in the famous Blackwall Yard and you’ll hear how Blackwall is at the heart of communications in the 21st century.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at East India DLR Station, Blackwall Way, London E14 9PS
The Thames Ironworks was a large shipbuilding yard at Bow Creek in East London. In 1895, they formed a company football team that played in the Southern League and FA Cup. In 1900 the club was wound up and reborn as West Ham United. This walk tells the story of Thames Ironworks FC. We will visit Hermit Road and the Memorial Ground, two of the places where the club played, as well as the site of the Ironworks and a few other locations connected with the club.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Canning Town Station, Silvertown Way, London E16 1DQ
There’s so much more to Walthamstow than just its famous mile-long Market. The grand tombs in St Mary’s Churchyard offer a bit of a clue. Starting at the teenage home of William Morris, later home to publisher Edward Lloyd, who brought to us the tale of Sweeney Todd, and today home to the William Morris Gallery, this Guided Walk takes in a set of mews built by a local butcher/property developer, a theatre hidden within a school and a remnant from Robert Smirke’s General Post Office before visiting the real and original Walthamstow Village with its Ancient House, almshouses, workhouse and church to hear how Lord Mayor of London George Monoux was a great benefactor to the area and finishing in an industrial park which is not only home to the jaw dropping God’s Own Junkyard but the Wild Card Brewery and Mother’s Ruin Gin Palace too.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at William Morris Gallery (outside front entrance), 531 Forest Road, London E17 4PP
As recently as 1979, 85% of the area around what is now Canada Water was occupied by the waters of the Surrey Commercial Docks. Since then there has been a radical transformation, the former docks and timber storage ponds becoming woodland, parks, housing and shops. A new phase of development is bringing change again. On this Guided Walk, Rob will find the buildings from the old docks that have survived, explain how the docks worked and tell the story of their complex history. He will also explain how this part of London transformed into Docklands and why it is different to Canary Wharf, its neighbour on the other side of the river.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Canada Water Station, Deal Porter Way, London SE16 2YS
Dagenham is instantly associated with the huge Ford factory that opened in 1931. However, the Dagenham Dock has an industrial history going back to the early 1800's. This Guided Walk will look at a complex history that includes explosives manufacturing, shipbuilding and power generation. You'll get to see the site where the last battleship built on the Thames was completed, London's other flood relief barrier, oil storage depots, scrapyards and a fantastic stretch of the Thames which is an empty white patch on the A-Z. This is a longer walk - around 5 miles - but fans of Patrick Keiller's Robinson films, and Iain Sinclair's books will enjoy being in this extremely off the beaten track part of London.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Dagenham Dock Station, Chequers Lane, London RM9 6PR
While a certain sporting event in 2012 has transformed the area west of Stratford, the Lower Lea Valley between Stratford and the Thames still retains a post-industrial feel. In this Guided Walk, Rob Smith looks at the industrial heritage of the area and the fantastic Victorian (and earlier) architecture that remains. He will talk about how the Lea was important to the development of London. You will see buildings associated with railways, printing, canals, sewage, mills, shipbuilding and gas supply, and see what is planned in the area for the future.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Stratford Station, Station Street, London E15 1AZ
Take the train to the end of the new Elizabeth Line for this Guided Walk and find some great views and a few hidden gems. The new line takes you in style to Abbey Wood – find out what lies beyond the station. You’ll discover some tranquil parts of London, lots of history and amazing views of the capital.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Abbey Wood Station, Wilton Road, London SE2 9RH
One of a series of walks telling the story of the Port of London led by Rob Smith, at moderate pace with frequent stops, looking at some of the port’s legacy – such as street names, mooring posts, cranes and plaques – and using old maps and photographs along the way, with a chance for questions and discussion. This second walk from East India DLR Station to Canary Wharf, looks at the East India Company and the ruthless sugar traders that built warehouses in the area around Canary Wharf using profits made from the labour of enslaved Africans. You'll see what is left of the East and West India docks, built for sailing ships in the early 1800's.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at East India DLR Station, Aspen Way, London E14 9GF
Shadwell, developed to equip ships for imperial interests and explorations in the Age of Sail, was home to wealthy merchants and many small businesses. To make those possible, large numbers of ordinary folk provided services, making the area a multicultural hub where escaping slaves hid out, fed-up sailors started new lives, river pirates spied opportunities and women provided the comforts of home in lodging-houses, taverns and brothels. Of course, women were also seamen, pirates, slaves and merchants, some of them known as the Merry Wives of Wapping. Outsiders came to experience the many opium-dens that were standard places of unwinding for seafarers. Shadwell Basin is the only one left of three early docks located in the area. On this walk we pass remnants of all these phenomena as well as river stairs, imposing warehouses, green spaces, the Thames Path and numerous appealing pubs.
