30-562: The A226 road travels in a west–east direction in southeast London and north Kent, from Crayford in the London Borough of Bexley , through Dartford, Gravesend to Strood. It is about 15.7 miles in length. The road begins with an end-on junction with the A207 to the east of the town of Crayford . in the London Borough of Bexley in Both roads are marked on street maps as being part of
60-607: A 'Great tenement called The Place' next to the bridge in Crayford, and between 1556 and 1586 purchased substantial amounts of local farmland and the Old Bell Public House. In 1623 most of the parish of Crayford was purchased by Merchant Taylor Robert Draper including Newbery Manor, Howbury Manor, Marshalls Court and May Place, where his family took up residence. Draper's wife Anne was the daughter of Thomas Harman who lived at Ellam House which subsequently passed to
90-537: A castle. In Wales, the term electoral ward is used for elections to principal councils ( county councils or county borough councils ). These were formally called electoral divisions . Communities in Wales (the equivalent to the civil parish in England) are sometimes divided into wards for elections to the community council. All of Scotland is divided into over 300 wards for local government elections. Using
120-585: A former waste dump) before following partially, a dismantled railway route to Northfleet . It then rejoins the London Road, near the Northfleet suburb of Rosherville. The former route is now the B2175. Then Gravesend is reached. As with Dartford, Gravesend has a ring road: this takes traffic around the town centre via Bath Street, West Street, Harmer Street, Milton Road, Parrock Street (where there
150-488: Is a scheduled monument lying between Crayford and Bexley . It has gardens with the River Cray running through and a plant nursery, a cafe and restaurant plus the silkworks shop. The large Sainsbury's supermarket situated next to the greyhound stadium was claimed by Sainsbury's to be the world first's use of technology which heats the store using natural energy captured through boreholes buried hundreds of metres beneath
180-1030: Is divided into wards, which are ancient and very long-standing sub-divisions of the city. The Council of the Isles of Scilly is also a sui generis unitary authority, and has five wards, each returning either 1 or (in the case of St Mary's ) 12 councillors to the Council of the Isles of Scilly. Civil parishes in England are sometimes divided into wards for elections to the parish council (or town / city council ). They need not bear any relation to wards or electoral divisions at district level, but often do. The four most northerly ancient counties of England – Cumberland , Westmorland , County Durham and Northumberland – were historically divided into administrative units called wards instead of hundreds or wapentakes , as in other counties. Wards were areas originally organised for military purposes, each centred on
210-603: Is junction with the A227 road ), Windmill Street, Stone Street, Rathmore Road and Pelham Road. The A226 continues along Milton Road and east to the Lion Roundabout. It by-passes south of the village of Chalk via the 1930s " Arterial road ". This section of the A226 also follows the 1711 turnpike road between Gravesend and Rochester. The next village, lying mainly to the north of the road, is Higham ; immediately following that
240-456: Is now the site of St Catherine's Roman Catholic School for Girls), Martens Grove and Oakwood - the latter two designed by architect John Shaw Jr. and built by George Locke of builders Locke & Nesham with each occupying one of the houses. In 1819, the former saw mill site became a flour mill. Another major employer was the silk works set up by Augustus Applegath and later run by David Evans. The Maxim Nordenfeldt Gun and Ammunition Factory
270-575: Is served by three Transport for London bus services. Wards of the United Kingdom The wards and electoral divisions in the United Kingdom are electoral districts at sub-national level, represented by one or more councillors . The ward is the primary unit of English electoral geography for civil parishes and borough and district councils, the electoral ward is the unit used by Welsh principal councils , while
300-720: Is the junction with the dual-carriageway A289 , the Medway Towns Northern Relief Road. The final section of the road crosses the B2018 and then drops down to the Medway valley until the junction with the A2 (Watling Street) in Strood . Before road numbering began in the United Kingdom, the road was part of the major route between London and Dover , the road taken by all traffic heading for mainland Europe. When
