Whitechapel High Street is a street in the Borough of Tower Hamlets in the

East End of London The East End of London, often referred to within the London area simply as the East End, is the historic core of wider East London, east of the Roman and medieval walls of the City of London and north of the River Thames. It does not have uni ...

. It is about 0.2 miles (350 m) long, making it “one of the shortest high streets in London”. It links

Aldgate High Street Aldgate () was a gate in the former defensive wall around the City of London. It gives its name to Aldgate High Street, the first stretch of the A11 road, which included the site of the former gate. The area of Aldgate, the most common use of ...

to the south-west with

Whitechapel Road Whitechapel Road is a major arterial road in Whitechapel, Tower Hamlets, in the East End of London. It is named after a small chapel of ease dedicated to St Mary and connects Whitechapel High Street to the west with Mile End Road to the east. ...

to the north-east, and includes junctions with Commercial Street to the north and

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), through ...

to the east. For motorists, it is the start of the A11 from London to

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...

. For cyclists, it is the start of Cycleway 2 from

Aldgate Aldgate () was a gate in the former defensive wall around the City of London. It gives its name to Aldgate High Street, the first stretch of the A11 road, which included the site of the former gate. The area of Aldgate, the most common use of ...

to Stratford. For pedestrians, it is a route from

Aldgate tube station Aldgate is a London Underground station near Aldgate in the City of London. The station is on the Circle line between and , and is the eastern terminus of the Metropolitan line. It is in Travelcard Zone 1. Aldgate was opened in 1876 with i ...

Brick Lane Brick Lane (Bengali: ব্রিক লেন) is a street in the East End of London, in the borough of Tower Hamlets. It runs from Swanfield Street in Bethnal Green in the north, crosses the Bethnal Green Road before reaching the busiest ...

. “Whitechapel High Street provides a transition between the commercial development pressures from the City and the historic east end communities.” The street has many narrow plots with 3-5 storey buildings, rebuilt and enlarged at different times in different styles. It was designated a

conservation area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

in 2007. In 2015 it was named by the Royal Society for Public Health as London's most unhealthy high street, having the highest concentration of fast-food outlets, payday lenders, bookmakers and tanning salons.

History

Whitechapel High Street follows part of a

Roman road Roman roads ( la, viae Romanae ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, and were built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Re ...

, presumed to have continued to

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colches ...

. A major Roman cemetery was located along the street. In the

medieval period In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

the street was known as Algatestreet. It was a major thoroughfare to and from the City of London. Settlement in the area probably began in the 13th century. The name “Whitechapel” refers to a

chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently. Often a chapel of ea ...

in the parish of

Stepney Stepney is a district in the East End of London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The district is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name appl ...

that was built in the mid-13th century in the area that is now

Altab Ali Park Altab Ali Park is a small park on Adler Street, White Church Lane and Whitechapel Road, London E1. Formerly known as St Mary's Park, it is the site of the old 14th-century white church, St Mary Matfelon, from which the area of Whitechapel g ...

. The church was named

St Mary Matfelon The St Mary Matfelon church, popularly known as St Mary's, Whitechapel, was a Church of England parish church on Whitechapel Road, Whitechapel, London. The church's earliest known rector was Hugh de Fulbourne in 1329, and in the medieval period t ...

, but commonly known as the “White Chapel”, referring to the colour of its white chalk rubble walls. Early maps such as the Agas map show that by the mid-16th century the street had a continuous frontage of mostly 2-storey timber-framed houses with fields behind. Remains of the Boar's Head Inn, which included the site of the

Boar's Head Theatre The Boar's Head Theatre was an inn-yard theatre in the Whitechapel area of London from 1598 to around 1616. It was based in the yard of the Boar's Head Inn. During its lifetime as a playhouse, it was home to the Earl of Derby's Men (summer 1599 ...

