Union Street is a major street in the London Borough of Southwark

London Borough of Southwark

The London Borough of Southwark is a London borough in south east London, England. It is directly south of the River Thames and the City of London, and forms part of Inner London.-History:...

. It runs between Blackfriars Road

Blackfriars Road

Blackfriars Road is a road in Southwark, SE1. It runs between St George's Circus at the southern end and Blackfriars Bridge over the River Thames at the northern end, leading to the City of London. Halfway up on the west side is Southwark tube station, on the corner with The Cut...

 to the west and Borough High Street

Borough High Street

Borough High Street is a main street in Southwark, London running south-west from London Bridge, forming part of the A3 road, which runs from London to Portsmouth.- Overview :...

 to the east. Southwark Bridge Road

Southwark Bridge Road

Southwark Bridge Road is a road in Southwark, London, England, between Newington Causeway near Elephant and Castle and Southwark Bridge across the River Thames, leading to the City of London, in a meandering route...

 crosses in the middle.

The Union Theatre

Union Theatre (London)

The Union Theatre is a small fringe theatre situated in the borough of Southwark in London, England. It was established in 1998 by Sasha Regan who took the initiative to convert a disused paper warehouse near Southwark station into a functioning theatre...

 is a leading fringe venue on the north side of the street. On the south side is Jerwood Space

Jerwood Space

Jerwood Space is an arts venue at Bankside on Union Street, Southwark, London. The facilities include rehearsal studios, gallery/exhibition space, meeting rooms, a café, etc. Exhibits include contemporary art and photography throughout the building....

, an arts venue, located in the former Orange Street School. Other art galleries include the RKB Gallery, dedicated to artworks on paper, and the Union Gallery, a contemporary art gallery under the railway arches on the north side, that moved to Teesdale Road in February 2009.

Public houses on the street include the Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens

Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...

 and the Lord Nelson, named after two famous Englishmen. Dickens lodged in Lant Street

Lant Street

Lant Street is a street south of Marshalsea Road in Southwark, south London, England.-Overview:At the northwest end is the Southwark Bridge Road and at the southeast end is Borough High Street. Close by, just to the north in Borough High Street, is the historic St George the Martyr church, where...

 not far away as a child.

Southwark tube station

Southwark tube station

Southwark tube station is a London Underground Jubilee line station in the London Borough of Southwark at the corner of Blackfriars Road and The Cut. It is between the and stations and is in Travelcard Zone 1. It was opened on 20 November 1999 as part of the Jubilee Line Extension...

 is at the western end. Southwark Street

Southwark Street

Southwark Street is a major street in the London Borough of Southwark, in London England, just south of the River Thames. It runs between Blackfriars Road to the west and Borough High Street to the east. It also connects the access routes for London Bridge, Southwark Bridge and Blackfriars Bridge...

 runs in parallel to the north. The road forms part of the B300, linking with The Cut

The Cut (London)

The Cut is a street in Lambeth and Southwark, London. It runs between Waterloo Road and Blackfriars Road . At the western end to the south is the well-established Old Vic Theatre and half way along on the north side is the more experimental Young Vic. Opposite the Young Vic is Short Street which...

to the west. To the east is Newcomen Street.

History

The eastern part of the street was laid out under a 1774 Act passed for making a new workhouse and for "making a carriage way from the … High Street, through the Greyhound Inn, into Queen Street, and for improving the passage from thence into Gravel Lane, leading towards the Black Friars Bridge Road, in the parish of Christ Church." In 1813, Queen Street and Duke Street were renamed Union Street. In 1908 Charlotte Street, at the western end of Union Street, was also renamed to be part of the street yet it clearly has a dislocated junction with it, exascerbated by it starting under the railway viaduct.

In 1776 the Union Hall was openned as the Surrey Magistrates Court in the borough. The facade of the Hall was retained on the new structure on the site in 2005.

Red Cross Burial Ground was a burial ground at the northeast corner of Union Street and Red Cross Way.

The street was called Union Street because it marks the boundary between the two local parishes in the area.