Visit Barking, London Places

Welcome to Visit Barking, London Places
The Walkfo guide to things to do & explore in Barking, London

  

Barking, London Places Overview: History, Culture & Facts about Barking, London

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Barking, London history

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Barking railway station opened in 1854 and has been served by the London Underground since 1908. Historically, Barking was an ancient parish that straddled the River Roding in the Becontree Hundred and historic county of Essex. It underwent a shift from fishing and farming to market gardening and industrial development.

Abbey

Barking was the site of Barking Abbey, a nunnery founded in 666 by Eorcenwald, Bishop of London. It was destroyed by the Danes and reconstructed in 970 by King Edgar. The celebrated writer Marie de France may have been abbess of the nunnery in the late 12th century.

Market

Charter issued between 1175 and 1179 confirms the ancient market right. The market declined in the 18th century but has since been revived.

Architecture: historic buildings

St Margaret’s Church is a grade I listed building in the Abbey Green area of the Town Centre. Eastbury Manor House in Barking is a Grade I listed 16th century Elizabethan manor house and museum run by the National Trust.

Fishing

Salt water fishing began before 1320, when too fine nets were seized by City authorities. Fisher Street (now the southern part of Abbey Road) was named after the fishing community there. Fishermen sailed as far as Iceland in the summer, and moored in Barking Pool.

Economic development

In 1848, 5 shipwrights, 4 rope- and line-makers, 6 sail-makers and 4 mast-, pump-, and block-makers are listed in a local trade directory. Hewett & Co continued in boat building and repair until 1899. By 1878 Daniel de Pass had opened the Barking Guano Works at Creekmouth. Creekmouth was also the site of the major Barking Power Station from 1925 until the 1970s.

Thames disaster

On 3 September 1878 the iron ship Bywell Castle ran into the pleasure steamer Princess Alice in Gallions Reach, downstream of Barking Creek. She broke in two and sank immediately, with the loss of more than 600 lives. At that time there was no official body responsible for marine safety in the Thames.

Barking, London culture & places

Music

The singer-songwriter and activist Billy Bragg was born in Barking. Neil Young recorded two tracks for his classic album Harvest, “A Man Needs a Maid” and “There’s a World” at Barking Assembly Hall.

Local media

Bedrock is the local hospital radio service available online to the local area and broadcasting a range of health-related information. The Barking & Dagenham Post provides local news in print and online.

Sport

Barking F.C. are a non-league side. The team merged with East Ham to form Barking & East Ham United in 2001. The successful racing driver Scott Malvern was born in Barking Hospital.

Public art works

Barking Town Centre has a number of recently commissioned sculptures and public art works. In 2007, two small stones from remains of London Bridge were joined together in a sculpture in front of St Margaret’s church.

Barking, London geography / climate

Town centre

Barking Town Centre is being regenerated through a number of schemes. The Abbey and Gascoigne wards in the town centre are ranked 823rd and 554th in the country’s most deprived areas. The town centre development intends to improve the quality and range of housing, aiming to create 4,000 new homes.

Roding Riverside

Roding Riverside is a name given to an area of Barking comprising the stretch of Abbey Road south of St Pauls Road, which runs parallel to the River Roding / Barking Creek. Many buildings are late 20th century or early 21st century residential and commercial buildings, but some are Victorian industrial buildings adapted for use in arts and leisure fields.

Barking Riverside

Barking Riverside consists of 350 acres (1.4 km) of brownfield land. Construction began in 2008, with completion due around 2025. 10,000 homes are to be built, housing around 25,000 people. New transport links will be provided, including East London Transit and the extension of the Docklands Light Railway. The development will also provide new public facilities.

You can visit Barking, London places with Walkfo Barking, London to hear history at Barking, London’s places whilst walking around using the free digital tour app. Walkfo Barking, London has 142 places to visit in our interactive Barking, London map, with amazing history, culture & travel facts you can explore the same way you would at a museum or art gallery with information audio headset. With Walkfo, you can travel by foot, bike or bus throughout Barking, London, being in the moment, without digital distraction or limits to a specific walking route. Our historic audio walks, National Trust interactive audio experiences, digital tour guides for English Heritage locations are available at Barking, London places, with a AI tour guide to help you get the best from a visit to Barking, London & the surrounding areas.

“Curated content for millions of locations across the UK, with 142 audio facts unique to Barking, London places in an interactive Barking, London map you can explore.”

Walkfo: Visit Barking, London Places Map
142 tourist, history, culture & geography spots

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Barking, London historic spots	Barking, London tourist destinations	Barking, London plaques	Barking, London geographic features
Walkfo Barking, London tourism map key: places to see & visit like National Trust sites, Blue Plaques, English Heritage locations & top tourist destinations in Barking, London

  

Best Barking, London places to visit

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Barking, London has places to explore by foot, bike or bus. Below are a selection of the varied Barking, London’s destinations you can visit with additional content available at the Walkfo Barking, London’s information audio spots:

Beckton Beckton is within the London Borough of Newham and is 8 miles (12.9 km) east of Charing Cross. Historically part of Essex, Beckton was unpopulated marshland adjacent to the River Thames until the development of major industrial infrastructure in the 19th century. Housing was created in Beckton for workers of the gas and sewage works.

East London East London is a popularly and informally defined part of London. It is east of the ancient City of London and north of the River Thames. It comprises the London boroughs of Barking and Dagenham, Hackney, Havering, Newham, Redbridge, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest.

Upton Park, London Upton Park is an area of the East London borough of Newham, centred on Green Street which is the boundary between West Ham and East Ham. West Ham United Football Club formerly played at the Boleyn Ground, commonly known as Upton Park.

Visit Barking, London plaques