STREET NAMES IN WEST WATFORD
In 1973, a book by Alan W. Ball was published by Watford Borough Council titled 'Street and Place Names in Watford'. An index of streets and roads and various maps and photographs were included. There is also a fairly comprehensive introduction to the book which puts forward reasons and histories for the naming of the streets (and is worth reading - copies available from the Library no doubt), but for this piece I intend to focus on those streets and roads primarily within the West Watford area, although the actual boundaries of the area will doubtless be breached.
It would probably be welcome to many to have an update, but that would take considerable work and research, although where the naming of new street names and roads is obvious, these will be included (it is hoped to get clarification rather than rely on assumption). So this is very much ongoing.
ADDISCOMBE ROAD: Up until 1903 the present Addiscombe Road was part of Fearnley Street, but there does not appear to be a reasonable explanation for the change of name.
ASCOT ROAD: King Edward VII was a keen supporter of the racing calendar and one of the Ascot races was named after his wife - the Queen Alexandra Stakes - a very popular figure. In 1913 when a road was laid out south of the Rickmansworth Road, Ascot was an obvious name for it.
AYNHO STREET: William Gough, of the builders Clifford and Gough, was born in the Northamptonshire village of Aynho. When he developed four streets to the north of Vicarage Road between 1890 and 1893, he used names from his boyhood haunts in Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire, which accounts for Aynho, Banbury, Oxford and Souldern Streets.
BANBURY STREET: See Aynho Street.
BELGRAVE AVENUE: Watford was fortunate in having large landowners living on its borders, who took a great interest in the development of the town. Lord Belgrave, 1st Marquis of Westminster (1767-1845) developed the area of Westminster which became known as Belgravia. His third son, Robert Grosvenor, was created Lord Ebury in 1857 and lived at Moor Park. The Grosvenor family provided numerous M.P.s for Chester and South Cheshire from the 16rh century right up to the 1870s and all these family connections gave Watford the names of Belgrave Avenue and Chester Road, Ebury, Grosvenor and Shaftesbury Roads,
BENSKIN ROAD: It doesn't need much explanation to learn that Benskin Road was named after Joseph Benskin, the brewer. He came to London at the age of 13 and after much hard work, made his way into the hotel business. In 1867 he moved to Watford and bought Dyson's Brewery, also known as the Cannon Brewery, with the business expanding until Watford Ales became available throughout the south of England.
BRIGHTWELL ROAD: This is a name dating back to at least the twelfth century when the word used was Brithewelle. There were several variations over the following centuries until the present Brightwell was reached in the 1400s. Its probably means bright or clear spring water welling out of the ground and on maps of the area 'Brightwell Spring' is actually referred to close to Brightwell Farm, the history of which can be found by referencing the menu.
BURTON AVENUE: Not mentioned in Alan Ball's book and cannot find a name reference.
CARACTACUS GREEN: Although there may have been an ancient British chieftain called Caractacus, there was also a racehorse of the same name, much more associated with Watford, who won the Derby in 1862 at odds of 40 to 1, making the owner, Mr Charles Snewing of Holywell Farm, a considerable amount of money. After the notable win, Mr Snewing hosted a large celebration at his farm where vast quantities of food and drink were consumed and there was much accompanying entertainment. (see the much more detailed story of Caractacus in the drop-down menu).
CARDIFF ROAD: In the 1880s, 1890s and early 1900s, Cardiff was one of the major ports of the country with coal from South Wales being exported all over the world. At this time it was second only to London and Liverpool in the volume of its exports and third only to London and Liverpool in the volume of its imports. It was in 1893 at the high point of the history of the port, the Cardiff Road was laid out in Watford.
CASSIO ROAD: Also known as West Herts Sports Ground, It was the home ground of Watford Football Club from 1898 to 1922. In the early twentieth century, Cassio Road was used for athletics, cricket and football. By 1920 spectator facilities included a pavilion and covered standing areas on the western touchline, and a covered terrace behind the northern end of the pitch. Watford Football Club moved to Vicarage Road in 1922. The only other explanation for Cassio Road must be the association with Cassiobury.
CHAFFINCH LANE: This is an old track that ran from Brightwells Farm across what is now King George V playing fields to Tolpits Lane following part of the parish boundary. At one time it crossed over the LNWR from Rickmansworth to Watford, now the Ebury Way, but was truncated when the line became disused and the bridge demolished. It is now mainly just the small lane that runs in from Tolpits Lane to the Holywell Community Centre.
