Barking
The suburban town of Barking in east London features just over 100,000. It is 14.2 km east of Charing Cross and is among the 35 important centres named in the London Plan. Historically, it was a fishing settlement in Essex and an ancient parish. Then it moved to market gardening and industrial development towards the south, adjacent to the River Thames.
Barking quickly progressed into a bigger town and its rail station opened in 1854. It has been served by the London Underground since 1908. During the twentieth century, when there was considerable suburban development of London, Barking expanded and increased in population. This was mainly as a consequence of the development of the London County Council estate at Becontree within the 1920s. Barking became a municipal borough in 1931 and part of Greater London in 1965.
Improvement strategies were unveiled in 2007, preparing to alter the town square included in the Mayor of London's 100 Public Places.
