Narrow Street is a narrow road running parallel to the
River Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...
through the
Limehouse
Limehouse is a district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in East London. It is east of Charing Cross, on the northern bank of the River Thames. Its proximity to the river has given it a strong maritime character, which it retains through ...
area of east London, England. It used to be much narrower, and is the oldest part of Limehouse, with many buildings originating from the eighteenth century.
History
Most archaeologists believe that Narrow Street represents the line of the medieval river wall. The wall was built to reclaim riverside marshland and to protect it from the tides. Houses were built, on the wall itself at first, but then outwards onto the foreshore by a process of encroachment. The eastern end of Narrow Street was previously known as Fore Street.
A combination of
tides and currents made this point on the Thames a natural landfall for ships, the first
wharf
A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more berths (mooring locatio ...
being completed in 1348.
Lime
Lime commonly refers to:
* Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit
* Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide
* Lime (color), a color between yellow and green
Lime may also refer to:
Botany ...
kilns or
oast
An oast, oast house or hop kiln is a building designed for kilning (drying) hops as part of the brewing process. They can be found in most hop-growing (and former hop-growing) areas and are often good examples of vernacular architecture. Many ...
s ("lymehostes") used in the production of mortar and
pottery
Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and ...
were built here in the fourteenth century.
The area grew rapidly in
Elizabethan times
The Elizabethan era is the epoch in the Tudor period of the history of England during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history. The symbol of Britannia (a female personific ...
as a centre for world trade and by the reign of
James I James I may refer to:
People
*James I of Aragon (1208–1276)
*James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327)
*James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu
*James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347)
*James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...
nearly half of the area's 2,000 population were
mariners. The area supplied ships with ropes and other necessities; pottery was also made here for the ships.
Ship chandler
A ship chandler is a retail dealer who specializes in providing supplies or equipment for ships.
Synopsis
For traditional sailing ships, items that could be found in a chandlery
include sail-cloth, rosin, turpentine, tar, pitch, linseed oil, ...
s settled here building wooden houses and
wharves
A wharf, quay (, also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more berths (mooring location ...
in the cramped space between street and river. Narrow Street may take its name from the closeness of the original buildings. A 1865 report to Parliament noted that no part of Narrow Street was wider than 25 feet.
The
Limehouse Cut
The Limehouse Cut is a largely straight, broad canal in the East End of London which links the lower reaches of the Lee Navigation to the River Thames. Opening on 17 September 1770, and widened for two-way traffic by 1777, it is the oldest can ...
for barges, which ran under Narrow Street and led to the
Lee Navigation
The Lee Navigation is a canalised river incorporating the River Lea (also called the River Lee along the sections that are navigable). It flows from Hertford Castle Weir to the River Thames at Bow Creek; its first lock is Hertford Lock and its ...
, was established in 1766.
Limehouse Basin
Limehouse Basin is a body of water 2 miles east of London Bridge that is also a navigable link between the River Thames and two of London's canals. First dug in 1820 as the eastern terminus of the new Regent's Canal, its wet area was less than ...
was built in 1820, to
transship goods to barges on the
Regent's Canal
Regent's Canal is a canal across an area just north of central London, England. It provides a link from the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union Canal, north-west of Paddington Basin in the west, to the Limehouse Basin and the River Thames in e ...
.
In 1661,
Samuel Pepys wrote in his diary of a visit to a porcelain factory in Narrow Street alighting via Duke Shore Stairs while en route to view work on boats being built for herring fishing. The Limehouse area fitted out, repaired and resupplied ships. In 1772, Smith & Sykes ran a sugar house, a small factory that baked and refined sugar.
Limehouse Cut was redirected into Limehouse Basin, which was one of the first docks to close in the late 1960s.
Nicholas Hawksmoor
Nicholas Hawksmoor (probably 1661 – 25 March 1736) was an English architect. He was a leading figure of the English Baroque style of architecture in the late-seventeenth and early-eighteenth centuries. Hawksmoor worked alongside the principa ...
s' Church
St Anne's Limehouse
St Anne's Limehouse is a Hawksmoor Anglican Church in Limehouse, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It was consecrated in 1730, one of the twelve churches built through the 1711 Act of Parliament.
