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Kensal Town is a district located partly in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and partly in the City of Westminster. The area lies four miles north-west of Charing Cross and is part of the W postcode area. Kensal Town was an exclave of Chelsea from the middle ages, through to 1900.

Kensal Town
The Grand Union Canal passing through Kensal Town
Kensal Town Location within Greater London
London borough	Kensington & Chelsea
Ceremonial county	Greater London
Region	London
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	LONDON
Postcode district	W10
Dialling code	020
Police	Metropolitan
Fire	London
Ambulance	London
UK Parliament	Kensington
London Assembly	West Central
List of places UK England London 51.524°N 0.210°W / 51.524; -0.210

Origin

The origin of the area was as a well wooded, 144 acre, exclave of the Manor and Ancient Parish of Chelsea, since at least the time of Edward the Confessor, prior to the Norman Conquest, when oaks from the area were used to build Westminster Abbey.[1] and was known as Chelsea-in-the-Wilderness or the Hamlet of Kensal Town.[2]

19th and 20th Centuries

It was first recorded in 1876 as Kensal New Town.[3] This name had been used since the 1840s to distinguish the area south of the Harrow Road, in between the Grand Union Canal and the Great Western Main Line, where new housing was largely occupied by Irish immigrants. By the late 19th century the area had deteriorated into a run-down slum., though it was much improved when the slums were cleared and replaced with new council housing during the mid-20th century.[4][5]

During the 19th century, the dog dealer Bill George's 'Canine Castle' establishment was on the Kensal Road.

Kensal Town is recorded in the 1861 England Census as the birthplace of a resident of St. Pancras and in the 1851 Census as a village in its own right.

Geography and landmarks

Alternative descriptions

Like many areas of London, different parts of Kensal Town are subject to overlapping perceptions of which district or districts they are part of. The area south of the canal, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and including the site of the former Kensal New Town estate, is viewed by many residents as also being in North Kensington.[6]

Some of the area north of the Canal in the City of Westminster, including the Queens Park Estate, is regarded as also being a part of Queens Park, an area that extends further to the north-east into the former parish and borough of Willesden, now the London Borough of Brent.

Notable buildings

Prominent buildings in the area include the distinctive Trellick Tower, designed by architect Ernő Goldfinger, and Our Lady of the Holy Souls Roman Catholic Church on Bosworth Road. Both buildings are listed by Historic England.[7][8]

References

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