24 May Bermondsey Street Businesses 1899

In years past the Post Office produced street directories which listed the businesses in each street. The 1899 directory listed around 170 businesses in Bermondsey Street. As to be expected over 20 of them were in the leather business – importing or selling hides and skins, tanneries, curriers, wholesalers and more. Should we be surprised that even more, a grand total of 23 were hospitality industry – pubs, coffee rooms, fining rooms and even a cocoa room. Interestingly, none were described as restaurants or cafes. There were 22 manufacturers of items as various as clay pipes, oil & colours, tin plates, sacks, glass bottles, scales, hats and a brass foundry.

Around 70 of the businesses were selling to the local community – bakers, butchers (including horse meat), bootmakers, shirt dressers, dairyman, grocers, newsagent, tobacconists, confectioners, chemists, and the aforementioned pubs and coffee rooms. Some of the pub names may sound familiar even if they no longer exist in their 1899 location: the Star & Windmill, the Green Dragon, the Black Swan, the Yorkshire Grey, the Old Bunch of Grapes, the Prince William Henry, the Eight Bells, the Fox & Goose, the King’s Arm & Hand, the Woolpack and the Queen’s Head. And there was one collector of taxes.

You can see the 1899 Post Office directory here https://specialcollections.le.ac.uk/digital/collection/p16445coll4/id/8818/

You can read more about the history of the Bermondsey Street area in our series of Back Stories, free to download here http://www.bermondseystreet.london/bermondsey-street-back-stories