Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Stoke Newington

County of London
Status:	Metropolitan borough
Admin. HQ:	Stoke Newington Church Street
Created:	1900
Abolished:	1965
Successor:	London Borough of Hackney

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.

[edit] Boundaries

The borough comprised the parish of Stoke Newington replacing the parish vestry which previously administered the area. This area was the western part of, what would be considered, the modern district of Stoke Newington, the eastern part of this district was within the parish of Hackney, and so was assigned to the Metropolitan Borough of Hackney at its formation, this included Stoke Newington Common, and the entire eastern side of Stoke Newington High Street.

The area, particularly around Rectory and Amhurst Roads, was then considered within Shacklewell. Modern Stoke Newington is generally associated with the N16 postcode area, so this western area has now been absorbed, largely at the expense of Shacklewell.

The metropolitan borough also included parts of Manor House and Stamford Hill.

It bordered the metropolitan boroughs of Islington and Hackney, and the Municipal Borough of Tottenham, in Middlesex to the north.

[edit] Coat of Arms

Unofficial arms used 1900 - 1934

The long association with the Dean and chapter of St Paul's Cathedral is represented by the red background and crossed swords. The cross is from the arms of William Patten, first Lord of the manor and rebuilder of the church of St Mary, in 1550. The trees represent the ancient forest, and the green lion, that of John Dudley. The griffin refers to Daniel Defoe, and the banner, the arms of Sir Thomas Abney.

The Latin motto translates as Look to the past and the future, the arms were granted on 12th June 1934^[1].

The coat of arms replaced an unofficial device adopted by the council on incorporation in 1900. At the top of the shield was a representation of the parish church. The lower part of the shield featured the arms of the cities of London and Westminster on the left, and the attributed arms of the Kingdom of Essex representing Middlesex on the right. These armorial devices were chosen to represent the union of Stoke Newington in the County of London and South Hornsey in Middlesex. The crest was formed by a tree, recalling Stoke Newington's origin as a village in the Middlesex Forest.^[2]

[edit] Population and area

The area of the borough in 1901 was 863 acres (approximately 3.49 km²). The population recorded in National Censuses were:

After amalgamation, to form the modern London Borough of Hackney, the area became 19.06 km² - approximately 4,710 acres; in 2005, this authority had a population of 207,700^[6]

[edit] Politics

Old Stoke Newington Town Hall. An austere building (perhaps reflecting local nonconformist traditions) compared with those of nearby boroughs like Shoreditch. Its future is in some doubt. (January 2006)

[edit] Borough council

The borough council consisted of 30 councillors and 5 aldermen. The borough was divided into six wards for the election of councillors:

• Church (6 councillors)
• Clissold (3)
• Lordship (6)
• Manor (3)
• Palatine (3)
• South Hornsey (9)

The first council elected consisted entirely of "Non-Party" candidates, although The Times noted that they were "Conservative in character".^[7] The entire council continued to be described as Independent or Non-Party until the 1934 election when the Labour party gained 13 seats to the Independents' 17. Labour gained control of the council in 1945, taking all of the seats on the council.^[8] The Conservative Party first ran in the 1949 election, winning control from Labour by 23 seats to 7.^[9] Labour regained power at the next election in 1953 with 24 seats to 6 conservatives.^[10] They held control at subsequent elections, taking all the seats in 1959.^{[11] [12]} The final election of the council on May 10, 1962 saw four Liberal party councillors elected to form an opposition group to the 26 Labour members.^[13]

[edit] Parliamentary constituency

Until 1918 the area formed part of the constituency of Hackney North. In 1918 a new constituency of Stoke Newington identical with the metropolitan borough was created. Due to loss of population, the two constituencies were merged in 1950 as Hackney North and Stoke Newington.^[14]

[edit] References

1. ^ Civic Heraldry accessed 14 Dec 2006
2. ^ R Crosley, London's coats of arms and the stories they tell, Robert Scott, London, 1928
3. ^ Statistical Abstract for London, 1901 (Vol. IV); Census tables for Stoke Newington Metropolitan Borough
4. ^ Stoke Newington MetB: Census Tables at Vision of Britain accessed 14 Dec 2006
5. ^ The census was suspended for World War II
6. ^ 2005 estimate
7. ^ The London borough elections, The Times, November 3, 1900
8. ^ The Municipal Elections - Results in London Boroughs, The Times, November 3, 1945
9. ^ More councils won by conservatives – Heavy Labour losses in London, May 14, 1949
10. ^ The municipal elections, Changes in London boroughs, The Times, May 9, 1953
11. ^ Labour gains in London poll, The Times, May 12, 1956
12. ^ Borough elections – London results, The Times, May 9, 1959
13. ^ Election results in the boroughs, The Times, May 11, 1962
14. ^ F A Youngs, Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England, Vol. I, Royal Historical Society, London, 1979

[edit] External links

• Interior of Stoke Newington's underground control centre

Like most British local authorities of the 1950s-60s, Stoke Newington possessed its own nuclear shelter. It is still there, though disused now except for storage. Shown here is the entrance still visible at the back of the town hall (September 2005)

This London location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.