Jump to content

Holborn: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Line 21: Line 21:


==History==
==History==
[[Image:Staple Inn ca 1900.jpg|thumb|left|"Old Holborn": Staple Inn in 1900]]The name Holborn is derived from the ''Old Bourne'' ("old brook"), a reference to the watercourse which rises at Hampstead Heath and flows to the Thames along the route now followed by the King's Cross Road and Farringdon Road/ Street. At the estuary it is called the Fleet, Fleet Street takes its name because it leads to the river and Ludgate of the City. <ref> The Farringdon Wards of the City London by Tony Sharp London 2000 </ref> However at this point the Fleet itself ran in a small valley and the [[Middle English]] "hol" for ''hollow'', with ''bourne'' as before, has been considered as the origin.<ref>{{cite book|last=Besant|first=Walter|authorlink=Walter Besant|coauthors=Mitton, Geraldine|title=Holborn and Bloomsbury|publisher=[[A & C Black|Adam and Charles Black]]|location=London|date=1903|edition=Project Gutenberg, 2007|series=The Fascination of London|url=http://www.gutenberg.org/files/21411/21411-8.txt|accessdate=2008-08-13}}</ref>
[[Image:Staple Inn ca 1900.jpg|thumb|left|"Old Holborn": Staple Inn in 1900]]The name Holborn is derived from the ''Old Bourne'' ("old brook"), a reference to the watercourse which rises at Hampstead Heath and flows to the Thames along the route now followed by the King's Cross Road and Farringdon Road/ Street. At the estuary it is called the Fleet, Fleet Street takes its name because it leads to the river and the Ludgate of the City. <ref> The Farringdon Wards of the City London by Tony Sharp London 2000 </ref> However at this point the Fleet itself ran in a small valley and the [[Middle English]] "hol" for ''hollow'', with ''bourne'' as before, has been considered as the origin.<ref>{{cite book|last=Besant|first=Walter|authorlink=Walter Besant|coauthors=Mitton, Geraldine|title=Holborn and Bloomsbury|publisher=[[A & C Black|Adam and Charles Black]]|location=London|date=1903|edition=Project Gutenberg, 2007|series=The Fascination of London|url=http://www.gutenberg.org/files/21411/21411-8.txt|accessdate=2008-08-13}}</ref>


[[Charles Dickens]] took up residence in Furnivall's Inn, now covered by the old Prudential building now named as 'Holborn Bars' designed by [[Alfred Waterhouse]]. The Bars were the boundary of the City of London until 1994 but only the area of the south-side of Holborn was under its jurisdiction. Dickens also put his character 'Pip', in Great Expectations, in residence at [[Barnard's Inn]] opposite, the current home of [[Gresham College]], and [[Staple Inn]] notable for being used as the promotional image for "Old Holborn" tobacco. The three of these were [[Inns of Chancery]]. The most northerly of the [[Inns of Court]], [[Gray's Inn]], is in Holborn as is [[Lincoln's Inn]]. This demonstrates the area's connection with the legal professions since mediaeval times.
[[Charles Dickens]] took up residence in Furnivall's Inn, now covered by the old Prudential building now named as 'Holborn Bars' designed by [[Alfred Waterhouse]]. The Bars were the boundary of the City of London until 1994 but only the area of the south-side of Holborn was under its jurisdiction. Dickens also put his character 'Pip', in Great Expectations, in residence at [[Barnard's Inn]] opposite, the current home of [[Gresham College]], and [[Staple Inn]] notable for being used as the promotional image for "Old Holborn" tobacco. The three of these were [[Inns of Chancery]]. The most northerly of the [[Inns of Court]], [[Gray's Inn]], is in Holborn as is [[Lincoln's Inn]]. This demonstrates the area's connection with the legal professions since mediaeval times.

Revision as of 19:43, 1 November 2008

For other uses, see Holborn (disambiguation).
Holborn
OS grid referenceTQ305815
London borough
Ceremonial countyGreater London
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townLONDON
Postcode districtWC1, WC2
Postcode districtEC1
Dialling code020
PoliceMetropolitan
FireLondon
AmbulanceLondon
UK Parliament
London Assembly
List of places
UK
England
London

Holborn (Template:PronEng or /ˈhoʊbɝːn/ "ho burn") is an area of Central London, England. Holborn is also the name of the area's principal east-west street, running from St Giles's High Street as High Holborn to Gray's Inn Road to Holborn Viaduct, crossing the borders of the City of Westminster, London Borough of Camden and the City of London.

