It’s a bit of a mystery how Barons Court got its name. Here are the clues and you must play Poirot today. The area between the North End Road and Hammersmith was only built over in the last decades of the 19th century.
The District Railway was extended from Earl’s Court to Hammersmith in 1874, with one station at West Kensington. Barons Court opened in 1905 after the area around had been developed, first by Sir William Palliser who named the roads after himself and his family, thus.
Perham Road – his wife
Charleville Road – his cousins, the Earls of Charleville
Gledstanes Road – his mother
Barton Road – his grandmother
Challoner Street – his great-grandmother
Fairholme Road – his married sister
Vereker Road – his married aunt, wife of Viscount Gort
Comeragh Road – after the family estate in Ireland
Castletown Road – after the Baronets Pallisers’ estate in Ireland
These streets are all between Palliser Road and North End Road and were served by West Kensington station. After Sir William died in 1882 the area to the west of Palliser Road was developed. This was one reason for building Barons Court station. Another was that in 1906 the Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway opened, running between Hammersmith and Finsbury Park, along the route of the present Piccadilly Line, so the new station quickly served two lines.
But why was the station called Barons Court? One theory is that it refers to Elizabeth, Margravine of Brandenberg-Ansbach, widow of Lord Craven. As an aside Craven Cottage, home of Fulham FC, was built by Lord Craven in 1780 and became a football ground in 1896, making it the oldest in London. Elizabeth lived with her second husband, the Margrave, to the west of Fulham Palace Road at Brandenburg House. Margravine Road and Margravine Gardens are called after her and it is sometimes suggested that Barons Court is in memory of the Margrave, although the equivalent in the British peerage is a Marquis.
Another theory is simply that it was inspired as a continuation of the Earl’s Court theme. A third opinion is that there is a family connection between Sir William Palliser and the Duke of Abercorn whose seat is Barons Court in Ireland. I can find no connection between them. It has been a mystery to me since I moved to Margravine Gardens in 1984 and I’d like to know the answer. What I don’t want to know about is whether Barons Court is missing an apostrophe.
I’ve often wondered how Barons Court got its name. The Pallisers are an interesting family: http://lordbelmontinnorthernireland.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/annestown-house.html
Tim,
Maybe Sara James has got it right – she has produced something new to me. Can you find any connection between the Pallisers and the Dukes of Abercorn?
Christopher
Re your query on Diamond Geezer blog today:-
According to the London Encyclopaedia by Ben Weinreb and Christopher Hibbert, “A late 19th century development …given the name by its owner Sir William Palliaer, in allusion to the Court Baron held by the Lord of the Manor.
Hope you find this information useful.
Sara,
That is most interesting and a new angle. I have to admit that I had not hitherto heard of a Court Baron. Taken in conjunction with Earl’s Court you may have found the answer. Today the West London Magistates’ Court is not far from the station. Thank you for adding new and interesting information. By the way, I’m told (by Trevor who knows everything at the station) that the ticket office will close on Friday 18th December.
Like you I expect, I find Diamond Geezer well worth reading – cue for max exodus of readers of this blog!
Christopher
Christopher, the info about Earls Court, in the same book as above, is as follows;” Earls Court a small hamlet … Derives its name from the courthouse of the Earls of Warwick and Holland, formerly lords of the manor.”
The London Encyclopaedia is an excellent source of reference, put it on your Christmas List!
‘The Pallisers’ was also a series of novels written by William Makepiece Thackery. The series was on tv in the 1970s. I don’t know if the novels have any reference to the Pallisers of Barons Court.
Sara,
I am an admirer of Thackeray’s novels but I think credit for the Palliser series of novels, of which I have only read The Eustace Diamonds, must go to Trollope. The Pallisers also feature in The Chronicles of Barsetshire and Trollope was writing around the time the area around Barons Court was being developed. I don’t know of any connection between Sir William Palliser and Trollope, however.
Most interesting about the origin of Earl’s Court and it adds weight to your Barons Court comment.
Christopher
Very interesting post about the old stamping ground, Christopher! I feel amazed that I didn’t know all this back in the day. I hadn’t even reflected on the Irishness of a number of the names, now obvious.
I will think about Barons Court and maybe google it, the extent of my efforts to research anything nowadays.