Abbey Rd | >Re-PHOTO

More Thamesmead Panoramas: This final set of panoramic images came from my final visit to Thamesmead in November 1994.

*Lesnes Abbey, Ruins, Abbey Wood, Bexley, 1994, 94-1104-42*

I began and ended the day at Abbey Wood station and I no longer remember the route of the walk that I tookm but I think I began by going to the Lesnes Abbey Ruins. After the Norman conquest in 1066 land here was given to Bishop Odo, the half-brother of William the Conqueror and Bishop of Bayeux (and pictured on that tapestry he probably commissioned as a gift to his brother.)

Odo was the man who ran the country for his brother – until he was tried for fraud and disgraced. Odo was forgiven on William’s deathbed. But Lesnes Abbey was only founded in 1178 by the man then in charge of England for Henry II, Richard de Luci. He retired here then, possibly as a penance for his role earlier inspiring the 1170 murder of Thomas Beckett, and died three months after retiring.

The Abbey was always small and was closed by Cardinal Wolsey in 1525 as it had fewer than seven men living there. Much of the stones were taken away as building material with the abbot’s house becoming a part of a farmhouse. The London County Council bought the site and grounds in 1930 and opened it as a public park.

*Abbey Way, Footpath, Footbridge, Abbey Rd, Thamesmead, Bexley, 1994, 94-1104-21*

From the ruins I walked to the elevated footpath which leads into Thamesmead South.

*Abbey Way, Footpath, Footbridge, Abbey Rd, Thamesmead, Bexley, 1994, 94-1104-12*

The footbridge goes across Abbey Road and to the north gives a view of the tower blocks of Thamesmead across the horizon.

*Clocktower, Deptford Dockyard, Joyce Dawson Way, Thamesmead, Greenwich, 1994, 94-1003-32*

I don’t think I made many other panoramas as I walked towards the river, and this is one I made on an earlier visit. It isn’t a good picture of the clock tower as it doesn’t show the clock!

When Convoys took over the old Royal Naval Dockyard in 1960 to bring newsprint into London they had no interest in its history and despite many objections they demolished the large Great Storehouse and many other old buildings on the site. The clock tower which had been a later addition on the top of this ancient wooden building was saved by urgent pleas and left by the riverside at Convoys Wharf when the building was demolished in 1981.

But it was still just a nuisance to Convoys and they still were threatening to demolish it. The tower was saved by the GLC and taken by boat to Thamesmead and erected here in the middle of a commercial centre.

*Tavy Bridge Centre, Thamesmead, Bexley, 1994, 94-1102-22*

At some point in my visit I made another visit to the Tavy Btidge Centre and made a few more panoramas.

Tavy Bridge Centre, Thamesmead, Bexley, 1994, 94-1102-11

Tavy Bridge Centre, Thamesmead, Bexley, 1994, 94-1102-12

*Riverside Path, River Thames, Thamesmead, Greenwich, 1994, 94-1103-22*

The River Thames is around a mile and a half away. On a previous visit I had taken another panorama from an almost identical position, but I think this is a rather better composition with the rail lined up carefully with the opposite shore.

These two lines are in the vertical centre of the image and so remain straight. Standing up a little to the right of centre above them is the Barking Creek Barrier.

*Goldfish Are Wankers, Graffiti, Riverside Path, River Thames, Thamesmead, Greenwich, 1994, 94-1103-23*

I couldn’t decide which was the more interesting work of art, the strange yellow sculpture or the graffiti on the wall behind. The wall is the flood barrier to protect Thamesmead, much of which is low-lying.

*Crossness Nature Reserve, Thamesmead East, Bexley, 1994, 94-1101-61*

The Crossness Nature Reserve is to the east of Thamesmead, just past the large Crossness Sewage Treatment Works. When opened in 1865 the the sewage from London south of the Thames was simply pumped into the Thames when the tide was going out, but a large area of land was taken over to treat it before release around 1890.

*Crossness Nature Reserve, Thamesmead East, Bexley, 1994, 94-1103-41*

This is the end of my posts of colour pictures from around Thamesmead in 1994 though there are still a few more in my Flickr colour album for that year – as well as others in the 1994 black and white album.

Flickr – Facebook – My London Diary – Hull Photos – Lea Valley – Paris
London’s Industrial Heritage – London Photos

All photographs on this page are copyright © Peter Marshall.
Contact me to buy prints or licence to reproduce.