CHARLOCK WAY: There's no explanation for the naming of Charlock Way in Alan Ball's book. Charlock is a weed and it's quite likely it grew unhindered on the area of the sewage farm upon which Holywell Estate was later built.
CHERRYDALE: The junction of Hagden Lane and Rickmansworth Road was cCOLEalled Cherrydell Hill and at this point stood the 'Hagney' Lane turnpike gate when Rickmansworth Road was part of the Reading and Hatfield Turnpike Trust (1770-1881). In the same area fronting Rickmansworth Road was also a house called Cherrydell, while on Hagden Lane opposite the entrance to Mildred Avenue, was another house called Cherrydale. When it was demolished and new housing developed in 1968, the road created retained its old name.
From this evidence it seems obvious that whole cherry orchards must have existed here at one time (see the piece Cherry Orchards in the drop-down menu), a view supported by Chauncey, the County historian.
CHESTER ROAD: See Belgrave Avenue/Kensington Avenue.
CLIFTON ROAD: Clifton and Westbury-upon-Trym are both suburbs of Bristol and when two roads were built out of St James' Road parallel to Cardiff Road in 1875, it would have been completely logical to name them after districts within this other great port, which faces the chief city of Wales across the Severn Estuary. However, both Clifton in North Oxfordshire and Westbury in North Buckinghamshire are villages only a few miles from Aynho, the birthplace of William Gough of the building firm of Clifford and Gough and it is therefore assumed that he was responsible for naming them. This assumption is strengthened by the fact the both roads are just on the other side of Vicarage Road from Aynho, Banbury, Oxford and Souldern Streets, which William Gough developed and also named in memory of places he would have known intimately in his youth.
CLYSTON ROAD: The Watford Parish Registers date from1539 and the first marriage recorded in them was between John Clyston and Elizabth Kyne. It seems almost certain that if John Clyston himself could have known that a road was named after him in twentieth century Watford, he would have been more than a little startled at this totally unexpected rise from rural obscurity to urban fame.
COLE KINGS: This was a farm on the south side of Hagden Lane where the present turns a sharp right angle just south of Belgrave Avenue. A variation of 1728 was Cold Kings and the meaning is obscure. In Essex 'Cole' appears as a corruption of 'Colne' for the river ts hat reaches the sea through the estuary below Colchester, and in Watford this may in fact simply be a piece of ground once owned by a man called King which is situated near the River Colne.
A more extensive description and history of Cole Kings can be found in the drop-down menu.
COLNEY BUTTS: The word 'butt' was often used to describe a piece of land that abutted or bordered onto a larger holding and was also the term for a practice ra, for nApartge, especially in connection with archery. However, there is no evidence of archery being practised here and although colney is sometimes used a a corruption of coney, meaning a rabbit, the nearness of the river makes it more likely that this was simply a small area of ground close to the Colne, rather than scrubland infested by rabbits or men with long bows. The farm buildings of the property were roughly at the junction of Vicarage and Occupation Road (see Yellow Brick Road). In the 1851 census they were in the possession of William Ballard, the owner of the notorious Ballards Buildings. The farmhouse later became the home of Watford Printers.
There is more information and history on Colney Butts House in the drop-down menu.
COMBE ROAD: Francis Combe and Elizabeth Fuller were the founders of public education in Watford. Over 60 years before Elizabeth Fuller's Free School was started in 1704, Francis Combe, by a will of 1641 left 'ten pounds forever, to a free school in Watford, in the County of Hertford, for teaching the poor there to cast accounts, to read English and to write'. Apart from Combe Road, Francis Combe, this pioneer of education, is commemorated by the Francis Combe County Secondary School in Horseshoe Lane.
CROXLEY VIEW: Though not mentioned in the book of Street Names with an explanation, given its location, the naming is fairly obvious, given that the road running from Tolpits Lane is looking towards Croxley, which can be seen from the top.
CRUSDADER WAY: See Scammell Way.
DURBAN ROAD: Many British towns have streets named after places, battles or commanders prominent in the wars of the nineteenth century. When two streets were being built in Watford at the height of the Boer War, it was natural to name one after Durban, the principal town of the very English Natal and the other after Pretoria in the Transvaal, where Lord Roberts liberated 3000 British prisoners of war when he captured it in June 1900.
