Hanwell, London: Not a Lost Site, but a Historic West London Town

There is no "original site of Hanwell" separate from the present town—Hanwell has been continuously occupied since Anglo-Saxon times. It is a historic area in the London Borough of Ealing, West London, centered ~12.5 miles (20 km) west of Charing Cross.

Key historical notes:

• Name origin: Old English Hanwell = "Hana's spring/stream" (personal name + welle).
• Domesday Book (1086): Recorded as Haneuuelle.
• Grand Junction Canal (1794) and Great Western Railway (1838) spurred growth.
• Hanwell Asylum (1831, later St. Bernard's Hospital)—pioneered non-restraint treatment.
• Famous residents: Jim Marshall (amp founder), Pete Townshend (The Who), Freddie Mercury (lived briefly).

Today, Hanwell is a residential suburb with Victorian/Edwardian housing, the Brent River Park, and the Wharncliffe Viaduct (Brunel's first major rail structure). It was absorbed into Greater London in 1965.