Rowton Houses was a chain of

hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory sleeping 4–20 people, with shared use of a lounge and usually a kitchen. Rooms can be private or shared - mixe ...

s built in London, England, by the Victorian

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

Lord Rowton to provide decent accommodation for working men in place of the squalid lodging houses of the time.

George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950) was an English novelist, poet, essayist, journalist, and critic who wrote under the pen name of George Orwell. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to a ...

, in his 1933 book ''

Down and Out in Paris and London ''Down and Out in Paris and London'' is the first full-length work by the English author George Orwell, published in 1933. It is a memoir in two parts on the theme of poverty in the two cities. Its target audience was the middle- and upper-cla ...

'', wrote about lodging houses: The Rowton Houses throughout London were: * Rowton House, 1 – 9 Bondway,

Vauxhall Vauxhall ( , ) is an area of South London, within the London Borough of Lambeth. Named after a medieval manor called Fox Hall, it became well known for the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens. From the Victorian period until the mid-20th century, Va ...

, 1892 * Kings Cross, 1894 (the serial killer John Christie stayed here for four nights in 1953 shortly before his arrest). Rowton House at King’s Cross continued in operation until 1960. The building was renovated for £300,000 and opened on 9 October 1961 as the Mount Pleasant Hotel. *Parkview House in

Newington Butts Newington Butts is a former hamlet, now an area of the London Borough of Southwark, London, England, that gives its name to a segment of the A3 road running south-west from the Elephant and Castle junction. The road continues as Kennington Park ...

, 1897. Became the London Park Hotel in the 1970s. Demolished as part of a major redevelopment of the area in 2007. *

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. It ...

, 1897, later demolished *Tower House in

Whitechapel Whitechapel () is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is the location of Tower Hamlets Town Hall and therefore the borough tow ...

, 1902. The building has since been developed into luxury housing.

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...

stayed there for a fortnight in 1907. * Arlington House in

Camden Town Camden Town () is an area in the London Borough of Camden, around north-northwest of Charing Cross. Historically in Middlesex, it is identified in the London Plan as one of 34 major centres in Greater London. Laid out as a residential distri ...

, 1905. The last and largest of the Houses, and the only one to remain in use , with supported accommodation for 95 homeless people, other affordable accommodation, and a conference centre. For its first 80 years it had capacity for 1,200 tenants. The architect for the bulk of the houses was Harry Bell Measures FRIBA, who also designed the tube stations for the Central London Railway in 1900 and was well known as the designer of many army barracks. There was also a Rowton House in Highgate, Birmingham, which opened on 29 June 1903. It was built by the Birmingham Rowton Houses Ltd, from the designs and under the supervision of Measures. This building later became a hotel.

References

External links

{{Commonscat
Workhouses web site
section on Rowton Houses

Homelessness charities in the United Kingdom