EPSOM ROAD: One of the 'newer' roads off Tolpits Lane, most probably named from the racehorse Caractacus winning the Epsom Derby in 1862. (see Caractacus Green)
EUSTON AVENUE: Euston Square in London was named in 1825 after Lord Euston, the son of the Duke of Grafton. The first section of the London and Birmingham Railway was opened from Euston to Boxmoor in 1837 and in view of Watford's close connection with the development of the line, it is strange that no street was named after the terminus until 1911. At the time, it was possibly felt to be especially appropriate as the 75th anniversary of the opening of the service was due in 1912.
FARRALINE ROAD: This was originally part of Wiggenhall Road until 1898, after which it was named after 'Farraline House' (see more information in drop-down menu).
FEARNLEY STREET: Mary Morrison in 1629 appointed trustees to oversee the income from land in Watford and place poor children as apprentices. The trust was renewed by deed in 1824 and two of the principal gentlemen of the town, James Howard and Edmund Fearnley were named among the trustees of that date. Up to 1903 the present Addiscombe Road was part of Fearnley Street.
GREENHILL CRESCENT: David Greenhill (1876-1947) was considered one of the most exceptional men ever to be a citizen of Watford. Born a Londoner of mixed Scottish and Sussex descent, he rose from a printing apprenticeship in Camden Town to become Director of Sun Printers Limited. He took a keen interest in the town and his most important achievement in this sphere was the support he gave to the Peace Memorial Hospital. In spite of the vital part played by his firm in the Second World War, it's likely his reputation will rest ultimately on the work he did between the wars in the production of periodicals in general and Picture Post in particular. It is also no accident that a just tribute was made to him with the naming of Caxton Way, after the first English printer.
HAGDEN LANE: It has been suggested that this might be 'hedge dene', a sunken way with hedges on both sides or more ingeniously that the 'hag' part of the name refers to a witch. A more likely explanation is that the word is a combination of the Old English 'haca', a bend and dell, a valley, as the line of the modern road still follows faithfully the several bends of the former lane.
HARWOODS ROAD: in 1314 mention is made of a John Hereward and Harwoods itself was first recorded in 1506 as a small manor owned by the monastery of St Albans. By 1609 it had become incorporated in the Manor of Watford and in the 18th century the variant Harrod Farm was in use. It subsequently passed through several hands until the property was bought in 1770 by the 4th Earl of Essex and in n1900 the 7th Earl sold the Harwoods Farm Estate to Charles Brightman, the well-known builder and contractor who, along with his partner Robert Ashby, was instrumental in forwarding the rapid growth of Watford during the Edwardian period and after the First World War.
HATTERS FARM: Brightwells Farm was at one time known as Hatters Farm, but no explanation has, as yet, been found for this.
HEALEY ROAD: Charles Healey (1856-1939) was a well-known personality in Watford and for many years was Manager of the Healey Brewery, which was owned by his mother. The enterprise was taken over by Benskins in 1898 and Charles Healey remained a director of the latter until his death. He was a notable soldier, served in the Boer War and was a member of the National Defence Corps. He was also an artist and several of his sketches used to be on view in the Central Library. In the early 1900s there was a move on the part of the Public Libraries Committee, of which Healey was a member, to black out betting news in the daily newspapers. Healey was scathing in his denunciation of what he considered a manifest absurdity and it is not without a certain irony, which he would have been the first to appreciate after making such a stand, that the road which commemorates him should be next to Caractacus Green, named in honour of the Derby Winner of 1862.
HIGH VIEW: Likely speaks for itself having a clear view out across King George V playing field.
HIMALAYAN WAY: See Scammell Way.
HOLYWELL ROAD: Holywell Road runs from Harwoods Road to Harwoods Recreation Ground. The name first occurs in a Vestry Book of 1698, although there is no evidence of a well having been discovered in the area. The name is common throughout the country and is usually associated with refreshing water of springs or wells which often flowed when all else had dried up. It seems likely that the use of it in Watford is the close proximity of the Holywell Farm to the similarly designated Brightwell Farm. The former Holywell Farm and Holywell Hospital, the Holywell Industrial Estate and the Holywell Housing Estate were/are all in relatively close proximity. For an in-depth history of Holywell Farm, see drop-down menu.
