HH Vol 9.Pdf

In this issue - the archaeology of medieval Hoxton • the early years of a working men's club • ~orkhouse administration a century ago • Hoxton furniture and Hoxton fakery • an enterprising Homerton family between the wars • how the people of Stoke Newington bought a Lancaster bomber Hackney History is published annually by the Friends of Hackney Archives, · a charity formed in 1985 to act as a focus for local history and to support _the work of the borough council's Archives Department. Membership is open to all. Members receive the Department's regular newsletter, the Hackney Terrier; and Hackney History once a year. The subscription for the calendar year 2003 is £10 for mailing to UK addresses, £20 ( if paid in sterling) for mailing overseas. For further information telephone 020 7241 2886 email [email protected] ISSN 1360 3795 £4.00 free to subscribers HACKNEY History volume nine Under Hoxton: excavations at Nuttall Street Kieron 1yler 3 The Borough of Hackney Working Men's Club: the early years Barry Burke 11 The poor law in Hackney a century ago Dick Hunter 19 Frets, fakes and fibreboard: the last years of the Hoxton furniture trade Jack Whitehead 27 Jim Warren, streetsweeper extraordinaire A. J Root 34 'Wings for Victory': Stoke Newington's Lancaster Peter Kent 41 Contributors to this issue 51 Acknowledgements 51 Abbreviations used 51 In previous volumes 52 2003 Published by the Friends of Hackney Archives (charity no. 1074493) c/ o Hackney Archives Department 4 3 de Beauvoir Road London N 1 5SQ UNDER HOXTON: Edited by Isobel Watson EXCAVATIONS AT NUTTALL STREET Cover design by Jacqueline Bradshaw-Price Printed by Designworks, London E8 Kieron Tyler ISSN 1370 3795 © Friends of Hackney Archives and contributors, 2003 Introduction Hoxton is old. But how old? According to stud ies by place-name experts the word Hoxton has a Saxon origin. But hardly anything in modem Hoxton suggests great antiquity. The earliest standing buildings in the area are 237 Hoxton Street and 3 2 Hoxton Square, both dating from the early 18th century. The place name Hoxton appears in the Domes day book of 1086. So, clearly, there was some sort of settlement in the area, with cultural ac tivity centred around agriculture, from at least the 11th century. Even though archaeology is the only way that the nature of medieval day-to day activities could be defined, fieldwork in the area has -with two exceptions - uncovered noth ing ancient. The most important of these exceptions is the site of St Leonard's Hospital, along Nuttall Street, where physical remains dating from the 13th to 15th centuries were recorded. This arti The front cover is based on the design by William McMillan R.A. cle describes the finds at the site, and sets them for the 'Wings for Victory' presentation trophy and aircraft log books in the context of Hoxton's history. (see pages 4647) For technical expressions used in this article, please refer to the glossary on page 9. Figure 1: location ef Hoxton excavation sites 3 HACKNEY History Under Hoxton Circumstances of the excavation permission included a condition which required In April 1993 the Museum of London Archae an archaeological investigation of the site prior ology Service (MoIAS) undertook a field evalu to development. The fieldwork was funded by \~•l¼S't..L- ation at St Leonard's Hospital, Nuttall Street, .. '.·•--v--.....c. • the City and Hackney Health Authority. Hackney (figure 1). The work was supervised by The evaluation produced evidence for occu Nicholas J. Elsden. The Ordnance Survey Na pation dated to the late 12th to 13th centuries. tional Grid Reference for the site is 533289 These were the first-ever physical remains found ·"'· . 183426 and the site code was SLH93. The ••• '>\:'!': • •t\ -~ • for medieval Haxton, so excavation (also super . ~' records from the fieldwork are held by the Lon vised by Elsden) followed the evaluation, be don Archaeological Archive and Research Cen tween 22 November and 13 December 1993. tre under this code, and may be consulted by The trenches are located on figure 2. The re appointment. mains were threatened with disturbance or de The site was within an Archaeological Prior struction by works associated with the proposed ity Area as defined by the local planning author redevelopment. ity, Hackney borough council. It centred around the medieval settlement at Hoxton, known to exist from the historic record but elusive in terms Archaeological and historical background of any material, physical evidence. A planning The first mention of Hoxton occurs in the application had been approved for the demoli Domesday book of 1086, where Hochestone is tion of redundant buildings at the north-west described as a rural area, having 'land for three comer of the site, and their