Paddington location guide

Image courtesy of Lewis Clarke

The area of Paddington rarely gets much attention as a residential zone, largely due to the fact that it is usual eclipsed by both Paddington Station, and a famous fictional Peruvian bear named after said transport hub.

However, in recent years the area is starting to gain attention due to investment in the area for more than a decade. It is now a thriving hub of restaurants, shops and green spaces just a short walk from central London and the open expanse of Hyde Park where plenty of young professionals and families reside.

Paddington is one of the main hubs of transport in London. Paddington station is both a National Rail and London Underground station allowing you to travel to many places in and outside of London. The underground lines which Paddington serves are the Bakerloo, Circle and District lines which can take you to places such as Baker Street, Earl’s Court, Oxford Circus. Paddington station also serves the Circle and Hammersmith & City lines which take you to locations such as Shepherd’s Bush, Baker Street and King’s Cross St Pancras.

Paddington also has a number of buses that caters to the area in the day and night time. Some of these bus routes include the numbers 23, 36 and the N27. These bus routes can take you to places such as Westbourne Park, Queen’s Park and Camden Town.

Image courtesy of Ben Brooksbank

The earliest mention of Paddington, historically a part of Middlesex, appears in documentation of purported 10th-century land grants to the monks of Westminster by Edgar the Peaceful as confirmed by Archbishop Dunstan. However the origin of the documents is much later and likely to have been forged after the Norman Conquest in 1066.
It’s been speculated that a Saxon settlement was situated around the intersection of the northern and western Roman roads, conforming with the Edgware Road (Watling Street) and the Harrow and Uxbridge Roads. A 1100s document which is more reliable was cited by the cleric Isaac Maddox (1697–1759) establishes that part of the land was held by brothers “Richard and William de Padinton”.

In the later years of the Elizabethan and early Stuart era, the rectory, manor and associated estate houses were occupied by the Small family. Nicholas Small was a clothworker who was well connected enough to have Holbein paint a portrait of his wife, Jane Small. Nicholas died in 1565 and his wife married again, to Nicholas Parkinson of Paddington who became master of the Clothworkers’ Company. Jane Small continued to live in Paddington after her second husband’s death, and her manor house was large enough to have been let to Sir John Popham, the attorney general, in the 1580s.

When the population in the area grew during the 1600s, Paddington’s ancient Hundred of Ossulstone was split into divisions; Holborn Division replaced the hundred for most administrative purposes. By 1773, a contemporary historian said “London may now be said to include two cities, one borough and forty six ancient villages and among them was Paddington and [adjoining] Marylebone.

Roman roads shaped the parish’s northeastern and southern boundaries from Marble Arch: Watling Street (later Edgware Road) and; Uxbridge road. They were toll roads in much of the 1700s, before and after the dismantling of the permanent Tyburn gallows “tree” at their junction in 1759 a junction now known as Marble Arch. By 1801, the area saw the start-point of an improved Harrow Road and an arm of the Grand Junction Canal (Grand Union Canal); these remain.

From boat trips through Regent’s Canal to watching a concert at Royal Albert Hall, Paddington is filled with so many amazing things to do, you should never be bored!

Photo by CEphoto, Uwe Aranas

Not too far away from Paddington Station, you will find Little Venice which is on Regent’s Canal and the wonderful thing about Little Venice is you can have a boat trip down the canal!

For more information on how to go on this boat trip, click here

Image courtesy of Rept0n1x

Victoria and Albert Museum is one of the world best museums for art and design. It has an amazing and diverse collection which explores historical and contemporary art and design and includes works of art from cultures around the world.

For more information, click here

Image courtesy of Diliff

Image courtesy of Jorge Franganillo