Acton
Acton, (fn. 1) parish lies c. 8 km. west of Hyde Park
Corner, (fn. 2) bounded on the north by Willesden and
West Twyford, on the east by Hammersmith, on
the south by Chiswick, and on the west by Ealing
and Brentford. It is roughly rectangular in shape,
measuring c. 2.4 km. from east to west by c. 4.8
km., (fn. 3) although until 1894 a small peninsula
jutted south-westward towards Brentford. The
parish contained 2,305 a. in 1871 and had the
same acreage after exchanges with Brentford,
which received the south-western peninsula, in
1894 and Willesden in 1895. The civil parish was
conterminous with Acton U.D., later M.B.,
which was enlarged to 2,319 a. by minor adjustments in the 1930s. (fn. 4) From 1965 Acton has
formed the eastern part of Ealing L.B.
Most of the boundary with Hammersmith was
formed by the eastern branch of Stamford brook,
and the south-western boundary, from Fordhook
south-eastward to Acton Green, by Bollo brook.
The southern boundary lay along the line of a
Roman road, part of which remains as Chiswick
High Road, but was adjusted in 1894 to follow
the District and Piccadilly railway lines. The
northern boundary and the remainder of the
western were marked in 1842 by lanes, (fn. 5) which
had probably existed much earlier.
OUTER PARISHES OF THE KENSINGTON DIVISION
London Clay covers the northern part of the
parish as far south as Masons green, Acacia
Avenue, East Acton village and the site of Manor
House, and Acton park. Brickearth covers the
rest of East Acton and the parish south of
Uxbridge Road, except around Mill Hill and
Heathfield, where Taplow Gravel lies along the
south-western and western sides. (fn. 6)
The land slopes from 50 m. in the north-west
corner of the parish to 6 m. in the south-east,
drained by two main streams. (fn. 7) Bollo brook rises
near Fordhook and flows south-eastward to
Acton Green, passing into Chiswick. Stamford
brook's western branch, apparently rising near
Acton Farm west of Horn Lane, flows south to
meet another tributary, from Springfield near the
Ealing boundary, at a point north of the Steyne
and continues down the west side of the Steyne to
cross the Oxford road at the foot of Acton hill.
Thence it flows south-eastward south of Berrymead and across South field into Hammersmith,
where it joins the eastern branch of Stamford
brook from Old Oak common.