Glimpse the past through old images of Hillingdon in Greater London.
Plane Crash 1938
In 1938, a plane from RAF Holtholt in West London crashed down on a road into Hillingdon at 300 miles per hour.
Sadly, the pilot was killed instantaneously, though the accident avoided hitting any other people or local homes.
RAF plane crashes on street in Hillingdon (1938) – British Pathé on YouTube
Brief History of Hillingdon, England
Hillingdon was a village and a district, was historically in the county of Middlesex, and today it’s both a district and a London Borough in Greater London, England.
By the time the Domesday Book of 1086 collected tax information for William the Conqueror, there were already several parishes in existance in the ancient borough of Hillingdon.
In the Middle Ages, the north-west road from London to Oxford went through Hillingdon. North of the road was mostly uncultivated, while the southern side was populated with farms and small settlements.
The communities of Hillingdon Heath, Colham Green, Goulds Green and Pield Heath gathered around the common land, where animals could graze.
In the 16th century, the Red Lion pub was established at the green, on the west side of the church.
In 1965, following significant reorganisation of the London Boroughts, amalgamation of the district councils of Hayes and Harlington, Ruislip-Northwood, Yiewsley, West Drayton, and the Borough of Uxbridge led to the creation of the London Borough of Hillingdon.
