Bakers Arms is an intersection and arguably a district on the boundary of

Leyton Leyton ( ) is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It borders Walthamstow to the north, Leytonstone to the east, and Stratford to the south, with Clapton, Hackney Wick and Homerton, across the Ri ...

and

Walthamstow Walthamstow ( or ) is a town within the London Borough of Waltham Forest in east London. The town borders Chingford to the north, Snaresbrook and South Woodford to the east, Leyton and Leytonstone to the south, and Tottenham to the west. At ...

, in the

London Borough of Waltham Forest The London Borough of Waltham Forest () is an Outer London, outer London boroughs, London borough formed in 1965 from the merger of the municipal boroughs of Municipal Borough of Leyton, Leyton, Municipal Borough of Walthamstow, Walthamstow an ...

. It is named after a former

public house A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption Licensing laws of the United Kingdom#On-licence, on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the ...

which stood at the junction of High Road Leyton, Hoe Street (both A112) and Lea Bridge Road ( A104). The pub's name was derived from the nearby

almshouses An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) is charitable organization, charitable public housing, housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the Middle Ages. They were often built for the povert ...

for members of London's baking trade, which were completed in 1866. The first record of a publican at the Baker's Arms was in 1868. The pub closed in 2010, and the premises now operate as a betting shop. There are several food stores, pubs and cafes, and a variety of other retail outlets.

Transport

Bakers Arms is a hub on the London Bus network. Bus routes passing through the junction are 20, 55, 56, 69, 97, 230, 257, 357, N26, N38, N55, W15, W16 and W19. The closest railway station is Leyton Midland Road on the Gospel Oak to Barking line.

The Bakers' Almshouses

The Bakers Arms pub was itself named after the

approximately 100 yards further south in Lea Bridge Road. They were built between 1857 and 1866 by the Master Bakers' Benevolent Institution (now the Bakers' Benevolent Society) for "any respectable member of the baking trade fallen into poverty, eligible according to the rules, or to the widow of such". The 52 almshouses were built on three sides of a square, with turrets at the angles, in the Italianate style by the architect Thomas Edward Knightley. On 24 September 1916, twenty two of the flats were damaged by bombs dropped by the German Navy

Zeppelin A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp. 155� ...

''L31''. In the late 1960s, the almshouses were compulsorily purchased by the

Greater London Council The Greater London Council (GLC) was the top-tier local government administrative body for Greater London from 1965 to 1986. It replaced the earlier London County Council (LCC) which had covered a much smaller area. The GLC was dissolved in 198 ...

for a road widening scheme. The last retired baker moved to new accommodation in Bakers Lane, Epping in 1971. However, the almshouses were saved from demolition because of their architectural merit and were given a Grade II

Listed Building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

status. The buildings were subsequently purchased by Waltham Forest Council and refurbished as residential flats.Waltham Forest Guardian: Historic homes create "oasis" in Leyton, 9 April 2010.
/ref>

References

External links

Photograph of the Bakers' Alms HousesThe Bakers Arms junction in 1903
{{LB Waltham Forest Districts of the London Borough of Waltham Forest Areas of London Road junctions in London District centres of London