Lombard Street constituted the colony of the Jews of Lombardy sent over to England by Pope Gregory IX. for the purpose of advancing money to those who were unable to pay the taxes so rigorously demanded throughout the country in 1229. Austin Friars contained the Priory of the Austin, or Augustin Friars. Bishopsgate Street was designated after the strong gate built by the good Bishop Erkenwald, son of Offa, King of the Saxons; and repaired by Bishop William in the reign of William I. Great St. Helen’s comprises the ground anciently held by the Nuns of the Order of St. Helen. Devonshire Square, in this neighbourhood, marks the situation of the mansion of William Cavendish, second Earl of Devonshire, who died under its roof in 1628. Artillery Lane stands upon the old practising ground of the Tower Gunners prior to the seventeenth century. Houndsditch was the old ditch beyond the city wall, anciently considered by the inhabitants to be the proper depository for dead dogs. Bevis Marks is a corruption of “Bury’s Marks,” where stood the mansion and grounds of the Abbots of Bury. Petticoat Lane, also known as Rag Fair, is the central old clothes mart of the Jewish inhabitants of the metropolis. Wormwood Street and Camomile Street were so called on account of the herbs found growing among the Roman stones. London Wall defines the ancient boundary of Roman London. Barbican, a continuation of the old Roman Wall, is an English form of the Saxon burgh kennin, or postern tower. Here it was that the Romans placed sentinels by night and day to give notice of conflagrations in the City or of dangers from outside quarters. In Great Winchester Street stood the original Winchester House, built by the first Marquis of Winchester. Old Broad Street was in Elizabeth’s reign the most fashionable thoroughfare in London, containing the mansions of the wealthiest city merchants. Moorgate Street was so called from the gate that divided the City from the moor, comprising the borough of Finsbury. Beech Lane was designated after Nicholas de la Beech, Lieutenant of the Tower during the reign of Edward III. Cripplegate is the narrow thoroughfare anciently graced (or disgraced) by a stone gate which received its name from the beggars and cripples who congregated around it. This affection for the old gate on the part of the cripples may be explained by the circumstance that the neighbouring church was dedicated to St. Giles, the patron of cripples. Whitecross Street and Red Cross Street were respectively denominated from a white and a red cross of stone, which defined the boundaries of the land belonging to the Knights Templars and the Knights Hospitallers. Playhouse Yard reminds us that the old “Fortune Theatre” stood here. Jewin Street was for centuries the only burying-ground permitted to the Jews of London. Aldersgate Street took its name from the old City gate, distinguished for several alder-trees that grew beside it. In Bridgewater Square stood the mansion, destroyed by fire in 1687, of the Egertons, Earls of Bridgewater. Bartholomew Close marks the situation of the cloisters of St. Bartholomew’s Priory, of which the church still remains. Cloth Fair comprised the ancient rendezvous of the Flemish and Italian merchants for the annual sale of cloths. This was the real Fair, to which “Bartholomew Fair” was merely an adjunct designed for the amusement of the populace who came from all accessible parts of the country. Duke Street and Little Britain were so called because in olden times the Dukes of Brittany resided here. Newgate Street received its name from the latest of the City gates, which also lent its title to the gloomy prison hard by. Bath Street contained one of the Turkish Bagnios, or Baths, introduced in London as early as the year 1679. King Edward Street serves to remind us that the neighbouring Grammar School known as Christ’s Hospital was established by Edward VI. Giltspur Street, formerly styled Knightrider Street, was so called from the Knights, distinguished by their gilt spurs, who passed through it on their way to the tournaments in Smithfield. Pie Corner, where the great Fire of London ceased its ravages in 1666, derived its name from an eating-house that rejoiced in the sign of “The Magpie.” Farringdon Street and Farringdon Road perpetuate the memory of William Farrindon, citizen and goldsmith, who purchased the Aldermanry of the Ward still known by his name for twenty marks in 1279, and became Sheriff two years later. Saffron Hill owes its designation to the rich crops of saffron that grew on its site at the time when it formed the eastern portion of the grounds attached to Ely House, the London residence of the Bishops of Ely, which stood on the spot now marked by Ely Place, and bounded on the west by Hatton Garden; so called because, when the property became demised to the Crown, it was presented by Queen Elizabeth to Sir Christopher Hatton, who literally danced himself into Her Majesty’s favour. Snow Hill was formerly described as “Snore Hill,” from the fact that the stage-coach passengers intended for “The Saracen’s Head” were generally fast asleep when they arrived at their destination.
