Fulham Riversideby Peter Finch
Hammersmith & Fulham Council.
Putney Bridge Station — Metropolitan District Railway opened 1880 as extension of line from West Brompton. Called Putney Bridge & Fulham, as terminus, extended to Wimbledon 1889, 1902 Putney Bridge & Hurlingham, 1932 Putney Bridge. Extensive exits used by fans to Fulham FC, Boat Race etc.
WW2 pillbox 1940 southern end.
Fulham Railway Bridge — opened 1889, by London & South Western Railway, designed William Jacomb, chief engineer (former assistant to Brunel) and WH Thomas, built by Head Wrightson & Co of Stockton-on-Tees, wrought iron lattice girders, 7 spans, 5 across river, cast iron caisson piers, attached footbridge. Service to Wimbledon started June 1889 always worked by District Line.
Under Rail Bridge — plaque on arch, Frederick Sims, 1889 bought rights to Daimler engines in British Empire, first in motor launches, fitted and displayed under bridge. Then moved onto cars. Founded Automobile Club of GB, later the RAC and first President of Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders.
Willowbank Wharf — Fenning & Co., granite, marble & mosaic works, early C20.
Swan Drawdock — used by Vestry for rubbish removal, barges to Rainham.
Putney Bridge — 1st bridge 1729, only one between London Bridge and Kingston, opposition from watermen and ferrymen, payments and pensions agreed. 2nd bridge 1886, Cornish granite designed by Sir Joseph Bazalgette, built by John Waddell & Sons on site of aqueduct. Wandsworth Reach.
Fulham High Street — once main road to river, ferry and first bridge.
Eight Bells — 1629. Church had 8 in C18.
Fulham House — 1730 girls boarding school, then Drill Hall now TA.
King's Arms — 1888, tiles either local or Doulton.
Temperance — 1910 by Temperance Billiard Halls, who built 5 others number in London and 12 in Manchester. Often built in areas with other pubs, in similar pub style.
All Saints Church — C15 tower, rest C19.
New King's Road.
Fulham Pottery — Bottle kiln C19. Founder John Dwight 1672, stoneware and pottery, developed salt-glazed ware and figures, continued on site to 1956 when became a base for firing of studio pottery to 1980s. John Doulton was an apprentice here.
Hurlingham Road.
Left 162-160 former Charles Ivey Porsche dealers, 1970-2018, now in Surbiton but buildings older.
The Vineyard, early C17, early C18 alterations. Owned by Max Aitken, Lord Beaverbrook 1921-47. Remained in family to 1990s. Stable.
Hurlingham Lodge — 1850s. Hurlingham Field Cottage.
Blue Plaque — 2024, for 1928 local flood heroine, Madge Vaidya.
Hurlingham Club — Part of Bishop of London's estate bought by Dr William Cadogan 1760, built house later expanded as Hurlingham House. Gun Club from Hornsey Wood Tavern leased land from then owner Richard Naylor for pigeon shooting, then bought it and formed Hurlingham Club, 1869, became home of polo and centre of world croquet. Private club, pool, many sporting, cultural activities. Humphrey Repton designed gardens. 42 acres.
In 1939 main polo field 9 acres leased to Fulham Boro Council as allotments. 1951 compulsorily purchased by LCC as park.
Broomhouse Lane.
Sulivan Primary School — 1951. Sulivan Court 1949-56.
KYN Nursing Home — Originally a school Gothic revival style 1855 funded by Laurence Sulivan, politician, Dep. Sec of War in honour of late wife Elizabeth, younger sister of Lord Palmerston. Arch. Horace Francis. Builders Bird of Hammersmith. Known as 'Elizabethan Ragged School', later run by LCC as school for tubercula children then youth club, Castle Club.
Broom House — former house in Hurlingham Club estate, Sulivan family, large local landowners.
Parsons Green Club — 1885 Charlotte Sulivan, daughter of Laurence, who inherited Broom House local philanthropist, opened Ray of Hope Coffee House for working men, developed into the Parsons Green Working Men's Social Club, here to 1912 then expanded into a private sports club with tennis courts etc, rebuilt with flats few years ago. Granite slab.
C18 cottages Sycamore and Ivy.
JTM on stone — Joseph Theophilus Mears, marked land bought by him in 1911 from Sulivan family.
Carnwath Road.
Former Jewsons.
Broomhouse Drawdock — medieval origin, ferry. Causeway.
PetroFina Oil Wharf.
Former Hitchcock & King.
Tideway Tunnel site — drove main tunnel to Acton Storm Tanks and received connection tunnel from works across river. Ventilation buildings
Hurlingham Wharf — Blue Circle Cement, with pier in river, low profile ships MV Blue Circle Enterprise & MV Blue Circle Venture delivered cement here until mid-1990s. From Northfleet and Swanscombe. BC name first used 1978 for the many companies previously merged as Association of Portland Cement Manufacturers in 1900. BC cement now sold by Lafarge who took over. Safeguarded wharf.
Across river — next to Park, Regent Oil and Shell Mex.