from 1598 to 1616, were found beneath the Unite Students building (No 141-143). Stow's Survey of London in 1603 complained that the street was “pestered” with cottages and alleys, concluding that the “unsavoury” passage to Aldgate was “no small blemish to so famous a city”. Morgan's map of 1682 shows “White Chapel Street” extending from Aldgate to St Mary's Church, with numerous narrow alleys leading to courtyards or fields behind the street. Some still remain, such as Angel Alley (No 84) and Gunthorpe Street (No 88). While no buildings survive from this period, later buildings such as No 85 and Nos 91-93 reused their extremely narrow plots, preserving their cramped character. By 1746, Roque's map shows the land behind the street was entirely built up. In contrast to the buildings, the street itself was wide. Maitland's Survey of London of 1756 describes it as “a spacious Street for Entrance into the City Eastward … accommodated with good Inns for the Reception of Travellers, Horses, Coaches, Waggons, &c nda great many Butchers, who carry on a great Trade, both Wholesale and Retail”. The oldest remaining inn is the White Hart (No 89) from 1721. Edwin Edwards (1823-1879) - High Street, Whitechapel - 2465 - Fitzwilliam Museum

Edwin Edwards (1823-1879) - High Street, Whitechapel - 2465 - Fitzwilliam Museum

Carey's map of 1795 introduced the modern name “White Chapel High Street” for the part of the street outside the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

boundary; Whitechapel Road for the western part beginning at St Mary's Church; and Aldgate High Street for the eastern part between the city boundary and the old Roman wall. By 1810 there were 148 numbered buildings. “Whitechapel High Street was lined with coaching inns; the road was full of traffic, carts with garden produce, market women with baskets of fruit, flocks of sheet, herds of cattle, brewers’ drays and hay wains for the hay market.” From at least 1665 until 1928, in the Whitechapel hay market, farmers sold animal fodder from large carts in the street. In the late 18th and early 19th century the street was lined with 4-storey brick shop-houses, still visible at Nos 65-68, 74-76 and 128-129. It became a traffic intersection. Commercial Road was created in 1802-4 to link the docks with the City. The southern section of Commercial Street was created in 1843–5 as part of a slum clearance programme, and to connect Whitechapel High Street with Spitalfields Market. The Whitechapel to Bow tramway opened in 1870. In 1884 the

District Railway The Metropolitan District Railway, also known as the District Railway, was a passenger railway that served London from 1868 to 1933. Established in 1864 to complete an " inner circle" of lines connecting railway termini in London, the first par ...

extended its underground service through Aldgate East to Whitechapel station. Whitechapel High Street 1905

As London's population increased during the 19th century,and Whitechapel as a whole suffered poverty and overcrowding, the high street remained relatively prosperous. It shows as a narrow strip of “middle class – well-to-do” housing on Booth's poverty map of 1889.

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...

philanthropic improvements included the ornate Passmore Edwards Library and the

Whitechapel Gallery The Whitechapel Gallery is a public art gallery in Whitechapel on the north side of Whitechapel High Street, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The original building, designed by Charles Harrison Townsend, opened in 1901 as one of the fir ...

. Grand

Edwardian era The Edwardian era or Edwardian period of British history spanned the reign of King Edward VII, 1901 to 1910 and is sometimes extended to the start of the First World War. The death of Queen Victoria in January 1901 marked the end of the Victori ...

buildings remain at No 90, 102-5 and 126–7. Many Jewish refugees from Eastern Europe to Whitechapel during 1880-1914 found work in the clothing industry, and the high street became their shop window. Clothing and footwear accounted for one-third of the 144 businesses listed on the street in 1921. The last remaining ones are at No 65a, 88 and 102–5. The largest was Gardiner's department store (No 31-35), which opened in the 1870s and was destroyed by fire in 1972. The traffic intersection became known as Gardiner's Corner. In 1936 a fascist march into the East End was blocked there in the

Battle of Cable Street The Battle of Cable Street was a series of clashes that took place at several locations in the inner East End, most notably Cable Street, on Sunday 4 October 1936. It was a clash between the Metropolitan Police, sent to protect a march by mem ...

