River Crane, London
Encyclopedia
The River Crane is a river in west London
, England
, and is a tributary of the River Thames
.
, from where its course is generally in a southerly, if near semi-circular, direction, before it joins the River Thames at Isleworth
.
Passing through Cranford
(= Crane + ford), the river crosses Cranford Park, skirts the eastern side of Heathrow and Hounslow Heath
(where the Duke of Northumberland's River
enters the Crane). Here the Duke's River passes to the south of London Heathrow Airport
before joining the main river. From this point the Crane, which has been flowing in a south-westerly direction, passes through Crane Park (Whitton
). In Crane Park is the site of the Hounslow Powder Mills which were built in the 16th century and continued to make gunpowder until 1927. The mills have disappeared, but the "Shot Tower
" still stands nearby. The large millpool on an island above the mills has been turned into a nature reserve. The river then turns to the north-east to join the Thames at Isleworth, throwing off the second section of the Duke's River near Kneller Gardens in Twickenham
. The Crane is tidal for a short distance before its confluence with the Thames.
The River Crane creates the boundary between the London boroughs
of Hillingdon
and Hounslow
. Around Hanworth
and Whitton
, and Isleworth
and St. Margarets
it also creates a boundary between the London boroughs of Hounslow
and Richmond.
When extending the Piccadilly Line
from Hounslow West to Heathrow Airport, the bogginess of the ground beneath the river prevented engineers tunnelling below it, so the line rises from its tunnels on either side to cross over it.
(formerly known as "The River Fishbourne") — begins its course considerably further north in the high ground between the northwest London suburbs of Pinner
and Harrow
.
The main tributaries of the Crane are:
There are at least ten other streams.
engineers carried out routine maintenance. Unable to force the valve back open, they arranged for the backed-up sewage to be taken away in tanker lorries for treatment. The volume of sewage was such that they were unable to remove it fast enough by tanker. Faced with the choice of letting the remaining sewage back up into the airport or spill to the River Crane, they opted for the latter, resulting in sewage entering the river and damaging wildlife. Sewage spilled intermittently into the river until 3am on Monday. This resulted in the death of over 3,000 fish . A full assessment of the damage caused is still ongoing.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and is a tributary of the River Thames
River Thames
The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...
.
Location
The River Crane is 8.5 miles (13.6 km) in length. Its source is taken to be a point south of North Hyde Road in Hayes, HillingdonHayes, Hillingdon
Hayes is a town in the London Borough of Hillingdon, West London. It is a suburban development situated west of Charing Cross. Hayes was developed in the late 19th and 20th centuries as an industrial locality to which residential districts were later added in order to house factory workers...
, from where its course is generally in a southerly, if near semi-circular, direction, before it joins the River Thames at Isleworth
Isleworth
Isleworth is a small town of Saxon origin sited within the London Borough of Hounslow in west London, England. It lies immediately east of the town of Hounslow and west of the River Thames and its tributary the River Crane. Isleworth's original area of settlement, alongside the Thames, is known as...
.
Passing through Cranford
Cranford, London
Cranford is a place in the London Borough of Hounslow. It is a suburban development located 12.4 miles west of Charing Cross and on the eastern perimeter of London Heathrow Airport....
(= Crane + ford), the river crosses Cranford Park, skirts the eastern side of Heathrow and Hounslow Heath
Hounslow Heath
Hounslow Heath is a public open space and local nature reserve to the west of Hounslow, a London borough. It now covers about , the residue of the historic Hounslow Heath that covered over .-History:...
(where the Duke of Northumberland's River
Duke of Northumberland's River
The Duke of Northumberland's River consists of two sections of artificial waterway. The older name: "Isleworth Mill Stream", or River, more accurately describes the economic motivation for their construction.-The western section :...
enters the Crane). Here the Duke's River passes to the south of London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport
London Heathrow Airport or Heathrow , in the London Borough of Hillingdon, is the busiest airport in the United Kingdom and the third busiest airport in the world in terms of total passenger traffic, handling more international passengers than any other airport around the globe...
before joining the main river. From this point the Crane, which has been flowing in a south-westerly direction, passes through Crane Park (Whitton
Whitton, London
Whitton is a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, situated 10.7 miles west south-west of Charing Cross in Central London...