330-575: The A282 road here. This is the only part of the M25 which not a motorway, where it crosses the River Thames by tunnel and bridge. From here the road follows a somewhat undulating course as it passes through areas of chalk which have been excavated for the cement industry, many of which factories having been closed down. The villages of Stone , Greenhithe and Swanscombe all lie along this stretch of
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#1732764805448360-473: The Isle of Wight and Shropshire Councils ) instead use the term electoral division . In non-metropolitan county areas with both wards (used for district council elections) and electoral divisions (used for county council elections), the boundaries of the two types of divisions may sometimes not coincide, but more often the county electoral divisions will be made up of one or more complete wards. In urban areas,
390-622: The Ministry of Transport published its first list of road numbers, however, the building of the A2 had already begun; and the earliest map shows the projected route of that latter road; the previous road being relegated to what is now the A226. Crayford Crayford is a town and electoral ward in South East London, England, within the London Borough of Bexley . It lies east of Bexleyheath and north west of Dartford . Crayford
420-743: The electoral division is the unit used by English county councils and some unitary authorities . Each ward/division has an average electorate of about 5,500 people, but ward population counts can vary substantially. As of 2021 there are 8,694 electoral wards/divisions in the UK. An average area of wards or electoral divisions in the United Kingdom is 28.109 km (10.853 sq mi). The London boroughs , metropolitan boroughs and non-metropolitan districts (including most unitary authorities ) are divided into wards for local elections. However, county council elections (as well as those for several unitary councils which were formerly county councils, such as
450-653: The single transferable vote , most wards elect either three or four councillors. Starting from the 2022 Scottish local elections , the Scottish Elections (Reform) Act 2020 , allows electoral wards to have between one and five councillors. Districts in Northern Ireland are divided into electoral areas, with each electing between five and seven councillors by single transferable vote. These are themselves sub-divided into wards, but these wards have no official function. Post-1973 wards were first created by
480-554: The "Brettas" at that battle. Crayford is mentioned in the Domesday Book , which was compiled just prior to 1086, as a settlement within the Hundred of Litlelee with a church, three mills, and a relatively large population of 27 regular householders ( villeins ) and two smallholders . Its overlord was not a private individual or the king but Christ Church, Canterbury . As a (civil/combined) parish (before 1920) it included
510-423: The 2011 census, 84% of the population is White British. Crayford has a theatre and a greyhound racing track. The theatre was named in honour of Geoffrey Whitworth who played a key part in developing a British tradition of amateur drama and in building political support for The Royal National Theatre . The new Crayford Community Centre, located above the library, is the venue for many groups. Nearby Hall Place
540-576: The Drapers. The ownerships subsequently passed to Robert Draper's son William, who was selected to be the Sheriff of the County of Kent but died in 1650 before taking office, and then to Robert's grandson, parliamentarian Cresheld Draper . On the death of Cresheld Draper in 1694, his heirs sold all the properties to Sir Cloudesley Shovell '. Crayford Manor House was rebuilt in the eighteenth century, at
570-632: The Ring Road are (from the west): Highfield Road; Westgate; Home Gardens; Market Street; Lowfield Street (which continues south as the A225 road ); and Instone Road. Beyond the Ring Road is East Hill , still part of Watling Street. At its top the road becomes The Brent: a junction here takes traffic south-east on the A296 road to connect with the Dartford Crossing . The Brent crosses a bridge over
600-573: The Roman road Watling Street ; although the A207 is Crayford Road , the A226 being Dartford Road . After 1 mile (1.6 km) the road becomes West Hill where the descent into the valley of the River Darent and the town of Dartford begins. At the foot of the hill the clockwise ringroad is encountered: the original road continued through what is now the pedestrianised High Street. Roads making up
