Hackney (parish)

Last updated

St Augustine's Tower - Dating back to the 13th century, this is Hackney Central's oldest building. It is all that remains of the original medieval parish church, which was demolished in the late 18th century (September 2005). St augustines tower.jpg
St Augustine's Tower – Dating back to the 13th century, this is Hackney Central's oldest building. It is all that remains of the original medieval parish church, which was demolished in the late 18th century (September 2005).

Hackney was a parish in the historic county of Middlesex. The parish church of St John-at-Hackney was built in 1792, replacing the nearby former 16th-century parish church dedicated to St Augustine (pulled down in 1798). The original tower of that church was retained to hold the bells until the new church could be strengthened; the bells were finally removed to the new St John's in 1854. See details of other, more modern, churches within the original parish boundaries below.

Contents

Ancient parish

The vestry of the parish, in common with all parishes in England, was entrusted with various administrative functions from the 17th century. The parish vestry administered the Poor Law until 1837, until it became part of the Poor Law Union of Hackney. The ecclesiastical and civil roles of the parish increasingly diverged, and by the early nineteenth century they covered different areas.

Civil parish

A map showing the wards of Hackney Metropolitan Borough as they appeared in 1916. Hackney Met. B Ward Map 1916.svg
A map showing the wards of Hackney Metropolitan Borough as they appeared in 1916.

A distinct civil parish dates from 1855, with the incorporation of The Vestry of the Parish of Hackney in the County of Middlesex by section 42 of the Metropolis Management Act. With Stoke Newington it formed part of the Hackney District, governed by the Hackney District Board of Works, within the area of the Metropolitan Board of Works.

Under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 any parish that exceeded 2,000 ratepayers was to be divided into wards; as such the parish of St John at Hackney within the Hackney District Boards of Works was divided into seven wards (electing vestrymen): No. 1 or Stamford Hill (15), No. 2 or West (18), No. 3 or De Beauvoir Town (18), No. 4 or Dalston (18), No. 5 or Hackney (18), No. 6 or Homerton (15) and No. 7 or South (18). [1] [2]

In 1894, the district and board were dissolved, with the Hackney vestry taking on its duties within the parish. In 1894 as its population had increased the incorporated vestry was re-divided into eight wards (electing vestrymen): Stamford Hill (15), West (18), Kingsland (12), Hackney (12), Mare Street (15), South (15), Clapton (12) and Homerton (21). [3] [4]

In 1889 Hackney was included in the new County of London, and in 1900 the vestry was dissolved with the parish becoming the Metropolitan Borough of Hackney. The civil parish was abolished when the borough became part of the London Borough of Hackney in 1965.

The boundaries of the civil parish were identical to the ancient parish, and it covered 3,289 acres (13.3 km2). The populations recorded in National Censuses were:

Hackney St John's Vestry 18011899

Year [5] 18011811182118311841185118611871188118911901
Population12,73016,77122,49431,04737,77153,58976,687115,110163,681198,606219,272

Ecclesiastical parish

St John's parish church, Hackney. (September 2005) Hackney st johns 1.jpg
St John's parish church, Hackney. (September 2005)

The ancient parish, was originally dedicated to St Augustine. By c. 1660 it was rededicated to St John the Baptist and usually referred to as St John at Hackney. [6] It and its successors are in the Diocese of London. From 1825, building and the population of Hackney increased rapidly and new parishes were formed, a few of which have since been dissolved: [7]

Periphal parts of the ancient parish contributed to three other new parishes as follows:

Sources

  1. The London Gazette Issue: 21802. 20 October 1855. pp. 3905–3907. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
  2. "H.M.S.O. Boundary Commission Report 1885 Hackney Map". Vision of Britain. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
  3. The London Gazette Issue: 26542. 14 August 1894. pp. 4713–4715. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
  4. The London Gazette Issue: 26563. 23 October 1894. p. 5937. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
  5. Statistical Abstract for London, 1901 (Vol. IV).
  6. , 'Hackney: The Parish Church', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 10: Hackney (1995), pp. 115-122. Date accessed: 13 March 2014.
  7. , 'Hackney: List of Churches', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 10: Hackney (1995), pp. 122-128. Date accessed: 13 March 2014.

