|
The term 'Upton Park' first applied to a housing estate developed to the east of West Ham Park in the 1880s. The estate took its name from the adjacent village of Upton with the suffix 'Park' added purely for marketing reasons. The estate's developers paid for a new station to be built which was named after the estate.
As a consequence the area surrounding the station became known as Upton Park rather than the term being limited to the original housing estate.
The southern end of Green Street runs alongside the western edge of the Boleyn Ground, the former home ground of West Ham United FC. The club initially rented the land from Green Street House, known locally as Boleyn Castle because of its imposing nature and an association with Anne Boleyn. The football stadium has long been commonly known as Upton Park.
An unrelated football club of the area, Upton Park FC, were early pioneers in the game, and represented Great Britain at the 1900 Summer Olympics football tournament, where they won the gold medal. They played their home games in east Ham Park.
Upton Park F.C was founded in 1866, and is believed to have folded for the second and last time around 1911, while West Ham United were founded as Thames Ironworks F.C. in 1895, before reforming as West Ham in 1900, playing their first games at Upton Park, the Boleyn Ground, from 1904.
|
