The CANARY WHARF ESTATE

On left hand side map: from here you can see the CANARY RIVERSIDE PLAZA hotel,  the pier, the ROYAL CHINA restaurant and the steps  that take you to WESTFERRY CIRCUS, and in the direction of the first entrance to all the CANARY WHARF shopping centres.

More than 100.000 people work in the CANARY WHARF, in financial companies and institutions, in other  industries (media, creative, government, in shops, restaurants and cafés). Plus the more than 100.000 dwellers of the whole “Isle”.

So, this means that you will not have any problem in getting here from central London or from other parts of the DOCKLANDS, on buses, DLR, tube or ELIZABETH LINE.

You were in CABOT SQ., coming from LIMEHOUSE. Look North and you see the brown brick  warehouses. Why not heading towards them, and visit the MUSEUM OF DOCKLANDS?. You are going to find, as well, a few eateries. 

You are in ISLE OF DOGS, which is a peninsula. A not many dogs are on view… It is assumed that, in the medieval era, the TUDORS bred hunting dogs here while residing at GREENWICH. But Flemish  engineers built DIJKS  (dykes) or walls or embankments  to prevent flooding of the area. Which etymology you prefer?.

By the way, THE ISLE OF DOGS is the title of a satirical play by BEN JONSON (a SHAKESPEARE contemporary, more precisely the writer buried in WESTMINSTER ABBEY in a standing up position, or upside down?, historians are not sure. But  vertical, for sure), for which he was imprisoned. The play was lost but it seems it caricaturists the members of the PRIVY COUNCIL (meeting at the royal palace across the river) as “lapdogs”, a reference to those dogs kennelled in this side.

In those times the Isle was called already STEPNEY MARSH, a boggy, almost unpopulated place, very remote. With the building of the docks came industries and rows of houses (CUBITT TOWN).

Historically, you are on land that used to belong to the  WEST INDIA DOCKS COMPANY, where this company built three  very large basins, one parallel to each other. The original layout is only visible on historical maps, after the redevelopment works carried out from the 80s  have amputated the old docks. The area became part of the PORT OF LONDON AUTHORITY.

Nowadays, part of the precinct is occupied by the CANARY WHARF ESTATE. CANARY WHARF, with its cluster of skyscrapers has become the emblem of the new LONDON DOCKLANDS, from the 80s, when this area started to be brought to life, from underuse, decay and dereliction.
100 years ago, in this cluster area, agricultural produce from the CANARY ISLANDS was unloaded. By the way, the name of the archipelago comes from the Latin word CANIS, that is DOGS.

A little curiosity: in fact the ISLE OF DOGS was an island!. After the creation of the IMPORT and tThe EXPORT DOCKS, a shipping canal was cut across the peninsula in 1805, which was later incorporated to the SOUTH DOCK

In the WEST INDIA DOCKS, in addition to contemporary architecture (the new CROSSRAIL PLACE, built to house the station of the new QUEEN ELIZABETH LINE, is an example; and do not miss its roof garden), you have three shopping centres with restaurants and cafés , real, if small, gardens, quayside walks (with more restaurants), gyms and other places to practice sports, special events all year round  (especially in the winter period and around  Christmas, as Christmas markets and ice rings, or in summer, with large screens in the squares showing sports competitions or films), activities for children, etc.  

And there is the MUSEUM OF LONDON DOCKLANDS.

Precisely this museum is housed in an historical warehouse, from the REGENCY period (beginnings  of the C19, when the PRINCE OF WALES was the REGENT, the effective monarch, due to the illness of his father, KING GEORGE III), one of the only few buildings  that have survived here, as the area was heavily an repeatedly bombarded during the BLITZ, in fact, since its very first day.

The quay opposite the museum was known as BLOODY ALLEY, as in fact, there was a lane between the warehouses and the transit sheds, as the porters’ necks, shoulders and hands used to bleed due to the rubbing of the sugar held in the sacks being unloaded here.
Sugar (or rum) from the WEST INDIES (COLUMBUS goal was India, but his expedition ended up in the Caribbean) makes you think of the slaves, first captured and then sold and bought along the coasts of  WEST AFRICA and transported across the ATLANTIC in a journey that constituted an authentic torture.
The MUSEUM deals openly with this sad chapter of human history, and thieve last years it has been acknowledged how wealthy British families benefited from the trade of slaves and  many more from their  work.

Charting the history of the DOCKLANDS area, the MOFLD displays archeological  and  historical artefacts (related with war and trade), maps and prints  and a model of OLD LONDON BRIDGE. It deals with the  BLITZ (started from BLACK SATURDAY, 7th September 1940).

If you look to the other side, where you can see the office buildings, note the reproduction of the HIBBERT GATE, an early access to the front (although placed in a different site), crowned with a model ship, of the same name. It celebrates GEORGE HIBBERT, another prominent man of the company, and who was one of the great defenders in the HOUSE OF COMMONS of the continuation of the slave trade.
His opponent, in the anti-slavery movement, was the formidable WILLIAM WILBERFORCE. Curiously enough, the two listened to the sermons of the rector of the church of HOLY TRINITY, CLAPHAM, a stone throw from their respective neighbouring residences.

The anti-slavery campaigners were a group of men (a some women) united by family or friendship links, by similar Evangelical religious views and by the strong conviction that slavery was wrong, and that it had to be abolished.. They were called the CLAPHAM SECT (and THE SAINTS, as well), but they were not really an organised sect. They met especially in CLAPHAM, close to the COMMON, and became very active from the last quarter of the c. 18 until the 1830. Finally, they achieved the abolition, first of the slaves trade, then of slavery itself. Visit CLAPHAM, you are going to like the place.

