Visit East London Places

Welcome to Visit East London Places
The Walkfo guide to things to do & explore in East London

  

East London Places Overview: History, Culture & Facts about East London

---

East London history

---

Emergence

The East End was the urbanised part of an area called the Tower Division, which owed military service to the Tower of London since time immemorial. Shoreditch’s boundary with the parish of St Luke’s (which, like its predecessor St Giles-without-Cripplegate, served the Finsbury area) ran through the Moorfields countryside.

Growth

Until about 1700, London did not extend far beyond the walled boundaries of the City of London. The industries associated with the River Thames, such as shipbuilding and the docks, encouraged growth in the east. Areas further east developed in the Victorian and Edwardian eras after the expansion of the railways in the 19th century.

Toponymy

John Strype’s map of 1720 describes London as consisting of four parts: The City of London, Westminster, Southwark and “That Part Beyond the Tower” From late 19th century the term East End of London was used to describe areas adjacent to the City in the Tower division of Middlesex. Charles Booth in 1889 defined East London as the County of London between the City and the River Lea. In 1902 he now considered this area to be the “true East End”

East London economy & business

River crossings

The City and West London are connected to South London by more than thirty bridges. East London is only connected by Tower Bridge at its innermost edge. Until the end of the 20th century the East was connected to the South by just one railway line.

Railways

The majority of the rail network in East London was built within fifty years from 1839. The first through the area was the Eastern Counties Railway from Mile End to Romford, extended to Shoreditch in 1840. Stratford made Stratford a significant railway junction and location of railway works.

Redevelopment

Thames Gateway extends into East London with two areas of activity: the Lower Lea Valley around the Olympic site and London Riverside adjacent to the Thames. London Docklands was defined in the 1980s as the area of redevelopment under the control of the London Dockland Development Corporation.

East London geography / climate

Limits and extent

The East End is the inner core of East London. Both are usually understood to be east of the City of London and north of the River Thames.

E postal district

The E (Eastern) postcode area was introduced in 1857 to facilitate the distribution of mail. It is a sub-set of East London, with notable exclusions: Central areas covered by central London EC postcodes.

Planning Policy Sub-region

The 2011 iteration of the London Plan included an altered ‘East’ region. It includes seven boroughs north of the river and three to the south of it. Greenwich, Bexley and Lewisham are rarely called ‘east London’ These boroughs are poorly connected to the north.

Physical geography

East London is generally the lowest elevated of London’s four cardinal points because of the wide Thames that runs here. The marshes along the Thames which once stretched from Wapping to Rainham are almost completely gone.

You can visit East London places with Walkfo East London to hear history at East London’s places whilst walking around using the free digital tour app. Walkfo East London has 113 places to visit in our interactive East London map, with amazing history, culture & travel facts you can explore the same way you would at a museum or art gallery with information audio headset. With Walkfo, you can travel by foot, bike or bus throughout East London, being in the moment, without digital distraction or limits to a specific walking route. Our historic audio walks, National Trust interactive audio experiences, digital tour guides for English Heritage locations are available at East London places, with a AI tour guide to help you get the best from a visit to East London & the surrounding areas.

“Curated content for millions of locations across the UK, with 113 audio facts unique to East London places in an interactive East London map you can explore.”

Walkfo: Visit East London Places Map
113 tourist, history, culture & geography spots

---

–

East London historic spots	East London tourist destinations	East London plaques	East London geographic features
Walkfo East London tourism map key: places to see & visit like National Trust sites, Blue Plaques, English Heritage locations & top tourist destinations in East London

  

Best East London places to visit

---

East London has places to explore by foot, bike or bus. Below are a selection of the varied East London’s destinations you can visit with additional content available at the Walkfo East London’s information audio spots:

East London East London is a popularly and informally defined part of London. It is east of the ancient City of London and north of the River Thames. It comprises the London boroughs of Barking and Dagenham, Hackney, Havering, Newham, Redbridge, Tower Hamlets and Waltham Forest.

Visit East London plaques