Holborn is a contraction of “The Hollow Bourne,” indicative of a stream in a hollow. In Domesday Book the name appears as “Holebourne.” Holborn Bars marks the City boundary on its western side. Leather Lane was the recognized colony of the leather-sellers. Fetter Lane is a perversion of “Fewtor’s Lane”—in other words, a lane infested by vagabonds in the days when it led to some pleasure gardens. The term was derived from the Norman-French faitour, signifying an evil-doer. Brooke Street (in which Chatterton, the boy-poet, ended his life by poison), and Greville Street preserve the name of Fulke Greville, Lord Brooke, Councillor to James I., whose house stood in the latter thoroughfare. Gray’s Inn Road forms the eastern boundary of Gray’s Inn. Verulam Buildings, Gray’s Inn, facing Gray’s Inn Road, received this title in honour of Lord Bacon, who was created Baron Verulam and Viscount St. Albans. Furnival Street, on the east side of Holborn Bars, owes its name to Furnival’s Inn, which it faces. Until quite recently this street was designated Castle Street, from the old “Castle Inn,” whose site it covers. The name of Dyers’ Buildings memorializes the one-time existence of some almshouse erected hereabouts by the Dyers’ Company. Cursitor Street received its title from the Cursitors’ Office founded in this vicinity by the father of the great Lord Bacon. The Cursitors were those who issued writs in the name of the Court of Chancery. The word cursitor is a corruption of chorister. Anciently all the officers of the Court of Chancery were divines; and the Lord High Chancellor himself was the Ecclesiastical Keeper of the King’s Conscience. Chancery Lane is a corruption of “Chancellor’s Lane,” originally containing the court and official residence of the Lord High Chancellor. Southampton Buildings occupy the site of Southampton House, which witnessed the death of Thomas, the last Earl of Southampton, Lord Treasurer of Charles II. Those sorry tenements, Chichester Rents supply the place of the old town mansion of the Bishops of Chichester. Lincoln’s Inn Fields are situated on the east side of the Inn, or mansion, of Henry de Lacey, Earl of Lincoln, in the fourteenth century [see [Inns of Court]]. Sardinia Street takes its name from the Sardinian Chapel, the oldest Roman Catholic chapel in London, dating back to the year 1648, and originally the residence of the Sardinian ambassador. Great Turnstile and Little Turnstile are pleasant-sounding names, eminently suggestive of the rural character of this neighbourhood in bygone days. The turnstiles were set up to prevent sheep and cattle from straying out of Lincoln’s Inn Fields into the public highway. Great Queen Street was so called in compliment to Queen Elizabeth, in whose reign it was first formed into a footway for pedestrians plodding westwards from Lincoln’s Inn towards the narrow path, anciently designated, as the modern street still is, Long Acre. The word Acre, derived from the Greek agros, Latin ager, and Anglo-Saxon acer, means a ploughed or sown field. Drury Lane derived its name from Drury House, the town residence of Sir William Drury, K.G., one of our most able commanders in quelling the wars with Ireland. The house was situated where the Olympic Theatre now stands. Denzil Street and Holles Street were so designated by Gilbert, Earl of Clare, whose house occupied the site of Clare Market, in memory of his uncle Denzil, Lord Holles, one of the five members of the House of Commons whose persons Charles I. made an ineffectual attempt to seize. Hart Street and White Hart Street both owe their titles to “The White Hart” Inn, demolished in the time of George I. Catherine Street, Strand, and Portugal Street, Lincoln’s Inn Fields, were designated in honour of Catherine of Braganza, queen of Charles II. Serle Street received its name from Henry Serle, a bencher of Lincoln’s Inn, who left considerable property in the parish of St. Clement-Danes when he died in 1690. Wych Street was known in early times as Aldwyche, denoting the road leading directly from the Strand and the church just mentioned to the “Old town,” now known as Broad Street, St. Giles’s parish. Holywell Street took its title from the Holy Well discovered on the eastern side of St. Clement-Danes.