By the way, the vacant boarded building site beside you has been for years precisely that… a building site.

THE LEDGER BUILDING, which you have already seen, is my favorite pub. Of course, it is a WETHERSPOONS, cheap and cheerful. On its walls, as you know, you can read historical notes about the area, and see reproductions ancient maps. This building used to have the function that the name of the pub estates.

On the west side of the building you'll find the plaque unveiled during the opening of the WEST INDIA by, amongst others, the LORD CHANCELLOR  (LOUGHBOROUGH) and the FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY (PITT). I always thought that a PRIMER MINISTER (FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY) has precedence over the LORD CHANCELLOR… maybe not at the beginning of thec1800s.

To your left (West), the lower buildings are now the CANNON WORKSHOPS, originally dedicated to the shipping and maritime industries. Nowadays, devoted  to creative trades. There is a café. To the right, the small Edwardian brick building was the offices of the PLA POLICE.

Opposite the museum you can board the boats of SKUNA: HOT TUB and BBQ. OTTO is going to help you. 
Finally, have you realised that you have a church beside you?. The ST.PETER’S BARGE.

From the quayside you can reach the DLR station, on the viaduct, or , walking a little further  East access the ELIZABETH LINE, and also to cafes, restaurants, cinemas, etc. of this building by NORMAN FOSTER’s architectural practice. It opened in 2021.  You will be in CROSSRAIL PLACE. CROSSRAIL is the technical name by which the new railway line was known, before it was baptised in honour of Queen Elizabeth II.  Do not miss the rooftop garden!.

From up there you will see better the district dedicated to medical and live sciences, and the London wholesale fish market, NEW BILLINGSGATE, which was located here in the 1980s. You can visit it, and get some lessons of how to cook fish!. 

Or you can cross the FLOATING bridge that crosses the originally called EXPORT DOCK (now, the NORTH DOCK) and, alongside the other side, access CROSSRAIL PLACE, passing the MARKET HALLS.

Or you can head to CABOT SQUARE and enter the first shopping center, CABOT PLACE (remember that the other malls are connected underground, between them and the CANARY WHARF LU station). 

You are in a district that when it was born was destined to be the “second” financial area. A second CITY.
The ONE CANADA SQUARE tower, by the US-Argentinian architect CÉSAR PELLI, is the most  iconic building of the area (only look at the logo of the development) and in 1991 it became the tallest building in London and the second in Europe. The majority of the buildings within the CANARY WHARF ESTATE are offices (note many familiar names and logos), but, on the other hand, a good part of the skyscrapers further South (South of the SOUTH DOCK, closer to the MILLWALL DOCKS>>>>) are residential. This is called  nowadays in London “MANHATTAN STYLE LIVING”.
And WOOD WHARF >>>>, which belongs to the Estate, to the East, is mostly residential.

And, furthermore, in the western part of CANARY WHARF, the NEWFOUNLAND and the LANDMARK are both high-end apartments. Between the two, curiously, you see an office tower, the headquarters of SOCIÉTÉ GÉNÉRALE and the EUROPEAN BANK FOR RECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT.

The oblong building without clear openings and that looks like floating on the dock, 12 BANK STREET, is a private members club.

The development of the district has not been uniform along the years. In times of recession nothing was build. The two towers both sides of ONE CANADA SWUARE were finished in 2003.
A curious piece of information: before the transformation into a financial centre began, CANARY WHARF had already attracted companies, which began to occupy old warehouses or other buildings.. A company that was based here during the 80s was LIMEHOUSE TELEVISION STUDIOS, which produced the famous program SPITTING IMAGES here.

Enjoy the JUBILEE GARDENS, above the LU station, and will find an entrance to the JUBILEE PLACE.

The station is pretty spectacular, especially the roof of the main entrance. And inside, a huge cavern, so big that the ONE CANADA  SQUARE building could fit inside, lying down, of course. Taking into account that the station was build on the site of the empty IMPORT (now MIDDLE DOCK) that means that they did not have to dig so much out as the hole was already there!.  

Precisely the MIDDLE DOCK  has been recently remodelled, the quayside becoming closer and more accessible,  so this has become an even nicer area.

To ISLAND GARDENS (for GREENWICH)                                   alongside the MILLWALL DOCK

A SCDS is sited in BANK STREET and UPPER BANK ST. West and East, respectively, of the JUBILEE GARDENS, an below the HERON QUAYS DLR station.

From the CANARY WHARF area, more specifically, from the EAST WINTERGARDEN or the WEST WINTERGARDENS (to the South of the JUBILEE GARDENS), there is access to the footbridge over the SOUTH QUAY.

This side is becoming increasingly residential, bar some offices and hotels. There are restaurants and cafés, and a little street food piazza.

Note the WARDIAN development, in which the luxury apartments  enjoy generous balconies-conservatories where the owners can design their own opulent, if relatively small, sky-gardens. The name comes from NATHANIEL BAGSHAW WARD, the scientist (in fact he was a doctor, but became an explorer and botanist) who invented the WARDIAN CASE, a method of transporting plants safely from long distant lands. He practised medicine from his surgery in <<<<WELLCLOSE SQUARE, and put his knowledge to the service of the poor Eastenders.

You will go along the dock and head South (right) and heading towards the SOUTH QUAY station of the DLR. This area suffered in 1996 a terrorist attack by the way of an IRA BOMB that killed two people, and many more were hurt. One building had to be demolished. The bombing ended the ceasefire that the armed organisation had called previously.

Once you pass under the tracks, you only have to walk  along the MILWALL DOCK, where you will find cafés and restaurants.  And you can stop in the area of ​​PEPPER STREET and the GLENGALL BRIGE, as you will like it, since it looks like the street of a provincial seafaring town.

