Great Dover Street is a road in

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

, south

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. At the northwest end it joins

Marshalsea Road Marshalsea Road (classified A3201) is a major street in Southwark, south London, England. At the northwest end is the Southwark Bridge Road. At the southeast end is Borough tube station on Borough High Street. Continuing across the street are ...

and

Borough High Street Borough High Street is a road in Southwark, London, running south-west from London Bridge, forming part of the A3 route which runs from London to Portsmouth, on the south coast of England. Overview Borough High Street continues southwest a ...

and there is a junction with Long Lane; Borough Underground station is at this location. At the southeast end is the

Bricklayers Arms Bricklayers Arms is the road intersection of the A2 and the London Inner Ring Road where Bermondsey meets Walworth and Elephant & Castle in south London. It is the junction of Tower Bridge Road, Old Kent Road, New Kent Road and Great Dover St ...

roundabout and flyover. The road is part of the A2 and this continues south-east as the

Old Kent Road Old Kent Road is a major thoroughfare in South East London, England, passing through the London Borough of Southwark. It was originally part of an ancient trackway that was paved by the Romans and used by the Anglo-Saxons who named it Wæceli ...

History

Great Dover Street's name simply indicates that it is an improved route out of the City to the south-east ports. It was created as a

turnpike Turnpike often refers to: * A type of gate, another word for a turnstile * In the United States, a toll road Turnpike may also refer to: Roads United Kingdom * A turnpike road, a principal road maintained by a turnpike trust, a body with powers ...

improvement in 1750 for traffic as a by-pass for the 'old' Kent Street/ Kent Road route out of the Borough of Southwark. This older route was renamed

Tabard Street A tabard is a type of short coat that was commonly worn by men during the late Middle Ages and early modern period in Europe. Generally worn outdoors, the coat was either sleeveless or had short sleeves or shoulder pieces. In its more develope ...

and it has close junctions with the new road at both ends. The new route was driven across the Trinity Village estate, belonging to

Trinity House "Three In One" , formation = , founding_location = Deptford, London, England , status = Royal Charter corporation and registered charity , purpose = Maintenance of lighthouses, buoys and beacons , he ...

. In 1963, £50,000 was found by police in a phone box in Great Dover Street. It was part of the proceeds from the Great Train Robbery and had been left by an intermediary acting for

Buster Edwards Ronald Christopher "Buster" Edwards (27 January 1931 – 28 November 1994) was a British criminal who was a member of the gang that committed the Great Train Robbery. He had also been a boxer, and owned a nightclub and a flower shop. Early and ...

Buildings

For several decades, Great Dover Street has been the site of mainly council tenement blocks. However, as south of the river living has become more popular, these have been supplemented on previously commercial and industrial sites on the route by private sector flats, broadening the residential nature of the area and creating a more varied mixed tenancy population. This has been reinforced by the development of two large university halls of residence: Great Dover Street Apartments, a hall of Residence belonging to

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

, principally for the nearby

Guy's Hospital Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. ...

Campus

teaching hospital A teaching hospital is a hospital or medical centre that provides medical education and training to future and current health professionals. Teaching hospitals are almost always affiliated with one or more universities and are often co-located ...

and neighbouring this that for the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

Sidney Webb Sidney James Webb, 1st Baron Passfield, (13 July 1859 – 13 October 1947) was a British socialist, economist and reformer, who co-founded the London School of Economics. He was an early member of the Fabian Society in 1884, joining, like Geo ...

House' containing some 1,000 bedsitting/ study units. The street has three small retail units and three pubs, The Black Horse, The Roebuck (dating from the original turnpike development although rebuilt 1892) and Dover Castle. The Black Horse Student bar-05-2016

References

External links

Streets in the London Borough of Southwark {{London-road-stub