. One of the few remaining signs of the Jewish presence is a

Star of David The Star of David (). is a generally recognized symbol of both Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram: the compound of two equilateral triangles. A derivation of the ''seal of Solomon'', which was used for decorative ...

on the former Jewish Daily Post building (No 88). Like much of the East End, Whitechapel High Street was extensively damaged by

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 ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Some buildings were repaired in their original style; others were rebuilt during the 1950s in plain utilitarian style, such as No 83, 87 and 94. Some sites, such as No 97, remained empty for decades. Rising property prices have encouraged repair and rebuilding, and few signs of the blitz remain. One notable absence is St Mary's Church, which was gutted by a fire bomb in 1940 and demolished in 1952. London Whitechapel High Street geograph-3926008-by-Ben-Brooksbank

London Whitechapel High Street geograph-3926008-by-Ben-Brooksbank

In the 1960s the street became one-way as part of the Aldgate Gyratory, isolating the buildings on the south side as far as Gardiner's department store in the centre of a large roundabout with return flow along Braham Street. Large concrete and glass office buildings occupied this area, creating a “sense of desolation and insecurity for pedestrians”. The gyratory system was removed in 2008, and Whitechapel High Street became two-way again. Tall office and apartment buildings were combined with attempts to improve the street level environment.

Buildings

South Side

Starts at:

Mansell Street Mansell Street is a street in East London, which is part of the London Inner Ring Road. For most of its length from the north, this street marks the boundary between the City of London and the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. However, the southern ...

The White Chapel Building, 10 Whitechapel High Street - an 8-storey office building, designed by

Fitzroy Robinson & Partners Fitzroy Robinson & Partners was one of the UK's largest firms of architects. It was based at Devonshire Street in London. History The firm was established by Herbert Fitzroy Robinson in 1956. Public buildings designed by the firm included 102 Pet ...

, built in 1982–84. It has a prominent grid of chamfered

mullion A mullion is a vertical element that forms a division between units of a window or screen, or is used decoratively. It is also often used as a division between double doors. When dividing adjacent window units its primary purpose is a rigid supp ...

s and floorbands, with polished granite cladding. The tall storey heights allowed raised flooring to conceal computer wiring. The building was originally known as Sedgewick Centre, and was occupied by

Royal Bank of Scotland The Royal Bank of Scotland plc (RBS; gd, Banca Rìoghail na h-Alba) is a major retail and commercial bank in Scotland. It is one of the retail banking subsidiaries of NatWest Group, together with NatWest (in England and Wales) and Ulster Bank ...

during 2005–15. Aldgate Tower, 2 Leman Street - an 18-storey office building, designed by

WilkinsonEyre WilkinsonEyre is an international architecture practice based in London, England. In 1983 Chris Wilkinson (architect), Chris Wilkinson founded Chris Wilkinson Architects, he partnered with Jim Eyre (architect), Jim Eyre in 1987 and the practice w ...

, built in 2013–14. It has a curved glass façade over a steel frame and grey columns at ground level. Side street:

Leman Street Leman Street, once known as Lemon Street, is a street in Tower Hamlets. It was built in the seventeenth century as part of the development of Goodman's Fields. It is named after John Leman who was responsible for this development, which also incl ...

Construction site - planned 6-storey and 25-storey office buildings, part of the Aldgate Place development. The site was once Gardiners’ department store. Side street:

Central House - a 6-storey flatted factory, designed by Lush & Lester, built in 1964–65. It is built in a

modernist Modernism is both a philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new forms of art, philosophy, an ...

style with visible reinforced concrete frame and glass bands, and known as the “Aldgate Bauhaus”. It was occupied by textile factories and the Cass School of Art and Architecture of the

London Metropolitan University London Metropolitan University, commonly known as London Met, is a public university, public research university in London, England. The University of North London (formerly the Polytechnic of North London) and London Guildhall University (f ...

. An extension built in 2020-22 will add a further 6 storeys of office space. Designed by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris and inspired by Rachel Whiteread's

Fourth Plinth The Fourth plinth is the northwest plinth in Trafalgar Square in central London. It was originally intended to hold an equestrian statue of William IV, but remained bare due to insufficient funds. For over 150 years the fate of the plinth was deba ...