The MILLWALL DOCK was a different initiative, under different ownership. It entered operation in 1868, although the COMPANY was formed 2 years later. It dealt mostly with grain  (Mc DOUGALL) and timber.  You are walking along the INNER DOCK, but you could continue walking along the OUTER one. At the SE corner of this last, the former GRAVING DOCK (for repairs) is now an empty marina —the CLIPPER QUAY— surrounded by charming housing.

Most part of the DOCK is surrounded by housing, but there are still some offices buildings. For you to see how the DOCKLANDS are changing, look at that ARENA building you are passing by. The name, in fact, refers to the huge indoor LONDON DOCKLANDS ARENA which stood here for almost 20 years.

Towards the end of the dock, you will turn left and go under the DLR tracks, emerging on the road. Opposite, you will find the entrance to  the MUDCHUTE CITY FARM (an urban farm, ideal attraction for children, where you will find a café  and a WORLD WAR TWO anti aircraft gun).

When you come off the farm, South Side, MILLWALL PARK is waiting for you, and  following the old train viaduct (in use by the DLR trains until 1999) you will arrive to ISLAND GARDENS DLR STATION. Note the FRANK DOBSON’s sculpture WOMAN AND FISH. In fact is a replica, as the original was vandalised, when it used to be the centrepiece of a housing estate.

Finally, at the Southern tip of the ISLE OF DOGS you are going to find the ISLAND GARDENS.

By the way,  MUDCHUTE is a place name that emerged from the fact that mud, or earth from the dock was “shooted” or dumped over the place, when it was dredged.

You just have to go down the stairs or by the lift, follow the tunnel under the THAMES and, voilà!, you will be in GREENWICH. And the QUEEN'S HOUSE, part of the MARITIME MUSEUM, you can admire the famous painting that CANALETTO emulating the same view that you have enjoyed from ISLAND GARDENS.

The GREENWICH FOOT TUNNEL dates from 1902, and allowed the dockers and others to cross the river (remember that TOWER BRIDGE is the only bridge on the East side of the metropolis). You will notice the area which had to be repaired, due to bomb damage.

Why not continue the walk or ride around the “ISLE”? >>>>.

Buses to/from ISLAND GARDENS. The DLR STATION is by the main road

Walking or cycling the Thames Path,                 towards ISLAND GARDENS

Same destination as the last chapter… but a different route.

From CANARY WHARF to ISLAND GARDENS you are going to be walking, or cycling, following, the THAMES PATH, almost  the entire bank of the THAMES from LIMEHOUSE. The neighbourhood is called, in the western part of the ISLE OF DOGS, MILLWALL.

At the start, perhaps the bridge over the former lock that used to give access to the SOUTH DOCK is not open. In this case you only have to follow the walkways along the streets, heading  to the feet  of the CASCADES building, which shows modern features , but also  details of an old port warehouse and nautical motives. It is project from the W of DWZG (REX WILKINSON). In 1988 this became the first privately developed high rise building in the ISLE OF DOGS.
Note that for most of the walk you will see homes, some with a more interesting design than others. Nothing exceptional.

You will pass the park named in honor of the owner of the flour mill that was beside the MILLWALL DOCK, and local benefactor, SIR JOHN McDOUGALL.

Again, you will have to separate a little from the river bank, at ARNHEM WHARF, where you will walk beside the school. ARNHEM is a Dutch town where an important battle took place during WW2. Then, on the WESTFERRY RD. you will cross the site of the lock that allowed ships to access the MILLWALL DOCKS system. On WESTFERRY ROAD, look for THE SPACE, an arts and performance centre, converted from a SCOTTISH PRESBYTERIAN church (testimony of the Scots whowere living and working around here).

An empty plot is pending development. A project exists… This area was occupied from the 80s by the biggest printing works in Europe, where the some of the most important dailies of the UK were printed. You can pay a visit and join the DOCKLANDS SAILING AND WATERSPORTS CENTRE. 

 As soon as you can, through MAST HOUSE TERRACE and FERGUSON CLOSE, return to the THAMES PATH and continue ahead.

You will almost immediately pass by the place - BURRELLS WHARF - where ISAMBARD KINGDOM BRUNEL supervised the construction and launching, in  1858, of the SS GREAT EASTERN, the largest ironship in the world ever built until then. This happened 15 years after the <<<<THAMES TUNNEL, designed by his father MARC, and culminated by himself, was opened. You can see part of the     timber slipway. The complex was then owned by MILLWALL IRON WORKS of JOHN SCOTT RUSSELL. 
It took 3 months to float her sideways  into the Thames, as she was 629ft long!. And DICKENS was present!.  
It had a short span of service as a passenger and cargo ship. It was put to work laying Atlantic cables, and it was broken up in 1888.

After the demise of shipbuilding on the THAMES,  BURRELL’S COLOUR BUSINESS (dyes and pigments) took over for the best part of the 20th c. (until the 1980s). It was converted into residential.

The former OFFICES, the PLATE HOUSE and, on the main road) the FORGE, are listed buildings, converted to residential.

A SBDS is by the slipway.

Back around the main road, do not miss the LCC development of social housing, built for returned soldiers:  HOUSES FOR THE HEROIS. Lovely streets.

And the FIRE BRIGADE STATION has become a restaurant. 

Continuing along the river path (although towards the end you will follow the streets, since the embankment is occupied by private housing estates) you will pass THE FERRY HOUSE pub, on FERRY STREET, which reminds you of the existence here of a ferry or boatman since medieval times. And, finally, after the JOHNSON DRAW DOCK and the ROWING CLUB, you will arrive at ISLAND GARDERNS.

