Coordinates: 51°25′19″N 0°22′00″W / 51.422, -0.3667
Hampton is a town, on the north bank of the River Thames, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in England. The population is about 18,000. It is served by Hampton railway station.
The Anglo-Saxon parish of Hampton included present-day Hampton, Hampton Hill, Hampton Wick and Hampton Court which together are called The Hamptons. The name 'Hampton' may come from the Anglo-Saxon words "Hamm" meaning an enclosure in the bend of a river and "Ton" meaning farmstead or settlement.
It is near Bushy Park and the shopping town of Kingston. The Hampton Heated Open Air Pool[1] is one of the few such swimming pools remaining in Greater London. The riverside, on the reach above Molesey Lock, has many period buildings including Garrick's House and Shakespeare's Temple, also on the river is the Astoria Houseboat recording studio. Hampton Ferry provides access across the Thames to East Molesey.
The town is home to Richmond's only senior level football side, Hampton & Richmond Borough F.C., though there are numerous rugby union teams.
Education
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Hampton Community College [2] (formerly Rectory School), Hampton's mixed comprehensive school, is currently hosting the headquarters of CEWC [3].
Hampton School, an independent school for boys, which is currently celebrating its 450th anniversary and is 6th in the schools' league table.
Lady Eleanor Holles School is an independent school for girls.
The latter two schools share a new Millennium Boathouse. Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race participants attended Hampton School. There is also a Hampton Junior School and a Hampton Infant School. Hampton Junior School is currently celebrating their 100th year anniversary.
Youth facilities in Hampton
Hampton Youth Project has been a popular youth centre in the area since 1990. Built in a converted coach depot on the Nurserylands Estate it offers a wide programme of activities for those aged 11-19.
Hampton Water Treatment Works (WTW)
Hampton WTW Victorian buildings on the A308
The large operational Water Treatment Works, owned by Thames Water, is situated between the Upper Sunbury Road (A308) and the River Thames. It was built in the 1850's after the 1852 Metropolis Water Act made it illegal to take drinking water from the tidal Thames below Teddington Lock because of the amount of sewage in the river. Three companies had established waterworks by 1855 — The Grand Junction, the Southwark and Vauxhall Waterworks Company, and the West Middlesex water company. The site includes old Victorian buildings, filter beds and some larger water storage beds. The site well demonstrates the successful accommodation of nature conservation with operational considerations. The Water Treatment Works is next to the Sunnyside Reservoir and the Stain Hill Reservoirs - sites of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation and contains flower-rich grassland and habitats for water birds.
The extensive areas of open water, especially the Grand Junction Reservoir in the north-west of the site, are used by large numbers of birds, particularly in winter. Most of the site is still in operational use so marginal vegetation, where it occurs, is generally sparse. However, the grasslands surrounding the filter beds and buildings are among the most herb-rich grasslands in the Borough and contain several scarce London species often associated with chalk grassland.[1]
Thames Water completed a five year modernisation in 1993 and has installed advanced water treatment facilities at the plant to filter out pesticides. Water is supplied via the Staines Aqueduct from the King George VI Reservoir and Staines Reservoirs which receive their input from the River Thames at Hythe End, just above Bell Weir Lock. The aqueduct passes the Water Treatment Works at Kempton Park, which used to be connected to Hampton via the Metropolitan Water Board Railway. The Hampton Water Works is close to Hampton library which is across the road from it.
Notable Hampton people
Notable people born in Hampton include:
Hampton in Popular Culture
The area is featured briefly in two Charles Dickens novels. In Oliver Twist, Oliver and Sykes stop in a public house in Hampton on their way to the planned burglary in Chertsey. In Nicholas Nickleby, Sir Mulberry Hawk and Lord Frederick visit the 'Hampton Races', which refers to racecourse at Moulsey Hurst. It is also briefly mentioned in War of the Worlds.
Nearest places
References
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