| East Barnet East Barnet Valley (1874–1935) | |
|---|---|
| Local Government District (1874–1894) Urban District (1894–1965) | |
 | |
| Area | |
| • 1911 | 2,644 acres (10.70 km2)[1] |
| • 1961 | 2,644 acres (10.70 km2)[1] |
| Population | |
| • 1911 | 12,381[1] |
| • 1961 | 40,641[1] |
| History | |
| • Created | 1 October 1874 |
| • Abolished | 31 March 1965 |
| • Succeeded by | London Borough of Barnet |
| Status | Local government district (1874–1894) Urban district (1894–1965) |
| Government | East Barnet Valley Local Board (1874–1894) East Barnet Valley Urban District Council (1894–1935) East Barnet Urban District Council (1935–1965) |
| • HQ | Station Road, New Barnet |
| • Motto | Willingness rids way |
 Coat of arms[2] | |
East Barnet Valley was a local government district from 1874 to 1965 around the town ofEast Barnet. It was partly in the counties ofHertfordshire andMiddlesex until 1889, when the Middlesex part was transferred to Hertfordshire. It was renamedEast Barnet in 1935.
The district was created on 1 October 1874, as East Barnet Valley Local Government District.[3] The district was governed by alocal board. Apart from the parish of East Barnet, the local board's area included parts of the neighbouring parishes ofChipping Barnet in Hertfordshire andMonken Hadley in Middlesex.[4]
In 1889Middlesex was reduced locally by theLocal Government Act 1888: East Barnet Valley became entirely part ofHertfordshire.
TheLocal Government Act 1894 reconstituted the local board's area as anurban district, governed by East Barnet Valley Urban District Council. The urban district consisted of threecivil parishes, shown below with their area in 1901:
The urban district was renamedEast Barnet in 1935.[5]
The district formed part of a long, thin protrusion intoMiddlesex and was surrounded by that county on three sides; to the north, east and south.
The urban district council adopted an unofficialcoat of arms consisting of a shield bearing crossed swords between ared rose of Lancaster and awhite rose of York and theGreek letter omega. This design represented theBattle of Barnet, the final battle in theWars of the Roses. Thechief or top third of the shield showed afleur de lys between two flory crosses, emblems ofSt Mary, the patron saint of the ancient parish of East Barnet.[6] In 1955 this became the basis for an official grant from theCollege of Arms. A crest was added above the shield: a hart from the arms of Hertfordshire County Council, with a shield hanging from the neck bearing thecross of St Alban for the historical associations of theAbbey of St Albans with the area. Themotto adopted:Willingness Rids Way, was fromShakespeare'sHenry VI, Part 3. It comes from a speech made byEdward IV following the Battle of Barnet.[7]
In 1965 the urban district was abolished by theLondon Government Act 1963 and its former areatransferred from Hertfordshire toGreater London . Its former area was combined with that of other districts to form the present-dayLondon Borough of Barnet.
The area of the urban district was 2,644 acres (10.7 km2). The population, as returned at the census, was:
| Year | 1901 | 1911 | 1921 | 1931 | 1941 | 1951 | 1961 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 10,094 | 12,381 | 13,514 | 18,549 | [8] | 40,408 | 40,641 |
The urban district was divided into sevenwards for elections: Brunswick Park, Cockfosters, East Barnet, Hadley, Lyonsdown, New Barnet and Osidge.
For elections toParliament, the urban district was part of the constituency of:
In 1945 St Albans was divided as an emergency measure because its electorate exceeded 100,000 voters, with the urban district becoming part of the new constituency of:
Local government districts abolished or transferred by theLondon Government Act 1963 | ||
|---|---|---|
| London | ||
| Essex | ||
| Hertfordshire | ||
| Middlesex,CC | ||
| Kent | ||
| Surrey | ||
| Transfers | Middlesex to Hertfordshire:Potters Bar
| |