The entire route you have followed is replicated inland by the WESTFERRY ROAD (served by the buses), where you will find shops and cafes, the aforementioned SPACE, as well as some othe  historical industrial buildings, a Catholic Church, an LCC school  and social housing by the same institution. Or the former MILLWALL fire brigade headquarters, now a restaurant.

By the road, ISLAND GARDENS DLR station (for GREENWICH or back towards the CITY) and the buses will take you to the CITY, CANARY WHARF, LIMEHOUSE, POPLAR or to COLDHARBOUR, where there is a large ASDA supermarket and you will be very close to the MILLWALL DOCK and the CITY FARM. 
By ISLAND GARDENS a SCDS.

The Thames Path:                                                     from ISLAND GARDENS to BLACKWALL

And finally…
You can complete the entire shore of the ISLE OF DOGS, after ISLAND GARDENS. Some former warehouses and draw docks are what you will see, but above all, again, contemporary apartments  and houses, although on the more inland side social housing dominates, forming not so attractive COUNCIL ESTATES.
Because of the BLITZ, few original Victorian buildings remain, such as CHRISTCHURCH, ISLE OF DOGS, or the WATERMAN'S ARMS pub and hotel.
This last place deserves some attention since it was owned by a somewhat mythical character in London, DAN FARSON, a writer, journalist, pioneer of the most daring television interviews... He dealt, in his books, with the bohemian life of Soho, and the East End, with crime, and with the history of MUSIC HALL.
In fact, he acquired this pub and turned it into a music hall and later into a jazz venue, where famous artists performed and where celebrities from all over the world attended the shows.

Carry on, on the river path: a “Dutch” style development of town-houses also stands out.

The neighbourhood you are visiting is CUBITT TOWN; The name is due to the person who designed and built it, SIR WILLIAM CUBITT, from a family of builders and engineers, who would also be LORD MAYOR of the CITY. You will hear a lot about the CUBITTs when it comes to building London, but pay attention, in fact there were two important families with that name.

You will pass an original PUMPING STATION to evacuate excess water on the docks, in case of a storm.

Then, the attractive white apartment blocks and the Victorian local offices of the CANAL & RIVER TRUST, the non-profit charity  that runs Britain's canals, as well as this former dock areas (you are still going to see a few signs from the time of BRITISH WATERWAYS, the public body who run the canals previously).
You will cross, separating yourself a little bit from the river, the BLUE BRIDGE (opened in 1969), inspired in a traditional Dutch bascule or draw bridge, over the lock that allows entry to the SOUTH DOCK, still in use. Immediately after that, to your right, you will enter COLDHARBOUR (street) and you will not miss THE GUN pub. It has a fantastic terrace.

COLDHARBOUR is a place name that originates in sites that used as a plain, simple shelter.

Follow the street and discover its Georgian and Victorian buildings. You will recognise the old police station. And NELSON HOUSE (I seems that the victorious admiral and his lover, LADY HAMILTON, used this dwelling). Pure legend. What about a tunnel between the house and the pub?.

The street returns you  to the main road, PRESTONS'S ROAD.

To WOOD WHARF, JUBILEE GARDENS and CANARY WHARF LU STATION

At this level you could enter the new WOOD WHARF development, belonging to the CANARY WHARF ESTATE. Before, though, have a look at the BLACKWALL BASIN and POPLAR DOCK MARINA, residential docks, in buildings and on boats. In the old times would have been filled with ships being built, with coal barges, and surrounded by industrial buildings and railway lines

You will notice that WOOD WHARF is predominantly residential. It even has typical London garden squares. The iconic building is ONE PARK DRIVE, designed by Swiss architects HERZOG & DE MEURON (who designed the restoration and conversion of the BANKSIDE POWER STATION into TATE MODERN (opened in 2000), and more recently created the new TATE wing (2019].

If you walk or cycle across  the WOOD WHARF district  (definitely, wood was unloaded around this area) Westwards  and head to the main entrance of the CANARY WHARF LU station you will enjoy the JUBILEE GARDENS and JUBILEE PLACE, the underground shopping centre.

The JUBILEE LINE  arrived here much late, in 2000, with respect to the opening of the complex. The interior of the station is impressive, thought 

40 years ago there was (there is still a portion, look at the old maps) one of the 3 docks of the WEST INDIA system, the IMPORT DOCK (now called MIDDLE DOCK). Therefore, to create the station, they did not had to dig as much…

To the right of the station the firmer REUTERS headquarters have been refurbished, and planting has been added to the façade, a not very usual feature in an office building.  And this end of the dock has been transformed improving the appearance of the place. In the background, the building with few openings is a private club.

To BLACKWALL and POPLAR

Remember when you were exiting in COLDHARBOUR, at the entrance of WOOD WHARF. I bet you have had a beer at  THE GUN. Here's another idea...

You could go to POPLAR and also to BLACKWALL and the EAST INDIA DOCKS.

The D6 takes you to POPLAR from PRESTON'S ROAD. But you can also go on foot, through the POPLAR DOCK MARINA, walking alongside the water,  behind the wall on the left, then crossing the highway on a nicely developed SUBWAY, which will take you to the foot of the BLACKWALL DLR station. and the last stop of bus 15, and finally, you will continue straight along POPLAR HIGH ST>>>>.

However, first I recommend BLACKWALL>>>>.

And up to here the ISLE OF DOGS

BLACKWALL

You have to walk along PRESTON'S ROAD. Follow FAIRMONT AVENUE around the apartments, and you will come out onto BLACKWALL WAY, passing one of the ventilation towers of the BLACKWALL TUNNEL.

