All I have is the lovely memories of my beautiful home and how Becontree became Becontree. Approximately 50% of the estate was in Dagenham, 33% in Barking and 17% in Ilford. The District Line, Mike Horne, 2006, Capital Transport Publishing, Middlesex, Defunct railway companies of the United Kingdom, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Crescents, cul-de-sacs and indoor toilets were but a dream for the residents of London's slums in 1919. Housing became a national responsibility in July 1919, The Addison Act tasked local authorities with developing new - and equipped - housing for working people, 30,000 of those were planned for London, while 24,000 of them were to be built on garden land in Dagenham, Ilford and Barking due to the lack of available space in the county of London, It was designed as a cottage garden estate, where parks, gardens and green spaces were as important as houses. In 1933 and 1934 Wills auctioned off much of the fleet; the locomotive Lord Mayor was finally engaged on recovering material from the track and wharf. In 1932 (when the line was doubled with the addition of two electrified tracks) Gale Street Halt became Becontree station and a new station was added at Heathway. The Becontree Estate Railway was a temporary railway system built in the area between Chadwell Heath and the River Thames to facilitate the construction of what became known as the Becontree Estate. Alexander's daughter Christina said while her father's memories of the estate were mostly happy ones, he had considered it a "dump" in the years before his death. (Except in the Seven Kings estate areas, there were no other roads in the district prior to the construction. The estate has formed part of Greater London since 1965, when the Barking section was combined with Dagenham, and has been within a single London borough since boundary changes caused the Ilford section to be transferred from Redbridge to Barking and Dagenham in 1994. As revenge for confiscating a football, Barry and his friend once played a "cruel trick" on the rent collector. Most residents are white, but there is also a sizeable black British community, of Caribbean and primarily African descent, together with a growing Asian minority. Hawara: 'What happened was horrific and barbaric'. Each property would have front and back gardens, hot and cold water, one or two living rooms, a scullery and indoor bathrooms and toilets, By 1921, 4,000 houses had been completed and the first tenants moved into Becontree at the end of that year. Barry Watson lives with his wife, Shirley, in one of the estate's desirable "suntrap houses" on Wykeham Avenue. The words at the top of the list are the ones most associated with becontree housing estate . Following CSXT's purchase of Pan Am Systems, CSXT and NS chose Genesee & Wyoming (GWI) to operate Pan Am Southern. The General Post Office placed the entire estate in the Dagenham post town, including the Barking and Ilford sections, giving all residents postal addresses of "Dagenham, Essex". The initial contract was for 2,900 houses, and was awarded to C J Wills & Sons Ltd, a long-established family concern; Wills was awarded further contracts and ultimately built over 25,000 houses for a total cost of 13,455,000. If families failed to meet these standards, they faced being thrown out of their homes. Were you ever told stories about the difficulties in travelling to work? Residents on the estate were made to live with these poor transport links until the early-mid 1930s. [19] In 1927 the LCC was reluctant to agree that the Postmaster General should provide subscriber telephone lines to the estate, as it was considered incongruous for residents of a subsidised housing scheme to be able to afford such a luxury. The site occupied 3,000 acres of farmland and market gardens, and was entirely rural in character. With a population of 115,652, it was the largest public housing development in the world. Much of this area was part of Parsloes, once the largest manor in Dagenham and the property of the Passelewe family in 1257. It is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086. Update now. At the time Peter and his family moved in, Becontree was proclaimed the world's largest council estate, with 26,000 homes. "These people watched with wonder and excitement as a new era - of luscious homes that had running water, indoor toilets and private gardens - was created. Then into Liverpool Street, and onwards to Bond Street where his offices were located. Although the estate regulations stipulated that the gardens must be maintained in order, more than a few degenerated into virtual jungles. Railway sidings in housing estate construction site. Residents competed every year to win the best kept garden competition, Becontree was the first council house estate to be built under the Addison Act, The estate under construction in 1927 - it would eventually cover four square miles, The Becontree tenants handbook contained 20 conditions, ranging from parental responsibility for the orderly conduct of children to requiring that no washing was hung from windows, The gardens were a source of pride for many, Crowds flocked to the opening ceremony of Becontree in the 1920s, The estate, which was finally completed in 1935, is still considered to be the largest in Europe, Windows were to be cleaned once a week, doorsteps must be scrubbed and children were banned from playing in communal gardens, Many of the homes, once identical, now have character, Barry Watson has lived in one of the estate's "suntrap houses" on Wykeham Avenue since the 1940s, Alexander McDonald's family moved to 5 Manor Square in 1921, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece. After the Second World War, between 1949 and 1951, 600 additional houses were built by the LCC in Dagenham in an area called Heath Park, adjacent to the estate. 