45 Squared 22) FERRY SQUARE, TW8
Borough of Hounslow, 40m×20m
This square's in old Brentford, inasmuch as old Brentford still exists, although all its buildings have somehow survived the recent cleansing of the riverside. The ferry in question was a horse ferry to Kew, an important crossing since medieval times and long under the control of the Crown. The pedestrian fare in 1536 was a farthing. Ferry Lane ran down to a landingstage at the mouth of the river Brent, a connection last used in 1939 when the economics of a link to the wrong side of Kew Gardens became untenable. And the open space where Ferry Lane met the High Street was called Ferry Square, indeed still is, although it's no longer open because the residents have chained it off so don't get your hopes up.
200 years ago the standalone building in the centre of Ferry Square was the 'Brentford Cage', the town's lock-up where ne'er-do-wells were stashed before appearing in front of the local magistrates. As Brentford docks were then a frenetic interface between the Grand Union Canal and the Thames, it would have been kept ferry busy. In 1898 a Fire Station was built in its place, a civic wonder in redbrick terracotta with space for two fire engines and a special tower for drying the leather hoses. This continued to serve the town until 1965 when the ambulance service moved in instead, then in 2003 came a restaurant inevitably called The Old Fire Station. The current hospitality occupants are Moisei at Makai who offer "a unique experience with seafood boils", i.e. Hawaiian fusion with cocktails, and who've recently ventured into Ukranier cuisine. The Middlesex coat of arms above the 'Please leave quietly' notice looks terribly out of place.
Ferry Square today is merely the road behind the Old Fire Station, a brief curl fronted by a brief terrace of half a dozen houses. These replaced a row of cottages which housed Thames Soap Works employees so must date to WWII-ish, although that still counts as properly old round here. And no you won't be getting a closer look because two planters and a chain block the entrance, just outside the replacement windows at number 1. 'PRIVATE' says a sign, also 'Access for residents & their visitors only' in case you haven't got the hint. The reclusive cul-de-sac boasts one council lamppost, a jointed concrete road surface and at the far end a small turning circle that appears to double up as a communal front garden. Here a curve of astroturf fronts the high street with an array of metal chairs, rustic planters and a cluster of frighteningly gauche garden gnomes courtesy of The Wilson Family at number 6. I didn't feel I'd missed much by not being able to venture within.
The east side of the square is officially Ferry Lane and somehow still cobbled. This is where the seven St Paul'salmshouses were once located, except in 1949 they were closed and demolished and now a Premier Inn occupies the site. The first extant building down Ferry Lane is The Watermans Arms, a 20th century rebuild of a much much older pub which now offers cask ales, traditional fayre and Japanese dishes. Had you been watching Z Cars on 1st August 1972 you'd have seen it featured as the site of dodgy cigarette deals and a bar brawl, the immediate relevance being that the two officers on watch outside were parked in front of 1 Ferry Square. And if you head any further down Ferry Lane it becomes Ferry Quays, an early millennial redevelopment of cheerless sterility, which alas is the direction much of riverside Brentford is going. If nothing else Ferry Square still has a bit of character, even it's just gnomes and terracotta.
