Winchmore Hill | |
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Winchmore Hill shown within Greater London | |
OS grid reference | TQ315945 |
London borough | |
Ceremonial county | Greater London |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | LONDON |
Postcode district | N21 |
Dialling code | 020 |
Police | Metropolitan |
Fire | London |
Ambulance | London |
EU Parliament | London |
UK Parliament | |
London Assembly | |
Winchmore Hill is a district in the Borough of Enfield, north London, in the N21 postal district.
With the Winchmore Hill conservation area as a focal point, Winchmore Hill is a ward of Enfield borough, bounded on the east by Green Lanes (the A105 road), Barrowell Green, Firs Lane and Fords Grove, and on the west by Grovelands Park; in the south it extends to part of Aldermans Hill, and in the north to Vicars Moor Lane and Houndsden Road. Winchmore Hill is 8.9 miles (14.3 km) north north-east of Charing Cross.
Once a small hamlet in the parish of Edmonton, Winchmore Hill now borders Palmers Green, Southgate, Edmonton, and Grange Park.
Prior to the Roman invasion, Hertfordshire, Essex and Middlesex were occupied by the Catuvellauni tribe. It is believed that this tribe built a hill fort on the mound now occupied by Bush Hill Park Golf Club.
The earliest recorded mention of Winchmore Hill is in a deed dated A.D. 1319 in which it is spelt Wynsemerhull. In Old English, 'merhull' translates according to the Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Place Names as 'boundary hill'. It might be speculated that the overall title could mean 'Wynsige's boundary hill'. By 1395 the name had been altered to Wynsmerhull and by 1565 the village was known as Wynsmorehyll, becoming Winchmore Hill by the time it was mentioned in state papers in 1586.
There are many buildings of historical note in Winchmore Hill. The first religious building recorded is the Quaker Meeting House, 1688, rebuilt in 1790. Among those buried here are Luke Howard, the father of modern meteorology, Alice Hum, founder of Palmers Green High School for Girls, and members of the Hoare and Barclay banking families. Samuel Hoare played a prominent role in the campaign against the slave trade.