Blackhorse Road

 

With the advent of the railways and the ensuing suburbanisation in the late 19th century, Walthamstow experienced a large growth in population and speculative building. The Lighthouse Methodist Church which dates from 1893 which is situated on Markhouse Road, on the corner of Downsfield Road. There is a lantern at the top of the tower, which also contains a spiral staircase. The church was erected because of the generosity of Captain David King of the shipbuilding firm of Bullard King & Co which also ran the Natal Direct Shipping Line, which ran ships direct from London to Durban without stopping at the Cape. The LGOC X-type and B-type were built at Blackhorse Lane from October 1908 onwards. The B-type is considered one of the first mass-production buses. The manufacturing operation later became AEC, famous as the manufacturer of many of London's buses. On 13 June 1909, A. V. Roe's aircraft took to the air from Walthamstow Marshes. It was the first all-British aircraft and was given the ominous nickname of the "Yellow Terror" but officially carried the name Avro1. Roe later founded the Avro aircraft company, which later built the acclaimed Avro Lancaster. The station was opened on 19 July 1894 by the Tottenham and Forest Gate Railway and was originally situated east of Blackhorse Lane. The station was resited on 14 December 1981 to provide better interchange with the tube station which had opened on 1 September 1968.

 

The station contains two underground platforms for the Victoria line and two for the London Overground. The underground station, like many stations on the Victoria line, was never completely finished. White ceiling panels were never fixed to the ceilings above the platforms; instead the steel tunnel segments were painted black and used to support the fixtures and fittings. This has had a detrimental effect on the lighting levels. There are two distinct works of art at the station, both depicting black horses, in reference to the station's name. One is in the form of a tile motif depicting a black horse on a white cameo against a light blue background, identical to the Victoria line's colour. It was done by Hans Unger, who also did the tile motif at Seven Sisters tube station. The other is a mural of a black horse outside the station's entrance, by David McFall. The station has escalators, a car park, ASDA click and collect, payphones and wi-fi.

 

Connections: London Overground. London Bus routes 123, 158, 230 and W15 and night route N73 serve the station.

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