Chiswick, W4

Chiswick is an extensive district of West London, located within the eastern extremity of the London Borough of Hounslow and 5.9 miles (9.5 km) west of Charing Cross. The southern border of Chiswick runs along the River Thames, which is crossed at this point by Chiswick Bridge, Barnes Railway Bridge and Strand-on-the-Green Railway Bridge. Before being absorbed into Greater London in 1965, Chiswick was in Middlesex and formed an urban district from 1894 to 1927. It merged with Brentford in 1927 to form Brentford and Chiswick Urban District.

The name "Chiswick" is of Saxon origin meaning "Cheese Farm" and originates from the riverside meadows and farms that are thought to have supported an annual cheese fair on Dukes Meadows up until the 18th century.

Chiswick is situated at the start of the North Circular Road and the M4 motorway, the latter providing a direct connection to Heathrow Airport and the M25 motorway. Chiswick is also served by the London Underground District Line (Three stations: Stamford Brook, Turnham Green and Chiswick Park) and two National Rail lines: the Hounslow Loop Line (from Chiswick and Kew Bridge stations) and the North London Line (from Gunnersbury and South Acton stations).

The area is not entirely residential: Chiswick High Road is widely recognised amongst Londoners as offering a significant variety of retail, restaurants, food outlets and expanding office and hotel space. The wide streets encourage cafes and restaurants to provide pavement seating, adding to Chiswick's increasing popularity as a leisure destination. Chiswick is home to the Griffin Brewery, where Fuller, Smith & Turner brew their prize-winning ales.

The population of Chiswick grew almost tenfold during the 19th century, and the built environment is largely Victorian, with one notable exception.

Chiswick House was designed by the Third Earl of Burlington, and built for him, in 1726-9 as an extension to an earlier Jacobean house (subsequently demolished in 1788); it is considered to be among the finest surviving examples of Palladian architecture in Britain, with superb collections of paintings and furniture. Its surrounding grounds constitute one of the most important historical gardens in England and Wales, and mark a significant step on the road to the picturesque aesthetic in garden design.

St. Nicholas church has a 15th century tower, although the remainder of the church was rebuilt by J.L. Pearson in 1882-4. Monuments in the churchyard mark the burial sites of the 18th century English artist William Hogarth – whose house is now a museum known as Hogarth's House – and William Kent, the architect and landscape designer; the churchyard also houses a mausoleum (for Philip James de Loutherbourg) designed by John Soane.

St. Michael on Elmwood Road, of 1908-9, was designed by W.D. Caroe.

Suburban building began in Gunnersbury in the 1860s and in Bedford Park, on the borders of Chiswick and Acton, in 1875: the latter, designed largely by Richard Norman Shaw, was described by Nikolaus Pevsner as the first place “where the relaxed, informal mood of a market town or village was adopted for a complete speculatively built suburb”.

Other suburbs of Chiswick include Grove Park (south of the A4, close to Chiswick Station) and Strand on the Green, originally a fishing community.

Strand-on-the-Green has a number of historic pubs fronting onto the river path, while the Tabard pub on Bath Road in Chiswick is known for its William Morris interior.

Useful Links:
Chiswick's Local Website
Virtual Chiswick
Chiswick on Wikipedia
London Borough of Hounslow
Real Estate in London

Public transport links in Chiswick, W4

Real estate agents in Chiswick, W4

Properties listed on eleflat.co.uk

(4) Chiswick, W4
(35) Marylebone, W1
(10) London Bridge, SE1
(10) Enfield, EN1
(9) Chelsea, SW3
(8) South Kensington, SW7
(7) Tottenham, N17
(6) Canary Wharf, E14
(6) Bloomsbury, WC1
(5) Perivale, UB6
(5) Notting Hill, W11
(5) Mayfair, W1
(5) Camden, NW1
(5) Belgravia, SW1
(4) Sydenham, SE26
(4) Streatham, SW16
(4) Regents Park, NW1
(4) Muswell Hill, N10
(4) Islington, N1
(4) Fulham, SW6
(4) Edmonton, N9
(4) Docklands, E1
(4) City, EC4
(4) Brockley, SE4
(4) Brixton, SW2
(3) Westminster, SW1
(3) Walthamstow, E17
(3) Soho, W1
(3) Putney, SW15
(3) Maida Vale, W9
(3) Knightsbridge, SW1
(3) Kings Cross, N1
(3) Kensington, W8
(3) Greenford, UB6
(3) Edgware, HA8
(3) Earls Court, SW5
(3) Canning Town, E16
(3) Bow, E3
(3) Acton, W3
(2) Wimbledon, SW19
(2) Waterloo, SE1
(2) Tufnell Park, N7
(2) Southgate, N14
(2) Southfields, SW18
(2) Shepherds Bush, W12
(2) Seven Sisters, N15
(2) Pimlico, SW1
(2) Mile End, E3
(2) Marble Arch, W2
(2) Kentish Town, NW5
(2) Ilford, IG1
(2) Green Park, W1
(2) Cricklewood, NW2
(2) Charlton, SE7
(2) Brentford, TW8
(2) Borough, SE1
(2) Bethnal Green, E2
(2) Bayswater, W2
(2) Battersea, SW11
(1) Woolwich, SE18
(1) Wood Green, N22
(1) Willesden, NW10
(1) West Hampstead, NW6
(1) Wanstead, E11
(1) Wandsworth, SW18
(1) Walworth, SE17
(1) Wallington, SM6
(1) Tooting, SW17
(1) Stratford, E15
(1) Stoke Newington, N16
(1) Stepney Green, E1
(1) Stamford Hill, N15
(1) St John's Wood, NW8
(1) Southall, UB1
(1) South Norwood, SE25
(1) Shoreditch, N1
(1) Shad Thames, SE1
(1) Richmond, TW10
(1) Preston, HA3
(1) Paddington, W2
(1) Mill Hill, NW7
(1) Hounslow, TW3
(1) Holloway, N7
(1) Harrow, HA0
(1) Hackney, E8
(1) Golders Green, NW11
(1) Finchley, N3
(1) East Sheen, SW14
(1) Ealing, W5
(1) Croydon, CR0
(1) Crouch End, N8
(1) Clapton, E5
(1) Clapham, SW4
(1) Bermondsey, SE16
(1) Bellingham, SE6
(1) Beckenham, BR3
(1) Barnet, EN4
(1) Barnes, SW13
(1) Archway, N6
(1) Anerley, SE20