A former resident has told me the green in the middle of the 2 roads used to be a dock on the canal called "Otter Dock". Does anyone have any knowledge of this?

Otter Dock ran from the Grand Union Canal into Yiewsley Brickfields and did indeed run along the middle of Colham avenue.

In those days the eastern side of Colham Ave (Providence Rd side) was called Ernest Road. (Ernest Road also included part of Yew Ave to a point 100m north of Castle Ave, and was renamed in 1964/5)

The Brickfields in West Drayton were started in the mid 1870s as an extension to those established fields in Colham Manor, Pole Sturgess Meadow and Philpots Bridge (Cowley Peachey).

Otter Dock was cut between 1876 to 1879 to provide a mini canal network across the brickfields and allow access the Grand Union Canal so that the 5 million bricks moulded and fired in the Hillingdon Brickfields every year, could be delivered to a yard near to South Wharf Basin, near Paddington Station.

The last brickfield at Starveal (Stockley Bridge area) disappeared in 1935 and Otter Dock at Colham Ave was filled in around that time although a small stump of Otter Dock survived until the mid 1970s

Thank you SOT.

Here's a map showing the area of the Otter Dock in case you're interested.
It's not very clear so I've highlighted Horton Road to make it easier to make out.
Starveall was the original name for Stockley but was renamed in 1912 due to the names association with the manufacture of stock bricks.
The book in my hand also says that the dock was part of the canal until 1912 so presumably that was when it filled in.

Thanks CS. That's very interesting. I can see where Otterfield Road gets its name from.

Thanks for all this info, folks.

May I have your permission to make use of some of it to supplement Yiewsley's new history section, please?

• Yiewsley: History

I'm sure they won't mind.

If it's history you're after, this will keep you busy for weeks:

http://www.british-history.ac.uk/result ... 1=yiewsley

Thanks Jon - appreciate all your comments and encouragement.

Captain Scarlett

Excellent map. It reminds me that Otter Dock did actually run under Falling lane.

I remember when the notorious Bison estate was being constructed in Fordham and Rydall Closes, the main sewer was laid in the course of the old Otter dock and used an exisiting (but buried) canal bridge under Falling lane to be connected up with the pipes in Yew Ave.

As kids we were fascinated with the new 'tunnel' created in the footpath between Yew Ave and Falling lane and often explored it right under Falling La by riding on the tunneller's rail mounted spoil wagons (in pitch black of course, to make it even more dangerous!!)

My Mum wasn't happy about my muddy clothes and banned me from Sabey's dump (which had been my alibi!)

See, that's what we did back then. A little harmless fun in a pitch black tunnel riding on civil engineering equipment (How did I get away with it!?)

Blimey............hours I spent over there messing about.
Used to get over there on the old bikes when I was younger.
Forgotten all about that place..Now Stockley park.

We found a large false hand over there once, I claimed it, so became popular when we got home, cos everyone wanted to try it on! ( Kids were easily pleased in those days! )

This may almost be a thread itself: Things I found at Sabey's Dump

My most amusing find was a massive roll of flock wallpaper, the furry stuff found in old pubs. My brother's girlfriend lived nearby and wanted to decorate her room so her dad did one wall in this (hideous) paper.

A lesson I learned from this story is that things are normally dumped for a reason, and within a few days all the 'flock' has moulted due to a defective glue, leaving an ugly brown backing paper on the wall.

I got a slap from my brother. She gave him the elbow!

We used to play over at Sabey's too, and usually ended up having air-gun battles at the Pack-hills.

I remember thinking about it years later, when I had kids of my own that I'd have thrown a wobbly if my kids had gone there! It was disgusting!