The area we now know as Ruislip Manor was covered with open fields at the beginning of the last century. It was part of the Manor of Ruislip which was owned at that time by King's College, Cambridge.
The Metropolitan Railway opened a small halt here in 1912 on the Harrow to Uxbridge line, but there was no housing development until George Ball bought 186 acres south of the railway from King's College. His Manor Homes estate was built between 1933 and 1939.
They were mainly small houses aimed at the working man who wanted to become a homeowner. A substantial number were occupied by men from Tyneside and other parts of the north who had come down to London to seek work. A great deal of effort was put into advertising them by holding firework displays and providing entertainment by famous people such as Elsie and Doris Waters.
With this influx of people into the area the small railway halt was no longer adequate and a new station was constructed in 1938. Other facilities were also needed on the estate and space was provided for Lady Bankes School and St Paul's Church. A new shopping centre was built near the station and in 1937 land near the Yeading Brook was set aside as a public open space. It took, therefore, only six years to transform a quiet country area into a busy part of London suburbia.