Original ferry

Along the Riverside and just below Eel Pie Island, is a neglected and overgrown slipway. This is the site of the original Twickenham Ferry now abandoned.

Some believe that this Ferry dates from the reign of King John but we do not know for sure. We do know that it was included in a list of ferries forbidden to work between sunrise and sunset in 1659 and was granted a licence in 1692.

Twickenham Ferry with sheep, at Riverside, c1850 (by courtesy of Orleans House Gallery

Hammerton’s Ferry

There were many ferries across the Thames in the days when the only bridges were London Bridge and Kingston Bridge. Ferrying people and goods across the river must have been good business because many rival ferries started up.

One of these was started by Walter Hammerton in 1908 crossing from Marble hill Park to Ham House. Hammerton’s Ferry is still running today carrying people across the river.