, the extension adds an equal volume that mimics the horizontal banding of the original. 65a Whitechapel High Street - a 4-storey commercial building, built c1897 in

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literature ...

style in red brick with

Portland stone Portland stone is a limestone from the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period quarried on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The quarries are cut in beds of white-grey limestone separated by chert beds. It has been used extensively as a building sto ...

dressings. 65-68 Whitechapel High Street - a terrace of four 4-storey 2-bay shop-houses, built in 1853 in

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 ...

style in stock brick with Portland stone dressings and a

gambrel A gambrel or gambrel roof is a usually symmetrical two-sided roof with two slopes on each side. (The usual architectural term in eighteenth-century England and North America was "Dutch roof".) The upper slope is positioned at a shallow angle, w ...

roof concealed by a

parapet A parapet is a barrier that is an extension of the wall at the edge of a roof, terrace, balcony, walkway or other structure. The word comes ultimately from the Italian ''parapetto'' (''parare'' 'to cover/defend' and ''petto'' 'chest/breast'). Whe ...

. It was refurbished in 2010–12. 69-70 Whitechapel High Street - two 4-storey shop-houses, built in 1908–11, refurbished in 2005–10. City of London College, 71 Whitechapel High Street - a 3-storey warehouse-showroom, built in 1983 in red brick, converted to a college c1998. A top floor was added c2020. Ends at: White Church Lane

North Side

Starts at: Osborn Street 74 Whitechapel High Street – a 4-storey corner shop-house, built 1828–29 in brick (now painted white). In 2001 the ground floor was converted to a restaurant and the upper floors to flats. 75 Whitechapel High Street - a 4-storey 3-bay shop-house, possibly built in the early 19th century, in

stock brick London stock brick is the type of handmade brick which was used for the majority of building work in London and South East England until the growth in the use of Flettons and other machine-made bricks in the early 20th century. Its distinctive y ...

with red brick

lintel A lintel or lintol is a type of beam (a horizontal structural element) that spans openings such as portals, doors, windows and fireplaces. It can be a decorative architectural element, or a combined ornamented structural item. In the case of w ...

s. It has been an electrical wholesaler since c2002. 76 Whitechapel High Street – a 4-storey 2-bay shop-house, built in 1845 in stock brick with

stucco Stucco or render is a construction material made of aggregates, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as a decorative coating for walls and ceilings, exterior walls, and as a sculptural and a ...

window frames, lintels and

cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, around the top edge of a ...

. It has been an electrical wholesaler since c1975. WGfacade2

Former Passmore Edwards Library - a 4-storey public library designed by Potts, Son & Hennings in

Jacobethan The Jacobethan or Jacobean Revival architectural style is the mixed national Renaissance revival style that was made popular in England from the late 1820s, which derived most of its inspiration and its repertory from the English Renaissance (15 ...

style in red brick with terracotta dressings. One of the earliest public libraries in London, it was funded by philanthropist

John Passmore Edwards John Passmore Edwards M.P. (24 March 1823 – 22 April 1911) ODNB article by A. J. A. Morris, 'Edwards, John Passmore (1823–1911)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online edn, May 200 accessed 15 ...

and opened in 1892. It became part of the Whitechapel Gallery in 2009.

- designed by

Charles Harrison Townsend Charles Harrison Townsend (13 May 1851 — 26 December 1928) was an English architect. He was born in Birkenhead, educated at Birkenhead School and articled to the Liverpool architect Walter Scott in 1870. He moved to London with his family in 1880 ...

in an

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...

style, built in 1898–99 in buff terracotta. 83 Whitechapel High Street - a 5-storey single-bay commercial building, built in 1957 in red brick. The upper floors were converted to flats in 2007. The ground floor is a café. 84 Whitechapel High Street - a 4-storey single-bay commercial building, built in 1957 in red brick. It retains its original triplet windows within thin concrete frames and thick flat

s. The ground floor is a fast food restaurant. The building steps over Angel Alley. 84b Whitechapel High Street (in Angel Alley) has been the

anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not neces ...