History

"Old Holborn": Staple Inn in 1900

The name Holborn is derived from the Old Bourne ("old brook"), a reference to the watercourse which rises at Hampstead Heath and flows to the Thames along the route now followed by the King's Cross Road and Farringdon Road/ Street. At the estuary it is called the Fleet, Fleet Street takes its name because it leads to the river and the Ludgate of the City. [1] However at this point the Fleet itself ran in a small valley and the Middle English "hol" for hollow, with bourne as before, has been considered as the origin.[2]

Charles Dickens took up residence in Furnivall's Inn, now covered by the old Prudential building now named as 'Holborn Bars' designed by Alfred Waterhouse. The Bars were the boundary of the City of London until 1994 but only the area of the south-side of Holborn was under its jurisdiction. Dickens also put his character 'Pip', in Great Expectations, in residence at Barnard's Inn opposite, the current home of Gresham College, and Staple Inn notable for being used as the promotional image for "Old Holborn" tobacco. The three of these were Inns of Chancery. The most northerly of the Inns of Court, Gray's Inn, is in Holborn as is Lincoln's Inn. This demonstrates the area's connection with the legal professions since mediaeval times.

Over the coming years the area began to diversify and become recognisable as the modern street. A plaque stands at number 120 commemorating Thomas Earnshaw's invention of the Marine chronometer, one of the catalysts which facilitated long-distance travel.

In the modern era High Holborn has become a centre for entertainment venues. Twenty two inns or taverns are recorded in the 1860s. Originally Weston's Music Hall, the Holborn Empire stood between 1857 and 1960 when it was pulled down after structural damage sustained in the Blitz. The theatre premièred the first full-length feature film in 1914, The World, the Flesh and the Devil, a 50-minute melodrama filmed in Kinemacolour[3]. At the corner of Hatton Garden was the old family department store of Gamages. Until 1992, the London Weather Centre was located in the street.

In the eighteenth century, Holborn was the location of the infamous Mother Clap's molly house.

The Prudential insurance company relocated in 2002. The Daily Mirror offices used to be directly opposite it, but the site is now occupied by the J Sainsbury head office. Further east in the gated avenue of Ely Place is the oldest Roman Catholic Church in London, St Etheldreda's Church. Ely Place is on the site of what was from 1300 until 1772, the site of the Bishop of Ely’s London palace. This ecclesiastic connection allowed the street to remain part of the county of Cambridgeshire until the mid-1930s.[4][5] Hatton Garden, the centre of the Diamond trade was leased to a favourite of Queen Elizabeth, Sir Christopher Hatton at the insistence of the Queen to provide him with an income. Behind the Prudential Building lies the Anglo Catholic church of St Alban the Martyr[6]. Originally built in 1863 by architect William Butterfield it was destroyed in 1941 and a new church was built in the Victorian Gothic style. On the southern side lie Chancery Lane and Fetter Lane.

On Holborn Circus lies the Church of St Andrew, an ancient Guild Church, that survived the Great Fire of London. However, the parochial authority decided, nevertheless, to commission Sir Christopher Wren to rebuild it. Although the nave was destroyed in the Blitz, the reconstruction was faithful to Wren's original. In the middle of the circus there is a large equestrian statue of Prince Albert by Charles Bacon (1874) the City's official monument to him. It was presented by Charles Oppenheim, of the Diamond Trading Company De Beers, whose headquarters building is on nearby Charterhouse Street.

In the early twenty-first century, Holborn has been the site of new offices and hotels, which have exploited its excellent public transport links (Holborn underground station is the junction of the Central and Piccadilly lines), and its strategic location between the City of London and the West End.

The Metropolitan Borough of Holborn was created in 1899. It was abolished in 1965 and its area formed part of the London Borough of Camden.

Education

For education within the Westminster portion of Holborn see the main City of Westminster article.

Transport and locale

Nearest places

Nearest underground stations

Notable people

The following is a list of notable people who were born in Holborn or are significantly connected with Holborn.

References

  1. ^ The Farringdon Wards of the City London by Tony Sharp London 2000
  2. ^ Besant, Walter (1903). Holborn and Bloomsbury. The Fascination of London (Project Gutenberg, 2007 ed.). London: Adam and Charles Black. Retrieved 2008-08-13. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ The World, the Flesh and the Devil at IMDb
  4. ^ Vitaliev, Vitali (2003-01-03). "Things that go bump on the map". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2008-08-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ Hammond, Derek (2006-06-28). "Secret London: Ye Olde Mitre Tavern". Time Out. Retrieved 2008-08-12. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ St Alban the Martyr accessed 17 May 2007

Photos

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Holborn&oldid=249047380"