Commercial Road is a street in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in the East End of London. It is long, running from Gardiner's Corner (previously the site of Gardiners department store, and now Aldgate East Underground station), through

Stepney Stepney is a district in the East End of London in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The district is no longer officially defined, and is usually used to refer to a relatively small area. However, for much of its history the place name appli ...

to the junction with Burdett Road in

Limehouse Limehouse is a district in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in East London. It is east of Charing Cross, on the northern bank of the River Thames. Its proximity to the river has given it a strong maritime character, which it retains through ...

at which point the route splits into the

East India Dock Road East India Dock Road is a major arterial route from Limehouse to Canning Town in London. The road takes its name from the former East India Docks in the Port of London, and partly serves as the high street of Poplar. To the west it becomes Co ...

and the West India Dock Road. It is an artery connecting the historic

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London f ...

with the more recently developed financial district at

Canary Wharf Canary Wharf is an area of London, England, located near the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Canary Wharf is defined by the Greater London Authority as being part of London's central business district, alongside Central Lon ...

, and part of the A13. The road contains several

listed buildings In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

. These include the George Tavern, the

Troxy Troxy is a Grade II-listed Art Deco music venue on Commercial Road in Stepney, London. Built as a cinema in 1933, it closed in 1960 and became a training school for the London Opera Centre. In the 1980s the building was used as a bingo hall, and ...

cinema, the Limehouse Town Hall, the former Caird and Rayner Ltd works and the Albert Gardens estate.

Route

Commercial Road starts at a junction with Whitechapel High Street (the A11 close to

Aldgate East tube station Aldgate East is a London Underground station on Whitechapel High Street in Whitechapel, in London, England. It takes its name from the City of London ward of Aldgate, the station lying to the east of the ward (and the City). It is on the Hamm ...

. It heads east, crossing the

Limehouse Basin Limehouse Basin is a body of water 2 miles east of London Bridge that is also a navigable link between the River Thames and two of London's canals. First dug in 1820 as the eastern terminus of the new Regent's Canal, its wet area was less than ...

, the

Regents Canal Regent's Canal is a canal across an area just north of central London, England. It provides a link from the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union Canal, north-west of Paddington Basin in the west, to the Limehouse Basin and the River Thames ...

and the

Limehouse Cut The Limehouse Cut is a largely straight, broad canal in the East End of London which links the lower reaches of the Lee Navigation to the River Thames. Opening on 17 September 1770, and widened for two-way traffic by 1777, it is the oldest can ...

. At Burdett Road, the road forks in two, with

continuing to the left and West India Dock Road to the right. London Buses routes 15, 115 and 135 run along Commercial Road.

History

The George Tavern - 373 Commercial Road, London

Commercial Road was constructed in 1802–6 as a direct route to link dock traffic between the

West India Docks The West India Docks are a series of three docks, quaysides and warehouses built to import goods from and export goods and occasionally passengers to the British West Indies on the Isle of Dogs in London the first of which opened in 1802. Follow ...

and

East India Docks The East India Docks were a group of docks in Blackwall, east London, north-east of the Isle of Dogs. Today only the entrance basin and listed perimeter wall remain visible. History Early history Following the successful creation of the W ...

to the City of London. An Act of Parliament awarded construction to the Commercial Road Company, whose trustees were allowed to raise money and levy tolls. The road originally began at Back Church Lane and cut a straight line across fields north of the busy

Ratcliffe Highway The Highway, part of which was formerly known as the Ratcliffe Highway, is a road in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, in the East End of London. The route dates back to Roman times. In the 19th century it had a reputation for vice and cr ...

, taking advantage of land cleared by a major fire in 1794 that had destroyed a large part of the neighbourhood. By the 1830s it was almost entirely lined with houses all the way to Limehouse. In 1828, the Commercial Road Company built a tramway from Aberdeen granite along the road, to alleviate traffic concerns. The

London and Blackwall Railway Originally called the Commercial Railway, the London and Blackwall Railway (L&BR) in east London, England, ran from Minories to Blackwall via Stepney, with a branch line to the Isle of Dogs, connecting central London to many of London's docks. ...

was built parallel to Commercial Road; along with the numerous factories, this caused the street to become overcrowded and polluted. In the 1860s Commercial Road became a public road, with ownership transferring to the

Metropolitan Board of Works The Metropolitan Board of Works (MBW) was the principal instrument of local government in a wide area of Middlesex, Surrey, and Kent, defined by the Metropolis Management Act 1855, from December 1855 until the establishment of the London Cou ...

(MBW), and road tolls were abolished. In 1870, the MBW extended the street westwards to Gardiner's Corner, where it met Whitechapel High Street and Commercial Street. This junction remained in place until Gardner's was destroyed in a fire in the early 1970s. In 1943, Commercial Road was marked for improvement in the

County of London Plan The County of London Plan was prepared for the London County Council in 1943 by John Henry Forshaw (1895–1973) and Sir Leslie Patrick Abercrombie (1879–1957) Its main purpose was to point out the main directions of development and ...