4,000 houses had been completed by 1921. As the work neared completion, the railway was progressively dismantled. But thanks to chancellor Lloyd George's revolutionary scheme to make "homes fit for heroes", Becontree - the first and largest council estate in the UK - made those fantasies a reality. Below is a list of becontree housing estate railway words - that is, words related to becontree housing estate railway. Jackson, p. 299: "Before [September 1923], with virtually no places available in existing schools, the children of the Becontree tenants ran wild all day, no doubt having a marvellous time". In 1930 Barking and Ilford formed the Ilford and Barking Joint Sewerage Committee. The second-largest was Black African, at 13%. Most of the estates houses were constructed in red brick with tiled roofs, although many of the walls have since been pebble-dashed or stone-clad. Becontree was the first council house estate to be built under the Addison Act Historic England Archive The estate under construction in 1927 - it would eventually cover four square miles. Some did persist as supply routes (like the Surrey asylums railway Wikipedia: Horton Light Railway) but most were simply taken up and reused. However, LCC was only a landlord in the area and had limited ability to influence commercial development and had no control over local government. Around the same time, Barry moved in with his grandparents, who had moved from Poplar to Hunters Hall Road in Becontree in the 1940s. The official completion of the estate was celebrated in 1935, by which time the estate had a population of around 100,000 people in 26,000 homes. Wills & Sons acquired a fleet of thirteen industrial locomotives for the work, and also a number of wagons for the internal conveyance of materials from the gravel pits and from the jetty; materials arriving via the main line railway were conveyed in the carriers' wagons, but these could not be detained on the Estate network unless a demurrage charge was paid. "It was such an innovative scheme that King George V visited the estate in 1923, when he had tea with one of the early tenants," remembers Bill Jennings, who moved to the estate in 1954. The railway, which used standard gauge steam locomotives, operated between 1921 and 1934.[1]. However, the division of responsibilities allowed for the local councils to provide elementary education in their areas as their populations were high enough. The Becontree estate was a groundbreaking scheme that re-housed some 100,000 people, many of whom had lived in London's slums. The route of the main line of the railway is shown on the diagram; numerous spurs and short branches were added as work locations moved around. Read about our approach to external linking. Very interesting, are there any houses still have baths in kitchen and is there a house not modernised as it was built Regards Linda, Your email address will not be published. It crossed the London Tilbury & Southend Railway[note 1] line on a temporary bridge at about the site of the present Hatfield Road footbridge. Its near-identical streets, whose houses once all looked the same, now have a sense of ownership about them: one house is painted pink, another is coated in trails of wisteria. "He would report people if they didn't keep their hedges trimmed or if their curtains were not clean enough.". "It was certainly the largest in the UK when planned and developed in the interwar period. But thanks to chancellor Lloyd George's revolutionary scheme to make "homes fit for heroes", Becontree - the first and largest council estate in the UK - made those fantasies a reality. Becontree was often referred to as "Corned Beef City" by historians and commentators because of the "staple diet" of its "poor residents". The District Line, Mike Horne, 2006, Capital Transport Publishing, Middlesex, "EPW017649 ENGLAND (1927). 2023 BBC. "People used to fight over who had the best kept garden, now they are merely extra space for cars or rubbish. [4] At the time everyone marvelled at having indoor toilets and a private garden, although the sash windows were extremely draughty, there was no insulation in the attics, and during the winter months very few people could afford enough coal to heat the bedrooms. Small parades of shops were provided throughout the estate, such as on Gale Street and Wood Lane, but Dagenham Urban District Council tried to make up for the lack of a high street by creating a commercial centre along Heathway in 1934.