History
St Anne's Limehouse was formed fr ...
was designated a conservation area by the
London Docklands Development Corporation
The London Docklands Development Corporation (LDDC) was a quango agency set up by the UK Government in 1981 to regenerate the depressed Docklands area of east London. During its seventeen-year existence it was responsible for regenerating an a ...
in the 1980s.
For much of the 20th century the area was dominated by the tall chimney of
Stepney Power Station at Blyth Wharf, which has since been demolished.
Access to the area was always difficult, with the dock standing to the north, and the entrance to the
Rotherhithe Tunnel
The Rotherhithe Tunnel, designated the A101, is a road tunnel under the River Thames in East London, connecting Limehouse in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets north of the river to Rotherhithe in the London Borough of Southwark south of the ...
at one end. In 1993 the
Limehouse Link tunnel
The Limehouse Link tunnel is a long tunnel under Limehouse in East London on the A1203 road. The tunnel links the eastern end of The Highway to Canary Wharf in London Docklands. Built between 1989 and 1993 at a cost of £293,000,000 it has ...
was completed, further restricting traffic to the riverside area. The
Narrow Street swing bridge is sited between
Limehouse Basin
Limehouse Basin is a body of water 2 miles east of London Bridge that is also a navigable link between the River Thames and two of London's canals. First dug in 1820 as the eastern terminus of the new Regent's Canal, its wet area was less than ...
and the Thames.
In 1977 the north side of the street was demolished. Until then it was half its present width.
Chinatown
In the eighteenth century a small group of Chinese sailors from
Canton and Southern China settled along the old
Limehouse Causeway creating the original London
Chinatown. The Chinese community later moved to
Soho
Soho is an area of the City of Westminster, part of the West End of London. Originally a fashionable district for the aristocracy, it has been one of the main entertainment districts in the capital since the 19th century.
The area was develo ...
following
the Blitz
The Blitz was a German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom in 1940 and 1941, during the Second World War. The term was first used by the British press and originated from the term , the German word meaning 'lightning war'.
The Germa ...
.
Historic buildings
On the south side of Narrow Street is a rare example of an early
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
brick terrace. With the exception of the westernmost property (
The Grapes public house
A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and wa ...
) it was standing derelict and abandoned, but in 1964 the writer
Andrew Sinclair
Andrew Annandale Sinclair FRSL FRSA (21 January 1935 – 30 May 2019) was a British novelist, historian, biographer, critic, filmmaker, and a publisher of classic and modern film scripts. He has been described as a "writer of extraordinary flu ...
bought and saved one of the houses and persuaded his Cambridge friends to buy the others. (Early Georgian houses can be distinguished from late ones in the way that the windows are not set back from the brick frontage.) The Grapes (formerly The Bunch of Grapes, and known to the young
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
) was notably bought in 2011 by actor Sir
Ian McKellen, director
Sean Mathias
Sean Gerard Mathias (born 14 March 1956) is a Welsh actor, director, and writer. He is known for directing the film '' Bent'' and for directing highly acclaimed theatre productions in London, New York City, Cape Town, Los Angeles and Sydney.
...
and ''
Evening Standard
The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format.
In October 2009, after be ...
'' owner
Evgeny Lebedev
Evgeny Alexandrovich Lebedev, Baron Lebedev ( rus, Евгений Александрович Лебедев, Evgeniy Aleksandrovich Lebedev, ; born 8 May 1980), is a Russian-British businessman, who owns Lebedev Holdings Ltd, which in turn own ...
.
[The Grapes, History]
, thegrapes.co.uk.
Redevelopment
The late twentieth century brought much development to the area, with the erection of the
Canary Wharf
Canary Wharf is an area of London, England, located near the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Canary Wharf is defined by the Greater London Authority as being part of London's central business district, alongside Central Lon ...
tower close by. Since the 1990s, many new apartment complexes have been built around the Limehouse Basin as well as
Victorian warehouse conversions, with Limehouse now being one of the most sought after property sites in London. Its close proximity to the River Thames has made property prices around Limehouse and the
Docklands soar over the last decade. However a 2001 Census listed 5.4 percent of homes in
Poplar and Limehouse as being without central heating and/or private bathroom.