51°32′51.98″N00°03′17.08″W / 51.5477722°N 0.0547444°W / 51.5477722; -0.0547444

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">London Borough of Hackney</span> London borough in United Kingdom

The London Borough of Hackney is a London borough in Inner London, England. The historical and administrative heart of Hackney is Mare Street, which lies 5 miles (8 km) north-east of Charing Cross. The borough is named after Hackney, its principal district. Southern and eastern parts of the borough are popularly regarded as being part of east London that spans some of the traditional East End of London with the northwest belonging to north London. Its population is estimated to be 281,120.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homerton</span> Area of East London, England

Homerton is an area in London, England, in the London Borough of Hackney. It is bordered to the west by Hackney Central, to the north by Lower Clapton, in the east by Hackney Wick, Leyton and by South Hackney to the south. In 2019, it had a population of 14,658 people. In terms of ethnicity it was 43.9% White, 33.0% Black, 10.9% Asian and 7.8% Mixed. It covered an area of 0.830 sq kilometres. Homerton ward on Hackney Borough Council is currently represented by three Labour councillors. There are fifty listed buildings located within the boundaries of the ward.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newington, London</span> Human settlement in England

Newington is a district of South London, just south of the River Thames, and part of the London Borough of Southwark. It was an ancient parish and the site of the early administration of the county of Surrey. It was the location of the County of London Sessions House from 1917, in a building now occupied by the Inner London Crown Court.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stamford Hill</span> Area of Hackney, London

Stamford Hill is an area in Inner London, England, about 5.5 miles north-east of Charing Cross. The neighbourhood is a sub-district of Hackney, the major component of the London Borough of Hackney, and is known for its Hasidic community, the largest concentration of orthodox Ashkenazi in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolitan Borough of Islington</span> Former local authority of London, England

Islington was a civil parish and metropolitan borough in London, England. It was an ancient parish within the county of Middlesex, and formed part of The Metropolis from 1855. The parish was transferred to the County of London in 1889 and became a metropolitan borough in 1900. It was amalgamated with the Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury to form the London Borough of Islington in Greater London in 1965.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolitan Borough of Hackney</span>

The Metropolitan Borough of Hackney was a metropolitan borough of the County of London from 1900 to 1965. Its area became part of the London Borough of Hackney.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolitan Borough of Bethnal Green</span> Civil parish and metropolitan borough in London, England

Bethnal Green was a civil parish and a metropolitan borough of the County of London between 1899 and 1965, when it was merged with the Metropolitan Borough of Stepney and the Metropolitan Borough of Poplar to form the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington</span> Former London borough, United Kingdom

The Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington was a metropolitan borough in the County of London between 1900 and 1965 when it became part of the London Borough of Hackney.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch</span>

The Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch was a metropolitan borough of the County of London between 1899 and 1965, when it was merged with the Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington and the Metropolitan Borough of Hackney to form the London Borough of Hackney.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hackney South and Shoreditch (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1974 onwards

Hackney South and Shoreditch is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2005 by Meg Hillier of Labour Co-op.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hackney Central</span> Human settlement in England

Hackney Central is a sub-district of Hackney in the London Borough of Hackney in London, England and is four miles (6.4 km) northeast of Charing Cross.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolis Management Act 1855</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Metropolis Management Act 1855 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that created the Metropolitan Board of Works, a London-wide body to co-ordinate the construction of the city's infrastructure. The Act also created a second tier of local government consisting of parish vestries and district boards of works. The Metropolitan Board of Works was the forerunner of the London County Council.

Stoke Newington was an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex. It was both a civil parish, used for administrative purposes, and an ecclesiastical parish of the Church of England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hackney North (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1885–1950

Hackney North was a parliamentary constituency in "The Metropolis". It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

Hackney South was a parliamentary constituency in "The Metropolis". It was represented by nine Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, only two of whom, Horatio Bottomley and Herbert Morrison, were elected more than once.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clapton Square</span> Garden square in Lower Clapton in the London Borough of Hackney

Clapton Square is the second largest garden square in the London Borough of Hackney, located in Lower Clapton, Clapton. It is lined by buildings on three sides. Its Conservation Area designated in 1969 – extended in 1991 and 2000 – takes in a larger green space separated by a stretch of open road: St John's Gardens. Those gardens have the tallest and largest building visible from all parts of the square's garden, the Church of St John-at-Hackney, rebuilt in 1792-97 which contains older monuments. Two sides of the square are lined with tall, partly stone-dressed, classical, Georgian terraced houses.

Hackney was a local government district within the metropolitan area of London, England from 1855 to 1894. It was formed by the Metropolis Management Act 1855 and was governed by the Hackney District Board of Works, which consisted of elected vestrymen. It was in the part of the county of Middlesex that was within the area of the Metropolitan Board of Works. In 1889 it became part of the County of London and the district board functioned as a local authority under the London County Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Hackney</span> Area of East London, England

West Hackney is a district in the London Borough of Hackney, situated on the eastern side of Ermine Street, the major Roman Road better known as the A10.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hackney, London</span> Human settlement in England

Hackney is a district in East London, England, forming around two-thirds of the area of the modern London Borough of Hackney, to which it gives its name. It is 4 miles (6.4 km) northeast of Charing Cross and includes part of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. Historically it was within the county of Middlesex.