Sloane Square Tube Station – London, England - Atlas Obscura
Places near me Random place

AO Edited

Sloane Square Tube Station

London, England

One of London's lost rivers runs through a pipe over the tracks of this subway station. 

View all photos
he River Westbourne flows above the station in a large iron conduit. Nick-D / CC BY-SA 4.0
he River Westbourne flows above the station in a large iron conduit. Nick-D / CC BY-SA 4.0
The River Westbourne running above the platforms of Sloane Square tube station. Ogmios / CC BY-SA 3.0
75
62
Top Places in London
Fasinus tintinnabulum
Wellcome Collection & Library
London, England
Sir Richard Burton's Tent-Tomb
London, England
Nunhead Cemetery
London, England
 See All

Though it’s known as one of the lost rivers of London, the River Westbourne hasn’t actually gone missing. We know right where it is: flowing through a pipe at the Sloane Square tube station, on the District and Circle lines of the London Underground.

London was once crisscrossed by a. number of small rivers, which were tributaries of the Thames. As the city grew into a massive metropolis, many of these waterways were built over or redirected. The Westbourne was one such river. It originally rose on Hampstead Heath, then flowed down through Hampstead, Kilburn, Paddington, Hyde Park, and Knightsbridge, then joined with the Thames at Chelsea. In 1730, a dam was built across the Westbourne at Hyde Park, forming the Serpentine artificial lake. But as the water became more polluted over time, it was eventually rerouted to a pipe.

When the Sloane Square station was being built in the 1860s, the presence of the River Westbourne posed a challenge. A large iron pipe was suspended above the train tracks and platforms to serve as a conduit for the water. The station opened in December 1868 and that pipe, enclosed within a green culvert, remains in place today. It even survived the bomb damage that the station took during World War II.

Know Before You Go

The green culvert can be seen above the exits/entrances at the platform level.

public works subways rivers infrastructure transportation water
Nearby
The Star Tavern
0.43 miles
Michelin House
0.54 miles
The Lioness and the Lesser Kudu
0.55 miles
Want to see fewer ads? Become a Member.
Near This Place
The Star Tavern
London, England

The Star Tavern

The bar where "The Great Train Robbery" was planned was once a nexus of high society and low morals.
Michelin House
London, England

Michelin House

An ornate and disused early 20th-century building has been given new life as a fully operational structure, complete with offices, oyster bar, and a furniture retailer.
The Lioness and the Lesser Kudu.
London, England

The Lioness and the Lesser Kudu

This striking statue brings a scene from the African savannah into central London.
London, England

Chelsea Physic Garden

London's old-school healing garden.
Related Places
Lift Pool and Lock No. 1
Alexandria, Virginia

Alexandria Tide Lock Park

Long buried under the 20th-century landscape, this lift lock of the Alexandria Canal is the lone remnant of an ambitious early American transportation project.
Ust-Kamenogorsk Lock.
Ust'-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan

Ust-Kamenogorsk Lock

Tucked away along a riverbend in an area known for its uranium mines is one of the world's tallest locks.
London, England

Statue of James Henry Greathead

This statue of one of the engineers who created the London Underground hides a ventilation shaft for the tube lines that run under the street.
Anderton, England

Anderton Boat Lift

The world’s oldest boat lift is also known in the United Kingdom as the "Cathedral of the Canals" and one of the "Seven Wonders of the Waterways."
In partnership with KAYAK

Plan Your Trip

From Around the Web