630-470: The ground and was at the time of its expansion (2010) the largest Sainsbury's in England. The Tower Retail Park is opposite Crayford Town Hall. The High Street is partly one-way for motor traffic. Crayford railway station connects the town with Southeastern services to London Charing Cross via Sidcup , London Cannon Street via Sidcup and Lewisham , London Cannon Street via Woolwich Arsenal and Greenwich , Dartford and Gravesend . Crayford
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#1732764805448660-704: The hamlets of Northend , Perry Street and Slade Green which lie to the north. In 1831, the population of the parish was 2022 people. For centuries it was strongly associated with brick-making, the printing of silk scarves, ties and calico cloths, and for a short period carpet-making. There were two main Manor Houses in the area during the Middle Ages , Newbery Manor on the site of what is now Crayford Manor House, and Howbury Manor next to Slade Green. Roger Apylton had served Kings Henry V and Henry VI as auditor, and resided at Marshalls Court, Crayford. Late in
690-504: The reign of Elizabeth I Henry Partich sold Newbery Manor to Henry Apylton of Marshalls Court, and Apylton built May Place close by. Hall Place , which lies alongside the River Cray, was built for Lord Mayor of the City of London Sir John Champneis in around 1537. There was also an Iron Mill, which was later replaced by a saw mill (in 1765), which produced the timber for the floor of Buckingham Palace . In 1551 Francis Goldsmith bought
720-566: The road. Due to the construction of Ebbsfleet International Station in 2006/2007, the route was altered. The road now heads right (via Thames Way ) under the Channel Tunnel Rail Link and then left, past the International station (and its many car parks) and Sawyer's Lake. This new route is also used by Fastrack Buses Route B (between Dartford and Gravesend). The A226 then passes Northfleet Urban Country Park (on
750-500: The site of Noviomagus Cantiacorum , a place mentioned in the Antonine Itinerary as being on the Roman equivalent of the later Watling Street . Crayford is also plausible as the site of the bloody battle of Crecganford ("Creeks ford ") in 457 in which Hengist defeated Vortimer to become the supreme sovereign of Kent . The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle written around 400 years later describes how Hengist and Æsc defeated
780-541: The time essentially a farmhouse until it was remodelled in 1816 for the Rev. Thomas Barne. Historic England state it was built piecemeal over several periods, with a porch and Italianate features being added to the 1816 building. Other notable 19th-century local houses included Shenstone (built around 1828 and demolished 1974, the site is now Shenstone School, with Shenstone's former grounds now being Shenstone Park), Stoneyhurst (which became Stoneyhurst Convent High School and
810-558: The wards within a local authority area typically each contain roughly the same number of electors, and each elect three councillors. In local authorities with mixed urban and rural areas, the number of councillors may vary from one to three, depending on the size of the electorate. Where civil parishes exist, a ward can be adjacent with a civil parish or consist of groups of civil parishes. Larger civil parishes (such as Shrewsbury ) can be divided into two or more wards. The City of London has its own sui generis form of local government and
840-471: Was Dussek Brothers (part of Burmah- Castrol since the 1960s) who operated their oils and waxes blending business on Thames Road from around 1928 until the site was bought by BP and subsequently closed down in 2001. The entire site was demolished in early 2010. The David Evans silk works is another recent closure, in 2002. In 1982 a housing cooperative was built at Craymill next to the A206 road. According to
870-653: Was also a major employer, until taken over by the Vickers Company in 1897. Vickers built military aeroplanes and armaments and became the dominant employer, building homes, a theatre and a canteen close to many workshops. The canteen (built during the First World War ) was converted for use by the Crayford Urban District Council as Crayford Town Hall and is a locally listed building. Another former major employer in Crayford
900-458: Was in the historic county of Kent until 1965. The settlement developed by the river Cray , around a ford that is no longer used. An Iron Age settlement existed in the vicinity of the present St Paulinus Church between the Julian and Claudian invasions of Britain , from roughly 30 BC to AD 40. Roman ruins have been discovered and Crayford is one of several places proposed as
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