You will pass the former THOMSON REUTERS database, but now it is from TELEHOUSE. A typical high tech building from the ROGERS architectural partnership. And there is a clue to find out who the previous occupant of the building was: the  JOHN JULIUS CLOSE street plaque

JOHN JULIUS REUTER was the founder of the news agency, at the ROYAL EXCHANGE PLACE, in the CITY. There you will find a BUST in his memory. REUTERS’ historical HQ was on FLEET ST. It is now in CANARY WHARF, although it moved buildings in 2021.

Within the precinct (and normally not open to the public) there is an historic (built in 1607) dry dock, part of the BLACKWALL YARD, belonging to the EAST INDIA COMPANY, the company that had a monopoly on trade with the Indian subcontinent and the Far East and that, in fact, ruled India.

Continue until you reach the EAST INDIA DLR station. Then you will turn right and go towards the river, following the line of the GREENWICH MERIDIAN. When you reach the THAMES you cross the Meridian Line,  and of course, now you are on the EAST SIDE OF THE EARTH. You continue to the MEMORIAL TO THE FIRST SETTLERS OF VIRGINIA. 

The flag of the COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA and the American flag also fly, together with the British and the English  flags, beside the MEMORIAL. From this area  a convoy of three English ships set sail heading to VIRGINIA, a territory already known, but not yet colonised. The voyagers became settlers, founding  JAMESTOWN. That happened  in 1607.
The first governor was called JOHN SMITH, does that sound familiar to you?. And what about that merchant who sailed,  in a different voyage (1609j and introduced a new type of seeds of tobacco into Virginia, the cultivation of which formed the basis of its economy, by the name of JOHN ROLFE... who would end up marrying an indigenous woman, but baptised Christian as REBECCA, but before  that called …POCAHONTAS!. 

One of the streets in the modern development is JAMESTOWN and others refer as well to this colonising adventure but if you look closely at the map you will see a PILGRIM MEWS. PILGRIM?. Which pilgrim?. Here they got confused: the PILGRIM FATHERS traveled some years later (1623) on a ship bound for Virginia but which was diverted from its route and they ended up disembarking in CAPE COD, currently MASSACHUSSETS, and finally founded NEW PLYMOUTH. The ship had sailed first  from ROTHERHITHE, on the South bank of the Thames, and from there to PLYMOUTH (DEVON). That ship was the MAYFLOWER and the MAYFLOWER pub  (ROTHERHITHE) commemorates that historical fact. One day you have to enjoy a beer there and visit the BRUNEL MUSEUM,  next door.  

Memorial to the FIRST COLONS

Now you are within the former precincts of the EAST INDIA DOCKS, from where the ships of the EAST INDIA COMPANY used to set sail towards the Indian Sub-Continent. After being build, repaired and provisioned here.
The valuable goods brought to London were taken to the warehouses on CUTLER ST. (CITY), on wagons, alongside  the EAST INDIA DOCK and COMMERCIAL ROADS, which were created precisely with this purpose.

The residential development that you have on the left occupies the land where there was the EXPORT DOCK (and later, until 40 years ago, the BRUNSWICK POWER STATION). The much larger IMPORT DOCK was behind it, to the North.
The trains brought here, as well, people  boarding ships to emigrate to AUSTRALIA.  That was in the 19th c.. They ate at the BRUNSWICK HOTEL, which was also the scene of the rather recreational meetings of the British governments in the Victorian era called the WHITEBAIT SUPPERS. You can still eat fresh whiting in some London pubs or some FISH&CHIPS restaurants. My favourite place is the TRAFALGAR TAVERN, in GREENWICH (the DLR takes you there from here!).

You will continue and reach the BASIN or the only former dock that still exists (now a wildlife sanctuary) after passing the lock bridge. Now the area has become a natural park. After the LOCK and the MILLENIUM BEACON, Continue straight ahead, and leave the precinct through the SALOME GATES, designed by the artist SIR ANTHONY CARO.

You are entering the LEAMOUTH area. The estuary or mouth of the LEA RIVER.

Walk Eastwards along ORCHARD PLACE and you will reach TRINITY BUOY WHARF, passing a residential development (2020), even if  the new apartment buildings look like warehouses.  Notice the repair dry dock, though, which is an historical relict. Now, it has been landscaped as a garden.

This area was part of ORCHARD HOUSE YARD, dedicated to shipbuilding during the second half of the 19th c.  The only known surviving vessel built at the yard is SS Robin, a 300-ton steam-powered coaster which is part of the National Historic Fleet and the last of her type still in existence. She was built at Orchard House Yard in 1890 by Mackenzie and is currently located a short distance away in the Royal Victoria Dock.

For more than 100 years nobody  has  been a living here. In Victorian times a community ,with churches, schools and taverns was living here, isolated, incomunicados, and with a high degree of endogamy.

TRINITY BUOY WHARF was the place where the CORPORATION OF THE TRINITY HOUSE (remember, based in TOWER HILL) experimented and manufactured the maritime signalling -buoys, lighthouses - destined to make England’s coasts safe for navigation, and trained its personnel. SIR MICHAEL FARADAY experimented here the first electrical lighthouse.
Nowadays, a creative and artistic cluster is  housed in a mix of Victorian buildings and converted shipping containers, around  which you will enjoy many artworks, and, in the same precinct, you will find places to eat and drink.

 
On the South bank of the THAMES, on the GREENWICH PENINSULA or NORTH GREENWICH,  you see another iconic building of London, THE O2, originally the MILLENIUM DOME. It was designed by the RICHARD ROGERS partnership and it was supposed to represent a symbol of the new millennium. It was the scene of a big NEW YEAR’S EVE PARTY in 1999, where the QUEEN and the Prime Minister TONY BLAIR welcomed the new Millenium.

Afterwards, a brilliant idea was put in motion: the opening of a spectacular exhibition to celebrate  humankind and the Third Millenium. 12 million visitors were expected, coming from the four corners of the world, but the real truth was pretty different, and disappointing. Only 6 million came.