Guide: Laura Agustín
Meet at Shadwell Overground Station, London E1 2QD
Our walk from Leyton Midland station (on the Suffragette Line) to Leyton tube station takes us along the course of a hidden river, past a 16th Century house hiding in plain sight, through residential streets and green spaces. We meet the UK's first Asian policewoman and the first black footballer to play for England in a competitive international match and the man who invented the tube map.
Guide: Sue McCarthy
Meet at Leyton Midland Road Overground Station, Midland Road, London E10 6JT
In 1897, Chingford was ‘cut off, as it were, from the rest of the world.’ It is not cut off now, but it has a very different history to its near neighbour Walthamstow. Epping Forest has played an important part in that history and on this walk using old maps we will see how the area has evolved but also see what remains from the past. Hidden among allotments and a tip can be found a 17th century dovecote which is all that remains of one of Chingford’s lost manor houses. Characters who have made their mark on Chingford include T E Lawrence, Henry VIII, Queen Elizabeth I, Queen Victoria and Ivor Novello. Some paths on the walk may be muddy so please wear appropriate shoes.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at Chingford Railway Station, Station Road, London E4 6AL
The Suffragette Line owes its new name to local Annie Huggett. There's more to Barking than you might think. Join Sue to find out more. This circular walk takes us past landmarks associated with its medieval abbey, its once huge fishing fleet, the noxious industries and civic pride of the 19th and 20th centuries, right up to today's riverside regeneration. Along the way we learn where Capt. Cook was married and where a local suffragette entertained Mrs Pankhurst. We find out what links prison reformer Elizabeth Fry to Barking's stunning Sikh temple and why there is a memorial to the victims of asbestosis.
Guide: Sue McCarthy
Meet at Barking Station, Station Parade, London IG11 8TU
The roads and riverside of Limehouse reveal evidence of its age-old connections with the sea and maritime trades, of its long journey from tiny riverside village – one of the “tower hamlets” – to today’s modern docklands area. Sailors passing through made it a truly cosmopolitan area – home to London’s first Chinatown – a bustling hive of industry with a dark side which philanthropists sought to address and some writers sought to exploit in sensational stories. Our Guided Walk takes us to the sublime St Anne’s church and Narrow Street’s fine 17th century house-fronts, to palatial sailors’ hostels, well- preserved 19th century warehouses and one of the very oldest urban railway viaducts, taking in splendid river views to Canary Wharf and the City along the way.
Guide: Andrew Parnell
Meet at Westferry DLR Station, London E14 8AS
Women reigned in Rag Fair, which extended from Tower Hill along Rosemary Lane into Cable Street in the 17th-19th centuries. Poorer women sold old clothes, thieved and worked in the brothels of Damaris Page, called by Samuel Pepys 'the most Famous Bawd in the Towne’. We wend through back-alleys to one of the first London Docks, around whose walls a myriad of small businesses set up to service ships and sailors. Fans of Call the Midwife will be interested to see where young Mary escaped from one of the notorious brothel-cafés of Cable Street in the 1960s era of decline. We see where two local women lived who were accused of witchcraft and where the artist JMW Turner spent romantic - and unmarried - weekends. In short, on this walk we focus on a lot of residents rarely mentioned in histories of the docks. Great pubs await near the final stop.
