What would Hoxton St. John, Middlesex, have been like 150 years ago?

Question

Was it rural or urban in the 1850s?

Posh or down at the heals?

Was it a center for the clothing trade at that time?

Answer 1

I found this by Googling "Hoxton St. John 19 century" -

Hoxton is situated about 1½ miles from Whitechapel and lies to the north of Old Street and west of Kingsland Road. In the 12th century it was described as open meadows and pastures next to a great forest. By the 16th century it was developed by the wealthy and fashionable inhabitants of London were moving out of the City. In the 17th and 18th centuries Hoxton continued to be developed but still retained its rural appearance.

Many of the City Livery Companies acquired land here for their almshouses. In 1689 Robert Aske left £20,000 to the Haberdashers' Company for the erection of an almshouse for 20 poor single freemen of the Company and schooling for 20 sons of poor freemen. This resulted in the building of Aske's Hospital in Pitfield Street.

In the 19th century the population continued to increase and Hoxton lost its rural appearance. The church of St. John the Baptist was built to the design of Francis Edwards in 1822-6 to create a separate parish as Hoxton was previously part of Shoreditch.

Answer 2

It's a tricky question mate. Hoxton St. John, Middlesex is smack dab in the heart of London.

It was certainly urban. It was also posh (a number of London's elite moved to the area) and known as an entertainment district of sorts. Including the notorious alehouse, The Pimlico.

And yes, it was a center for clothing. In fact riots broke out over the introduction of looms to the area. John Tyre was also a founding father of the clothing industry from that area two hundred years earlier.

Good luck with the rest of your assignment.