Category Archives: Uncategorized

One of the first blog articles I wrote was about the Mudchute (I always called it the ‘Muddy’ when I was a kid). In the six years that have passed since that article was published I have gathered a lot … Continue reading →

Current and former residents may beg to differ, but – on the face of it – Billson Street is no more special than any other Island street. However, in some respects it does have a unique history: half the street … Continue reading →

I know nothing about lorries, except that there were loads of them all over the place when I lived on the Island. They lined up outside various firms and the docks, blocked the roads here and there, would swing dangerously … Continue reading →

The Isle of Dogs Housing Society was formed in 1930 and worked with the London County Council to find suitable vacant or (slum) clearance areas on the Island on which to build low rent homes for local workers. A piece … Continue reading →

I really disliked swimming as a kid; after being herded onto a GLC schoolbus outside Harbinger School, followed by the short journey to Poplar Baths, I would do my best to hide in the changing rooms in the hope I … Continue reading →

1980 was in many ways one of the lowest points in the history of the Isle of Dogs – the end of a long economic decline which arguably started before World War II, and which picked up speed in the … Continue reading →

Shipbuilding and repairing had been carried out at Limehouse and Blackwall since before 1500, and for centuries the Thames was the centre of Britain’s shipbuilding industry thanks to its proximity to City merchants and the Admiralty. However, in 1831, twenty … Continue reading →