Metro-land is a manufactured London borough; an area that established the notion of the suburban idyll. The Metropolitan Railway Company coined the term ‘Metro-land’, producing a guide to the beautiful countryside, safe from the confined and crowded city. North West London was served by the Metropolitan Railway from the mid-19th century.

The Metropolitan Railway Company (MRC) served London between 1863 and 1933, from the city to the heart of rural and suburban Middlesex. Travel infrastructure had developed rapidly during this period; icon of the industrial revolution, the steam locomotive would transform industry and social life. The Metropolitan Railway Line would eventually connect the railway termini of Paddington, Kings Cross and Farringdon via Baker Street, ‘the gateway to Metro-land’. The railway was built beyond London, extending to Verney Junction in Buckinghamshire, where services would venture from 1868 until 1936. Though not lasting, this building allowed the MRC to be consumed by the sweeping London Underground. 

The MRC were in a privileged position that allowed them to retain and develop the swathes of fields that surrounded their tracks. The railway company paved the way for a separate business to be formed that would manage housing; the conception of the Metropolitan Railway Company Estates Limited was delayed by the First World War. When instated, the company was prepared to oversee an imminent housing boom. As the railway grew, so too did the demand for homes. Estates were built for the railway workers in Wembley and Neasden. Formerly referred to as ‘The Met’, the company changed tack. Metro-land would better describe the railway and accompanying housing estates that were arising from Baker Street, through to Buckinghamshire.

In 1915, the MRC marketing department released a handbook; the ‘Guide to the Extension Line’ was a glossy catalogue aimed at walkers, visitors and house-hunters. Promoting leisure travel from the city, it was presumed that the pamphlet would stimulate an interest in relocating to the new, rural developments; ‘live in Metro-land’ was etched onto the pages of the book. The guide heralded the health benefits of ‘fresh Chiltern air’ and promised ‘tremulous green loveliness’. Their words were sufficient in sparking a middle-class migration from London.

In the post-war period, the aforementioned housing boom was underway. In the 100 years that have passed, the image of rurality has given way to suburbia. Regarded as an improvement on city dwelling, suburban settlements rapidly developed and their populations vastly increased. When the Metropolitan Railway Company was absorbed by London Transport in 1933, the marketing behind Metro-land ceased, but many Londoners had already made the move northwest.

The historic Metropolitan Railway line was reduced to one of London Transport’s seven underground lines in the mid-1930s; the iconic advertising that promoted the rurality of Metro-land ceased. After just two decades, Metro-land had lost its company status, though the ideals it promoted would be lasting. It would become a source of inspiration for poets such as Sir John Betjeman and novelists like Julian Barnes. The scene of the ‘red electric train’ running through the once remote stillness of Harrow-on-the-Hill; the mundanity of life for the suburban housewife, amongst the privet hedgerows and detached homes of Pinner. The decades passed and Metro-land continued to develop in the consciousness of those who inhabited it.

Gaily into Ruislip Gardens
Runs the red electric train,
With a thousand Ta's and Pardon's
Daintily alights Elaine;
Hurries down the concrete station
With a frown of concentration,
Out into the outskirt's edges
Where a few surviving hedges,
Keep alive our lost Elysium -
rural Middlesex again.

An excerpt from 'Middlesex' by Sir John Betjeman

The capital of this new London, Wembley, was inundated with residents. Infrastructure was improved markedly thanks to the British Empire Exhibition of 1924; the image and economy of the Empire was projected onto the landscape of Wembley. The vast resources of the Empire were on show in grand buildings for all to see. A ‘great national sports ground’ was to be built for the exhibition, and would later become the home of association football in England. The exhibition was estimated to cost over £10,000,000; elements of the Empire were miniaturised to give the anticipated 25 million visitors - the final count was closer to 17 million - a comprehensive geography lesson. From the palaces of Industry and Engineering, displaying the industrial successes of Britain, to the ‘walled city’ that depicted West African life and highlighted the evident racial divides throughout the Empire, the exhibition was a spectacle comparable to that of the Great Exhibition of 1851. Wembley became a household name.

The marketing of Metro-land had excelled in attracting prospective homeowners. Between the years of 1921 and 1931, the population of Greater London grew by 11%; growth in the north west suburbs was significantly higher than elsewhere. Wembley, Harrow and Ruislip all experienced uplifts in their population of more than 50% during this period. The railway company retained a focus on ticket sales throughout their extensive building schemes. The building of thousands of new homes had established the commuter culture that is synonymous with London today. Ticket sales rose as season ticket schemes became a popular means of reaching the city centre. At all stops along the Metropolitan Railway Line, ticket sales vastly increased.

Northwick Park and Kenton illustrate the successes of Metro-land, prior to regulation on the amount of building afforded to the MRCE. Under 10 miles from the City of London, photographs make it evident how rapidly the landscape changed. A remote farmhouse and accompanying barns gave way to expansive estates. Close to Harrow School, these homes had large gardens and an adjoining golf course. These features upon the landscape have been lasting. Northwick Park remains untouched, a large green space safe from future development; the attached pavilion, once labelled ‘attractive’, is in dire need of renovation.

Metro-land was a short-lived project, delivered rapidly and with great success. By 1930, a few years before London Transport would consume Metro-land, the economic uncertainty of 1929 was still wreaking havoc. Even in the prosperous south of England, the number of commuters fell and the suburban developments that had been erected so rapidly became monotonous. The country charm of places such as Rickmansworth, and those stops stretching into Buckinghamshire, are examples of the few places that retained their rural identity. The likes of Northwick Park and Rayner’s Lane were different. A new suburban reality could not be escaped. Metro-land was swallowed by London. The idylls gave way to sprawling concrete. By the outbreak of the Second World War, development within Metro-land had been curtailed by increased planning regulations.

The suburbs have sat for close to a century. Its longevity has led to buildings being gifted listed status, and green spaces remaining untouched. The merits of Metro-land’s infrastructure are clear; the mock-Tudor facades are both celebrated and neglected. Proximity to London, in the age of rapid public transport, has had negative effects on the housing stock in some instances. Homes have been converted into cramped flat and apartment dwellings, with renters squeezed due to the proximity and connectivity to London's heart. Little has changed in the public's desire for homes with ample living space. Suburban Metro-land's promise of this, as well as vast green space, continues to attract prospective homeowners to this day.

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