replacement with a ploughs and there are seven villagers who hold nursing home, health-care facilities and hous this land, 16 cottagers. This manor lay and lies ing association accommodation. The planning in... the church of St Paul' .1 It is generally believed that the name Haxton has a Saxon origin, de (site code HXN93, located on figure 2), about riving from tun (an enlosure, village or manor) 7 5 metres south of the site, where a circular chalk N and a person's name, perhaps Hoeg. 2 Archaeo and flint-lined well was recorded. The lining had _I_ logical work in the vicinity has produced no been repaired with red bricks of a pre-1666 (pre Saxon finds and, with two exceptions (this site Great Fire) type. Although the well was and another, noted below), no physical evidence backfilled during the 19th century, its original for medieval activity. This does not necessarily lining appeared to be late medieval. mean there was no activity in the period: the Little evidence for the nature of medieval evidence may have been removed by excavation Haxton exists in the published historic record. in the 17 th century or later. Fieldwork at 14-15 Beyond the mention in the Domesday book, \ .----· \ Haxton Square (site code HXTOl, located on Haxton appears as Hocston in a fine of 1220/1 :i: ' -------- \ 0 --- r--- )( \ figure 1), 650 metres south-west of the site, ob and as Hoggeston in an indenture of 1351, when 0 \ -----, :, served truncated geological gravels overlain by the manor was leased to Thomas Harewold by disused hospital block (/)_. 17th century soils. It was concluded that quar Sir John de la Aspale. By 1384 Haxton was in (I) (I)_. rying had taken place. This type of sequence was the hands of Sir John Philpot, whose family also observed at about 70 metres north of the held the manor until 1634.3 But none of this site at the Whitmore Estate (site code NUL00, demonstrates what went on in Haxton. l located on figure 1), between Nuttall and By the Tudor period, however, there is some '7 Phillipp Streets. With Haxton as a ready source indication of how the site was exploited. In 1545 '--·- of raw materials for post-medieval building the southern part of the site was within an es works, the rarity of the medieval finds described tate owned by Richard Harang, which in 1557 here is clear. included a messuage, two barns, a stable, a gar stte outline 0 40m :-_:~ Beyond this site, the only other archaeologi den and three acres of land. In 1568 the north cal evidence for medieval activity in Hoxton has ern part of the site was in the hands of Lady Figure 2: location of the excavation trenches come from fieldwork at 182-184 Haxton Street Katherine Dormer and formed part of a three 4 5 HACKNEY History Under Hoxton 4 acre plot containing three messuages. OD. The brickearth was cut by a pit, probably N Hoxton began expanding and became more he result of quarrying (located on figure 4). The _I_ tion throughout the 14th century, becoming less densely built up from the 17th century. pit was backfilled with a mixed brickearth, im excavation trench common during the second half of the century. outline ...._"'-. Chassereau's map of 1745 (figure 3) shows build plying that the underlying gravel had been quar .----- An unusual find was a small sherd from a brown ings along the Hoxton Street frontage of the site, ried and any excavated brickearth then slipped Siegburg stoneware drinking jug. This behind which was open land to the east, with redeposited as backfill. fabric was introduced to London c.1300, al modern Nuttall Street depicted as Dirty Lane. Pottery from this backfill was dated to c.1270- I though the slipped version is never common. What is now a footpath leading east off Hoxton 1350. The range of fabrics included South Herts r · ___ / _ __.: □\ Apart from pottery, the open area 3 brickearth Street, around the southern side of the site, was greywares, London-type wares and Mill Green , / \ layer also included fragments of sheep/goat rib ( conjectured _,,,.,., .. i_ ~und_ oven known as the Land of Promise. By the 19th cen ware. The greywares included rim sherds from oven outlines outlmes and scapula, probably the remains of meals. En tury Hoxton had lost its rural character. By the thirteen different cooking pots, which bore signs vironmental samples included charred grain and 20th century anything medieval had long-since of use such as sooting and heavy burning. Sherds 1 j ',a/ waterlogged seeds. The cereal grains were free vanished. from two bowls and one jug were also recovered. 1 threshing bread wheat, rye and barley. The re South Herts greywares were made at various maining material consisted of seeds belonging The excavation centres from the mid-12th century and through l.

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