The Strand literally means the strand of the Thames. At one time Somerset House and a few other princely mansions only occupied its southern side. Thanet Place, a secluded cul de sac comprising ten houses, opposite the Law Courts, was named after the Earl of Thanet, to whom, previous to 1780, the property belonged. Palsgrave Place was so called in compliment to the Palsgrave Frederick, King of Bohemia, who married the Princess Elizabeth, daughter of James I., in 1612. Devereaux Court received its title from Essex House, which also gave its name to Essex Street, the residence of Robert Devereaux, Earl of Essex, the Parliamentary General. Milford Lane was in olden times characterized by a rustic mill; and the lane itself led down to a ford across the river. Arundel Street, Norfolk Street, Surrey Street, and Howard Street, stand upon the site of the town house and grounds of the Howards, Dukes of Norfolk, and Earls of Arundel and Surrey. Savoy Street leads to the Chapel Royal, the only remaining portion of the ancient Savoy Palace [see [Savoy Chapel]]. Wellington Street, constructed in 1829-30, was named to complete the compliment partially bestowed upon the Duke of Wellington by the designation of Waterloo Bridge, opened June 18, 1817, or two years after the famous victory. Bow Street was so called on account of its bent shape when it was first laid out to connect the Strand with Oxford Street in 1637. Covent Garden is a corruption of Convent Garden, or the garden belonging to St. Paul’s Convent. York Street and James Street were both named in honour of the Duke of York, afterwards James II. King Street, constructed in his reign, was designated after Charles I., and Henrietta Street after his queen, Henrietta Maria. In Tavistock Street, Russell Street, Bedford Street, and Southampton Street, we trace some of the family titles of one of the ancestors of the present ground landlord, viz., Thomas Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton, Marquis of Tavistock, Duke of Bedford, whose daughter is known in history as the celebrated Rachel, the wife of Lord William Russell, the patriot, beheaded in 1683. Southampton House, in which Lady Russell was born, stood in the street named after it. Bedfordbury originally denoted the enclosed property of the Bedford family. Maiden Lane was so styled on account of a statue of the Virgin that stood at the corner of this thoroughfare at the time when it skirted the south wall of the Convent Garden. Chandos Street received its name from James Bridges, Lord Chandos, the ancestor of the “Princely Duke of Chandos.” Exeter Street marks the situation of Exeter House and its grounds, the property of a lineal descendant of the great Lord Burleigh, after whom Burleigh Street was designated. Cecil Street and Salisbury Street, on the opposite side of the Strand, remind us that here stood Salisbury House, the residence of Robert Cecil, first Earl of Salisbury, one of the sons of Lord Burleigh just alluded to.
Adelphi is the Greek word for brothers. This collective title was chosen for the pleasantly situated little district which comprises Adelphi Terrace, Adam Street, John Street, Robert Street, and James Street, the work of the brothers Adam, after whose Christian names three of the streets were designated. Similarly, George Street, Villiers Street, Duke Street, and Buckingham Street preserve the memory of George Villiers, second Duke of Buckingham, of whose mansion the old gate built by Inigo Jones may still be seen. Charing Cross is a perversion of “Chère Reine Cross,” so named from the memorial cross erected upon the spot where the body of Eleanor, the dear queen of Edward I., was last set down while on its way to Westminster Abbey. The present cross is merely a model of the original demolished by the Puritans in 1647. Craven Street is the property of Lord Craven. Northumberland Street and Northumberland Avenue owe their names to Northumberland House, the town mansion of the Dukes of Northumberland, taken down in 1874.
