Plaque: Stratford Langthorne Abbey
Erection date: 1882
Erected on the site of the Cistercian Abbey of St Mary, AD 1135.
A. A. Langley - Engineer
AD 1882
The plaque doesn't let on exactly what was erected in 1882. The stone is on a column supporting Abbey Road, on a bridge across the railway. The DLR station was built on the route of the former Eastern Counties and Thames Junction Railway, which opened in 1846, so there may be a connection here. What happened 36 years later is not recorded. We would guess the road, and so the bridge, was widened but Abbey Road is very narrow so that seems unlikely.
Site: Stratford Langthorne Abbey (1 memorial)
E15, Abbey Road, Abbey Road DLR staton
We learnt about this plaque from the ever-entertaining Geoff Marshall's Secrets of the DLR video.
Our picture was taken from the entrance to the station. It shows the south end of the north-bound platform. The metal panelling at the top left is the road bridge; the metal panelling coming in from the right to meet it is the roof of the platform. The plaque is immediately below where these two structures meet, on the brick pier.
Abbey Road DLR Station attracts a number of deluded tourists looking for the zebra crossing made famous by the Beatles. At the top of the stairs is a cleverly worded sign, using some of the group's hit titles which puts them on the right track.
