Crossrail Archaeology THE CHANGING FACE OF LONDON HISTORIC BUILDINGS AND THE CROSSRAIL ROUTE & NEW FRONTIER: THE ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENT OF WEST LONDON FROM BRUNEL TO BRITISH RAIL THE RAILWAY HERITAGE OF THE CROSSRAIL ROUTE

Monograph 1 THE CHANGING FACE OF LONDON
HISTORIC BUILDINGS AND THE CROSSRAIL ROUTE
Much of Crossrail, London’s latest railway, lies hidden beneath its streets. It is visible
only where new stations have appeared and tunnel entrances formed. At many of
these places existing buildings have had to be adapted or removed to accommodate
the new railway. Buildings have much to tell us about the lives and livelihoods of
others, and Crossrail ensured that any building affected by the works was surveyed by
their team of archaeologists before any work began.
This book considers what the buildings and structures examined in this way have told
us about the changing face of London. Each chapter takes as its theme buildings that
shared common functions or characteristics, such as the offices that lay in the way of
the capital’s new stations or the former industrial buildings that clustered around the
railway’s new tunnel portals. The background to each theme is set out before specific
buildings are described and interpreted. Details of the buildings and structures, from
pubs to power stations, appear in the gazetteer at the rear of the book.
Monograph 2 FROM BRUNEL TO BRITISH RAIL
THE RAILWAY HERITAGE
OF THE CROSSRAIL ROUTE
Trace a line across a map of London and one will encounter many historic railways.
Railways are more dynamic than people may suppose; over time stations are
reconfigured, bridges replaced, tracks re-aligned. Sometimes, whole lines or tracts of
land, particularly those associated with London’s freight operations, fall into disuse.
The designers of Crossrail, London’s latest railway, actively sought these out for
adaptation. At many of these places historic buildings were adapted or removed to
accommodate the new railway; elsewhere the building of Crossrail has unearthed the
archaeological remains of some of London’s earliest railways.
Buildings have much to tell us about the lives and livelihoods of others, and Crossrail
ensured that any building or site of archaeological significance affected by the works
was surveyed by their team of archaeologists. This book presents the results of those
surveys in the form of a collection of essays, largely based on the chronology of railway
development in the capital. Collected together, the chapters provide new aspects to the
history of railways in London; details of the buildings and structures affected, from
engine sheds to turntables, are provided in a gazetteer.
Monograph 3 NEW FRONTIER: THE ORIGINS AND
DEVELOPMENT OF WEST LONDON
Oxford Street, Paddington Station, Soho; these are some of the most iconic landmarks of
the capital and famous throughout the world, but the telling of their history is frequently
an aside to the story of the City - the birthplace of the Capital with its Roman origins,
Norman citadel, medieval buildings and financial dominance. But what lies beneath
the busy streets and pavements of the West End? Why are there so many residential
squares in this part of London? How did this agricultural landscape on the periphery of
the urban centre evolve into one of the most prized property markets in the world?
This book shines a spotlight on the history and archaeology of West London. It is
informed by the desk-based historical research, site excavations and archaeological
monitoring carried out before and during the construction of the western arm of Crossrail
as it travels below ground from the tunnel portal at Royal Oak to Fisher Street via brand
new stations at Paddington, Bond Street and Tottenham Court Road - a journey which
includes the discovery of ice age Bison and reindeer, the rediscovery of long lost rivers
and reveals the history of the Georgian property developers and the Great Western
Railway.