Trafalgar Square received its title from the Nelson Column, set up in 1843, two years before the Square itself was completed. St. Martin’s Lane was named after the parish church of St. Martin’s-in-the-Fields. King William Street was built upon in the reign of William IV. The name of Seven Dials arose from a column set up at the diverging point of seven streets, and displaying as many clock faces. Its object was to mark the limits of St. Giles’s and St. Martin’s parishes. Cranbourne Street marks the course of a long, narrow bourne, or stream, that formerly ran from Tyburn by way of Brook Street, Grosvenor Square, and across Leicester Fields into Long Acre, and thence emptied itself into the Thames at the bottom of Milford Lane. The first portion of the name was in allusion to the long, slender neck and legs of the crane. Leicester Square (formerly denominated Leicester Fields) derived its name from Leicester House, the noble mansion built on its east side by Robert Sidney, Earl of Leicester, in 1636. On the site of Coventry Street stood the mansion of Henry Coventry, Secretary of State in the reign of Charles II. Great Windmill Street reminds us of the old windmill that stood hereabouts a couple of centuries ago. It was not until January, 1831, that the hay market, properly so called, was removed from the spacious thoroughfare still known as the Haymarket. Jermyn Street was named after Henry Jermyn, Earl of St. Albans, whose residence, St. Alban’s House, stood on its north side. In Arundel Street we have one of the family titles of the ground landlord, Lord Arundel of Wardour. Orange Street was designated in honour of the Prince of Orange, afterwards William III. Panton Street perpetuates the memory of Colonel Thomas Panton, a notorious gamester, whose daughter married into the Arundel family. Suffolk Street marks the situation of the old town mansion of the Earl of Suffolk.
Spring Gardens, during the days of the Stuarts, contained an ingenious contrivance by which any person stepping upon a hidden spring was suddenly immersed in a shower of water. Pall Mall is a modern spelling of paille maille, the title of a French game at ball, somewhat similar to our croquet, first played in this thoroughfare—then open to St. James’s Park—about the year 1621. Carlton House Terrace stands on the site of Carlton House, the palace of Frederick, Prince of Wales, the father of George III. King Street, St. James’s Street, and St. James’s Square were designated in honour of James I. Bury Street is properly “Berry Street,” after the name of its builder.
The Green Park deserves its title on account of its verdure, so refreshing to the eye. Hyde Park anciently comprised the manor of Hyde held by the Abbots of St. Peter’s, Westminster, but claimed by the Crown on the dissolution of the monasteries. Hyde Park Corner defines the position of the old toll-gate at the western extremity of London. Rotten Row is a corruption of route du roi, the French for “route of the King,” to the historic royal residence at Kensington. Albert Gate, Queen’s Gate, and Prince’s Gate are of modern date, named in honour of the royal personages indicated. The Marble Arch is an imposing structure of white marble originally erected in front of Buckingham Palace in 1830, and removed to its present position in 1851. Rutland Gate was designated after the mansion of the Dukes of Rutland hard by. Cumberland Gate and Duke Street, Grosvenor Square, were both named after the Duke of Cumberland, brother to George III. Grosvenor Gate, Grosvenor Street, and Grosvenor Square preserve the memory of Sir Richard Grosvenor, Grand Cup-bearer to George II., who died in 1732. The ancestral line of the Grosvenors may be traced back to Le Gros Veneur, “the chief hunter,” to the Dukes of Normandy prior to the Conquest. Stanhope Gate, Great Stanhope Street, and Chesterfield Street received their names from Chesterfield House, the residence of Philip Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield, of epistolary fame. Park Lane was formerly a narrow lane skirting the east side of the Park. Portugal Street was named in honour of the queen of Charles II. Chapel Street owes its designation to its proximity to Grosvenor Chapel. Hamilton Place perpetuates the name of Colonel James Hamilton, Ranger of Hyde Park, and boon companion of Charles II.
