Fortis Green is a ward of the London Borough of Haringey, North London. It lies between Colney Hatch to the north, Muswell Hill to the east, Highgate to the south and East Finchley to the west. It is a mostly residential area, although it also contains two large hospitals: Coppets Wood Hospital to the north, which is the Infectious and Tropical Diseases Unit of the Royal Free Hospital NHS Trust, and St Lukes Woodside Hospital to the south.
It is also a leafy locality situated between Muswell Hill and East Finchley, although many consider it to be the south-western corner of Muswell Hill.
Fortis Green was an opening made by an ancient lane which probably connected the manor of Finchley in East End Road with what was the north road out of London, and predating the High Road. How it got its name is not clear. ‘Fortis’ suggests a place before something, but the “something” is obscure. It appears in 1558 when it was considered part of Finchley Common. The green may simply have been a gap in woods and ran as far as where Muswell Hill Odeon is today.
Even into the 20th century Coldfall Woods came as far south as the present back fences of the houses on the north side of the road.
On a map of 1754 Cherry Tree Woods (then Dirt House Woods) to the south had been cleared and the land enclosed with at least two large houses. More houses were built along the road from the beginning of the 19th century.
By the middle part of the 19th century there were about 60 houses, mostly belonging to labourers, which had been erected on the green between the woods and the road.
Architecture
WJ Collins was an influential figure in the “arts and crafts†building design movement in the early 1900s.
Among his major developments was Rookfield Garden Village, a grouping of spacious houses in the “arts and crafts†style at the foot of Muswell Hill, similar in appearance to Hampstead Garden Suburb.
The homes, set among communal green spaces and unadopted roads, were particularly designed to appeal to those who wished to live in a rural setting close to the centre of London.
WJ Collins lived in Cranmore Way, N10, from 1902 to 1911.
Around 1910, he developed a triangle of land in the Fortis Green area. Some of these developments are pertinent to the Arts and Crafts style.
Southern, Eastern, and Western Roads
The National Freehold Land society developed what had been Haswell Park into Southern, Eastern, and Western Roads after 1852, with 180 plots, but development was slow. However by 1913 the whole of the area south of the road had been developed as we see it today. In the inter-war period, the northern sections were developed at the expense of Coldfall Woods, but even by 1936 much of the wood was still standing, with only the remaining northern sections being kept as a recreational area.
From about 1843 until 1888 there was a brewery owned by the Green family, which was latterly taken over by Inn Coop, finally finishing in 1902. The police station was opened in 1902. William B Tegetmeier the naturalist, lived in the area.
The Kinks
Possibly the most important residents were Ray and Dave Davies (of the 1960s band, The Kinks), who were brought up at 6 Denmark Terrace, and had their first performance across the street at the Clissold Arms. Fortis Green is also the title of a Dave Davies song.
Around the same time, a group of young folk musicians used to convene at a house called ‘Fairport’, and named their band Fairport Convention in its honour. The house stands at the corner of Fortismere Avenue and Fortis Green Road.