Rowton Houses

Last updated
Rowton Houses
Industry Hospitality
Founder Lord Rowton
Headquarters
Number of locations
6
The Rowton House in Highgate, Birmingham, now a hotel ParagonHotelBirmingham (2).JPG
The Rowton House in Highgate, Birmingham, now a hotel

Rowton Houses was a chain of hostels built in London, England, by the Victorian philanthropist Lord Rowton to provide decent accommodation for working men in place of the squalid lodging houses of the time.

George Orwell, in his 1933 book Down and Out in Paris and London , wrote about lodging houses:

The best are the Rowton Houses, where the charge is a shilling, for which you get a cubicle to yourself, and the use of excellent bathrooms. You can also pay half a crown for a 'special', which is practically hotel accommodation. The Rowton Houses are splendid buildings, and the only objection to them is the strict discipline, with rules against cooking, card playing, etc. [1]

The Rowton Houses throughout London were:

The architect for the bulk of the houses was Harry Bell Measures FRIBA, who also designed the tube stations for the Central London Railway in 1900 and was well known as the designer of many army barracks.

There was also a Rowton House in Highgate, Birmingham, which opened on 29 June 1903. It was built by the Birmingham Rowton Houses Ltd, from the designs and under the supervision of Measures. This building later became a hotel. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hotel</span> Establishment that provides lodging paid on a short-term basis

A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a refrigerator, and other kitchen facilities, upholstered chairs, a television, and en-suite bathrooms. Small, lower-priced hotels may offer only the most basic guest services and facilities. Larger, higher-priced hotels may provide additional guest facilities such as a swimming pool, a business center with computers, printers, and other office equipment, childcare, conference and event facilities, tennis or basketball courts, gymnasium, restaurants, day spa, and social function services. Hotel rooms are usually numbered to allow guests to identify their room. Some boutique, high-end hotels have custom decorated rooms. Some hotels offer meals as part of a room and board arrangement. In Japan, capsule hotels provide a tiny room suitable only for sleeping and shared bathroom facilities.

<i>Down and Out in Paris and London</i> Memoir by George Orwell published in 1933

Down and Out in Paris and London is the first full-length work by the English author George Orwell, published in 1933. It is a memoir in two parts on the theme of poverty in the two cities. Its target audience was the middle- and upper-class members of society—those who were more likely to be well educated—and it exposes the poverty existing in two prosperous cities: Paris and London. The first part is an account of living in near-extreme poverty and destitution in Paris and the experience of casual labour in restaurant kitchens. The second part is a travelogue of life on the road in and around London from the tramp's perspective, with descriptions of the types of hostel accommodation available and some of the characters to be found living on the margins.

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

Highbury is an area in North London and located in the London Borough of Islington. Highbury was owned by Ranulf, brother of Ilger, and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Park Lane</span> Road in London

Park Lane is a dual carriageway road in the City of Westminster in Central London. It is part of the London Inner Ring Road and runs from Hyde Park Corner in the south to Marble Arch in the north. It separates Hyde Park to the west from Mayfair to the east. The road has a number of historically important properties and hotels and has been one of the most sought after streets in London, despite being a major traffic thoroughfare.

Arlington House may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flophouse</span> Place with cheap lodging

A flophouse or doss-house is a place that has very low-cost lodging, providing space to sleep and minimal amenities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montagu Corry, 1st Baron Rowton</span>

Montagu William Lowry-Corry, 1st Baron Rowton,, also known as "Monty", was a British philanthropist and public servant, best known for serving as Benjamin Disraeli's private secretary from 1866 until the latter's death in 1881.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hotels in London</span>

This article describes the hotels in London, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northumberland Avenue</span> Street in central London

Northumberland Avenue is a street in the City of Westminster, Central London, running from Trafalgar Square in the west to the Thames Embankment in the east. The road was built on the site of Northumberland House, the London home of the Percy family, the Dukes of Northumberland between 1874 and 1876, and on part of the parallel Northumberland Street.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mills House No. 1</span> Building in Manhattan, New York

