Navigator Square (Archway Close)

When you exit Archway station, depending on the exit you use, you will find yourself in a wonderful pedestrianised area.

This wonderful little spot was once part of the main road gyratory system but, in 2017, was turned into this small pedestrian zone, with a cycle lane down its west side, seating and several planted trees.

At its northern end stands the Archway Tavern, which is now easy to reach, as the roads that once separated it from Archway Close have been rerouted.

If you sit on one of the four strategically placed chairs you can feel the vibrations from below, as the trains trundle on their along the line.

There are two concrete structures, just outside the Archway Tavern, which have been planted with flowers and shrubs. These are no ordinary raised flower beds, though, as they are ventilation shafts for the Northern line below.

Every Saturday, from 10:00 - 17:00, the Archway Market takes up residence, with stalls offering books, crochet toys, artworks, jewellery, incense & candles, minerals & crystals, a Vinyl record stall and more. For the foodies there are healthy cakes, jerk chicken, seasonal vegetables, a taco stall and more.

Originally called Archway Close this small area was renamed Navigator Square, not because of any Naval connection, but for the navigators, which was often shortened to "navvies", a term applied to the Irish who came to England to build the canals, in the 19th century. 

As time went on and industry changed the Irish would help to build rail and road systems, but they were still called "navvies".

Following World War II many Irish settled in this part of London, with their families, giving Archway a higher level of Irish families than most parts of London.

Navigator Square is ideally located to much that the area has to offer. From supermarkets to bespoke shops; from fast food chains to trendy restaurants, everything is within walking distance. Highgate Cemetery, Waterlow Park and the eastern reaches of Hampstead Heath are within walking distance, too. There are plenty of bus stops, for those who wish to venture further afield, with buses running in all directions. 

'Dick Whittington's Cat' statue and the 'Whittington Stone'

On Highgate Hill there is a stone with a statue of a cat, protected behind an iron cage.

This is the Whittington Stone and Dick Whittington's Cat.

The Whittington Stone

The Whittington Stone is a large two-segment Portland Stone tablet, erected in 1821, and marks, roughly, where Dick Whittington supposedly turned at the sound of the bells of St Mary-le-Bow.

The stone was restored in 1935.

The Cat statue was added in 1964 and was designed by Jonathan Kenworthy and is made of Kellymount limestone. It was originally polished-black.

On its two faces are inscriptions of the life of Dick Whittington. The inscription on one side has been completely eroded, but some of the inscription can still be read on the other face.

Dick Whittington and His Cat

Dick Whittington and His Cat is an English folklore telling the rise of poverty-stricken Dick Whittington, who sold his cat to a rat infested country, to attain a fortune.

Another story tells of his heading home to Highgate Hill, but stopping when he heard the sound of Bow Bells, some 4.5 miles away, promising him that he would be mayor of London, one day.

Holborn Union Infirmary

The main building (rear) and the north 'Nightingale' ward (front), from the east.

Between 1877-79 Henry Saxon Snell was asked to design a new Union Infirmary, to the west of Archway Road, Highgate. He had previously designed other London workhouses, including St Marylebone and St Olave Union infirmaries.

Henry Saxon Snell designed the infirmary with a large four-storey central building, where the beds, on the wards, were placed at right angles to the main walls, along internal partitions. 

The north building.

'Nightingale' Wards to the north (male) and south (female) were linked to the central building with ground-floor corridors. Theses wards had their beds placed in long rows against the walls, with windows on either side that created a through-draught. 

Holborn Union Infirmary, from the west.

Although opening in 1879 work continued on the site until its completion in 1885.

The infirmary also included a workhouse, care facilities, a laundry room and a workshop building, all built in a decorative Gothic Revival style.

Walking with family: Day 2 - Archway to Highgate Cemetery... and beyond

Thursday August 15, 2024.

It was an early start... but not by design.

Just after 06:00 Erin, who was already awake, along with Keilyn, said that she could hear running water. So, up I got to check the bathroom, without turning on the light so as not to wake Emma. I checked the sink tap... nothing. Bath tap... nothing. Shower head... nothing, but I could hear water dripping. As I moved my hand along the bath I felt a drop of water hit my head. Sure enough water was dripping through the light fitting. Damn. I was going to have to wake Emma.