bookshop and publishing house

Freedom Press Freedom Press is an anarchist publishing house and bookseller in Whitechapel, London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1886, it is the largest anarchist publishing house in the country and the oldest of its kind in the English speaking world. It is bas ...

since 1942. 85 Whitechapel High Street - a narrow 4-storey shop-house, designed as a public house by Bird & Walters, built in 1900 in red brick with stone dressings (now painted white). The ground floor is a nail salon. 86 Whitechapel High Street - a 4-storey 2-bay shop-house, probably mid-19th century, but refronted in 1991 in brown bricks with metal windows and a projecting tiled mansard attic. The ground floor is a café. 87 Whitechapel High Street - a 3-storey 3-bay shop-house, built c1955 with red brick facing and triplet metal windows with thin concrete frames. The ground floor is an amusement arcade. 88 Whitechapel High Street E1 7QX

88 Whitechapel High Street - a 4-storey 3-bay shop and office, built in 1838, in stuccoed stock brick. The building steps over the entrance to Gunthorpe Street. It has been occupied by the menswear shop Alberts since 1942. The Grade II listed metal relief above the door by Arthur Szyk depicts a

supported by two Lions of Judah wielding sabres, and was commissioned by the Jewish Daily Post, which occupied the building in 1934–35. Side street: Gunthorpe Street The White Hart - a 4-storey single-bay public house, founded in 1721, rebuilt in the 1930s, with traces of

Corinthian Corinthian or Corinthians may refer to: *Several Pauline epistles, books of the New Testament of the Bible: **First Epistle to the Corinthians **Second Epistle to the Corinthians **Third Epistle to the Corinthians (Orthodox) *A demonym relating to ...

pilaster In classical architecture Classical architecture usually denotes architecture which is more or less consciously derived from the principles of Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or sometimes even more specifically, from the ...

s from the 1830s. 90 Whitechapel High Street - a 5-storey 3-bay shop and office, built in 1910 in red brick. The stuccoed centre bay includes an

oriel window An oriel window is a form of bay window which protrudes from the main wall of a building but does not reach to the ground. Supported by corbels, bracket (architecture), brackets, or similar cantilevers, an oriel window is most commonly found pro ...

with broken scroll

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

above. The building was occupied by Blooms restaurant from 1952 to 1996, and since by the fast food restaurant

Burger King Burger King (BK) is an American-based multinational chain store, chain of hamburger fast food restaurants. Headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida, the company was founded in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida–based res ...

. The upper floor offices were converted to flats in 1998. 91 Whitechapel High Street - a 4-storey single-bay shop built in 1862 in stock brick. It is just 3.3m wide. The upper floor offices were converted to flats and a fifth floor added in 2018. The ground floor is a café. 92-93 Whitechapel High Street - two 5-storey shop-houses, one single-bay and one 2-bay, built in 1861 in stock brick. The ground floor shops were integrated by 1990. In 2002 the upper floors were integrated as flats, and an extra storey was added. 94 Whitechapel High Street - a 5-storey shop and office building, designed by Fitzroy Robinson and Hubert H. Bull, built in 1960. It is built in breezeblock in a concrete frame, faced in brown brick with metal framed windows. The building steps over an entrance to a car park, formerly an inn yard. 95-96 Whitechapel High Street - a 5-storey 3-bay shop and office building. It was built in 1902 as a clothing workshop. After wartime damage it was rebuilt in a utilitarian style in 1954 with grey brick facing and metal framed windows in concrete surrounds, retaining the Edwardian

canted Cant, CANT, canting, or canted may refer to: Language * Cant (language), a secret language * Beurla Reagaird, a language of the Scottish Highland Travellers * Scottish Cant, a language of the Scottish Lowland Travellers * Shelta or the Cant, a lan ...