[23]. [1] The tree would have stood on Becontree Heath, just outside the eastern boundary of the estate. Running east to near Chadwell Heath, it then turned broadly south through the future estate, to a 500 feet (150m) jetty on the Thames, a little to the west of the area known as Horse Shoe Corner. They were only able to achieve 3,000 and the works were extended into three phases lasting until 1935. The railway, which used standard gauge steam locomotives, operated between 1921 and 1934. [4] The building of the estate took longer than anticipated. In 1945, the Huntington Estate sold the Los Angeles Railway to the infamous National City Lines that promptly renamed it Los Angeles Transit Lines, and started dismantling the streetcar lines. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The LCC's objectives for Becontree estate sound very self-fulfilling for residents: "Tenants shall be as free as possible to order their lives in their own way, so that they may preserve their originality and that self-reliance shall not be weakened." But the reality was quite different. Initial candidates were selected by the rent collectors during their weekly rounds and a committee decided on the final prizes, which ranged from ten shillings consolation prizes up to 20 (an average week's rent in 1953 was about 1 18/- (1.90)) for the first prize in each ward, plus a notice placed in the centre of the lawn for the benefit of passers-by. The transfer of the Redbridge part of the estate to Barking and Dagenham had broad support. According to research published in 2015, the RM8 postcode area which is mostly Becontree was at that time the most burgled place in Britain, where householders were 55 times more likely to be victims of theft than they were in Dundee. During the early years of the estate, residents could travel to London via Chadwell Heath or Goodmayes both to the north of the estate. "Mahatma Ghandi once spent the night at Kingsley Hall [community centre], leaving a portrait of himself and a spinning wheel as gifts to the community.". Adjacent to Wills depot at Chadwell Heath, there was a four-track engine shed, capable of accommodating all the locomotives. The Becontree Estate in East London is the largest housing estate in the country, with around 26,000 homes covering four square miles in Dagenham. With a population of over 100,000, it was, and remains, the largest public housing development in the world. All content Hidden London 20052023, except where stated otherwise. Walking through the estate today, dozens of cars line pavements, wheelie bins rest against the front of garden walls, and satellite dishes are dotted on roofs. If families failed to meet these standards, they faced being thrown out of their homes. The site occupied 3,000 acres of farmland and market gardens, and was entirely rural in character. Residents also urged the Government to intervene against the London County Councils proposed extensions and the building of new houses before increasing and improving travel facilities. Though the heaths name was sometimes spelled Beacontree, it had no original connection with beacons but is likely to have referred to the tree of a man called Beohha. What's he waiting for? "Becontree was among the first of the London County Council's post-war schemes in 1919," says social housing author, John Boughton. Becontree was simply a working class haven.". Railway Bylines, vol 10 issue 6, (June 2005), Radstock, London Borough of Barking and Dagenham It is located 11 miles (17.7 km) east-northeast of Charing Cross and was constructed in the interwar period as the largest public housing estate in the world. Built in the 1920s and 30s, locals say the neighbourhood is still a great place to live. The plot sizes did not allow for garages to be added to homes. Some families moved out of the area for that very reason.". The construction was an enormous civil engineering project. "My father, who worked in a biscuit factory in Bermondsey, used to complain there wasn't a pub on the corner [at home] where he could enjoy a few pints after his long commute. What's he waiting for? This page was last updated at 2019-11-08 05:32 UTC. Becontree, Barking & Dagenham 'The world's greatest public housing project' at its inception, Becontree is a gargantuan council estate covering four square miles of former fields, heath and parkland north of Dagenham. These days, we have regular services around the local area and into London much more regular, but definitely still busy! Between 1924 and 1930 a further 15,000 houses were built, followed by 7,736 more by 1935, Today, there are more than 27,000 houses on the estate. Continuing south it turned south-west and Dagenham Avenue was later formed on its course. At the river's edge, the line turned east alongside a wharf. The area had a very limited transport network; although three railway lines crossed from west to east, the very limited road system consisted of country lanesshown in grey on the diagram. Wills & Sons acquired a fleet of thirteen industrial locomotives for the work, and also a number of wagons for the internal conveyance of materials from the gravel pits and from the jetty; materials arriving via the main line railway were conveyed in the carriers' wagons, but these could not be detained on the Estate network unless a demurrage charge was paid. 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