Hampton Ferry (River Thames)
Foot and bicycle ferry across the Thames between Hampton, Southwest London and the Hurst Park in Molesey, Surrey.
Hampton Ferry is a seasonal foot (and cycle) ferry across the Thames in England. It is about 1 mile (1.6 km) upstream, west, of Hampton Court Bridge. The bridge links a busy zone of activity on both banks including Hampton Court Palace. The ferry links a large riverside park to the oldest parts of the town of Hampton, London, including its church, inn and various listed buildings such as Garrick House which is private apartments and Garrick's Temple to Shakespeare beside a narrow strip of sloped bank. This is known as Saint Albans Riverside, as it was owned by one of the Dukes of Saint Albans, seated at Hanworth House and Park, about two miles away. On the north side, this part of former Middlesex became outer-most London in 1965 by an Act of 1963. The towpath on the south side is for about 400 metres each way in public grassland with picnic places and beyond, for about 1 mile (1.6 km) shaded by trees, east and west.
Details
The ferry links Hampton, on the north bank and in the London Borough of Richmond, with Moulsey or Molesey Hurst, the largest park of Molesey on the south bank and in Surrey.
The ferry is in the Molesey, Hampton and Sunbury reach (between Molesey and Sunbury Locks). It is one of two of this reach's Thames crossings – both are ferries.
“Hampton Ferry (River Thames)” enters the record as foot and bicycle ferry across the Thames between Hampton, Southwest London and the Hurst Park in Molesey, Surrey. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Hampton, Ferry and River can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Hampton Ferry (River Thames)” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Hampton, Ferry and River provides the most credible route into that argument.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 30, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q5646199. Authority coordinates are 51.412, -0.362. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1965 and 1963.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Hampton Ferry (River Thames)”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Hampton Ferry (River Thames) primary sources, Hampton Ferry (River Thames) archive and Hampton research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Hampton Ferry (River Thames)”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Hampton Ferry (River Thames)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.