Heathrow timeline
Heathrow sits in a landscape with ancient roots. Archaeologists have found Neolithic artefacts in the gravel around what is now the airport and in the Colne Valley, indicating a long-ago settlement.
By the 1930s the hamlet was sparsely developed. There was only one building on the north side of Bath Road between The Magpies and Longford, with more farms and a few factories appearing before World War II. By 1944, there were no buildings on the south side of Bath Road between The Magpies and Longford.
Heathrow was cut off from major roads and railways, which kept it quiet but not far from London. The area became part of west Middlesex’s market gardening and fruit growing, helped by the brickearth soil, which was good for farming. People grew fruit, vegetables and flowers to sell in London, often travelling back with manure for their fields.
In the countryside around Heathrow, horse-drawn ploughing was a popular event. The Middlesex Agricultural and Growers’ Association held annual ploughing matches in Heathrow, with the 99th in 1937. The 100th in 1938 was postponed because of drought, and the 1939 event was cancelled due to the war.
A Royal Commission on Historic Monuments later listed many historic buildings in Harmondsworth parish, including some in Heathrow. Notable sites included Heathrow Hall, a late 18th-century farmhouse on Heathrow Road, and Perry Oaks farm, which dates back to the Elizabethan era.
In the 19th century, much of west Middlesex, including Heathrow, was used for orchards. Fruit trees and soft fruit were common, sometimes with vegetables or flowers grown underneath. An author in 1907 described thousands of trees and berry bushes around Harmondsworth, Sipson, Harlington, and Heathrow.
After World War I, fruit growing declined as imports increased and more land was needed for market gardening. By 1939 less than 10% of the orchard area remained. Produce was sent to Covent Garden Market or Brentford Market, with Covent Garden about 14 miles away by road. That journey could take several hours by horse and wagon, especially if carried out the day before for an early market opening; strawberries and other delicate produce could reach Covent Garden in around 1.5 hours in a light vehicle.
An 11.93-acre field on the south side of Bath Road, near Heathrow Road, appears as allotment gardens on a 1935 map and in a 1940 Luftwaffe survey. In the 1930s Heathrow Hall and Perry Oaks were mixed farms with wheat, cattle, sheep and pigs, while other farms focused on market gardening and fruit growing.
Photographs from the early 20th century show milk cattle at Cain’s Farm and the yearly ploughing competitions along Cain’s Lane, on land that belonged to Heathrow Hall, with other ploughing activity near Tithe Barn Lane. Sipson Farm at the north end of Sipson may have owned land in Heathrow.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 08:42 (CET).