Hammersmith, Fulham and Putney | Page 6

Sherlock in 1751, crosses it; this is made entirely of oak, and
was repaired in 1837 by Bishop Blomfield. Near the creek the houses
are poor and mean, inhabited by river-men, etc., and the place is called
Little Wapping. There is a little passage between creek and river, and in
it is a low door marked "The Seasons." It was here that Thompson
wrote his great poem, in a room overlooking the water, in the upper
part of the Doves public-house, which was then a coffee-tavern. The
poem was so little appreciated by the booksellers, who then combined
the functions of publishers with their own trade, that it was with
difficulty he persuaded one of them to give him three guineas for it.
Opposite is Sussex Lodge, once the residence of the Duke of Sussex,
who came to the riverside for change of air. It was afterwards inhabited
by Captain Marryat, the novelist. Sir Godfrey Kneller lived for a time
in the Upper Mall; and Bowack tells us that "Queen Katherine, when
Queen-Dowager, kept her palace in the summer time" by the river. This
was Catherine of Braganza, consort of Charles II. She came here after
his death, and remained until 1692. She took great interest in gardening,
and the elms by the riverside are supposed to have been of her planting.
Her banqueting-hall survived until within the last thirty years. It was a
building with handsome recesses on the front filled by figures cast in
lead. In the reign of Queen Anne the celebrated physician Dr. Radcliffe
lived in the same house. He had the project of founding a hospital, and
began to build, but never carried his intention into effect. He

bequeathed the greater part of his property and his library to the
University of Oxford, and was the founder of the famous Radcliffe
Library there. Bishop Lloyd of Norwich was a near neighbour at
Hammersmith. He died in the Upper Mall in 1710, and left many
valuable books to St. John's College, Cambridge.
In Kelmscott House, No. 26, lived William Morris, R.A., whose
influence on the artistic development of printing and in many other
directions is well known. On a small outer building of the house is a
tablet stating that in this house Sir Francis Ronald, F.R.S., made the
first electric telegraph, eight miles long, in 1816. Turner, R.A., lived in
the Upper Mall, 1808-14, after which he moved to Sandycombe Lodge,
Twickenham. After Riverscourt Road there is a hoarding, behind which
was Queen Catherine of Braganza's mansion already referred to.
Mickephor Alphery, a member of the Russian Imperial Family, took
Holy Orders in England in 1618, and lived at Hammersmith. Weltje
Street was named after a favourite cook of George IV.'s, who had a
house on its site. He is buried in the churchyard. Linden House is old,
but has no history. Beavor Lodge, which gives its name to Beavor Lane,
was formerly owned by Sir Thomas Beavor. In it now lives Sir W. B.
Richmond, K.C.B., R.A. Old Ship Lane takes its name from a
picturesque old tavern, the Old Ship, the doorway of which is still
standing. Hammersmith Terrace runs from Black Lion Lane to
Chiswick Hall. In it are many old houses remaining. In No. 13 lived P.
J. de Loutherbourgh, an artist and member of the Royal Academy. He
died here in 1812. Arthur Murphy, whose monument in the church has
been mentioned, lived at No. 17. He wrote lives of Fielding, Johnson,
and Garrick, besides numerous essays and plays, and was well known
to his own contemporaries. Mrs. Mountain, the celebrated singer, also
had a house in the terrace.
The fisheries of Hammersmith were formerly much celebrated. They
were leased in the seventeenth century to Sir Nicholas Crispe, Sir
Abraham Dawes, and others for the value of three salmon annually.
Flounders, smelt, salmon, barbel, eels, roach, dace, lamprey, were
caught in the river, but even in 1839 fish were growing very scarce.
Faulkner, writing at that period, says it was ten years since a salmon

had been caught.
In Black Lion Lane is St. Peter's Church, built in 1829. It is of brick,
and has a high lantern tower and massive portico, supported by pillars.
Close by are the girls' and infant schools, built 1849-52. From this point
to the western boundary of the parish there is nothing further of
interest.
In King Street West, after No. 229, there is a Methodist Chapel, with an
ornamental porch. A few doors westward are the new or Upper
Latymer Schools, with the arms of the founder over the doorway. The
buildings are in red brick, with stone facings.
Returning to the north side of the Hammersmith Road, which has for
some time been overlooked, we find the King's Theatre, stone-fronted
and new, bearing date