, after much of the surrounding area had been destroyed by bombing. Numerous side streets south of the road towards Ratcliffe Highway were cleared of slums and replaced with modern housing. The Commercial Road Conservation Area was established by the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in 1989. It is focused on numerous

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

s around Nos. 300–334 about halfway along the road.

Buildings

The George Tavern is at No. 373. It was built around 1820–25 on the site of an earlier pub, the Halfway House, which had been established since at least 1654. It became Grade II listed in 1973. Albert Gardens lies to the south of Commercial Road. It was laid out in the early 19th century, originally named Albert Square Garden, and has largely survived intact into the 21st century. The square consists of three sides of three-storey residential buildings constructed in the 1840s, overlooking a railed garden. The other side faces onto Commercial Road. The land was brought by the

London County Council London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today kno ...

in 1899 to prevent development on the fourth side, and opened the land to the public in 1906. It was given its current name in 1937. Nos. 440–450 are all Grade II listed. They were built in the early 19th century as a terrace, and all span four storeys with parapets roofs, round arched entrances and panelled doors. The

Cinema at No. 490 was opened by George Coles and Arthur Roberts in 1933 on a former brewery site. It cost £250,000 to develop and could house over 3,000 people. The main theatre housed a revolving stage

Wurlitzer The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to as simply Wurlitzer, is an American company started in Cincinnati in 1853 by German immigrant (Franz) Rudolph Wurlitzer. The company initially imported stringed, woodwind and brass instruments ...

organ which could be raised from the orchestra pit to provide interval music; these have survived intact. It closed in 1960, reopening in 1963 as a training school for the Covent Garden Opera. It subsequently became a bingo hall. It was grade II listed in 1991. Limehouse Town Hall is at No. 646, constructed in 1879 by A. and C. Harston. It was badly damaged in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

and rebuilt as council offices. It has subsequently served as the

National Museum of Labour History The People's History Museum (the National Museum of Labour History until 2001) in Manchester, England, is the UK's national centre for the collection, conservation, interpretation and study of material relating to the history of working people ...

, a homeless shelter, and an arts centre. The Passmore Edwards Sailors Palace at No. 680 was built in 1901 in a Neo Tudor style. It has been Grade II listed since 1983. Star of the East, Limehouse, E14 (3679925886)

Star of the East, Limehouse, E14 (3679925886)

The Grade II listed former premises of Caird and Rayner Ltd at No. 777–783 was constructed in 1869. It contained a timber frame enclosed by a brick exterior. In 2010, it caught fire which destroyed most of the roof. Urgent repairs took place in 2010 in light of its listed status. The Star of the East, at No. 805 was built in the early 19th century, and Grade II listed in 1973. It was constructed from red brick with a slate roof. In 2019, urgent repairs were made to the premises in order for it to retain its listed status. The Church of St Mary and St Michael is at No. 340. It was designed by William Wardell and constructed between 1852 and 1856. A sloping roof was built over the entrance in the 1920s. It became Grade II listed in June 2001. The Congregation of Jacob Synagogue is at Nos. 351–353. It was founded in 1903 as Britain's first Mizrachi synagogues, and moved into the present building in 1920. The premises had been originally constructed by Lewis Solomon and Son. London's first mosque, the

East London Mosque The East London Mosque (ELM) is situated in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets between Whitechapel and Aldgate East. Combined with the adjoining London Muslim Centre and Maryam Centre, it is one of the largest mosques in Europe accommodating ...

, opened on Commercial Road in 1941 and remained there until it was relocated to Whitechapel in 1975. A K2 phone box outside No. 48 Commercial Road was Grade II listed in 1987. It was designed by

Giles Gilbert Scott Sir Giles Gilbert Scott (9 November 1880 – 8 February 1960) was a British architect known for his work on the New Bodleian Library, Cambridge University Library, Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford, Battersea Power Station, Liverpool Cathedral, and ...

and installed in 1927.

Traffic

As the main route between the City and the traditional East End, Commercial Road is the busiest road in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. There is continuous heavy traffic along the road, with limited opportunities for pedestrians crossing.

Nearby roads

Alie Street Alie Street is a 400 metre long street located in Aldgate, East London. It links Mansell Street with Commercial Road. For much of its history, the western part was known as Great Alie Street, with the eastern part called Little Alie Street. Histo ...

Cable Street Cable Street is a road in the East End of London, England, with several historic landmarks nearby. It was made famous by the Battle of Cable Street in 1936. Location Cable Street starts near the edge of London's financial district, the City ...

* Narrow Street

References