The
House of Charity (The House of St Barnabas-in-Soho), 1 Greek Street WC1. The
shell of the house was built in 1746 as part of a speculative development and
stood empty for eight years until Richard Beckford took it over (his brother
William Beckford, the Lord Mayor of London lived a few doors away at 22 Soho
Square). In under three months the house was completed and boasts what is said
to one of the finest English rococo-style interiors in London. Of particular
interest is the drawing room of the house (known now as the Council Room). This
is on the first floor corner of the house and overlooks Greek Street and Soho
Square. It has a very elaborate ceiling - and had a very fine fireplace (sold in
1864 to help pay for the chapel on Manette Street).
Soho became a far less fashionable place - and the house proved hard to sell. In 1811 it became the offices of the Westminster Commissioner for Works for Sewers (later known as the Metropolitan Board of Works - the first metropolitan-wide local government for London - established in 1855). Under Sir Joseph Bazalgette (the chief engineer) the Commissioners set about one of the most significant engineering feats of the nineteenth century - the construction of the sewage system and the bringing of piped water to houses to replace the infamous system of street water pumps. Later the Board was to oversee the development of Charing Cross Road, Shaftesbury Avenue and other major streets.
In 1862 the house was taken over by The House of Charity. It had been established in 1846 to provide temporary accommodation for homeless poor people. A distinguished group of Anglicans were responsible for setting and running the house. These included: Dr Henry Munro (of Bethlehem Hospital - ‘Bedlam’) W. E. Gladstone (then Colonial Secretary and later Prime Minister) and F. D. Maurice (Professor of Theology at Kings College and later known as a key Christian Socialist and founder of the Working Men’s College). Their first property was round the corner at 9 Manette Street (then Rose Street). It was a former workhouse designed by James Paine Jnr. in 1770.
The House of Charity was one of the first hostels in London - and helped over 300,000 people. The concern was to provide short-term accommodation while people got on their feet. Daily church attendance was expected - hence the fine little chapel (on Manette Street). There were plans to build a substantial community here - but these had to be left on one side as money got short.
Charles Dickens used the house and gardens as a model for the London lodgings of Dr Manette and Lucy in Tale of Two Cities. There has been some debate about when and how he came to know the house. It might be that he visited the house while the Board of Works occupied it. Another version has him staying there for a while after he broke up with his wife - and that he wrote some of Tale of Two Cities while there.
In March 2006 the House stopped providing residential accommodation. It was no longer viable as dormitory accommodation. The Charity continues to provide a range of training and educational opportunities for those who have experienced homelessness.
Avery, D. (1995, 1999) The House of St Barnabas-in-Soho, London: The House of St Barnabas-in-Soho.
Weinreb, B. and Hibbert, C. (eds.) (1983) The London Encyclopaedia, London: Macmillan.
House of St Barnabas-in-Soho website:
http://www.houseofstbarnabas.org.uk/
Note: This page is part of our virtual walk around the history of informal education (in central London).
Walking for real: If you would like to do the informal education walk for real then why not join us on our next scheduled walk. It's free! Follow the link for joining details.
© Mark K. Smith 1999. Last update:
June 18, 2009