Mills House No. 1 or the Mills Hotel at 160 Bleecker Street in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, New York City was built as a hotel for poor men. It was funded by banker Darius Ogden Mills and designed by Ernest Flagg and opened in 1897. The building is now The Atrium.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Common lodging-house</span> Victorian era term for a form of cheap accommodation

"Common lodging-house" is a Victorian era term for a form of cheap accommodation in which the inhabitants are all lodged together in the same room or rooms, whether for eating or sleeping. The slang terms dosshouse and flophouse designate roughly the equivalent of common lodging-houses. The nearest modern equivalent is a hostel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harry Bell Measures</span> British architect (1862–1940)

Harry Bell Measures (1862–1940) was an English architect.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apartment hotel</span> Type of serviced apartment complex

An apartment hotel or aparthotel is a serviced apartment complex that uses a hotel-style booking system. It is similar to renting an apartment, but with no fixed contracts and occupants can "check out" whenever they wish, subject to the applicable minimum length of stay imposed by the company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arlington House (London)</span>

Arlington House is a hostel for homeless men on Arlington Road in Camden Town, London that opened in 1905. It was designated as a Grade II listed building in 2011.

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

Highgate is an area of Birmingham, England. Following the Big City Plan of February 2008, Highgate has become a district of Birmingham City Centre. The area is regarded as the site of the original Anglo-Saxon settlement which gave the city of Birmingham its name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rowton Castle</span> Building in Shropshire, England

Rowton Castle, near Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England, is a Grade II* listed country house that was once the home of the Royal National College for the Blind before it moved to its present location in Hereford. This 17th-century castle is surrounded by 17 acres of gardens, and is approximately six miles (9.7 km) from Shrewsbury. It is currently used as a wedding venue, hotel and restaurant.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carlton Hotel, London</span> Former hotel in London

The Carlton Hotel was a luxury hotel in London that operated from 1899 to 1940. It was designed by the architect C. J. Phipps as part of a larger development that included the rebuilding of Her Majesty's Theatre, which is adjacent to the hotel site. The Carlton was originally run by the Swiss hotelier César Ritz, with Auguste Escoffier as the head chef. In its early days it was one of London's most fashionable hotels and drew some customers away from the Savoy Hotel, which Ritz and Escoffier had previously managed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward Boardman</span>

Edward Boardman (1833–1910) was a Norwich born architect. He succeeded John Brown as the most successful Norwich architect in the second half of the 19th century. His work included both civic and ecclesiastical buildings, in addition to private commissions. Together, with his rival, George Skipper, he produced many notable buildings with several standing to this day (2013).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walsingham House</span> Former hotel in London

The Walsingham House or Walsingham House Hotel was located at 150-4 Piccadilly on the site of what is now The Ritz Hotel, London and was adjacent to the Bath Hotel. The Ritz's financial backers began negotiations in 1901 and purchased the Walsingham simultaneously with the Bath Hotel. Though the Walsingham was of fairly new construction, they determined it was too "inelegant" and demolished the building. One of the considerations that made the transaction appealing to the city was that they would be able to widen Piccadilly when the Walsingham and Bath Hotels were demolished.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arlington Road, London</span> Street in London, England

Arlington Road is a street running between Mornington Crescent and Camden Town in the London Borough of Camden, England. It runs south to north, directly parallel to Camden High Street to its east. It is crossed by Inverness Street, Parkway and Delancey Street. It is near Gloucester Crescent. It is mainly residential, with a few commercial properties.

References

  1. Orwell, George (1933). "Chapter 37". Down and Out in Paris and London. London: Victor Gollancz.
  2. "Lord Rowton and the homeless in London". British Geriatrics Society. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
  3. Mark Gould, Jo Revill (24 October 2004). "Luxury beckons for East End's house of history". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  4. "A Brief History of Arlington House". Aisling. 2006. Archived from the original on 26 November 2017.
  5. "About us". One Housing Group - Arlington. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  6. "History". Rowton Hotel Birmingham. Retrieved 2019-04-16.