Paddington is named after Padda, an Anglo Saxon chieftain who settled in the area.  The area was developed after the Grand Junction Canal was opened in 1801, after which various housing developments sprung up.  Paddington station was opened in 1838.  The station was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel and opened in 1861.  The steel and glass structure was modelled on Crystal Palace.  The station covers 13 acres.

The big story in Paddington nowadays is the conversion of the 80 acres of the former canal basin and railway yards. Much of the development has been for commercial purposes, and a number of major companies have their offices or headquarters in the new blocks which have been created. But residential development has been going on in tandem. Developments include the block of flats at West End Quay near St Mary’s Hospital. New blocks are going up all the time.

The original Paddington area, apart from the station itself, comprises the grid of streets between Praed Street and Sussex Gardens, below which it becomes Bayswater. Praed Street itself is a busy main road. But the little streets running off it to the south, such as Norfolk Square, Star Street, St Michael’s Street, and Sale Place, contain a few houses which were originally cottages built for railway workers. Many of these properties are now used for commercial purposes, but some are coming into residential use, and there have been infill developments creating new houses in this area.