). In Crane Park is the site of the Hounslow Powder Mills which were built in the 16th century and continued to make gunpowder until 1927. The mills have disappeared, but the "Shot Tower
Shot tower
thumb|The Shot Tower, Bristol, EnglandA shot tower is a tower designed for the production of shot balls by freefall of molten lead, which is then caught in a water basin. The shot is used for projectiles in firearms.-Process:...
" still stands nearby. The large millpool on an island above the mills has been turned into a nature reserve. The river then turns to the north-east to join the Thames at Isleworth, throwing off the second section of the Duke's River near Kneller Gardens in Twickenham
Twickenham
Twickenham is a large suburban town southwest of central London. It is the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames and one of the locally important district centres identified in the London Plan...
. The Crane is tidal for a short distance before its confluence with the Thames.
The River Crane creates the boundary between the London boroughs
London borough
The administrative area of Greater London contains thirty-two London boroughs. Inner London comprises twelve of these boroughs plus the City of London. Outer London comprises the twenty remaining boroughs of Greater London.-Functions:...
of Hillingdon
London Borough of Hillingdon
The London Borough of Hillingdon is the westernmost borough in Greater London, England. The borough's population was recorded as 243,006 in the 2001 Census. The borough incorporates the former districts of Ruislip-Northwood, Uxbridge, Hayes and Harlington and Yiewsley and West Drayton in the...
and Hounslow
London Borough of Hounslow
-Political composition:Since the borough was formed it has been controlled by the Labour Party on all but two occasions. In 1968 the Conservatives formed a majority for the first and last time to date until they lost control to Labour in 1971. Labour subsequently lost control of the council in the...
. Around Hanworth
Hanworth
Hanworth lies to the south east of Feltham in the London Borough of Hounslow. The name is thought to come from the Anglo Saxon words “haen” and “worth”, meaning “small homestead”....
and Whitton
Whitton
-People:* Charlotte Whitton , Canadian feminist and Mayor of Ottawa* David Whitton, Scottish politician* Donald Whitton , Canadian cellist, and teacher* Evan Whitton, Australian journalist...
, and Isleworth
Isleworth
Isleworth is a small town of Saxon origin sited within the London Borough of Hounslow in west London, England. It lies immediately east of the town of Hounslow and west of the River Thames and its tributary the River Crane. Isleworth's original area of settlement, alongside the Thames, is known as...
and St. Margarets
St. Margarets
St Margarets is a suburb in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, about west-southwest of Central London. It is bounded by the River Thames to the east and the River Crane to the west and north; the northern limit, less well defined, has changed with local government boundary changes...
it also creates a boundary between the London boroughs of Hounslow
London Borough of Hounslow
-Political composition:Since the borough was formed it has been controlled by the Labour Party on all but two occasions. In 1968 the Conservatives formed a majority for the first and last time to date until they lost control to Labour in 1971. Labour subsequently lost control of the council in the...
and Richmond.
When extending the Piccadilly Line
Piccadilly Line
The Piccadilly line is a line of the London Underground, coloured dark blue on the Tube map. It is the fifth busiest line on the Underground network judged by the number of passengers transported per year. It is mainly a deep-level line, running from the north to the west of London via Zone 1, with...
from Hounslow West to Heathrow Airport, the bogginess of the ground beneath the river prevented engineers tunnelling below it, so the line rises from its tunnels on either side to cross over it.
Tributaries
The principal tributary of the river — the Yeading BrookYeading Brook
Yeading Brook 16 miles is a tributary of the River Crane, in West London. It rises in major part from the Headstone Manor moat, and in minor part from a small stream flowing from Pinner Park...