The street is home to a number of pubs and restaurants, including ''The Narrow'', a
gastropub
A gastropub or gastro pub is a pub that serves gourmet comfort food. The term was coined in the 1990s, though similar brewpubs existed during the 1980s.
Etymology
The term ''gastropub'' (derived from gastronomy) was coined in 1991, when David ...
run by
Gordon Ramsay. Booty's Riverside Bar, which closed in 2013, was an independently owned pub dating to the 16th century. In the 18th century Booty's was an engineering shop for the barge builders, Sparkes. In the 19th century it was re-fronted, and by the 1870s it was a licensed bar called The Waterman's Arms owned by Taylor Walker. It was absorbed by Woodward Fisher, a
lighterage Lightering (also called lighterage) is the process of transferring cargo between vessels of different sizes, usually between a barge (lighter) and a bulker or oil tanker. Lightering is undertaken to reduce a vessel's draft so it can enter port facil ...
firm run by Anne Fisher, popularly known as ''
Tugboat Annie
''Tugboat Annie'' is a 1933 American pre-Code film directed by Mervyn LeRoy, written by Norman Reilly Raine and Zelda Sears, and starring Marie Dressler and Wallace Beery as a comically quarrelsome middle-aged couple who operate a tugboat. Dr ...
''. She was a real-life London version of the protagonist in the film of that name. One of the great
East End characters, she commanded a fleet of 200 barges.
Residents
Famous residents include or have included the poet
Ernest Dowson
Ernest Christopher Dowson (2 August 186723 February 1900) was an English poet, novelist, and short-story writer who is often associated with the Decadent movement.
Biography
Ernest Dowson was born in Lee, then in Kent, in 1867. His great-uncle ...
, actors
Sir Ian McKellen
Sir Ian Murray McKellen (born 25 May 1939) is an English actor. His career spans seven decades, having performed in genres ranging from Shakespearean and modern theatre to popular fantasy and science fiction. Regarded as a British cultural i ...
,
Steven Berkoff and
Cleo Rocos
Cleo Rocos (born 24 July 1962, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) is a UK-based comedy actress, producer, presenter and businesswoman who starred alongside Kenny Everett on '' The Kenny Everett Television Show''.
Early life
Rocos was born in Brazil. Her ...
, the politician
Lord Owen, the authors
Matthew Parris
Matthew Francis Parris (born 7 August 1949) is a British political writer and broadcaster, formerly a Conservative Member of Parliament. He was born in South Africa to British parents.
Early life and family
Parris is the eldest of six childre ...
and
Andrew Sinclair
Andrew Annandale Sinclair FRSL FRSA (21 January 1935 – 30 May 2019) was a British novelist, historian, biographer, critic, filmmaker, and a publisher of classic and modern film scripts. He has been described as a "writer of extraordinary flu ...
and Eagle founder and deputy Chairman of the National Magazine Company
Marcus Morris, OBE. The writer, photographer and television presenter Daniel Farson lived at number 92 for several years. It was also the home of the film director
Sir David Lean.
Art and literature
Its picturesque buildings and atmospheric location
abut
Premises are land and buildings together considered as a property. This usage arose from property owners finding the word in their title deeds, where it originally correctly meant "the aforementioned; what this document is about", from Latin ''pra ...
ting onto the River Thames attracted artists and writers.
*
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
' godfather Christopher Huffam ran his sail-making business from Newell Street, Limehouse.
*
James McNeill Whistler and
Charles Napier Hemy sketched and painted at locations on Narrow Street's river waterfront.
Transport
Cycle Superhighway 3
Cycle Superhighway 3 (CS3) is a cycle path in London, United Kingdom. It is part of the Cycleway network coordinated by TfL. It runs from Barking in the east to Lancaster Gate in central London. It is a popular route with both commuter and le ...
CS3 between
Tower Gateway to
Barking
Barking may refer to:
Places
* Barking, London, a town in East London, England
** London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, a local government district covering the town of Barking
** Municipal Borough of Barking, a historical local government dist ...
and is one of London's first
Cycle Superhighways. Some residents raised a petition calling for CS3 to be moved from Narrow Street onto the A13
Commercial Road
Commercial Road is a street in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London. It is long, running from Gardiner's Corner (previously the site of Gardiners department store, and now Aldgate East Underground station), throug ...
