Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 2.djvu/689

This page needs to be proofread.
681

LONDON. 631 LONDON. southward and goes by the Pavement and Moorgate-

to the Bank, its eastward continuation branching

off about the middle of the City-road and leading along "Id-stieet-road and the Hackney-road to Victoria- park. The third main thoroughfare of London which runs from W. to E. is that which lies to the S. of the d-street route, with which it joins in the City. It at St. James's Palace, and goes along Pall Mall by Cockspur-street to Charing-cross. Thence icecds along the Strand and Fleet-street, and up Ludgate-hill to St. Paul's-churchyard. Here it divide* itsdf into two great thoroughfares; of these the ( rn leads into the Oxford-street route at the rn end of Cheapside, while the southern runs along ion-street into King William-street, and thus affords a more direct communication with London- bridge. Besides these thoroughfares, however, there is I'.T between the Oxford-street and the Strand route which leads from the Hammersmith road along the ington-road to Kensington-gore and Knightsbridge. Thence it proceeds along Piccadilly to the Regent-

, from which Regent-street runs northward, and

crossing Oxford-street, leads by Portland-place to the Marylebone-road and the neighbourhood of the i it' s- park. The main thoroughfares running N. S., and thus at several points connecting at right angles the eastern and western routes already described, are, commencing from the W. and on the N. side of the , first, the Edgware-road, leading from Kilburn through*Maida-hill to Oxford-street, which it joins at Tyburn, nearly opposite to the Marble-arch entrance 1 i Hyde-park. Next proceeding eastward, comes the leading from Hampstcad along Haverstock-hill to the end of High-street, Camden-town, where it unites with the Highgate and Kentish-town and the Camden roads, both of which branch off in an easterly direction, i their junction at their southern end they form a Jine of street called High-street, Camden-town, the Hampstead-road, and Tottenham-Court-road, the i- named portion connecting the Euston-road with Oxford-street. The next important thoroughfare runs the Camden-road to the junction of the Eustou and Peutonville roads at King's-cross, and is known as tin: King's-road, and St. Pancras-road ; from Kirig's- it runs as Gray's-Inn-lane into Holborn. The main thoroughfare also runs into Holborn from 'entonvillc-ruad, and commencing as the Bagnigge- !s-road it passes through part of Clerkenwell, and is continued as Farringdon-road to the foot of Holborn and hills, whence it runs as Farringdon-street and Bridge-street down to the river at Blackfriars Bridge. Next come the long lines of roads which in old times formed the route for the northern coach communication. The first of these leads from Hollo- way and Islington, and is known as the Liverpool-road till it joins High-street, Islington, at the union of which with the City-road stands the once celebrated tavern of " Angel." Then it divides itself into two thorough - , the western of which, as St. John-street-road and John-street, runs through Smithfield to the union of i nd Newgate-street ; while the eastern, as veil-road, Goswell-street, and Aldersgate-street, > St. Martin's-le-Grand at the E. end of New- et. This may be said to be one of the busiest ii, as here stand the General Post Office, il's Cathedral, Newgate Market, and the exten- t and warehouses of Cannon-street and Cheap-

it the traffic into and out of the City makes

of constant bustle and animation,

imd and confusion which frequently prevail

render it a source of much danger and alarm to passengers pcrament. Thenext great thoroughfare t, which runs from the City-road to

md next to that comes the long line which

com; ml a?idDalston with the City. It passes

  • Pond, Do JJeaiivnir

f Hiixtun, till it mwts tho Old-street nd then proceeds ite, ami Bishopsgate-Sl thence, after crossing Cornhill at its junction with Leadenhall-strect, it continues as Gracechurch-street to Fish-street-hill and Thames-street, which it joins close to tho foot of London-bridge. From Bishopsgate-street Houndsditch and the Minories lead across Aldgate High-street to the back of the Tower ; and Commercial- street, and Leman-street, Goodman's-fields, connect Shoreditch and Whitechapel with the neighbourhood of tho Royal Mint and of the St. Katharine's and London docks. The last main lino to the E. is that which connects Homerton and Clapton and Hackney with London. It commences as Church-street from the corner of Dalston-lane and the Lower Clapton-road, and then continues as Mare-street through Cambridge- heath and the Cambridge-road. Here it crosses tho Hackney-road and the Bethnal Green-road, and runs down to the junction of the Whitechapel and tho Mile- cnd-roads. On tho S. side of tho river the main thoroughfares lead from the bridges to the various suburban districts which lio in Kent and Surrey. The principal of these runs from London Bridge along Wellington-street, and High-street, in the Borough of Sputhwark, to the corner of Blackman-street, where it divides itself into two branches. Of these the eastern goes along Great Dover-street, by the Old Kent-road, into the New Cross-road, while tho westerly runs along Newington Causeway to the " Elephant and Castle." Here it again branches off into two main routes ; that to the E. leading along the Walworth and Camberwcll roads, while that to the W. runs through Newington Butts along the Kennington-road to Clapham. Pro- ceeding up the river the next bridge is Southwark. From this the Southwark Bridge-road runs into tho main road just described in the Newington Causeway. The next is tho Blackfriars-road, which runs from tho bridge of that name duo S. to St. Gcorge's-circus, where it runs in a south-easterly direction into the main road at the "Elephant and Castle," and towards tho W. as the Lambeth-road, past Bethlehem Hospital, to Lambeth- bridge. The next main line, which also runs into St. George's-circus, is the Waterloo-road, leading from Waterloo Bridge, and next to that come Bridge-street and Mount-street, leading from Westminster Bridge to the Westminster-road on the E., and the Vauxhall or Kennington-road on the S. This latter road, after passing through Lambeth, joins the main line from London Bridge at Kennington-park, from which a road branches in an easterly direction to Brixton and Tulse Hill. From Vauxhall Bridge New Bridge-street also leads, by tho way of Upper Kennington-lane into tho Kennington-road, at tho junction of which with the Clapham-road, and close by Kennington Park, stands one of the few turnpikes now remaining on the London roads. From this point a long line of road runs through Camberwell, Peckham, and Hatcham in an easterly direc- tion till it joins the main route from London Bridge at tho union of the Old Kent and New Cross roads. The Victoria and Battersea Bridge roads lead from the Chelsea and Battersea bridges, Battersea Park lying between them, and communicate with the Wandsworth, Clapham, and other roads leading to the south-western suburbs. Along all these various routes arc private houses or shops and warehouses, and almost each particular quarter of the metropolis has its own peculiar character- istics. Thus the neighbourhood of Hyde Paik and Kensington Gardens at the West End, as well as those about Grosvenor-square, Mayfair, Piccadilly, Belgnum, and the rapidly-increasing South Kensington estate, are the favourite places of abode of tho most wealthy and aristocratic classes ; while those who occupy the social grade next in rank occupy residences about Bayswater, Brompton, Chelsea, tho Regent's Park, Portland-place, Portman, Cavendish, Russell, and Tavistock squares, Camden Town, and such situations in mid-London as were some few years ago fashionable, but havo of late been given up by tho highest portions of tho com- munity, who have migrated, and still are migrating, further westward. The principal shops frequented by tlie better classes are to be found in Oxford-street,