Each month in 2019, using Hornsey Journal extracts, we have looked at the issues facing Hornsey and the country in 1919 and at their impact locally and nationally. The Hornsey Journal extract, 26 December 1919, makes it clear that solutions to these issues were as distant as when the year started and that pessimism about British and global instability had settled over the people of Hornsey like a black cloud. What were these uncertainties? [Read more…] about 1919 – 1920 : The Uncertainties
Articles
The material on this page is organised chronologically, with the most recent additions at the top.
As well as the individually authored articles, there is also a series of 'brief histories', produced by the Society, to give a general introduction to the history of the local areas and buildings.
The Proposed Town Hall : Postscript on Kellers Field
The search for land by Hornsey Councillors also included their purchase of another site on which to locate the new town hall. This was Keller’s Field which lay between Middle Lane and Tottenham Lane in Hornsey. [Read more…] about The Proposed Town Hall : Postscript on Kellers Field
Before the Cypriot Community Centre
This building in Earlham Grove, Wood Green, serves all sections of the local Cypriot community, providing vital community services and facilities. The land it stands on has a long history, having been the site of a family home and educational establishment. What story has it to tell? [Read more…] about Before the Cypriot Community Centre
Oliver Tambo Statue Unveiled
If you’ve visited the Albert Road Recreational Ground on the Bounds Green/Muswell Hill border over the last few weeks you’ll have notice an additional object of interest, commemorating a famous resident. [Read more…] about Oliver Tambo Statue Unveiled
LAMAS Award for HHS Bulletin 59
Hornsey Historical Society’s Bulletin 59 (2018) was judged the best local history society journal submitted this year to the London and Middlesex Archaeological Society (LAMAS). [Read more…] about LAMAS Award for HHS Bulletin 59
“I am going to get it” – A Politician’s Promise in November 1919 which came to nothing – plus ca change !
Does reading the Hornsey Journal extract from November 1919 give you a feeling of déjà vu? Not only was the fervent promise to get a tube to Muswell Hill within three years not kept, an underground line to this north London suburb never materialised. [Read more…] about “I am going to get it” – A Politician’s Promise in November 1919 which came to nothing – plus ca change !
The National Railway Strike, October 1919
In October 1919 a repeating feature in the Hornsey Journal was the story of the national railway strike, which lasted nine days from midnight on the night of the 26-27th September until the 5th October. [Read more…] about The National Railway Strike, October 1919
The Piccadilly Line Extension : Part One
We take it for granted today that from the more northerly reaches of the HHS district it can take under thirty minutes to get to central London by tube. This was not always the case. [Read more…] about The Piccadilly Line Extension : Part One
The Proposed Town Hall : Background
The iconic Art Deco Hornsey Town Hall in Crouch End opened at the end of 1935. Yet the Hornsey Journal, 19 September 1919, refers to town hall plans on this site then. Why did it take so long to realise these ambitions? Where was the original town hall and why did that building and its location have to change? [Read more…] about The Proposed Town Hall : Background
Hollywood Green, Wood Green : What was there before ?
It is very difficult to imagine that central Wood Green with its cinema complex, shops, road junction and busy traffic was ever peaceful countryside with the New River meandering through. So what was Hollywood Green before? [Read more…] about Hollywood Green, Wood Green : What was there before ?