After the closure of the exhibition, came years where the DOME became a white elephant. The very existence of this gigantic building was in doubt.  One of the proposals was pure and simple demolition.
Finally, in 2005, it was purchased by the ANSCHUTZ ENTERTAINMENT GROUP  which reached and agreement with the mobile phone provider company O2 giving it the naming rights of the venue.  And, as they say, the rest is history. No more a white elephant, but a very successful venue, at the centre of a new, upcoming neighbourhood.

The dome is one of the largest buildings by volume of useable space, in the world. And the actual structure is lighter than the weight of the the air contained in it!. Inside, apart from air, you will find the famous and huge O2 Arena, a smaller music venue, INDIGO, cinemas, bowling and restaurants and bars. 
And, on its top, you will get a fantastic view… seriously!: UP AT THE O2.

On the East side of TRINITY BUOY WHARF, another river, the LEA RIVER,  whose last stretch is called in fact BOW CREEK. On the other side of the CREEK, it had been the main site of the THAMES IRON WORKS, where warships and other types of vessels were built 100 years ago. This was the factory where WEST HAM UNITED FOOTBAL CLUB was born, IN 1895, the most representative club of East London, the Eastender club par excellence (the COCKNEY BOYS!). They are, of course, the HAMMERS. And the IRONS.  And look at the club badge: hammers. Precisely, it what you need at an iron works. The team had its first ground was on the other side of the river, now the MEMORIAL RECREATION GROUNDS. After 9 years they moved their base to the BOLEYN GROUND>>>>. Now the team plays in the LONDON STADIUM>>>>.

Backwards to LONDON CITY ISLAND and, across the RIVER LEA, to CANNING TOWN

Inevitably,  when you end your visit here,  you will have to retrace your steps, since you find yourself in a peninsula. When you arrive again at the SALOME GATES, why not turning right and have a look LONDON CITY ISLAND (in fact, a peninsula, again!), a development fully open since 2019, with apartments and some offices and cultural institutions (such as the headquarters of the ENGLISH NATIONAL BALLET, an art gallery and a cinema school). And, as usually, you will find some places to eat and drink. Historically, this peninsula was called GOODLUCK HOPE, the name used for the  contemporary de development along ORCHARD PLACE. At one stage, it was called LIMMO PENINSULA.

On the map, CANNING TOWN STATION

Public transport to/from CANNING TOWN

Walk across the peninsula, and, at its northern tip, you will find the RED BRIDGE that will allow you to cross the BOW CREEK  and reach CANNING TOWN, more precisely, the LU (JUBILEE LINE) and DLR, and bus stations.

CANNING TOWN is part of the LONDON BOROUGH OF NEWHAM, which is considered one of the most deprived local authorities in England. But not anymore the SECOND MOST deprived, as ITV used to be ranked only a few years ago.

The TOWN centre is nearby, alongside the BARKING RD., but it is not very attractive. The former TOWN HALL, where KEIR HARDIE, SYLVIA PANKHURST or WILL THORNE spoke, is a beautiful building.

The 330 bus will take you near the ROYAL VICTORIA DOCK, part of the ROYAL GROUP DOCKS, another dock system, at one time merged with the ST.KATHARINE’s. In fact, this docks were the largest group of enclosed in the world, with the largest man-made body of water. The whole area has been redevelopment and relandscaped as residential, business, educational and a leisure district.

You can visit CITY HALL, in a building easy to recognise, originally called THE CRYSTAL, created by SIEMENS as think tank and a centre for dissemination on the subject sustainability of cities.
Next door, you can jump on the CABLE CAR, which will take you a stone's throw from THE O2, in the GREENWICH PENINSULA.

Bus 330 continues its route until  it passes very close to the LONDON CITY AIRPORT, but especially is very handy if you want to get espectacular views of the THAMES BARRIER,  from the THAMES BARRIER PARK. I will deal with this area in a different web. However, one curiosity: you will be  in NORTH WOOLWICH, thus called because it was under jurisdiction of the BOROUGH OF WOOLWICH (based SOUTH of the THAMES), until 1965. WOOLWICH is now part of the ROYAL BOROUGH OF GREENWICH, and you will be forgiven if you think that you are in a GREENWICH district. But… nop!,  the NORTH WOOLWICH is part of NEWHAM.  Wait, wait… the PARK is managed by GREENWICH, not by NEWHAM. One of those London eccentricities…

East side of the Lea, West side of the Lea. 

Remember that you were on the other side of the RED BRIDGE?. Now, you decide to enter BOW CREEK ECOLOGY PARK, on ​​the neighbouring peninsula, to the West; so you have to turn left. You will see that the DLR passes the the ecological park, the whole length of the peninsula, but, mind you, here is no station. After seeing this small park, another bridge is going to take you over the LEE, and you will head towards the EAST INDIA DOCK BASIN or to EAST INDIA DLR station, alongside the path following the LEA bank.

And still more nature…

Remember when you were coming back from TRINITY BUOY WHARF, but you decide to through the SALOME GATES again?.  Then you can choose to visit the EAST INDIA DOCK BASIN and enjoy, also here, a nature reserve, and then, going around this old dock, head towards the EAST INDIA DLR station.

The park is run by the LEA VALLEY REGIONAL PARK. You are visiting a fraction of that park, of the LEA VALLEY, South of the OLYMPIC PARK. To North of this one the bigger part of the LVRP is going to receive a mention, and a future web is going to deal with it.

In order to go to the DLR station following this route, you have to pass through the site  of the old IMPORT DOCK, where now you will see offices and data centres . In fact, the TOWER HAMLETS TOWN HALL was located here, before moving to the  <<<<ROYAL LONDON HOSPITAL 18th c. buildings. And you will find a couple of bars, as well.