Wandle — Bell Lane Creek. Western Riverside Waste Authority. Pier Wharf.
Piper Building, as Watson House, former exhibition block of the HQ of North Thames Gas Board, and research laboratories of the Gas Council built 1957-59 designs by ER Collister & Associates. Opened by Duke of Edinburgh 1963. Relief panels 1961-2 by John Piper. Theme 'Spirit of Energy'. Panels of polyester resin reinforced with glass fibre (GRP) commissioned from Gillespie & Manzaroli studio in Coombe Hill.
Closed 1993, converted into flats and office units 1997-8, architects Lifschutz Davidson renamed.
Wandsworth Bridge Tavern.
Swedish Wharf — working oil wharf now disused.
Comley's Wharf — Cemex
Fulham Wharf, 1890 on drainpipe.
Kops Brewery — started by Henry Lowenfeld 1890, 8 acre site, height of temperance movement, play on 'hops' first brewer of non-alcoholic ales and stouts in UK, exported widely. 4,000 employees, 1,200 horses. Closed WW1, converted as margarine factory 1917. Became part of Fulham Wharf used by Convoys food packaging and handling company, used to 1960s.
Wandsworth Bridge — 2nd on site, 1940 London County Council, chief engineer Sir Pierson Frank, architects EP Wheeler and FR Hiorns, steel 3-span cantilever, built by Holloway Bros. Battersea Reach.
Townmead Road — Darracq Motor Engineering Co importer, retailer and wholesaler of French made Darracq and Talbot cars, founded 1916, WW1 components for military vehicles, coach building part of business taken over by Rootes 1935.
Fulham Electricity Station — first opened 1903 by Fulham Boro Council, using coal and local refuse, expanded 1936 124 acres, coal fired, 4 chimneys. 110m wharf, own flatiron fleet, funnels FBC. Fulham, Fulham I, II etc. De-commissioned by CEGB 1978, mainly demolished, some remaining.
Campsheds or barge-beds, bollards.
Imperial Gasworks — Sands End, 1824 world's oldest gasholder. First public utility co in world. Orig gas for lighting and ballooning at Hurlingham Club. Became part of Gas Light & Coke Co 1876. North Thames Gas Board 1948. Barges from Creek, jetty at Imperial Wharf 1920s, flat-iron colliers, low profile, hinged funnels and masts. Closed early 1970s.
Battersea Railway Bridge — 1863 designed by William Baker and TH Bertram of the GWR and LNWR respectively, contractor Brassey & Ogilvie. 5 wrought iron segmental arch spans made by Calvert & Co. of York and brick approach viaducts. Original deck had 2 mixed gauge tracks for GWR broad and standard gauge traffic.
Chequered and complex history. LNWR & London Brighton & South Coast Railway & London & South Western Railway jointly got Act 1859 to build the West London Extension Railway, from Kensington terminus to junctions with the LBSCR and LSWR near Clapham Junction. Expanded route of an earlier company which started in 1844, linked to canal terminus and purchasing the failing canal company. New co. partially infilled canal. Freight at first, passenger from 1904, now London Overground Mildmay Line and Southern Rail to Clapham Junction and freight trains. Also known as Cremorne Bridge.
Planned footbridge down river side, space under bridge for footings, permission but no funding.
Chelsea Harbour — on part of site of the joint LNWR/GWR Chelsea Basin served by lines from the West London on both sides, with a lock to the river. Mainly coal.
Belvedere Tower — sphere rose or fell on mast with tide, tide gauge near lock.
Lots Road Power Station — lots were pieces of land belonging to Chelsea Manor. 1902/4 built for Underground Electric Railways Co. allowing locos change from steam to electric, 64 Babcock & Wilson boilers, 10 Westinghouse turbo alternators, 700 tonnes coal per day, eventually powered most of the Underground Group. Fuel oil in 1960s 4 chimneys, 2 removed 1963. 1970s gas used with oil firing option. Continued to supply LU network until 2002. Power to LU now National Grid with Greenwich as standby. Developers retained arches on side, but put in glazing and balconies.
Chelsea Creek / Kensington Canal — mouth of Counter's Creek, which rises in Kensal Green Cemetery, now part of sewer system. Border of Ham & Fulham and Ken. & Chelsea.
Land owners led by Lord Kensington developed plan to turn it into a canal, opened 1828 as Kensington Canal from river to basin south of Olympia. John Rennie engineer, Thomas Hollingsworth Surveyor of Works. 1⅓ miles 1 lock near basin. Unsuccessful plan to extend northwards to meet Paddington Branch GU. Railway competition.
1836 Birmingham, Bristol & Thames Junction Railway bought canal which continued until 1850s, Imperial Gas Co paid tolls and Chelsea Vestry used dispose of rubbish but need for dredging, general decline in river transport, competition with railways led to British Waterways Board, which took over in 1947 closing canal above a dam, last shipment was gas oil in 1963. About 350 yards left, gasworks lock replaced by steel guillotine gate.
Imperial Wharf Station — part of development, opened 2009.
© GLIAS, 2025