7 September 1940, the first day of the blitz Seven How the blitz attacked

Cranley London
Original records kept by the London Metropolitan Archives show how Hornsey Sisters Redbridge
Gardens Gants Hill
Bombs falling on London Cheshunt
war hit home one day early in September 1940, not long after the end Harringay Whipps Cross
HARINGEY between 1939 and October 1941
of the Battle of Britain. Thousands of German bombers pounded Crouch WA LT H A M
London in a campaign that lasted 76 consecutive nights: the blitz. End Stroud Stamford Hill Barnet
Other cities suffered terribly too: most notably Coventry in November Green FOREST Wanstead REDBRIDGE Enfield
Highgate Leytonstone
that year. The London Fire Brigade records show the location of each 23:32 Seven Kings
call out on the day - each dot here shows the incident report, so these Eade Road, Finsbury
figures would cover hundreds of bombs Park, N4 Cranbrook
Woodford
Unexploded incendiary Harrow
Finchley

Hampstead Heath bomb

Stoke
Newington Leyton Wanstead
Flats
CAMDEN Lea Bridge
Islington

HACKNEY Hayes Ilford West Ham

Barking

Manor Kensington
23:52
Hampstead Park
Highbury Mare Street, Hackney, E9 Loxford
4 shops and 60 houses Lambeth Greenwich
Hackney
damaged by explosive Wick
Barnes
ISLINGTON bombs
Lewisham
Barking
Camden Stratford Feltham
1KM Canonbury Dalston
Homerton Upton
BARKING &
Bromley
Morden
Barnsbury
Victoria
Park West Ham 1km D A G E Orpington
NHAM
Esher
Kilburn Islington Croyden
King's Bombs per sq km Upton
23:25 Cross Park
St John's 0-8
Up brook Mews, Hyde Wood
East Ham
Pentonville Hoxton Bow 9 - 16 Epsom
Park, W2 Regents
30 houses damaged by 23:59 Plaistow 17 - 32
Park
explosion, 1 person killed, Bethnal Benledi Street, Poplar, N
33 - 64 EWHAM
Green Bromley-
17 injured by-Bow E14 65 - 128 Creekmouth
57 buildings damaged by Custom House
Clerkenwell 129 - 256
explosion, four people
Bloomsbury severely injured. Last
Paddington TOWER SOURCE: LONDON METROPOLITAN ARCHIVES AND NATIONAL ARCHIVES, KEW, GRAPHIC: JENNY RIDLEY, RESEARCH: NAOMI BURLEY-BAKER & ALICIA WEEKES
report of the night
Marylebone CITY HAMLETS
Whitechapel Stepney
Bayswater WESTMINSTER 00:08 Limehouse

20:50 43 Southwark Park Blackwall

108 Earls Court Road, W8 Soho Road, SE16 Thamesmead
Explosive bomb severely Incendiary bomb damages a
Notting Hyde
damages house, killing a grocer's roof - the first Canary
Hill Park Wapping Wharf
man and a woman reported attack of the day
Silvertown
Mayfair
Holland
Southwark
Park
Rotherhithe
Bermondsey
Belgravia Woolwich

Lambeth
HAMMERSMITH KENSINGTON Pimlico 14:55
Royal Arsenal, Woolwich Plumstead
& & CHELSEA 49 men killed and another
Pentonville
Charlton
67 wounded in the first
FULHAM Chelsea
Deptford attacks on the Arsenal,
16:57
Lakedale Road and
Greenwich which continued
Plumstead High Street,
00:38 throughout the blitz
Battersea SE18
Verney Road, SE16 Two killed and several
Park Greenwich
Street burnt out by Shooter's injured in explosive and
Fulham incendiary bombs New Cross Park
Hill
308 incendiary bomb attacks
Barnes
Brixton
GREENWICH
Battersea Lambeth
Peckham Brockley
Clapham Blackheath

S O U T H WA R K Lewisham BEXLEY
Clapham
Common East Ladywell
Putney Dulwich
Herne
Hill
Honor Oak
Brockwell Dulwich
HERNE
HILL
Village
Hither
Park Green
Roehampton WA N D S W O R T H
LAMBETH LEWISHAM
Balham

Catford
Forest Hill

20:50 West
Wimbledon Faygate Road, SW2 Dulwich
Park Lower 00.27
Roadway and paving all Sydenham Jutland Road Catford SE6
Wimbledon Upper damaged. Gas mains Upper Grove Park
Tooting fractured, several private Sydenham
17 private houses damaged
Common
houses damaged West
Norwood

South
BROMLEY
Wimbledon
Wimbledon Upper
Norwood
Streatham
MERTON Vale Penge 122
Norbury

Mitcham Bromley
Thornton
Beckenham
Heath
85 85
South
Norwood
Elmers
End 63
Selhurst 54
Fire brigade call outs by the hour on 7 September 1940 Petts
Wood 40
34
Bromley
12 4 12 Common

7 2 1 3 3 2 1 6
03:00-03:59
0 05:00-05:59 0 08:00-08:59 0 10:00-10:59 0 12:00-12:59
0
00:00-00:59 01:00-01:59 02:00-02.59 04:00-04:59 06:00-06:59 07:00-07:59 09:00-09:59 11:00-11:59 13:00-13:59 14:00-14:59 15:00-15:59 16:00-16:59 17:00-17:59 18:00-18:59 19:00-19:59 20:00-20:59 21:00-21:59 22:00-22:59 23:00-23:59