Gazetteer of
British Place Names

Highgate is a suburban town in Middlesex, forming a northern suburb of London. Highgate developed on the top of Highgate Hill at the junction of five major routeways. It lay partly in the parish of Hornsey and partly in St Pancras. The name, earliest record c. 1318, reputedly derives from the toll gate established by the Bishop of London to exact payment from travellers heading north from London though his estate. Highgate School was founded in 1565. By the 18th century Highgate was a small country town and retains many fine Georgian buildings. William Blake built Number 3, The Grove - later home to Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Highgate Cemetery opened in 1839 and is the burial place of many famous people including Karl Marx, Mary Anne Cross (nee Evans, aka George Eliot), Michael Faraday and Douglas Adams. Witanhurst is a 1930s Georgian Revival mansion. The gradual encroachment of the metropolis in the 20th century has seen Highgate, long considered a country town, become increasingly described as a "village". The town is within the council areas of Camden and Haringey.

Place Type: Town
Historic County: Middlesex
Lat, Long: 51.57094,-0.148855
Grid Reference: TQ 2838 8740
Council Area: Haringey CA
Strategic Authority Area: Greater London SA
Police Area: Metropolitan PA

GBPN ID: 21782
Entry Type: Main listing (P)
URL: https://gazetteer.org.uk/place/Highgate,_Middlesex_21782

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