Hoxton Square
Encyclopedia
Hoxton
Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, immediately north of the financial district of the City of London. The area of Hoxton is bordered by Regent's Canal on the north side, Wharf Road and City Road on the west, Old Street on the south, and Kingsland Road on the east.Hoxton is also a...
in the London Borough of Hackney
London Borough of Hackney
The London Borough of Hackney is a London borough of North/North East London, and forms part of inner London. The local authority is Hackney London Borough Council....
, in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
's East End. Formerly home to industrial premises, since the 1990s it has become the heart of the Hoxton arts and media scene, as well as being a hub of the thriving local entertainment district. Since the year 2000 the square's buildings, largely of Victorian
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
vintage, have become host to a variety of bars, restaurants and clubs. In the summer, the central grassed is extremely popular.
White Cube
White Cube is a contemporary art gallery designed by MRJ Rundell & Associates in Hoxton Square in the East End of London Mason's Yard, in central London and White Cube Bermondsey in South East London...
art gallery, known for representing a number of the movement of Young British Artists
Young British Artists
Young British Artists or YBAs is the name given to a loose group of visual artists who first began to exhibit together in London, in 1988...
.
Hoxton Square was laid out by Samuel Blewitt and Robert Hackshaw, who leased the land from the Austen family in 1683. It is thought to be one of the oldest squares in London.
At an Old Bailey
Old Bailey
The Central Criminal Court in England and Wales, commonly known as the Old Bailey from the street in which it stands, is a court building in central London, one of a number of buildings housing the Crown Court...
trial on 27 February 1734 John Humphries, Plasterer, was indicted at the Old Bailey for “stealing 200 hundredweight of lead, fixt to the Freehold of Robert Hackshaw, in Hoxton Square, Feb. 16”, found guilty and sentenced to transportation.”
Hoxton and Charles Squares, as well as being fashionable neighbourhoods, were centres of non-conformist sects. From 1699 to 1729 an Academy, offering a wide curriculum and also allowing "free enquiry" by its students, was situated in the square. Samuel Pike
Samuel Pike
-Life:Pike was born about 1717 at "Ramsey, Wiltshire" , which may mean Ramsbury, Wiltshire but more probably Romsey, Hampshire . He was educated for the independent ministry, receiving his general training from John Eames of the Fund academy, and his theology from John Hubbard at Stepney academy....
, who lived in a house in the square, offered theological teaching from 1750. Samuel Morton Savage
Samuel Morton Savage
-Life:He was born in London on 19 July 1721. His grandfather, John Savage, was pastor of the seventh-day baptist church, Mill Yard, Goodman's Fields. Savage was related to Hugh Boulter....
opened his Hoxton Square Academy there. The Academy closed in 1785.
The Christian theologian John Thomas
John Thomas (Christadelphian)
Dr. John Thomas was the founder of the Christadelphian movement, a Restorationist religion with doctrines similar in part to some 16th century Antitrinitarian Rationalist Socinians and the 16th century Swiss-German pacifist Anabaptists.-Early life:John Thomas M.D., born in Hoxton Square, Hackney,...
, founder of the Christadelphian movement, was born in Hoxton Square in 1805, and in 1810 the square was home to Peter Durand
Peter Durand
Peter Durand was a British merchant who is widely credited with receiving the first patent for the idea of preserving food using tin cans. The patent was granted on August 25, 1810 by King George III of England....
, who filed the first English patent for the process of tinning food.
James Parkinson
James Parkinson
James Parkinson was an English apothecary surgeon, geologist, paleontologist, and political activist. He is most famous for his 1817 work, An Essay on the Shaking Palsy in which he was the first to describe "paralysis agitans", a condition that would later be renamed Parkinson's disease by...
(1755–1824), the physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
and author of An Essay on the Shaking Palsy, the subject of which is now known as Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system...
, was in practice at 1 Hoxton Square, which is commemorated with a blue plaque
Blue plaque
A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person or event, serving as a historical marker....
on the site.
Today, Hoxton Square serves as an area to relax, housing art galleries, restaurants, bars and pubs, and is home to Sh! Women's Erotic Emporium
Sh! Women's Erotic Emporium
Sh! Women’s Erotic Emporium is a female-run British business selling sex toys, strap-on dildo harnesses, books on all aspects of sex, and accessories...
.