With us all awake and the girls getting dresses, Emma and I went down to reception and notified the Duty Manager. He travelled up in the lift, with us, and headed to the sixth floor to check the room above. A few minutes later he arrived at our room to inspect the leak. There was nothing untoward in the room above, so the leak must be coming from another room. He immediately put our worries behind us by assuring us that we were in no danger, but still offered us another room for our trouble. We declined this as we would be checking out after breakfast. The only thing we were upset about was not enjoying the bed for long enough. Premier Inn beds are the most comfortable that we have ever slept in.

I would just like to say that all of the staff were excellent and dealt with the issue professionally. We have stayed at many Premier Inns, not just in London but across the country, and this is the first time we have ever had an issue. This will not put us off using them again.

So, we headed down for an early breakfast and enjoyed everything that was on offer. Suitably full we headed to our room, collected our things and checked out. We informed the man at reception that we were checking out, so that if they needed to check the ceiling, the room was free.

On leaving the hotel we made our way down Junction Road, checking out the Charity Shops, before stopping at Starbucks, which is in an old pub, for some caffeine.

Suitably caffeined up we crossed Junction Road to Navigator Square and began our walk.

Heading up Archway Road I took lots of photos of the derelict Archway Campus, which began its life as The Holborn and Finsbury Union Workhouse Infirmary, which was built between 1877-79. It is a wonderful building that needs to be protected.

Keilyn spotted a mural and I took her photo with it, before I wandered off ahead to take a photo of Highgate Archway. 

This iron viaduct, built in 1900, although impressive, is not a patch on the original Roman-style viaduct, designed by John Nash in 1813.

We then turned down Waterlow Road, which brought us on to Highgate Hill. A little further on and the impressive St Joseph's Roman Catholic Church towered over the surrounding buildings.

It was here that we entered Waterlow Park, where, once the facilities were used, we sat in the shade, while Erin and Keilyn took to the playground.

Suitably rested we continued the short distance to Swain's Lane and Highgate Cemetery.

Our tour began at 12:00 with our guide, Nigel, explaining, in brief, the history of the cemetery, before our group headed up the Colonnade Path and into the heart of the West Cemetery. The tour lasted a full 90 minutes and we saw and learned a lot. We visited the graves of Thomas Sayers, Elizabeth Jackson, George Michael, Michael Faraday, Alexander Litvinenko and so many more, learning interesting facts about each one.

To see more photographs from the West Cemetery click the link below.

West Cemetery Gallery

Walking with family: Day 1 - Archway to Kenwood House... and beyond

Wednesday August 14, 2024.

As we had some time away from work and the girls were away from school for the holidays, we decided to spend some time visiting some sites in London.

We booked a taxi and headed to Watford Junction, where we caught an Avanti West Coast to Euston and, from there, a Northern line train to Archway.

After topping up on a few snacks fro the day we caught a 210 bus to Compton Avenue, where we alighted and walked the short distance to Kenwood House.

Kenwood House is a former stately home, which was originally built circa 1616. It was remodelled by the architect Robert Adam in the 18th century and was home to the Earls of Mansfield until the 20th century.

Besides being a stately home, Kenwood House is home to historic paintings by the likes of John Crome, Anthony van Dyck, Claude de Jongh, JMW Turner, Thomas Gainsborough, Rembrandt and many more.

During our visit there was an exhibition by Stephen Farthing entitled 'Strike a Pose: Stephen Farthing and the Swagger Portrait'. These are portraits of Lord Howe, reimagined by Stephen Farthing, and were pretty spectacular.

You can see more photos from Kenwood House by clicking the link below.

Gallery

After visiting the house we sat in the grounds and ate our lunch, before we took a stroll through the grounds, eventually finding ourselves heading south through Hampstead Heath. 

The weather was perfect for a wander through the Heath, with many people jogging, walking dogs, having a picnic or, like this, just taking in the surroundings.