We had a week off work in December, with a couple of nights booked in Ealing at the end of it, so we decided to tag a few extra days on and head to North London to visit some Waterstones. Our first stop was in Enfield, which is a market town that is famous for being the location of the world’s first cash machine which was installed in June 1967! According to Wikipedia (the fount (or font if you’re reading in the US) of all knowledge!) the name Enfield probably derives from the old English word Ēanafeld, but an Enfield is also a fictitious heraldic creature which had a fox’s head, front legs resembling an eagle’s talons, a greyhound’s chest, the tail end of a wolf and a lion’s body – there is a statue of this outside Civic Centre. The Waterstones is housed in a lovely red-bricked building, but sadly I haven’t been able to find any history of it.
The World’s First ATM
Silver Street White House
This was the home of Joseph Whitaker, who compiled and published Whitaker’s Almanack. The Almanack was published from 1868 to 2021, when the company who currently produce it announced that it had been put indefinitely on hold due to falling sales as a result of Covid.
The Beast of Enfield
Janet's Adventures in Waterstones 
Interesting note about the ATM!
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Yes, we didn’t know that, but spotted the blue plaque from across the road, and went to see what it was for!
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