Guide: Laura Agustín
Meet outside Tower Hill Station, London EC3N 4DJ
Walthamstow joined the tube network in 1968 but has been well connected to Central London from the early 1700s, originally with stagecoach services and later with the railway. Before the railways arrived the rich flocked to this area building grand houses. On this walk, we will visit one of the original settlements that made up the town, see an early 19th century house, now a social club, which was once home to a lady who bequeathed vast sums of money to charities in Walthamstow and further afield. We will also walk the Street of Blue Plaques, pass two sets of almshouses still serving the community today and a former workhouse now home to the borough's local museum although the museum is closed until early 2026.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at Costa Coffee, 5 Hoe Street, London E7 9QF
There’s so much more to Walthamstow than just its famous mile-long Market. The grand tombs in St Mary’s Churchyard offer a bit of a clue. Starting at the teenage home of William Morris, later home to publisher Edward Lloyd, who brought to us the tale of Sweeney Todd, and today home to the William Morris Gallery, this Guided Walk takes in a set of mews built by a local butcher/property developer, a theatre hidden within a school and a remnant from Robert Smirke’s General Post Office before visiting the real and original Walthamstow Village with its Ancient House, almshouses, workhouse and church to hear how Lord Mayor of London George Monoux was a great benefactor to the area and finishing in an industrial park which is not only home to the jaw dropping God’s Own Junkyard but the Wild Card Brewery and Mother’s Ruin Gin Palace too.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at William Morris Gallery (outside front entrance), 531 Forest Road, London E17 4PP
Founded by the Saxons over 1000 years ago, Wapping has a pivotal place in London’s history. On this tour we will discover one of London’s most interesting dock areas, heavily bombed in the Second World War and regenerated in the 1980s, hear stories of pirates and executions as well as murderers and riots, pass the former HQ of the Murdoch Empire and the world’s first underwater tunnel and see the church where Ross married Emily … even though he was really in love with Rachel … and the birthplace of Alf and the Silly Moo. After stopping at the views that inspired Turner and Whistler, we will end up at one of the most historical pubs in London – the Prospect of Whitby.
Guide: Daniella King
Meet Cable Street, London E1 2QF
In 1897, Chingford was ‘cut off, as it were, from the rest of the world.’ It is not cut off now, but it has a very different history to its near neighbour Walthamstow. Epping Forest has played an important part in that history and on this walk using old maps we will see how the area has evolved but also see what remains from the past. Hidden among allotments and a tip can be found a 17th century dovecote which is all that remains of one of Chingford’s lost manor houses. Characters who have made their mark on Chingford include T E Lawrence, Henry VIII, Queen Elizabeth I, Queen Victoria and Ivor Novello. Some paths on the walk may be muddy so please wear appropriate shoes.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at Chingford Railway Station, Station Road, London E4 6AL
Ada Salter was the first female mayor in London and the first Labour woman mayor in the British Isles. With her husband, local doctor and MP Dr Alfred Salter, she made a significant impact on health, housing, employment and labour relations, helping to make Bermondsey world famous for its flowers and its Garden City estate, still occupied today. Find out about the legacy of Ada on this charming riverside Guided Walk, which tells her story from the Bermondsey Uprising of women jam factory workers in 1911, to her years as a pacifist in the First World War, and her radical policies as Bermondsey Councillor.
Guide: Sue McCarthy
Meet at Bermondsey Station, London SE16 4RX
This walk with Rob Smith along the River Lea takes us through the Olympic Park, passing London Stadium and many former industrial sites before reaching the beautiful tide mills at Bow. It then takes us to Canning Town to see the last loops of the Lea before it joins the Thames at Trinity Buoy Wharf. The Lea is one of the longest and most important tributaries of the Thames. It has formed the boundary between the Saxons and the Danes, been home to medieval mills and numerous other industries. This is one of series of walks by Rob which will look at the history of the River Lea, tracing its 42-mile course to the Thames.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Hackney Wick Station, Wallace Road, London E9 5LH
There’s so much more to Walthamstow than just its famous mile-long Market. The grand tombs in St Mary’s Churchyard offer a bit of a clue. Starting at the teenage home of William Morris, later home to publisher Edward Lloyd, who brought to us the tale of Sweeney Todd, and today home to the William Morris Gallery, this Guided Walk takes in a set of mews built by a local butcher/property developer, a theatre hidden within a school and a remnant from Robert Smirke’s General Post Office before visiting the real and original Walthamstow Village with its Ancient House, almshouses, workhouse and church to hear how Lord Mayor of London George Monoux was a great benefactor to the area and finishing in an industrial park which is not only home to the jaw dropping God’s Own Junkyard but the Wild Card Brewery and Mother’s Ruin Gin Palace too.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at William Morris Gallery (outside front entrance), 531 Forest Road, London E17 4PP
Woolwich was once home to two vast military production sites - the Woolwich Dockyard and the Woolwich Arsenal. Both founded in the time of Henry VIII, the dockyard built ships for the Royal Navy up until the switch to steam ships in the early 19th century, and guns and ammunition were developed at Woolwich Arsenal until the 1960s. This one hour Zoom talk looks at the story of both sites, some of the ships built there and the impact the sites had on British naval power.
Virtual Guide: Rob Smith
Online Event
This Virtual Walk will look at the industrial history of the area between Stratford and Canning Town. You will be sent a link to a Zoom meeting, where Rob will talk with slides showing the story, and you will be able to ask questions during and after the presentation. Much has been written about the history of London, but the industrial history has been overlooked. London, and in particular the Lea Valley, was home to many innovative industrial developments. This walk celebrates just a few of those achievements, in the fields of textiles, shipbuilding, ceramics, chemical manufacture, printing and even a rocket factory.