s on the upper floors. In 2013 the top floors were converted into flats and the lower floors were occupied by the restaurant Big Moe's Diner. 97-98 Whitechapel High Street – an empty site since clearance after World War II. A planning application proposes a 4-storey infill, also replacing No 101 and restoring No 102-5, with a 15-storey office tower behind. 101 Whitechapel High Street - a 5-storey shop and office building, designed by S.A. Burden, built in 1961 in a

style, with reinforced-concrete side beams and floor plates set forward of shallow bow windows. Formerly a bank, it is now a betting shop with student accommodation above. 102-105 Whitechapel High Street - a 4-storey commercial building, built in 1909, including a first floor in cream

faience Faience or faïence (; ) is the general English language term for fine tin-glazed pottery. The invention of a white pottery glaze suitable for painted decoration, by the addition of an oxide of tin to the slip of a lead glaze, was a major ad ...

with display windows within semi-circular arches, and two floors above in red-orange brick with plain windows and raised keystones. It was occupied by

Woolworths Woolworth, Woolworth's, or Woolworths may refer to: Businesses * F. W. Woolworth Company, the original US-based chain of "five and dime" (5¢ and 10¢) stores * Woolworths Group (United Kingdom), former operator of the Woolworths chain of shops ...

from 1928 to 1960. Side street: Commercial Street One Commercial St

Relay Building, 1 Commercial Street - a 23-storey mixed use building designed by Sigma Seifert, built during 2008–14. It includes 16 floors of apartments, 6 floors of offices and retail units on the ground floor. It has grey-tinted glass and light grey panels, with a ranked projection on the Commercial Street façade. The building steps over the entrance to Aldgate East tube station. Side street: Tyne Street 122 Whitechapel High Street - a 4-storey shop-house built in 1882 in red brick (now painted white) in a Queen Anne style. The ground floor is an estate agent. Side street: Old Castle Street 126-7 Whitechapel High Street - a 4-storey corner shop and office building, designed by Martin Luther Saunders, built in 1905–6 in stock brick. The ground floor has been a café since 2010, when the upper floors were converted to flats and a 5th floor added. 128 Whitechapel High Street - a 4-storey 2-bay shop-house built in the late 18th century in plain Georgian style with flat window heads. A first floor display window was added in 1928, and a 4th floor flat added in 2007–8. Nevertheless, it “remains the only middling shop-house on Whitechapel High Street to retain a semblance of its late 18th century appearance”. 129 Whitechapel High Street - a 4-storey 2-bay shop-house built in the early 19th century. A mansard attic was added in 1876 and rusticated

quoin Quoins ( or ) are masonry blocks at the corner of a wall. Some are structural, providing strength for a wall made with inferior stone or rubble, while others merely add aesthetic detail to a corner. According to one 19th century encyclopedia, t ...

s and embellished windows were added in 1910. 130 Whitechapel High Street - a 3-storey former bank, designed by F.G. Frizell and built in 1956–7 in a neo-Georgian style. The ground floor is clad in black granite, and the upper floors are faced in orange-red brick with concrete-framed windows. The building was designed for

National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank, commonly known as NatWest, is a major retail and commercial bank in the United Kingdom based in London, England. It was established in 1968 by the merger of National Provincial Bank and Westminster Bank. In 2000, it ...

, which closed in 2013. Oceanair House, 133-137 Whitechapel High Street - a 7-storey shop and office building, designed by Philip Nicolle and built in 1937–8 in a streamlined deco moderne style with metal framed windows wrapping around the corner. The upper floors are faced in brown brick (now painted grey). It was the first building on the street to exceed 5 storeys. The upper floors were destroyed by bomb blast in 1940, and restored in 1955. Side street: Goulston Street Construction site - a 24-storey student accommodation building, part of a mixed use development including office and exhibition space, designed by Architecture PLB for

Unite Students The Unite Group (trading as Unite Students) provides purpose built student accommodation (PBSA) across the United Kingdom. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange as a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. History The Unite Group wa ...

. Ends at: Middlesex Street

References

Streets in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets Shopping streets in London Whitechapel {{coord missing, London