, arguing that the street was too narrow and that incidents of abuse and aggression had risen sharply since the route was introduced.
Transport for London (TfL) said they had no plans to move it. Mayor
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as F ...
defended the choice as a road that was already popular with cyclists to and from the
City
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
. The
London Cycling Campaign
The London Cycling Campaign (LCC) is an independent membership charity lobbying for better conditions for cycling in London. Its vision is to make London "a world-class cycling city". It is one of the largest urban cycling organisations in th ...
supported the route but called for improvements. In 2011, TfL agreed to remove logos from the road surface, but not to change the route.
The
National Trail
National Trails are long distance footpaths and bridleways in England and Wales. They are administered by Natural England, a statutory agency of the UK government, and Natural Resources Wales (successor body to the Countryside Council for Wal ...
Thames Path
The Thames Path is a National Trail following the River Thames from its source near Kemble in Gloucestershire to the Woolwich foot tunnel, south east London. It is about long. A path was first proposed in 1948 but it only opened in 1996.
The ...
for walkers runs along Narrow Street and it is also included in the London Marathon course.
Docklands Light Railway stations are ''
Limehouse
Limehouse is a district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in East London. It is east of Charing Cross, on the northern bank of the River Thames. Its proximity to the river has given it a strong maritime character, which it retains through ...
'' (for
National Rail
National Rail (NR) is the trading name licensed for use by the Rail Delivery Group, an unincorporated association whose membership consists of the passenger train operating companies (TOCs) of England, Scotland, and Wales. The TOCs run the ...
as well) and ''
Westferry''.
The
London River Services
London River Services Limited is a division of Transport for London (TfL), which manages passenger transport—leisure-oriented tourist services and commuter services—on the River Thames in London. It does not own or operate any boats itself ...
pier is
Canary Wharf Pier
Canary Wharf is a London River Services pier on the River Thames in Canary Wharf, London. It is located next to Westferry Circus.
Services
It is served by two commuter oriented services, both operated by Thames Clippers under licence from Lond ...
.
See also
*
Henry Mayhew
Henry Mayhew (25 November 1812 – 25 July 1887) was an English journalist, playwright, and advocate of reform. He was one of the co-founders of the satirical magazine ''Punch'' in 1841, and was the magazine's joint editor, with Mark Lemon, in ...
*
George Robert Sims
George Robert Sims (2 September 1847 – 4 September 1922) was an English journalist, poet, dramatist, novelist and ''bon vivant''.
Sims began writing lively humour and satiric pieces for ''Fun'' magazine and ''The Referee'', but he was soon co ...
*
Sir Walter Besant
*
Clement Attlee
*''
Colin Gwyer & Associates Ltd v London Wharf (Limehouse) Ltd''
003 003, O03, 0O3, OO3 may refer to:
*003, fictional British 00 Agent
*003, former emergency telephone number for the Norwegian ambulance service (until 1986)
*1990 OO3, the asteroid 6131 Towen
* OO3 gauge model railway
*''O03 (O2)'' and other related ...
BCC 885, litigation which took place on a Narrow Street property
*
Stepney Historical Trust
Notes
The
Anglo-Saxon word tirl, means 'narrow street' or a 'gate' to keep horses and other cattle out of the city.
External links
LDDC* Taylor Walker & Co http://www.quaffale.org.uk/php/brewery/746
* Limehouse https://web.archive.org/web/20051226021110/http://www.eolfhs.org.uk/parish/limehouse.htm
* Early history http://www.mernick.co.uk/thhol/limehouse.html
* Early history https://web.archive.org/web/20051212093541/http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/data/discover/data/Poplar/index.cfm
* Duke Shore stairs http://www.burkes-peerage.net/sites/common/sitepages/lwallindex.asp
* Image reference: Greenwood's Map of London 1827 https://web.archive.org/web/20110406112050/http://users.bathspa.ac.uk/greenwood/imagemap.html
* Image reference: Limehouse Link 1993
{{coord, display=title, 51, 30, 32, N, 0, 2, 1, W
Streets in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Limehouse