Virtual Guide: Rob Smith
Online Event
See the architectural treasures of Barking and Dagenham in this Virtual Walk, part of a series by Rob Smith on the best buildings in London Boroughs. Barking was home to one of the most powerful medieval religious houses in the country, of which you can still see the ruins. Another medieval survivor is Valence House, home to the borough museum. There are the beautiful Eastbury Manor House - one of London's best Elizabethan buildings - and the buildings associated with Barking's huge fishing fleet by the River Roding. Rob will also explain how the area became industrialised in the 20th century with the building of the huge Ford works, Barking Power Station and the Becontree Estate - built for Ford workers - and will discuss the buildings being built in the borough today.
Virtual Guide: Rob Smith
Online Event
In 1514 the warship Great Harry - the pride of Henry VIII's fleet - was constructed at Woolwich Dockyard which went on to be the site of shipbuilding and repairing for nearly 350 years with huge store houses, dry docks and a ropery which was one of the largest in the world. In 1869 the dockyard closed but you can still find traces of it and this Guided Walk will reveal its remaining features and tell the stories of the ships built there and the people who worked there. We will also explore the industrial area that replaced the dockyard and has its own story to tell.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Woolwich Dockyard Station, Belson Road, London SE18 5JY
In 1897, Chingford was ‘cut off, as it were, from the rest of the world.’ It is not cut off now, but it has a very different history to its near neighbour Walthamstow. Epping Forest has played an important part in that history and on this walk using old maps we will see how the area has evolved but also see what remains from the past. Hidden among allotments and a tip can be found a 17th century dovecote which is all that remains of one of Chingford’s lost manor houses. Characters who have made their mark on Chingford include T E Lawrence, Henry VIII, Queen Elizabeth I, Queen Victoria and Ivor Novello. Some paths on the walk may be muddy so please wear appropriate shoes.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at Chingford Railway Station, Station Road, London E4 6AL
There’s so much more to Walthamstow than just its famous mile-long Market. The grand tombs in St Mary’s Churchyard offer a bit of a clue. Starting at the teenage home of William Morris, later home to publisher Edward Lloyd, who brought to us the tale of Sweeney Todd, and today home to the William Morris Gallery, this Guided Walk takes in a set of mews built by a local butcher/property developer, a theatre hidden within a school and a remnant from Robert Smirke’s General Post Office before visiting the real and original Walthamstow Village with its Ancient House, almshouses, workhouse and church to hear how Lord Mayor of London George Monoux was a great benefactor to the area and finishing in an industrial park which is not only home to the jaw dropping God’s Own Junkyard but the Wild Card Brewery and Mother’s Ruin Gin Palace too.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at William Morris Gallery (outside front entrance), 531 Forest Road, London E17 4PP
There’s so much more to Walthamstow than just its famous mile-long Market. The grand tombs in St Mary’s Churchyard offer a bit of a clue. Starting at the teenage home of William Morris, later home to publisher Edward Lloyd, who brought to us the tale of Sweeney Todd, and today home to the William Morris Gallery, this Guided Walk takes in a set of mews built by a local butcher/property developer, a theatre hidden within a school and a remnant from Robert Smirke’s General Post Office before visiting the real and original Walthamstow Village with its Ancient House, almshouses, workhouse and church to hear how Lord Mayor of London George Monoux was a great benefactor to the area and finishing in an industrial park which is not only home to the jaw dropping God’s Own Junkyard but the Wild Card Brewery and Mother’s Ruin Gin Palace too.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at William Morris Gallery (outside front entrance), 531 Forest Road, London E17 4PP
This two-hour Guided Walk looks at the exteriors of very different buildings, all built during the 20th Century. From the grandeur of the famous Hackney Empire, civic pride of Hackney Town Hall, and the post war simplicity of Brett Manor, to more recent buildings like Sutton Square and Hackney Academy, Hackney has a range of buildings built in response to a variety of needs. Rob Smith will talk about the buildings and some of the social history context in which they were built.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Hackney Central Overground Station, Amhurst Road, London E8 1LL
This walk with Rob Smith along the River Lea takes us through the Olympic Park, passing London Stadium and many former industrial sites before reaching the beautiful tide mills at Bow. It then takes us to Canning Town to see the last loops of the Lea before it joins the Thames at Trinity Buoy Wharf. The Lea is one of the longest and most important tributaries of the Thames. It has formed the boundary between the Saxons and the Danes, been home to medieval mills and numerous other industries. This is one of series of walks by Rob which will look at the history of the River Lea, tracing its 42-mile course to the Thames.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Hackney Wick Station, Wallace Road, London E9 5LH
This sixty-minute Virtual Walk explores the buildings of the London Borough of Newham, the southern part of which is dominated by the vast Royal Docks and the industries that built up around them. These have been partially redeveloped with some striking new buildings like the University of East London's Halls of Residence and the Crystal, the new home for the Greater London Assembly, while some of the heritage of the old docks remains. And Newham also offers much more than Docklands: you'll find a 12th century church, a memorial to Tudor Martyrs, a fine theatre and plenty of civic pride. The borough has some marvellous former industrial buildings along the River Lea and is home to the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park with buildings that put London on the world stage as part of London 2012. Whatever your taste in buildings, you are bound to find something you like.
