Introduction
These notes have been tidied up and expanded a little but were just my headings and notes to jog my memory while talking in the group about the timeline.
The timeline uses Horace Jones’ Smithfield Market buildings as the centre piece and is a sample of elements and events that contribute to the continuing processes that created and change Smithfield Market in its various formations. There is a strong fault line that marks the end of the live meat market in 1855 and the reopening as a dead meat market from 1868.
Attempting to categorise the fragments of the timeline is unavoidably arbitrary and the categories overlap but doing so helped me think about the processes at work in the past and now.
Boundaries, Charters/Acts and Revenue
Charters haves underpinned the City’s jurisdiction over Smithfield from early days and continue to be the subject of debates in present times. References to Charters in the timeline are only a sample of the number of charters and their complexity.
The topic of Liberties and how they are managed could be a major topic on its own. There is a link to the establishment and maintenance of the City boundary and the relationship to neighbouring (e.g. now Islington) and overarching (e.g. now GLA) authorities.
There is also the matter of buying land outside the City boundary.
Anxiety about mess and order
This anxiety seems to have led to a ‘Push / Pull’ effect. Extend the boundary to include revenue producing markets then push the unwanted elements of the market and associated activities over the boundary.
Anxiety about Health
For example, fears about imported disease helped create the need for the Foreign Cattle Market at Deptford while in more modern times the late 1960s foot and mouth scare curtailed imports from Argentina
Relationship between smell and disease
In the present time there is increased anxiety about meat eating itself.
Urban Improvement
Right from paving and draining the market through to roads and fine buildings
There were times when meat markets were held to be incompatible with urban improvement and modern city life.
Administration and Control
Emergence of administration (rules about markets amongst other things), banks, telegraph and a need for offices. At first it was offices to run the Market then it became offices to replace the market.
The Metropolitan Market Banking Block around the base of the Clock Tower; the New Smithfield with fine bank buildings and offices nearby.
Technological Change
Live animals on hoof à Live animals by rail à dead animals by rail à frozen animals by rail à frozen animals by ship and rail
Abattoirs in the City à London’s abattoir in Aberdeen and other far flung places.
Agricultural revolution, feed and crop cycles, an end to wholesale slaughter in the autumn, higher body (and later carcase) weights.
Railways
Refrigeration
Supermarkets
The seeds of Metropolitan Market’s demise were present as it was being built, the causes of the re-emergence of Smithfield as a dead meat market were present as its closure was being advocated.
Railways ought to have a heading of its own
Plans for the Metropolitan Railway were advancing alongside the removal of Smithfield live market. The railway was the strongest reason for the return to Smithfield as a dead meat market.
Jones’ skill in building over the developing railway
The link to the rest of the country and to the Docks (takes some unpicking), the Snow Hill Tunnel and lines under Smithfield
1960s Move to road transport.
Animal Welfare and Sensibility
A Victorian concern but it is also very much a modern concern. There were early concerns and pressure for animal cruelty and slaughter to be out of central London/out of sight. There is a parallel concern about not wanting to lose old traditions. The City’s relationship with meat and markets. Exciting stories about animals getting loose, dark tourism of Smithfield. Modern tours and glimpses of carcases. Apologising to Vegetarians. Interplay with reduced meat eating, health and animal welfare. Recent examples of Feminism and Smithfield / Markets generally being held as male space.
Emergence of Pressure Groups, Democracy/Public Opinion, Hungry Years
Complexity of interest groups and stakeholders, not simple City resistance to change, the City spent more money on resisting Acts for removal than they gained in revenues.
Can be seen in later 21st C. conflicts with addition of Heritage concerns and associated pressure groups although again individual organisations adopt contradictory positions at times.
The role of newspapers / popular publishing.
David Beer
cityoflondonhistory 