More around the Meridian – It’s seldom possible to actually walk for more than a few yards actually on the Greenwich Meridian in London and while planning my Meridian Walk I often wandered around considerably, having to make detours and also looking for the more interesting routes. So not all these images are exactly on the Meridian, but most were taken within a short distance from it.

*Greenway, Abbey Lane, Abbey Rd, Stratford, Newham, 1995, 95p4-1151*

When I began this project the Meridian was not marked on the Ordnance Survey or Street maps, and one of may first tasks was to get a ruler and pencil it on to them. In 1999 it was added to the OS maps of the area, but does not seem to be on the latest versions. In 1995 there were no smart phones with online maps and GPS which would have made things so much easier.

*Greenway, Abbey Lane, Abbey Rd, Stratford, Newham, 1995, 95p4-1152*

The Greenway was the recently rebranded path above the Northern Outfall Sewer which rans across East London from Hackney Wick to the sewage treatment plant at Beckton, going under the road here close the the bridge over Abbey Creek on the Channelsea River, where Abbey Lane becomes Abbey Road. You can see the bridge at the left of the picture.

*Greenway, Channelsea River, Stratford, Newham, 1995, 95p4-1153*

The Greenway is a great traffic-free cycle route for pedestrians and cyclists, running straight and level and this picture gives some evidence of that.

*Channelsea River, Long Wall, Stratford, Newham, 1995, 95p4-1111*

I’m not sure what this pipe was for, perhaps for taking gas across the river. Not far away on the other side of this tidal creek was one of the largest gas works in London – and you can still see its listed gasholders, though the view is likely to change soon with the site being redeveloped.

But behind me when I made this picture was the Abbey Mills sewage pumping station and on the edge of the creek below were the storm outfalls where sewage would be released after heavy rains. With the changing tides it would flow downstream a little and then could be taken miles upriver along the Prescott channel and the River Lea.

Gasholders, Leven Rd, Poplar, Tower Hamlets, 1995, 95p4-1332 — *Flats, East India Dock Rd, South Bromley, Tower Hamlets, 1995, 95p4-1321*

I think the Meridian went through the centre of the taller gas holder at Poplar Gas works.

*Flats, East India Dock Rd, South Bromley, Tower Hamlets, 1995, 95p4-1321*

Another view with the gasholders in the background.

*Clove Crescent, East India, DLR, South Bromley, Tower Hamlets, 1995, 95p4-1273*

My pencilled line for the Meridian shows it going through both the water in the dock and the brick building at left which was the former Blackwall Power Station in both of these pictures.

*Clove Crescent, East India DLR, South Bromley, Tower Hamlets, 1995, 95p4-1263*

South of the East India Docks the line crosses the River Thames above and between the two bores of the Blackwall Tunnel, closer to the original western tunnel now used by northbound traffic. I couldn’t take photographs in the tunnel – though it was possible for those on foot to take a bus across, but these would have been rather boring in any case.

*Blackwall Tunnel Entrance, Greenwich, 1995, 95p4-1672*

This picture shows the southern entrance to the tunnel with its 1897 Grade II listed gatehouse by the London County Council’s Superintending Architect Thomas Blashill. In front of it a less ornate red and white striped arch with heigh and weight restriction signs and hangers to hit any overtall vehicles and hopefully prevent damage to the gatehouse.

*Dorringtons, Blackwall Tunnel Southern Approach, Greenwich, 1995, 95p4-1551*

One picture not I think actually on the Meridian but not far from it, taken from the long footbridge over the Blackwall Tunnel Southern Approach.

*Riverside Path, Greenwich, 1995, 95p4-1762*

My path continued south along the riverside path, with the Meridian going into the River Thames on the extreme left of this picture.

*Riverside Path, Greenwich, 1995, 95p4-1742*

I kept to the land continuing along a path I’ve walked many times and making a few more pictures.

*Riverside Path, Greenwich, 1995, 95p4-1743*

Like much of London’s riverside almost all of the industry has now gone, but some relics remain, though most of this part of my route is now lined by rather boring flats.

I rejoined the Meridian where it made landfall in Greenwich – where I made some of the pictures at the end of my earlier post.

More colour work from 1995 including some more panoramas in a later post.

Flickr – Facebook – My London Diary – Hull Photos – Lea Valley – Paris
London’s Industrial Heritage – London Photos

Tag: Abbey Rd

More Thamesmead Panoramas – 1994

More Around the Meridian – 1995 Colour – Part 3