Whalebone Bridge, Whalebone Ho, Whalebone Fm and Whalebone Lane
Early-attested site in the Parish of Dagenham
Historical Forms
- Beamsland Lane 1641 Fisher
Etymology
Whalebone Bridge, Whalebone Ho, Whalebone Fm and Whalebone Lane (Beamsland Lane 1641 Fisher) (6″). Cf. the Whalebone (at the four Wonds )1641 Fisher. It was named from two whale's jaw- bones set up as an arch over the road. According to a tradition, which the above reference proves wrong, they were those of a whale stranded in the Thames near Dagenham on the night preceding 3rd Sept. 1658, when Oliver Cromwell died.v. Miller Christy, Trade Signs of Essex , 83, 87. The House and Farm are near four cross-roads (ME wente ).