That fine thoroughfare known as Piccadilly was designated after “Piccadilla Hall,” its most westerly building during the reign of Elizabeth, and utilized as a depôt for the sale of the then fashionable Piccadilly Lace, so called on account of its little spearlike points, piccadilly being the diminutive of pica, a pike, a spear. In the succeeding reign of James I., the high ruff worn by males was styled a piccadilly, though the lace had disappeared from its edge. Curzon Street was named after George Augustus Curzon, third Viscount Howe, the ground landlord. Charles Street and Queen Street were first built upon in the reign of Charles II., in honour of whom and his queen they were designated. Shepherd Street, Shepherd’s Market, and Market Street faithfully preserve the memory of the owner of the land upon which the ancient “May Fair” was held. Hay Hill, Hill Street, and Farm Street mark the situation of an old farm that stood upon the lands of John, Lord Berkeley of Stratton, an able officer in the army of Charles I., whose titles are perpetuated in John Street, Berkeley Square, Berkeley Street, and Stratton Street; while Bruton Street refers to the family seat of the Berkeleys, situated at Bruton, Somersetshire. Mount Street marks the site of one of the western forts or bastions hastily formed by the Parliamentarians in 1643 to resist an expected attack upon the Metropolis from this side by the Royalists. Clarges Street derived its name from the residence of Sir Walter Clarges built in 1717, and afterwards occupied by the Venetian Ambassador. In Half-Moon Street stood an old tavern bearing the sign of “The Half-Moon.” Arlington Street and Bennett Street were named after Henry Bennett, Earl of Arlington, whose town house was situated on the site of the former thoroughfare. Dover Street was so called in memory of Henry Jermyn, Lord Dover, who died in it in 1782. Albemarle Street contained the residence of Christopher Monk, second Duke of Albemarle, acquired from the Earls of Clarendon. Old Bond Street, of which New Bond Street is a modern continuation, received its name from the Bond family, now extinct. The land upon which it stands was the property of Sir Thomas Bond, Comptroller of the Household of Henrietta Maria, queen of Charles I. Clifford Street preserves the memory of Elizabeth Clifford, who became the wife of Richard Boyle, Earl of Burlington (died 1753), after whom Old Burlington Street, and subsequently, New Burlington Street were designated. In Cork Street resided Lord Cork, one of the four brothers of the Boyle family advanced to the peerage at the same time. Savile Row was named after Dorothy Savile, who became Countess of Burlington and Cork, and inherited the property. Vigo Street commemorates the capture of Vigo, in Spain, by the British on several occasions in the course of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The street dates back to the year 1720. Sackville Street, built in 1679, serves its purpose as perpetuating the memory of the witty Charles Sackville, Earl of Dorset, whose friends were unwilling that his fame should be allowed to die. Air Street, Piccadilly Circus, was at the time of its erection in the year 1659 one of the most westerly, and consequently, open streets of the town. Swallow Street is a corruption of “Slough Street,” at one time a miry thoroughfare much infested by footpads. Vine Street recalls the ancient vineyard belonging to the Abbey at Westminster, situated here.
Regent Street was named by John Nash, the architect, after his royal patron, the Prince Regent. It was commenced in 1813. Conduit Street received its name from the conduit or spring-head set up in the meadow formerly known as “Conduit Mead,” now swallowed up by Old Bond Street. Maddox Street was built by one Maddox in 1720. Brook Street reminds us of the pleasant stream that wound its way from Tyburn down to Leicester Fields, where it was designated the Cranbourne, and ultimately spent itself in the Thames. Mill Street affords us an additional memory of the rurality of London in bygone times. George Street (also St. George’s Church), Hanover Street, and Hanover Square were designations in honour of the Hanoverian succession in the person of George I. Davies Street, connecting Berkeley Square with Oxford Street, received its name in compliment to Miss Mary Davies, the heiress of Ebury Manor, Belgravia, who carried that estate by her marriage into the possession of the Grosvenors.
Crossing Regent Street, Argyll Street marks the situation of the old town mansion of the Dukes of Argyll. Marlborough Street, Great Marlborough Street, and Blenheim Street were so called in honour of the Duke of Marlborough, the victor of Blenheim. Wardour Street is in allusion to the family seat of the ground landlord, Lord Arundel of Wardour. Nassau Street was named in compliment to the royal House of Nassau, from which the Prince of Orange claimed his descent. Golden Square is a corruption of Gelding Square, derived from an adjacent inn sign, “The Gelding.” Shaftesbury Avenue is a modern thoroughfare named after Anthony Ashley Cooper, seventh Earl of Shaftesbury, who performed the opening ceremony but a short time before his death, which occurred in 1885. Windmill Street furnishes another pleasant reminder of green pastures and rural delights. Old Compton Street was built in the reign of Charles II. by Sir Francis Compton. New Compton Street and Dean Street derived their names from Bishop Compton, Dean of the Chapel Royal, Savoy, who originally possessed the living of St. Anne’s, Soho. Gerrard Street and Macclesfield Street perpetuate the memory of Gerard, Earl of Macclesfield, the owner of the site at the time when buildings were first put up hereabouts in 1697. Greek Street was so called from the Greek merchants who colonized this neighbourhood, and for whose spiritual benefit a Greek church was erected hard by. Carlisle Street was designated after the Howards, Earls of Carlisle, a branch of the ducal house of Norfolk, whose family mansion stood on the east side of what is now Soho Square about the middle of the last century.