INTRODUCTION
More than any other establishments it is schools, along with places providing youth facilities, that reflect the ethos of a place and of a time. They also exert profound influence on the lives of the inhabitants of an area by offering opportunities, to those able to embrace them, for life-enhancing education.
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The streets around Petticoat Lane have been a refuge since the late 17th century for those escaping persecution across the globe. This, combined with the area’s proximity to the docks and its attraction to those in the shipping trades, has meant that streets around the Lane have long been a melting pot of cultures, and a place where people can learn from one another.
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The area’s schools have provided stability and opportunity throughout and helped form the resilience and community spirit which still defines the community of the Lane.
THE DAVENANT FOUNDATION SCHOOL
179-181 Whitechapel Road
The school and original buildings were founded through the legacy of the Reverend Ralph Davenant, the Rector of St. Mary’s Church, Whitechapel. Built in 1680, the school was intended to serve 40 boys and 30 girls. The school was rebuilt in 1818 and was then able to accommodate 100 boys and 100 girls, reflecting the demand for schools in the Petticoat Lane area. The school was enlarged again in 1896, with new buildings designed in ostentatious North European Renaissance style and incorporating a striking arcaded and covered staircase.
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The school adopted the ‘Monitorial System’ also known as the ‘Madras System’ developed by Dr Andrew Bell (1753-1832), which employed one master to lead the entire school, supported by senior boys. In 1965, the school moved to the suburb of Loughton, where it is still operating today as the Davenant Foundation School.
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ST GEORGE'S GERMAN LUTHERAN CHURCH SCHOOLS
57-59 Alie Street
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St George’s Lutheran Church in Alie Street, Whitechapel, was built in 1762 and survives as a remarkable, intact mid-18th century ecclesiastical interior. Until 1995 the church continued to serve London’s Lutheran community but now its vestry houses the offices of the Historic Chapels Trust and the church itself is open for hire for secular events.
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The church had supported German and English schools since 1765, but the school building was built in 1805 to accommodate small, mixed-gender classes of 7-14-year olds. After founding the school Dr Rev. Christian E.A. Schwabe moved to Stamford Hill and established a school for wealthy German families. Using the fees from his more affluent students, many of whom's families were in the sugar trade, to fund scholarships for their poorer counterparts in Whitechapel. Queen Victoria’s mother (then the Duchess of Kent) was said to have worshipped at St George’s, and she became patron of the school.
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The ever-increasing demand for places extended the school into the rooms of the Pastor's house, now accommodating the infants of German migrants so that their mothers could work in the 1850s. Under the Rev. Louis Cappel, the buildings were redeveloped in 1877 to accommodate the needs of the increasing numbers of German and English students, employing sliding partitions to allow simultaneous teaching in both languages. St Georges Schools closed in 1917 when Pastor Mätzold was deported to Germany. The lower floors became tailors' workshops, and the upper was let out for various purposes before being converted into flats in the 1990s.
JEWS' FREE SCHOOL
Bell Lane
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The institution was established in 1732 as the Talmud Torah of the Great Synagogue of London, and was located in Duke’s Place, Aldgate. Primarily the school was to serve orphans of the community. It was in 1822 that it moved to Bell Lane, near Petticoat Lane. The school grew rapidly, reflecting the influx of Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe. By the late 1800s it had around 4000 students enrolled, making it the largest Jewish school in Europe.
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In the inter-war period, children often came straight from the Kindertransport to the Jews Free School in the East End. During World War II, students were evacuated to East Anglia and Cornwall and the School was destroyed by enemy action.
It re-opened in 1958 in Camden Town where its location was central for the London Jewish community of the late 20th century, until its move to Kenton, North West London, in 2002.
CANON BARNETT SCHOOL
Gunthorpe Street
Built by the London School Board in 1901 it was originally named Commercial Street School. Like parts of Lower Chapman Street School, it was designed by T.J Bailey across sites previously known as Black Horse Yard and The John Bull Brewery. Purpose built over four floors with a rooftop playground for 800 boys, girls and infants.
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The school sustained severe bomb damage in World War II and, following repair, was renamed to honour Samuel Barnett also known as Canon Barnett who was the vicar of St Jude's Church on Commercial Street in 1865. Samuel Barnett and his wife Henrietta worked tirelessly to improve education and welfare around the Lane and surrounding areas and had a huge positive effect on the lives of many residents, such as by establishing Toynbee Hall.
WORKING LAD'S INSTITUTE
Whitechapel Road
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The Working Lad’s Institute (later known as the Whitechapel Mission) was set up in 1876 to assist young men who had found themselves drifting into petty crime or without employment prospects. Lots of teenagers from Petticoat Lane would have lacked a good education or family support during the struggles of the 1800s.
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The scheme offered the boys and young men a chance to improve their lives by receiving education and training, having access to sports and creative opportunities and then being referred to work placements.
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Today, the building looks almost the same as when it was built, although the surroundings are almost unrecognisable - just look up next time you're entering Whitechapel station via Whitechapel Road! At the institute, portraits of the young men were taken, and often their progress was recorded in a set of logbooks.
Copyright Clara Ely & Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives
WORK AND PLAY
The children of Lane have always needed to amuse themselves and enjoy time with their peers. Many children and young adults learned trades and skills through apprenticeships and hands-on work in local industries such as tailoring, shoemaking, and food processing. This practical learning was crucial for survival and economic stability.
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In 1908, a group of choir boys from nearby All Hallows at Tower Hill heard about the scout group which had been formed in Poole, Dorset and approached their choirmaster with a copy of Robert Baden Powels newly published book Scouting for Boys. Thus the 1st City of London Scouts group was formed, believed to be only the second group in the country.
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The Brady Clubs in London were established in 1896 by Lady Charlotte Rothschild and other wealthy West End Jews to improve the social quality of life for East End boys, mainly from East European Jewish refugee families. Initially known as the Brady Club for Working Lads, it provided community, friendship, and mentoring to young Jewish people. In 1925, the Brady Girls' Club was founded, and both clubs eventually merged in 1960. The clubs offered opportunities for sports, education, and social integration, significantly impacting the lives of many young people in the East End. A purpose-designed centre for the girls of the Brady Club, built in 1935 and incorporating a small theatre, survives at the east end of Hanbury Street (192-196), Spitalfields. The centre was opened by the Duchess of York, the grandmother of King Charles III. Now an arts and community centre, the building is used mostly by the area’s Bangladeshi community,
Researched and written by Natalie​