Virtual Guide: Rob Smith
Online Event
See the architectural treasures of Barking and Dagenham in this Virtual Walk, part of a series by Rob Smith on the best buildings in London Boroughs. Barking was home to one of the most powerful medieval religious houses in the country, of which you can still see the ruins. Another medieval survivor is Valence House, home to the borough museum. There are the beautiful Eastbury Manor House - one of London's best Elizabethan buildings - and the buildings associated with Barking's huge fishing fleet by the River Roding. Rob will also explain how the area became industrialised in the 20th century with the building of the huge Ford works, Barking Power Station and the Becontree Estate - built for Ford workers - and will discuss the buildings being built in the borough today.
Virtual Guide: Rob Smith
Online Event
The Royal Group of Docks in East London were one of the largest engineering projects in London's history. Comprising The Royal Victoria, Albert and King George V Docks, when built, they were also the largest enclosed body of water in the world. They still make an imposing sight - 12 miles of waterfront undergoing redevelopment. This 50-minute Virtual Walk via Zoom tells their story. Your guide, Rob Smith, will show slides about the building of the docks, the people who built them, the technical advances that had a huge impact on London's economy, and the factories that were built alongside them. Rob will look at the communities that worked in the docks, how they struggled to improve working conditions and how they faced challenges like the Silvertown explosion of 1917 and the Blitz. You will hear about the decline of the docks and the long-running plans to redevelop them, and get to see heritage features that remain today so you can go and explore for yourself.
Virtual Guide: Rob Smith
Online Event
In 1897, Chingford was ‘cut off, as it were, from the rest of the world.’ It is not cut off now, but it has a very different history to its near neighbour Walthamstow. Epping Forest has played an important part in that history and on this walk using old maps we will see how the area has evolved but also see what remains from the past. Hidden among allotments and a tip can be found a 17th century dovecote which is all that remains of one of Chingford’s lost manor houses. Characters who have made their mark on Chingford include T E Lawrence, Henry VIII, Queen Elizabeth I, Queen Victoria and Ivor Novello. Some paths on the walk may be muddy so please wear appropriate shoes.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at Chingford Railway Station, Station Road, London E4 6AL
This walk with Rob Smith from Royal Victoria Dock to Pontoon Dock looks at the vast Royal group of docks, built for steamships by entrepreneur engineers and at some of the industry that was created by the docks. Rob will also talk about the dock workers strike of 1889 and the creation of the Port of London Authority. One of a series of walks by Rob covering different periods in the development of the Port of London from the Romans to Canary Wharf, uncovering some of the legacy of the Port of London through street names, mooring posts, cranes, plaques etc. and using old maps and photographs.
Guide: Rob Smith
Meet at Royal Victoria DLR Station, Seagull Lane, London E16 1BZ
There’s so much more to Walthamstow than just its famous mile-long Market. The grand tombs in St Mary’s Churchyard offer a bit of a clue. Starting at the teenage home of William Morris, later home to publisher Edward Lloyd, who brought to us the tale of Sweeney Todd, and today home to the William Morris Gallery, this Guided Walk takes in a set of mews built by a local butcher/property developer, a theatre hidden within a school and a remnant from Robert Smirke’s General Post Office before visiting the real and original Walthamstow Village with its Ancient House, almshouses, workhouse and church to hear how Lord Mayor of London George Monoux was a great benefactor to the area and finishing in an industrial park which is not only home to the jaw dropping God’s Own Junkyard but the Wild Card Brewery and Mother’s Ruin Gin Palace too.
Guide: Joanna Moncreiff
Meet at William Morris Gallery (outside front entrance), 531 Forest Road, London E17 4PP
