History Of Earls Court Exhibition Centre

By Author: Carolyn Clayton
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The Earls Court Exhibition Centre is a great exhibition centre, conference and event venue located in west London, England. It is one of the largest exhibition venues in central London which is part of a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London.

Years ago the area of Earls Court used to be a very rural area and was covered with fields and market gardens. Before the Norman Conquest which began in 1066, the Saxon Thegn Edwin held the lordship of the area.

The major transition for this area in London began when the construction of the Metropolitan District Railway station, this was a catalyst for future development. After 1867, Earls Court was transformed into a densely populated suburb with a total of 1,200 houses and two churches. In 1867 Eardley Crescent and Kempsford Gardens were built and in 1873 saw the beginning of building in Earls Court Square and Longridge Road.

In 1935 the land was sold and the new owners decided to construct a show centre which we now know as Earls Court. It was designed by the architect C. Howard Crane of Detroit. C Howard Crane had great credentials ...
... as he worked on New York's Radio City Music Hall. The project was completed over two years at a cost of £1.5 million. Steel trusses reach 87m clear across the auditorium, it has 42,00 square metres of space on two floors. The exhibition venue opened its door to the public for the very first time with the Chocolate and Confectionery Exhibition on 1 September 1937. This was a success and became the beginning of great things for the exhibition centre. In 1991 anther hall was opened by Princess Diana adding another 40% of floor space.

Today Earls Court and nearby Olympia are operated by EC&O Venues and has many events throughout the year attracting people from all walks of life. There are talks that the current owners of Earls Court and Olympia are in discussion with the boroughs of Hammersmith and Fulham and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea to demolish the existing centre and redevelop the area with up to 8000 new flats, retail and possibly a new convention centre. This is just talk at the moment and it would take many years to complete and it won't start until after London has hosted the Olympics in 2012.
Planning a visit to Earls Court? Looking for Earls Court Hotels or Hotels near Hammersmith Apollo? Try Kensington West which is located in a great part of Kensington, close to Earls Court Exhibition Center.