Clere, Clair, Cleare, Clare……?
Clere Street is a turning off Tabernacle Street in Shoreditch, on the edge of the pre-1965 border between Finsbury and Shoreditch boroughs. It was previously called Paradise Street from c. … Read more
Islington
The Almshouses of Balls Pond Road
At Islington borough’s eastern edge, on the north side of Balls Pond Road, beyond the traffic bustle and behind railings, these old two-story buildings surround a tranquil green courtyard. They are … Read more
Priss Fotheringham, ‘the second best whore in the city’
The above blue plaque in Whitecross Street, Finsbury, has recently been obscured by a new artwork. Whilst sad that we can no longer see it, the plaque itself was part … Read more
The French Hospital
This discreet wall plate on a school in Bath Street, Finsbury commemorates the ‘French Hospital’, founded in 1718 close to the old City Pest House which housed sufferers from the … Read more
St. Mary’s Nunnery
This church in the photo is St. James Clerkenwell, built by a local architect, James Carr, in 1788-92. It lies on the same ground as the far more ancient buildings … Read more
The Islington New Market
This short-lived cattle and livestock market was developed by a Mr Perkins in the 1830s, on land between the Lower Road (now Essex Road) and Southgate Road on the eastern … Read more
Balmes House
This elegant small manor house is believed to have been erected around 1635, probably on the site of the mediaeval Hoxton Manor. It was situated near the border between the … Read more
The City Pest House
If you lived in the City of London and showed symptoms of plague in 1593, you were sent to one of the ‘Pest Houses’ outside the City boundaries to recover….or … Read more
‘Beating the Bounds’
The annual act of ‘Beating the Bounds’ of the parish was extremely important before maps were commonplace. Local officials and interested parties would walk the parish boundary, often on Ascension … Read more
The Cold Bath in Clerkenwell
In an unobtrusive turning off Farringdon Road lies the site of the ‘Cold Bath’ spring. First discovered in the late 1600s and turned into a spa with claimed medicinal waters, … Read more