THE HORNETS: 'The Hornets' is the nickname of Watford Football Club and, when a link road was cut between Fearnley Street and Merton Road, it was given this name in honour of the team's 50th anniversary.
KELMSCOTT CRESCENT, KELMSCOTT CLOSE: William Morris acquired Kelmscott Manor in 1871 and it remained in his possession until his death in 1896. Frederick Hunt Gorle (1872-1931) was Chairman of the Watford Urban District Council from 1919 to 1920 and a such a great admirer of Morris that he called his own house at the junction of Stratford and Hempstead Roads, Kelmscott, when it was built in 1908. He was also the moving spirit in naming these two streets when they were constructed after the First World War.
KENSINGTON AVENUE: This may have been inspired simply by Kensington being a particularly pleasant London suburb or, as Belgrave Avenue and Chester Road are close at hand, by the fact that Lord Ebury was a son of the 1st Marquis of Westminster. The latter owned a great deal of Westminster itself and this includes within its boundaries most of Kensington Gardens, the Royal Albert Hall and the Albert Memorial.
KING GEORGE'S AVENUE: Most likely after King George V
LIVERPOOL ROAD: The late 19th and early 20th century was a boom period for Liverpool and its port became the largest in the country outside London. It seemed logical therefore, that when a new road was constructed in 1895 to run out of Cardiff Road, it should be called by the name of this other great seaport.
MERTON ROAD: The Masters and Fellows of Merton College, Oxford, owned land in the Market Street and Callowland areas of the town from at least 1380 onwards and this connection remained until 1881 when CalloTheewland Farm was sold to the Earl of Essex and was subsequently developed for housing in the 1890s.
MILDRED AVENUE: Mrs Mildred Schreiber lived at Dalton House in the Lower High Street. The house was on the banks of the River Colne. Mrs Schreiber was one of the most prominent people in establishing the parish of St Michael's, Durban Road, and many garden parties and pageants were held at Dalton House to raise money for this cause. The church was not consecrated until 1913, but Mildred Avenue was laid out in 1902 and even at this early stage in setting up the new parish, Mrs Schreiber's efforts were recognised in this way.
MONKS FOLLY LANE: In the Middle Ages a lane called Monk's Folly was a lane that ran from the bridge at the bottom of Wiggenhall northward towards the Rickmansworth Road, roughly along the line of the present Cassio Road. The modern English word 'folly' seemed to have been derived from several sources that have all now become entangled. As the whole area appears to have been granted by King Offa to the Abbey of St Albans at 790, it seems likely that this use of 'folly' merely indicates wooded land in the Abbey's possession.
OCCUPATION ROAD: This narrow road runs down the side of the Watford Football ground from Vicarage Road towards Cardiff Road. Occupation Road is is a term often employed for a private right of way which is used by the occupants of houses in a road. There was an Occupation Cottage which stood here until demolished in 1962.
Recently (Nov 2023) Occupation Road was renamed YELLOW BRICK ROAD. The renaming was proposed by Roy Moore, founder of the 1881 fan movement, after Sir Elton John hosted two concerts at Vicarage Road stadium in 2022 as part of his Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour. This new honour also provides another way for Watford’s fans to truly connect with Elton and recognise the amazing achievements he accomplished at his boyhood club – all of which came while working in tandem with the late Graham Taylor OBE, Watford’s greatest-ever manager.
PEST HOUSE LANE: See WILLOW LANE.
PIONEER WAY: See Scammell Way.
PRETORIA ROAD: See DURBAN ROAD.
PRINCES AVENUE: Most likely after the Victorians passion for 'touching their caps' metaphorically to the nobility, as in Queen's Avenue.
QUEEN'S AVENUE: As with Queen's Road, this appears to have been named after Queen Victoria.
RICKMANSWORTH ROAD: The road to Rickmansworth is one of the four that formed the crossroads at the top end of Watford and goes back to the earliest history of the town. From 1770 to 1881 it was part of the Reading to Hatfield Turnpike Trust and until the 1900s formed the southern boundary of the Cassiobury Estate.
