Greenford was an ancient parish in the historic
Elthorne Hundred, county of
Middlesex.
Industrial Greenford is considered to be birthplace of the modern
organic chemical industry, as it was at
William Perkin's chemical factory in North Greenford, by the
Grand Union Canal, that the world's first
aniline dye was discovered in March 1856. Perkin called his amazing discovery '
mauveine'. Today there is a
blue plaque marking the spot in Oldfield Lane North, just south of the Black Horse
public house. Local anecdote says that Queen Elizabeth I would only eat bread made from wheat grown in Greenford, and until 2013/14 Greenford was the home to the
Hovis factory. The former
Rockware glassworks on the canal is commemorated by Rockware Avenue. Greenford formed part of
Greenford Urban District from 1894 to 1926 and was then absorbed by the
Municipal Borough of Ealing.
J. Lyons and Co. through Greenford, with the former J. Lyons & Co. factory in the background Post
First World War, tea blender and food manufacturer
J. Lyons and Co. were looking for a secondary site on which to expand production beyond
Cadby Hall,
Hammersmith. In 1921 they bought the first piece of an eventual site, due to its location close to good transport links from both the
Grand Union Canal and the
Great Western Railway's
Great Western Main Line, and the
West Coast Main Line and onwards to the Midlands at
Willesden Junction. The factory officially opened in July 1921, with the first single-storey buildings known as "Zig-Zag" due to their northern light-aligned windows allowing maximum light into the production area. There were steam and electrical power plants on site, which powered both the plant as well as the staff canteen and medical facilities, accessible to all plant employees and their dependents.
Art and culture Five hundred yards north east from William Perkin's dye factory was a triangular field in which he kept horses. On this ground was built the Oldfield Tavern public house, which became a popular venue for a rock group called the Detours, who met a drummer there called
Keith Moon. On Thursday 20 February 1964 they were introduced to the audience of the Oldfield Tavern as
the Who. (The tavern has not survived, however, and has since been replaced by a small block of flats and a
Texaco petrol station). Andy Locke, Dave Kerr-Clemenson and Wal Scott were all in
Edison Lighthouse, and with chart-topping Love Grows all came from Greenford.
Expansion ==Education==