This is a list of local authorities in London, England, from 1855 to 1900. There were some changes to their number between 1886 and 1894. Following the changes there were 42 authorities responsible for local government, made up of 29 administrative vestries, 12 district boards and one local board of health. [1]
The following were the local authorities incorporated by the Metropolis Management Act 1855 (18 & 19 Vict. c. 120). They functioned from 1855 to 1900, unless otherwise stated. The administrative vestries were delineated as the Schedule A vestries in the Metropolis Management Act 1855. The district boards and administrative vestries had identical powers, but different methods of election. The administrative vestries were directly elected and the district boards were appointed by non-administrative vestries. The equivalent body for the City of London at this time was the Commissioners of Sewers. [2]
The following became administrative vestries or district boards as shown.
The following were non-administrative vestries. They had very limited functions, with their main purpose to appoint members to the district boards of works. They were delineated as the Schedule B vestries in the Metropolis Management Act 1855 and were also known as the smaller vestries. There were 55 non-administrative vestries in 1855 and their number had reduced to 47 in 1894 as some had been upgraded to administrate vestries.
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.
The County of London was a county of England from 1889 to 1965, corresponding to the area known today as Inner London. It was created as part of the general introduction of elected county government in England, by way of the Local Government Act 1888. The Act created an administrative County of London, which included within its territory the City of London. However, the City of London and the County of London formed separate ceremonial counties for "non-administrative" purposes. The local authority for the county was the London County Council (LCC), which initially performed only a limited range of functions, but gained further powers during its 76-year existence. The LCC provided very few services within the City of London, where the ancient Corporation monopolised local governance. In 1900, the lower-tier civil parishes and district boards were replaced with 28 new metropolitan boroughs. The territory of the county was 74,903 acres (303.12 km2) in 1961. During its existence, there was a long-term decline in population as more residents moved into the outer suburbs; there were periodic reviews of the local government structures in the greater London area and several failed attempts to expand the boundaries of the county. In 1965, the London Government Act 1963 replaced the county with the much larger Greater London administrative area.
Battersea was a civil parish and metropolitan borough in the County of London, England. In 1965, the borough was abolished and its area combined with parts of the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth to form the London Borough of Wandsworth. The borough was administered from Battersea Town Hall on Lavender Hill. That building is now Battersea Arts Centre.
The region of Greater London, including the City of London, is divided into 75 parliamentary constituencies which are sub-classified as borough constituencies, affecting the type of electoral officer and level of expenses permitted.
The London Government Act 1899 was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed the administration of the capital. The act divided the County of London into 28 metropolitan boroughs, replacing the 41 parish vestries and district boards of works administering the area. The legislation also transferred a few powers from the London County Council to the boroughs, and removed a number of boundary anomalies. The first elections to the new boroughs were held on 1 November 1900.
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.
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. 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.
Bermondsey was a parish in the metropolitan area of London, England.
Brixton Hundred or the Hundred of Brixton was for many centuries a group of parishes (hundred) used for meetings and taxation of their respective great estates in the north east of the county of Surrey, England. Its area has been entirely absorbed by the growth of London; with its name currently referring to the Brixton district. Its area corresponds to London Boroughs: Southwark, Lambeth, Wandsworth and parts of Lewisham, Merton and Richmond upon Thames.
Strand was a local government district within the metropolitan area of London, England, from 1855 to 1900.
Southwark St George the Martyr was a civil parish in the metropolitan area of London, England and part of the ancient Borough of Southwark. In 1855 the parish vestry became a local authority within the area of responsibility of the Metropolitan Board of Works. It became part of the Metropolitan Borough of Southwark in 1900 and was abolished as a civil parish in 1930.
Plumstead (1855–1894) and then Lee (1894–1900) was a local government district within the metropolitan area of London from 1855 to 1900. It was formed as the Plumstead district by the Metropolis Management Act 1855 and was governed by the Plumstead District Board of Works, which consisted of elected vestrymen.
Greenwich was a local government district within the metropolitan area of London, England from 1855 to 1900. It was formed by the Metropolis Management Act 1855 and was governed by the Greenwich District Board of Works, which consisted of elected vestrymen.
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.
St Saviour's was a local government district within the metropolitan area of London, England from 1855 to 1900. It was formed by the Metropolis Management Act 1855 and was governed by the St Saviour's District Board of Works, which consisted of elected vestrymen.
The Hammersmith Vestry was the vestry for the parish of Hammersmith, London from 1834 to 1856 and 1886 to 1900.
The Metropolis Management Amendment Act 1885 was a public general act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland that amended the Metropolis Management Act 1855 and other Metropolis Management Acts.