Inside the precinct there is  an access to the EAST INDIA station by means of a walkway 

If you still feel strong, you could walk to POPLAR. You will leave the precinct going passing under an arch through the high walls of the old port complex.
You will note a water pumping station and you will follow NAVAL ROW. A closed  dockers pub looks  derelict.
You will pass the entrances to the BLACKWALL TUNNELS on your right, and on the left, a roundabout with the bus 15 end of the route stop and the BLACKWALL DLR station. SCDS. And then you can continue along POPLAR HIGH STREET, passing what is left of ROBIN HOOD GARDENS, a grey and ugly and discredited COUNCIL ESTATE in the process of being demolished. A fragment, though, has been acquired by the V&A MUSEUM, to be exhibited, as it is considered an iconic BRUTALIST building.
Soon you will see, to the right, the church of ALL SAINTS, POPLAR>>>>.  And then you will arrive at the old TOWN HALL of POPLAR, now the LANSBURY HOTEL>>>>.

More information

SHORT HISTORY OF CANNING TOWN I

SHORT HISTORY OF CANNING TOWN II

And that is all about BLACKWALL

POPLAR

POPLAR, another typical Eastender district, traditional home to the popular classes, which nobody would have  visited a few years ago,  but which has some charms and points of interest.

Since you are in the central part of the district,  the first building that catches your eye is that large brown brick one, with some DECO elements: the former PUBLIC BATHS. One  of those public buildings, or institutions,  that are found in all the districts of London (the people of the working classes did not  have a complete bathroom in the house, until the post-War period;  there was only a W.C in the garden of the house, which was shared by all the households living in the building. The PUBLIC BATHS building is now, fully renovated,  a LEISURE CENTER, with swimming pool, gym, etc.

Opposite the entrance of the Leisure Centre, the STATUE OF RICHARD GREEN, local shipowner and philanthropist. The dog accompanying him has only one ear. ear. A local boy who had jumped on the monument got a hand caught  inside a tight corner (naughty!) and the fire fighters had to cut the ear…

In EAST INDIA DOCK RD., a little further west, you willsee the firmer Victorian school that his father, GEORGE, contributed to fund and endow. Now, POPLAR HARCA offices (the housing association that runs most of the former council estates of the area)  occupy the building.

On the North pavement and development is where you will most of the social life of the area, with the  shops, banks, restaurants, cafés, and the IDEA STORE (library).

You are now entering now a postwar development that was intended as a model  of new architecture for SOCIAL HOUSING. In fact, it was opened as an "open air museum" during the 1951 FESTIVAL OF BRITAIN, organised to showroom the prospects of a better  life in the United Kingdom, still affected by war era the restrictions and by the physical consequences of the recent bombardments, that had left the housing of the metropolis seriously decimated. The SOUTH BANK CENTRE has, as its most iconic building, one of the few survivals of the 1951 event, the ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL.

Except for SUNDAYS, in the central plaza CHRISP STREET MARKET takes centre stage, a typical street market of the EAST END of London. And a couple of small cafés  serve authentic CURRIES  and other types of  world food.
Note that EASTENDERS, on this side of the main road, serve PIE & MASH and JELLIED EELS, typical dishes of the EAST END and other London working class neighbourhoods.

From the centre of te market, if you look Eastwards, you will recognise, one mile or so away, the 1967  BALFRON TOWER, an iconic London building, sister to the TRELLICK TOWER of NOTTING HILL. The Hungarian ËRNO GOLDFINGER was the architect that designed both those publicly developed residential towers, in a BRUTALIST style. Both would become magnets for crime, delinquency, drug trafficking… both areas became rundown. Both buildings were finally sold off by the local authority, they have been renovated  and now are magnets for gentrification.

In fact, BALFRON is accompanied by the CARRADALE tower, and are examples of a MODERNIST style called BRUTALISM (from the French BRUT, as it is mostly concrete , BETON BRUT,  what it is on view). 

GOLDFINGER’s buildings were not the cup of tea of IAN FLEMING, and that is why he created the famous evil character, GOLDFINGER, of JAMES BOND fame. Obviously the architect did not appreciate the link (he received nasty letters and phone calls) and the matter had to be settled in court.

The so-called open-air museum, initiated in 51, has been enlarged  and is still being added new buildings . In fact you are visiting the LANSBURY ESTATE, originally a COUNCIL ESTATE, but now it is not run anymore by TOWER HAMLETS, but by various HOUSING ASSOCIATIONS. If you see the plaques (or the maintenance vans)  of  POPLAR HARCA o TOWER HAMLETS HOMES around, do not be surprised.

Moving North: to LANGDON PARK

Moving North: to BARTLETT PARK

On the map, the POPLAR UNION, on BARTLETT PARK

To the Northwest of the LANSBURY ESTATE, walking or cycling towards LIMEHOUSE, you will cross through BARTLETT PARK, bordered by the course of the LIMEHOUSE CUT.  A contemporary  development was erected around the former ST. SAVIOUR’S church, Victorian, converted into living quarters, The former church is  only survival of the terraces of houses, shops, pubs (note the surviving former corner pub), factories… that were here before the BLITZ: the park did not exist!.  Bus route 309 serves the area . But, why tot having a coffee  at the POPLAR UNION café?. Events take place at this arts and community centre that has helped re landscape the park. 

If you walk East 

On the map, ALL SAINTS church. To the South, the POPLAR HIGH STREET

Towards POPLAR HIGH STREET

Remember, when you were on the main street, EAST INDIA DOCK RD. CANARY WHARF is on view.