SCAMMELL WAY: The Scammell heritage began in the Victorian era, when the wheelwright, George Scammell of Fashion Street, Spitalfields, in the East End of London, developed his business. Later named G Scammell and Nephew, they were involved in the building and repair of craftsman-built carts and vans. In the early 1900s a substantial business had been built up selling and maintaining Foden Steam Wagons and small trucks. After the First World War with the growth of the business, including building new 7.5 tonne trucks etc., new premises were required. The company of Scammell Lorries Ltd opened its Tolpits Lane factory in Watford, on May 1st, 1922. Models included the Highwayman (after which the pub across the road in Tolpits Lane was named), Crusader and the Pioneer, also used for naming roads running off Scammell Way.
A full history of Scammells can be found on the Scammell Register website.
SOUTHSEA AVENUE: As with one or two other streets/roads I cannot as yet find how/why this was named.
ST JAMES' ROAD: This is one of the most puzzling roads in the whole of Watford. It appears to have been named after the mission church of St James, Watford Fields, which was situated in Lammas Road and was superseded by the present building erected in 1913. The road itself was laid out in 1893 and developed from 1895, while Lammas Road dates from 1891. It is confusing to have a street named after a church that is elsewhere, compounded by the fact that there is a church in the road dating from 1904. This is St James' Road Baptist Church, a modern building which has replaced an earlier one on the same site. During late Victorian and Edwardian England there was a great wave of Anglican and non-conformist piety which would have made it quite natural at the time to highlight one of the many mission churches of the day. Publicity material in a contemporary local directory of the day shows that there was a brisk trade in tin tabernacles. However, the First World War brought developments of this sort to an abrupt end and many of these buildings gained a new lease of life as pavilions and tea rooms. One other curious fact of note is that there is/was a house in the road called 'Aston Villa', which as any football enthusiast knows, Newcastle United play at St James' Park.
ST MICHAEL'S AVENUE: This appeared as a proposed road on a sale plan of 1909 and was to have been built parallel to and east of Shepherd's Road and would have joined Cassiobury Park Avenue to Rickmansworth Road at a point opposite Harwoods Road. The name was obviously derived from St Michael's Church, Durban Road The church was not consecrated until 1913, be advance preparations for its building were in hand by 1909.
SHRODELLS: This name is likely to be a contracted form of shrubbery dell, but would likely have been an area of rough ground covered in brushwood when it became the site of the Watford Union Workhouse in Vicarage Road. It was the name given when parts of the building were included in the modern Shrodells Hospital, later Watford General.
SYDNEY ROAD: I cannot, as yet, find a mention of this or who it may have been named after.
THE CHASE: Not mentioned in Alan Ball's book, but possibly refers to a piece of land used for hunting quarry or for keeping game.
THE HORNETS: When, owing to development, a link road was cut between Fearnley Street and Merton Road, the name 'The Hornets' was given to honour the team's 50th anniversary. The club responded nobly by gaining promotion to the Second Division of the Football League during the 1968/69 season.
THOMAS'S CORNER: On the north corner of the junction of Harwoods and Holywell Roads stands a shop (No 13) once occupied by a shopkeeper called Thomas and the name has survived to the present (1973 when Alan Ball's book was written).
TOLPITS CLOSE: A cul-de-sac off Tolpits Lane near the junction of Hagden Lane.
TOLPITS LANE: The name Tolpits had existed well before Wolsey’s time as ‘Tolpade’ in 1364, evolving to ‘Tolput’ in 1803 and ‘Twopits’ in 1822 (as noted on an 1822 Ordnance Survey Map and still referred to as Twopits in 1862). According to a Watford Rural District Guide, Tolpade seems to come from ‘toll path’ and was an alternative name for Cassio Mill mentioned in 1086.
Jonathan King was the owner of Watford Place from 1826 until 1851 when he sold it so that part of the grounds could be used for building. A prospectus for development was drawn up by George Alexander Smith, an auctioneer, dated Monday, September 15th 1851. This said that there would be 'Leading out of the High Street an intended new line of Road to Rickmansworth by Colney Butts and the Union, (now part of Shrodells Hospital) forming valuable Business Stations.' The accompanying map showed King, George and Smith Streets, the first having been up to that date the carriage drive to Watford Place. It was not until the middle of the 1850's that building took place to any extent and the original intention of pushing the road towards Rickmansworth never materialised.
Main References: Street and Place Names in Watford by Alan W Ball
Scammell Register
Watford Observer
Other references cited on this website.
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