| Archway | |
|---|---|
 Archway Navigator Square with Vantage Point, station, theArchway Tavern andWenzel's bakery | |
  Archway Location withinGreater London | |
| OS grid reference | TQ285875 |
| • Charing Cross | 4 mi (6.4 km) N |
| London borough | |
| Ceremonial county | Greater London |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LONDON |
| Postcode district | N19 |
| Dialling code | 020 |
| Police | Metropolitan |
| Fire | London |
| Ambulance | London |
| UK Parliament | |
| London Assembly | |
| 51°33′58″N0°08′02″W / 51.566°N 0.1338°W /51.566; -0.1338 | |
Archway is anarea of northLondon, England, in theLondon Borough of Islington 3.8 miles (6 km) north ofCharing Cross. It straddles theA1 and is named after a local landmark, the high, single-archedHighgate Archway Bridge which crossed the road in a cutting to the north. It has a modern commercial hub aroundVantage Point (formerly Archway Tower) andArchway tube station.[1][2]
Archway's name developed in reference to the old bridge carrying Hornsey Lane fromHighgate toCrouch End, over the cutting of Archway Road. The original, brick-built, single-arched bridge of 1813 was replaced in 1900 by the current cast-ironHornsey Lane Bridge.[3] The 1893 Ordnance Survey map shows the bridge simply as "Highgate Archway". A few residents, especially those born and locally raised in the early 20th century, refer to the area with a definite article (as "the Archway").
Sevenbus routes in London terminate at 'Archway', the term having become mainstream after the tube station, originally calledHighgate, was renamedHighgate (Archway) in 1939, and subsequentlyArchway (Highgate) in 1941, andArchway in 1947. Theecclesiastical parishes (once having had poor-reliefvestries employing highwaymen, for example) before the laws thatdisestablished their secular components do not mention Archway. Those covering the area are parts of traditional parent parishes namedWhitehall Park, Upper Holloway,St John the Evangelist, Upper Holloway and a very small part of a Highgate, Islington parish.[4]
The Archway Road is part of the A1 orGreat North Road, one of the originaltoll roads. From 1813 to 1864, the cutting contained a toll gate, where travellers paid for the next stage of their journey, as is recorded by a plaque at 1 Pauntley Street, an apartment block.[5] Highgate Hill, the road from Archway to Highgate village, was the route of the first motorisedcable car in Europe. It operated from 1884 to 1909. Highgate tube station (later renamed 'Highgate Archway' and subsequently just 'Archway') opened on 22 June 1907 as the northern terminus of the Highgate branch of the Northern Line.
The ancientparish of Islington stretched over three miles from its southern boundary to meet with theparish of Hornsey at its north. The area that became Archway is located at the northwestern part of this parish. The parish was government by the St Mary Islingtonopen vestry. The vestry was incorporated by theMetropolis Management Act 1855 as an administrative vestry and the boundary with Hornsey to the north also became the northern limit of the London metropolitan district.
Archway is part of theIslington North Parliament constituency. It is mostly in the Islington ward ofJunction, which is named after Junction Road and partly in the ward ofHillrise. Each ward elects three councillors toIslington London Borough Council.
Archway has seen a significant shift in demographics through waves of migration and gentrification, and has a diverse population with a proportionally larger White British, Irish, Other White and Jewish populations compared to the London and Islington averages.
The demographics of the two wards which Archway falls (predominantly in) are as follows:
| Ethnic Group | Junction Ward | Hillrise Ward |
|---|---|---|
| White British | 48.1% | 46.6% |
| White Irish | 5.8% | 5.1% |
| White Other | 15.5% | 14.5% |
| Black African | 5.3% | 6.7% |
| Black Caribbean | 4.1% | 5.5% |
| Black Other | 2.1% | 3.2% |
| Indian | 1.8% | 1.4% |
| Chinese | 2.0% | 0.9% |
| Mixed | 7.2% | 7.6% |
| Other | 8.1% | 8.5 |
| Religion | Junction Ward | Hillrise Ward |
|---|---|---|
| Christian | 40.2% | 41.5% |
| Muslim | 7.6% | 9.6% |
| Judaism | 1.4% | 1.6% |
| Other | 3.3% | 2.5% |
| Not stated | 16.6% | 16.4% |
| None | 30.9% | 28.4% |
The Archway area has the highest percentages of Jews in Islington - at the 2021 Census the Archway East area was 2.9% Jewish, Archway West was 1.6% and Tufnell Park 2.8%. The community is largest in the Whitehall Park area (between Archway, Highgate and Crouch End) which is close to 10% Jewish.[6][7]
The Junction ward has the 4th highest percentage of White Irish people in wards in London.
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TheWhittington Hospital forms a large site in the west of the area. Larger open spaces includeArchway Park,Dartmouth Park,Hillside Park andNavigator Square. Archway forms part of theLondon post town within theN19 postcode district, served from theRoyal Mail Upper Holloway Delivery Office.
Archway adjoinsHighgate andCrouch End to the north, with Hornsey Lane forming the London Borough of Islington boundary with theLondon Borough of Haringey. In the west, isDartmouth Park, with Dartmouth Park Hill forming the boundary with theLondon Borough of Camden. To the west of the point where the three boroughs meet at the top of Highgate Hill isWaterlow Park. South of Archway isUpper Holloway andTufnell Park.
Archway market place andVantage Point, the tallest building in Archway, are next to the tube station.
The photograph for the cover ofThe Kinks' 1971 albumMuswell Hillbillies was taken in theArchway Tavern.
The nearestLondon Underground station isArchway tube station on theNorthern line. The nearestLondon Overground station isUpper Holloway.
Archway is served by the following bus routes:4, 17, 41,43 (24 hour),134 (24 hour), 143, 210, 263, 390 (24 hour), C11 and W5. Also Night Bus routes N20, N41 and N271.
A legend perpetuated by the name of the hospital and a statue on the older street leading, beside the hospital, to Highgate recordsDick Whittington, medieval Mayor of London failing to make his fortune in the city heard theBow Bells (those ofSt Mary-le-Bow, a church onCheapside) from here, a distance of 4.5 miles (7.2 km) leading to the later homage "turn again Whittington, thrice Lord Mayor of London", inscribed on the supporting stone protected by railings. On top of the thick tablet,his cat of English folklore is cast in stone. A restored 1821 memorial stone topped with a small statue ofWhittington's Cat is known as theWhittington Stone and is next to a pub of the same name on Highgate Hill, a street in Archway.[8] The memorial marks the legendary site where 'Dick Whittington' Sir Richard's folkloric alter ego, returning home discouraged after a disastrous attempt to make his fortune in the city, heard the bells of St Mary le Bow ring out, 'Turn again Whittington, thrice Lord Mayor of London.'[8] Seeing the building of a maternity hospital and drains for the poor of London during his lifetime, he left his wealth to a broad-based charity which continues into the 21st century.[9] Pauntley Street takes its name from the village of Pauntley in theForest of Dean,Gloucestershire, traditionally regarded as Dick Whittington's birthplace. The Whittington Hospital is also named after him.
There has been a large Irish community in the area since the 1830s, before the mass migration of theGreat Famine. Many of them worked in building railways and roads and became known as "navigators". After the Second World War, the Irish community formed in the area continued to grow as the newly openedWhittington Hospital recruited nurses from Ireland. Although immigration slowed as the country became more prosperous, the Irish influence on the area can still be seen in pubs such as The Mother Red Cap, the supply of Irish newspapers in local newsagents and the naming of the pedestrian precinct asNavigator Square, after the Irish navigators who built many of the roads in the area.[10][11]
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Authority control databases: Geographic |
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