Adding Focus and Interest to Your West London Ramble
A guide to the free trails available highlighting our rich artistic heritage
With months of clear skies and warm weather ahead of us, why not explore your local area and keep fit?
Walking is the easiest, cheapest form of exercise and there are some excellent free trails available adding focus and interest to a West London ramble.
Arts & Crafts Hammersmith have just launched a new trail along the Thames highlighting West London's rich artistic heritage at artsandcraftshammersmith.org.uk.
The trail for families who want to learn a little more about local history reveals how many artists and craftsmen were drawn to the river in the late 19th century to be near its two most influential protagonists – William Morris and Sir Emery Walker.
The full colour, foldable guide includes pictures of historic buildings along the bank with information on the personalities who lived in them and their friendships, work and continuing influence.
The walk starts at The William Morris Society's premises at 26 Upper Mall and ends at Emery Walker's House at 7 Hammersmith Terrace, which were both restored as part of the Arts & Crafts Hammersmith project.
The William Morris Society's headquarters in the Coach House and basement was the venue for lively Socialist meetings in Victorian times and is now open as a museum on Thursdays and Saturday afternoons 12 – 5pm with free entrance.
The William Morris museum
Emery Walker's House, which was a private home until 1999, has the most complete and authentic Arts & Crafts interiors in the UK and is also open on Thursdays and Saturdays for one hour guided tours at 11am, 1pm, and 3pm which can be booked online.
A FREE hard copy of the trail can be picked up at either The William Morris Society Museum or Emery Walker's House when they open or you can view and download it here .
For an insight into an earlier era, there is a beautiful 16 page full colour Georgian trail, exploring the lanes and paths of 18 th century Chiswick. In Georgian Footsteps contains a wealth of information, maps and illustrations giving a glimpse of how Chiswick looked then, often bearing a striking resemblance to now, and can be picked up free from Hogarth's House or downloaded here.
For a pictorial “voyage” through the centuries follow the Panorama of the Thames from which you can compare Samuel Leigh's 1829 panorama in contrast to the contemporary Thames Panorama Project's video of the present day Thames packed with interesting historic research. Comparing the two reveals the dramatic social, architectural and industrial changes along the river over the last 200 years.
London's Thames has been transformed from a largely working river of factories, wharves, fishing, osier growing, market gardening and transportation - and some fine houses - to the riverbanks and waterway we see today. The panorama is a must for anyone interested in the Thames past and future, and can be enjoyed en route or even from an armchair.
And our local river charity, Chiswick Pier Trust offers two trails which can be downloaded from their website. A bit like pub quizzes on the hoof, one is aimed at families about the wildlife and work on the river and another at heritage enthusiasts.
If you need a bit more motivation and want to join a group or have a guide check out Chiswick House's garden walks, or these links will take you to Hounslow Heritage Walks , West London Ramblers , and Walking for Health's walk at Chiswick House.
So slip on your comfiest shoes and some sun cream, grab a bottle of water to keep you hydrated and you're good to go!
Lucinda MacPherson
July 17, 2019