(formerly known as "The River Fishbourne") — begins its course considerably further north in the high ground between the northwest London suburbs of Pinner
Pinner
- Climate :Pinner's geographical position on the far western side of North West London makes it the furthest London suburb from any UK coastline. Hence the lower prevalence of moderating maritime influences make Pinner noticeably warmer in the spring and the summer compared to the rest of the capital...
and Harrow
Harrow, London
Harrow is an area in the London Borough of Harrow, northwest London, United Kingdom. It is a suburban area and is situated 12.2 miles northwest of Charing Cross...
.
The main tributaries of the Crane are:
- Duke of Northumberland's RiverDuke of Northumberland's RiverThe Duke of Northumberland's River consists of two sections of artificial waterway. The older name: "Isleworth Mill Stream", or River, more accurately describes the economic motivation for their construction.-The western section :...
8.5 miles (13.6 km): this is in two sections, from the River Colne, HertfordshireRiver Colne, HertfordshireThe Colne is a river in England which is a tributary of the River Thames. It flows mainly through Hertfordshire and forms the boundary between the South Bucks district of Buckinghamshire and the London Borough of Hillingdon...
to Hounslow; and WhittonWhitton, LondonWhitton is a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, situated 10.7 miles west south-west of Charing Cross in Central London...
to IsleworthIsleworthIsleworth is a small town of Saxon origin sited within the London Borough of Hounslow in west London, England. It lies immediately east of the town of Hounslow and west of the River Thames and its tributary the River Crane. Isleworth's original area of settlement, alongside the Thames, is known as...
adjacent to Syon Park. It was so named because Syon House is owned by the Duke. It is a man-made watercourse, such as figure largely in the Crane catchment. - Yeading BrookYeading BrookYeading Brook 16 miles is a tributary of the River Crane, in West London. It rises in major part from the Headstone Manor moat, and in minor part from a small stream flowing from Pinner Park...
16 miles (25.8 km): rises (in part) from the Headstone ManorHeadstone ManorHeadstone Manor is part of Harrow Museum. It is a 14th century moated manor house formerly the home of the Archbishop of Canterbury. It is located in Headstone, in the London Borough of Harrow....
moat, and follows a meandering course through North Harrow, Rayners Lane, RuislipRuislipRuislip is a suburban area, centred on an old village in Greater London, and is part of the London Borough of Hillingdon.It was formerly also a parish covering the neighbouring areas of Eastcote, Northwood, Ruislip Manor and South Ruislip in the area. The parish appears in the Domesday Book, and...
, NortholtNortholtNortholt is a town in the London Borough of Ealing, England. The town has London Underground and Network Rail stations and is on the A40 road...
(skirting Northolt Aerodrome as it does so where it joins the Roxbourne Brook shortly thereafter), and onwards to SouthallSouthallSouthall is a large suburban district of west London, England, and part of the London Borough of Ealing. It is situated west of Charing Cross. Neighbouring places include Yeading, Hayes, Hanwell, Heston, Hounslow, Greenford and Northolt...
, before its confluence with the Crane at Hayes.
There are at least ten other streams.
Pollution Incidents
On 29th–31st October 2011, a large but unknown quantity of raw sewage was deliberately diverted into the Crane . A two-metre valve jammed shut on Saturday morning at Cranford Bridge on the A4 Bath Road while Thames WaterThames Water
Thames Water Utilities Ltd, known as Thames Water, is the private utility company responsible for the public water supply and waste water treatment in large parts of Greater London, the Thames Valley, Surrey, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Kent, and some other areas of in the United Kingdom...
engineers carried out routine maintenance. Unable to force the valve back open, they arranged for the backed-up sewage to be taken away in tanker lorries for treatment. The volume of sewage was such that they were unable to remove it fast enough by tanker. Faced with the choice of letting the remaining sewage back up into the airport or spill to the River Crane, they opted for the latter, resulting in sewage entering the river and damaging wildlife. Sewage spilled intermittently into the river until 3am on Monday. This resulted in the death of over 3,000 fish . A full assessment of the damage caused is still ongoing.
External links
- London Biodiversity Audit includes "The Tidal Thames" — from which part of the information in this article is taken
- Environment Agency Flood Report: upper Crane
- Environment Agency Flood Report: lower Crane
- Friends of the River Crane Environment
- Thames Anglers Conservancy