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Today it seems impossible to realise that in 1891 it was still possible to perceive the old village communities in much of the town.
St Pancras: In this area we find the old villages of Camden, Kentish Town and Somers Town in addition to that of St Pancras. The Old Church of St Pancras, at the heart of the area is though to have been founded as early as AD314. Certainly there are a scattering of Roman tiles and bricks and clearly parts of the Norman building remain. Today, following Victorian restoration it has been yet more recently restored in 1978/79.
In the early 19th century the Parish, which originally extended from Torrington Place in the south to Hampstead, was subdivided and the New St Pancras Church was established in the Euston Road. In the area today there are important museums, especially the British Museum ( just south of the Torrington Place boundary) The Jewish Museum and the New British Library. The area is the centre of the northern and eastern main line railway network based on St Pancras, King’s Cross and Euston with Paddington nearby to the west. In the 1891 census we find many railway workers living in this area.
Grays Inn is perhaps best known for its Court, found at the southern end of Grays Inn road, near to Holborn. This famous Inn of Court was founded as early as the 14th century as a hotel for lawyers. It was here that Shakespeare gave the first performance of A Comedy of Errors in 1594. Its gardens are today the only ones of the Inns of Court open to the public.
Whitechapel had become notorious in the Autumn of 1888 for the activities of the mass murderer known as Jack the Ripper. Over a period of only four months he murdered several prostitutes in this area – certainly four and possibly eight young women. If you are particularly interested in him and these women I suggest you look at Whitechapel as found by a Google search.
Historically, the place is named after the original White Chapel of St Mary’s, destroyed in World War II.
It is where the world famous Whitechapel Bell Foundry is still to be found – it can be visited on Saturdays. The present buildings date from 1670 (newly rebuilt after the Great Fire of London) but the foundry was established in 1570 since when there has been an unbroken line of founders here. Famous bells cast include the original Liberty Bell, 1752 and the Great Bell of Montreal. In addition, Big Ben, to be heard hourly in London chiming the hours at the tower of the Houses of Parliament, was cast in 1858. It is the largest bell ever cast by the foundry; it weighs 13 .5 tons. More recently they have struck a commemorative bell, commissioned by the Corporation of London for the people of New York which was dedicated there at Trinity Church, Wall Street, on the anniversary of 11th September.
Spitalfields is now best known for its markets which include Petticoat Lane, Brick Lane and Spitalfields itself. The name, Spitalfields originates from a hospital known as St Mary’s (ho)Spital. The market was first established in 1682 as a fruit and vegetable market. It is now also a lively crafts and antique market.
The area was once occupied by silk weavers, mostly refugees of Huguenot origin who arrived in the late 17th and 18th centuries, followed by Jewish tailors from Russia and Poland and now is home to a considerable Bangladeshi community who use the old Christ Church (Hawksmoor, 1728) venue as a mosque.
St George in the East is another of Nicholas Hawksmoor’s Churches dating from 1714 – 1729 while in Shadwell was the old London Workhouse. Charles II had granted a charter for a fair and market here but by the early twentieth century this was derelict and the old fish market together with many old streets was pulled down to be replaced by the Edward VII Memorial Park. This lovely open space now gave access for the first time to the Thames embankment from the Tower to the Isle of Dogs.
If you ever come across a family in a census return where the head of the family is shown as married but their partner is not shown enumerated with them, it is worthwhile looking at the census returns for the Institutions, particularly the Workhouses, Hospitals, Lunatic Asylums, and Prisons.
With all these interesting streets to wander through, just think how much more interesting it would be for you if you were a member of this group of volunteer transcribers.
Please contact one of us now for further information.