More wood black paving – Kentish Town, Brixton and Clerkenwell (Part 5 in a series)

I'm returning to wood block paving again, because I've found a few more patches that I'd like to share with you and add to the list. 

This bygone type of street surface was used on some roads, mainly busy streets, but also in areas of high use as per in a courtyards or private access ways where the noise from horses' hooves could be kept to a minimum. But horses leave evidence wherever they go in the form of wet and gloopy stuff and these deposits made the streets of old rather stinky. The wood blocks were also often stolen for use as firewood ( though consider the aroma!). 

Other forms of street surfaces superseded the wood blocks but it's still possible to find evidence here and there, mostly within man hole covers and just like finding an unusual shell on a beach, you then 'get your eye in' and start finding more – see my A-Z of London woodblocks here.

Here are two more new finds and an update...

This first one is a manhole cover I had spotted a few years ago and completely forgot about until recently. Having not made any note of it or taken any photos back then, I had to wander the streets to rediscover it. It sits in outside 111 Kentish Town Road. The wood within it is here clearly enhanced by the recent wet weather:

Similarly, in South London, near the entrance to Brixton Village covered market on Coldharbour Lane, there is another manhole cover where some of the old wood blocks are still visible. I'm sure there must be more examples of this type in the vicinity and I will look out for them when I am back in SW9 later this month.

The pair of pics below shows the same manhole highlighted by a late afternoon shadows in March 2025.  

And, finally, a return to Leo Yard, Clerkenwell, that I mentioned in an earlier post – this side alley, just wide enough for a small horse and cart, is on the north side of Clerkenwell Road and leads to what would have been workshops and warehousing at the rear. The wood blocks here are set within a maintenance access plate which forms a pleasing grid pattern. The blocks are barely worn and most have have slightly domed tops. Also, the wood here appears to be a very dense type, more so than within the circular plates like the two shown above, perhaps offcuts from the furniture making industry here. 

No doubt I'll find some more of these on my travels and I'll be writing 'Part 6' sometime soon... do let me know if you can add to the collection.

Brixton Windmill

Did you know there is a fully-functioning windmill in the back streets of Brixton within the aptly named Windmill Park?

A windmill has stood on this site since 1816. This is one of only a handful left standing in London. The bonus is that this mill, rather than having been turned into living space, or similar, produces an excellent finely-ground flour which is available to buy in the adjacent cafe. Also available; tours, events, arty things, children's activities and more besides – see here

On the streets nearby I spotted some other these nice things:

The side of the old Ace cinema, a lovely decorative street sign for Blenheim Gardens, a simpler one along Brixton Hill where a stretch of shops was known as The Pavement, and layers of faded and peeling red paint on a pillar box.

Eels at Brixton Academy

Last night. Mark 'E' Everett resplendent in white, sporting a headscarf, sunglassses and a HUGE beard which reminded me of the those Mexican circus artists.

It was a good gig. Not as good as when I saw Eels as a trio dressed as if ready for Scrapheap Challenge at the much missed Astoria (boo hoo... here I go again), or a pared down gig he did at the Albert Hall, but good enough. He/they performed mostly stuff from the most recent albums including this and this. I would have liked to have seen them do a few oldies like this and this too, but having just checked my iTunes and seen I have 194 Eels tracks in there I suppose you can't please all the people all the time.

Brixton is awash with lovely architectural details and signs – everything below is within 5 mins walk of the gig.