USUALLY, towns developed and grew before a railway station was built, not so Northwood, where the station was built before the town, as The Watford Observer observed in 1887: "The station is in the midst of very pretty country, where 250 persons arrive on Sundays."

People were on the move. From inner and outer London they came, to visit open countryside for leisure and to build houses. With railway-mania at its height, the station was a natural step in the growth of the new community. Yet "Northwode" pre-dates those days when, as a part of the manor of Ruislip, the land was seized by the Crown, then given away by Henry VI.

From the railway station, I wandered around to the police station. Unlike other Met stations, it once had, uniquely, a white lamp outside because the high court ruled that it should blend in with its surroundings. The white lamp is blue now, which seems a shame.

Green Lane is an ancient highway, dating back to 1565. You'd never have guessed. Even older is the Grange, on the Ricky Road (opposite The Avenue), an inhabited site dating back to the early 13th Century. It's the oldest domestic house in Northwood, but the present timber framed building is much altered now. Two centuries ago, John Rowe planted many English trees, intending to have every native species growing here. Sadly, they were cut down by Dr Nash, an Egyptologist. That's a shame, too.

Northwood is a busy, bustling place, but traffic struggles to move at all in Rickmansworth Road. Temporary escape is found in the grounds of Holy Trinity Church. The inscription on the tablet in the wall tells you that the first stone was laid by Lady Grosvenor on October 12, 1852. The church was consecrated in 1854, but many failed to attend due to blizzards and the Bishop had to ad lib as the service sheets weren't delivered on time.

Still Northwood hadn't arrived. There was the church "among the meadows reached by woodland and meadow paths" and green fields, then, in 1887, the railway station and from a population in 1841 of just 245, the town expanded quickly as new houses were built, and those who could afford it moved out to London's new country retreat.

William Duck, it seems, was already resident, hence Ducks Hill Road. Much later the busy Ricky Road was a turnpike, with tolls payable at the gate, where the pub of that name marks the spot. It's on record that the local blacksmith picked his horse up and carried it rather than pay the toll. When men were men, eh?

And so to Batchworth Heath, where 20,000 people turned out to see King William IV and Queen Adelaide who deigned to visit the gateway, still in situ. There wasn't a soul as I passed by and continued to Ye Olde Greene Manne, which has been a pub since 1728, reputedly visited by Dick Turpin. It seems he vacated the premises by a rear window as the Bow Street Runners were enquiring of his whereabouts at the front. Modern-day bobbies would cover the rear, of course: wouldn't they?

A right of way leads on to the open vistas of Moor Park. There was a small castle here once, belonging to Cardinal Wolsey, who listed among his guests Henry VIII and (on separate occasions) Katherine of Aragon and Katherine Howard. All is gone, but now we have Moor Park House.

The present mansion stands on the site of a previous one built by the Duke of Monmouth, who laid claim to the throne against James II and was beheaded. The house went to the Crown, then to the Duke's widow who had the oaks in the grounds pollarded to spite James II. In 1720, Benjamin Styles, who made a fortune on the stock market, encased the house in portland stone and made it is today.

As for Northwood, one might reflect on how things were in the old days. To quote The Watford Observer: "The visitor will discover a region not unlike Westmorland without its lakes. A favourite neighbourhood of nightingales."

Approximate distance: 3 miles

Start and Finish: Northwood Metropolitan Line station

Route

Maxwell Road, Green Lane, Rickmansworth Road, London Road, Batchworth Heath, Park Close, Moor Park, and return

Abbreviations

l.=left; r.=right; n. s. e. w.=north, south, east, west; br.=bridge; r.o.w.=right of way; PH=public house; m.=mile; s/post=signpost; f/post=fingerpost; b/way=bridleway; ch.=church; f/p=footpath

Directions

Up Station Approach, l. into Maxwell Road to police station. Retrace steps, turn l. into Green Lane to Rickmansworth Road. Turn r. follow to church and past Mount Vernon Hosp. to Batchworth Heath and Moor Park gates'. Pass by Ye Olde Greene Manne PH, turn, r. into Park Close, take r.o.w. across golf course past Moor Park Ho. (clubhouse).

Pubs

On route

Ye Olde Green Manne

Prince of Wales

The Gate

True Lovers' Knot

Northwood town centre

The Reindeer

Wetherspoon's

Reproduced from Limited Edition magazine, exclusive guides to living in Hertfordshire, Middlesex and the London Borough of Barnet (01923 216295).

For a printable map of the walk, please click the image below.