EASTENDERS (PIE & MASH) behind you.  Your two next destinations could be:

The church to the left: this  is the parish church of POPLAR: ALL SAINTS, built at the beginning of the 19th century.
If you look to the other side, the RECREATIONAL GROUND, presided over by a MEMORIAL  to the CHILDREN who lost their life during a bombardment that destroyed their school.

After visiting the church, we recommend that you have a look this park, and then walk to LANSBURY HERITAGE HOTEL.

This building was, first the POPLAR DISTRICT BOARD, then POPLAR’S TOWN HALL 100 years ago.

Now, imagine in this place the Labour MAYOR GEORGE LANSBURY and his local government team (including two other members of his family) refusing to contribute to to the LONDON COUNTY COUNCIL budget, alleging that this district could not afford  the same amount of money that, for example, KENSINGTON, one of the wealthiest boroughs of the country.

Because their refusal, the leftist councillors were arrested and sentenced to imprisonment. After 6 weeks, thanks to the popular pressure, with the help of the unions and other local councils they were released. The POPLAR RATES REBELLION became inscribed as an important episode in the history of the wirking classes and of London.  
The rate (now, COUNCIL TAX) was the tax exacted by the boroughs, according to the value of each  property. A fraction of it plus the money collected from the PRECEPT were allocated by the borough to the L.C.C. in order to fund it and other common services (police, water works, social asylums).

The L.C.C  was abolished in 1965, when the GREATER LONDON COUNCIL  was put in place, by the same London Local Government Act of 1963 that created and put in place (from 1965] the current 33 local authorities of the metropolis (32 London Boroughs, including the City of Westminster, and the City of London).
This arrangement lasted until 1985, when the G.L.C. was abolished. The 33 authorities remained though.
And, finally, the GREATER LONDON AUTHORITY, was born in 2000, with the same territorial jurisdiction as the G.L.C., that is, about 1600 km approximately or around 600 square miles

However, note that for 14 years Greater London did not have a local government a government running  the whole of the metropolis, thanks to the government of PM  MARGARET THATCHER, who saw the G.L.C as a too left-weaning institution and which represented a counterweight to her government.

And, by the way,  a new word was coined in those convulsed years: POPLARISM, that is, defiance on the part of local authorities.
GEORGE LANSBURY, in the 1930s, became LEADER of the LABOUR PARTY,  and even tried to influence inter war  international politics.
He was the father of ANGELA LANSBURY, the actress.

Behind the LANSBURY HOTEL there is a separate part of the park.  There is an access on WOODSTOCK TERRACE and another one on the HIGH ST.  Do not miss the former ST.MATHIAS church, which was founded and erected by the EAST INDIA COMPANY, in the c.17. Currently is a community center and a crèche or daycare centre for infants.

If you follow the HIGH STREET Westwards, note the former LIBRARY and the former ENGINEERING AND NAVIGATION SCHOOL, now NEW CITY COLLEGE. The former institution is where a young ALFRED HITCHCOCK  learned matters  of electricity that became very helpful for his future cinema career, according to his own memoirs. He was living with his family in SALMON LANE, where his father run two businesses.

After the modern college building you will find a path towards the  DLR POPLAR station and, that same bridge will take you over the DLR tracks,  giving  you access to the CANARY WHARF ESTATE. At your feet the new HEALTH AND LIFE SCIENCES HUB.

Same place. What 100 years make…

POPLAR HIGH ST. becomes PENNYFIELDS, but you are branching left, into MING STREET.  And it is only through the names of some streets, like this one, of the area that the FIRST LONDON CHINATOWN is revealed to us. Otherwise we have to rescue the works of CHARLES DICKENS, OSCAR WILDE, ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE or SAX ROHMER, whose characters come here in search of the infamous opium dens. A poor, seedy, sinister, and criminal neighbourhood settled by an exotic “race” of dubious reputation, and evil by definition. This is a false notion that came to us for decades, through those authors, though.

You find yourself on the edges of POPLAR. And the roads here are incredibly large (the give access to the LIMEHOUSE LINK TUNNEL). The BLITZ here helped  the post war  administrators to plan a needless expansion of the streets and, as a consequence, the displacement of the small Chinese population, as old houses were pulled down.
Which explains the fact that the small community headed for SOHO. From the EAST END, to the WEST END, where many business, formerly occupied by European migrants, lay empty. Nowadays Greater London is home to more than 100,000 people of Chinese origin. Clearly SOHO’S CHINATOWN can not house all of them. And, by the way,  there is still a surviving  Chinese Sunday School surviving, in POPLAR. 

When you will be on the West side of the apartment building, opened  in 2022, which incorporates a PREMIER INN hotel, you will admire an artwork that reminds us of the Chinese heritage  of the area.

You are now  close to enter the <<<<WEST INDIA DOCKS; you need to go (East of the high rise building) under the DLR viaduct (by the way, the station is at the feet of that building).

To your left, a CAR PARK, to your right the firmer DOCK MASTER'S HOUSE (see the P.L.A. plaque) now offices. Next, you see the pillars of the former gates of the WEST INDIA DOCKS precinct. Around this area,  the dockers were recruited, on a daily basis,, or the CALL ON. Employment, badly paid, was, in addition, very insecure.

Now you see the warehouses.: you are at the rear of the <<<<MUSEUM OF DOCKLANDS and the <<<<THE LEDGER BUIDING pub.   On the bend, the building to your right  was, again, a  P.L.A. building (plaque), but now is part of the POINT A hotel (whose reception and main building is 100 yards in front of you). And now you can see the foundation stone of the <<<<WEST INDIA DOCKS.

YOU are now in  the CANARY WHARF ESTATE.

And that was POPLAR and the LONDON DOCKLANDS