London Bridge

The Man with the Twisted Lip and London Bridge

~ Lizzie Gruhl
Photographer unknown, 1890s London Bridge

london bridge

The London Bridge, the first stone bridge to be built in England across the Thames from the city of London to Southwark. The bridge has been rebuilt numerous times over the years it has been around (Victorian Web).

 

 

FullSizeRender

Although many versions of this bridge have been built, the bridge designed by John Rennie and built by his sons John and George Rennie would have been the one that was mentioned in Sir Authur Conan Doyle’s work (Victorian Web).

london bridge

 

In the particular story, The Man with the Twisted Lip , we see the London Bridge when Watson is in search for one of his patients in an Opium Den. When Victorians read this story they would have known that around the London Bridge, Opium Dens would be present. Opium was always associated with people of the east (from Asia) and sailors. Surrounding London Bridge were many docks. Opium Dens popped up around these docks because of the association of opium and sailors/Asians. Doyle makes it ironic in the fact that the man out of his mind in the opium den is an “upstanding” patient of Dr.Watson.

Opium dens were perfectly legal at this time however  “good” men were known to get lost in them. These men changed as soon as they stepped into the den. For instance Mr. Neville St. Claire who has “disappeared” has actually changed his whole persona into a beggar. The reader can then see the London Bridge as a turning point. Once the men have crossed that bridge and made their way to the dens, they are changed themselves.

Another inference that could be made is the bridge is a symbol. The bridge, as said before, has changed numerous times.From tinder to stone to being moved a few yards.. Although Victorians may have not seen the recent changes, they would have known of a few that have happened over time and  may have witnessed one themselves. The characters are crossing a bridge that has changed numerous, to be “changed” themselves.

 

 

Sources

http://www.victorianweb.org/victorian/art/architecture/feist/30.html

http://www.victorianweb.org/graphics/fearnside/47.html

http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/english/currentstudents/undergraduate/modules/fulllist/special/endsandbeginnings/twistedlip.pdf

http://www.britannica.com/topic/Old-London-Bridge

 

London Bridge in “A Lost Masterpiece”

~ Ryan ~ 1 Comment
London Bridge

 

Bridges in Victorian London were not just a method of travel and a way to improve commerce; they were a path that led to assimilation between the north and south and one of the biggest factors in the expansion of the city. London Bridge itself happens to be almost directly in the center of London and therefore, both auto traffic as well as foot traffic are extremely plentiful. In fact, according to The Victorian Web’s London Bridge section, it states that approximately 22,000 vehicles and 110,000 pedestrians cross the bridge every day.

With the amount of traffic the bridge sees every day and the fact that it is located in the heart of the city, it is not difficult to surmise that there is quite a bit of criminal activity to be found on or near this landmark. When a search is done on the Old Bailey crime website, 102 matches pop up as opposed to the ten that can be found when searching a less treacherous location such as Green Park. Of the 102 matches, 99 of them are theft—most of which are small pickpocketing crimes but still plenty more are much worse. One account told the story of Sarah Arnold and Margret Atkins who were both attacked and carried from the bridge to a nearby tavern, where the attackers told the tavern owner that they were taking the women to a Justice of the Peace for treason. The article also states: “[Mrs. Arnold] declares, that they used her in a very uncivil manner, and gave abundance of ill names.” Now I may be imposing my own modern perspective, but the implications of that sentence seem to point to more than just theft. I personally believe that a lot more than just 102 accounts of criminal activity occurred on this bridge, just not all of it might be written down.

A huge factor in the fact that there is a lot more crime that happens on London Bridge as opposed to other places is the fact that there is a diverse economic standing among the residents that live nearby. As you can see on the map below, Borough High Street—the road just before you would reach London Bridge—is marked red for middle class, well-to-do, and is second on the Booth Poverty website in terms of wealth. Surrounding these wealthy citizens however (shown in light blue, blue, and black respectively), are the poor, the very poor, and the lowest class. The mix of these socioeconomic backgrounds on one main bridge might be the reason so much crime takes place as well as the fact that it is mostly theft.

Economic map of street leading to London Bridge
Economic map of street leading to London Bridge

In “A Lost Masterpiece” the narrator is the picture of conversion from country life to city life—full of optimism for a bright and better future. On their five mile steamboat ride up the Thames from Chelsea to London Bridge, they comment on their surroundings: “The river was wrapped in a delicate grey haze with a golden sub-tone, like a beautiful bright thought struggling for utterance through a mist of obscure words.” Even enveloped by greyness, the narrator still sees a golden hope shining through the fog. Throughout the text, they use words such as “drowned creatures,” “monster chimneys,” “murky depths,” and “hideous green.” Yet in the end they still say, “But what cared I? Was I not happy, absurdly happy?” I think there is a deep naivety in all immigration—be it to a foreign country or just to a city. But just as people from all over the world believe that immigrating to America will open up a new and better life for themselves, moving from country to city is just as much a fantasy. Their steamboat ride symbolizes this move perfectly: riding on a giant piece of industry into the very heart of industry. And perhaps the end of the story is a falling from on high—that in the same way that their bright optimism and inspiration is dashed by a rushing city girl, the hope of a brave new world, a beautiful world, is taken into perspective and mellowed.

Chelsea: Connecting East and West London

~ Jordana Jampel

Screen Shot 2015-09-10 at 12.43.45 AMLocated in the northwestern region of London, Chelsea was a predominantly well-off and bustling neighborhood that revolved around Chelsea Rd. and the Chelsea Rd. Bridge. In “A Lost Masterpiece,” the main character (who remains nameless) makes his way to the Chelsea wharf and there loads a steamer to travel east up the Thames River. Interestingly enough, Chelsea’s wharves were the first ferry transportation portals along the Thames River, which made Chelsea a fast-developing part of London. In 1816, the steamboat was introduced to the Thames River and by the 1830’s steamboat traffic was  booming, especially between Chelsea Bridge and London Bridge. Not only did the town of Chelsea serve as a gateway due to the many wharves that popped up along the Thames, but the Chelsea Bridge also became one of the most used roads/highways by this time as well, as it connected the Royal Hospital to the rest of London .

The Chelsea Bridge was erected sometime during the 15th century, under the name Battersea Bridge, but with the introduction of auto-transportation, Chelsea’s reputation of being a travel hub continually grew. With so much access to and from Chelsea, it seems as though during the Victorian Era, and probably the eras to follow as well, Chelsea was a major part of London that really allowed Londoners to use the Thames River for travel. The article, “The parish of Chelsea: Communication,” explains, “in 1844 eight steamboats travelled between London Bridge and Chelsea, four times an hour, and traffic was increasing. Chelsea vestry saw steamboats – quick, cheap, and comfortable – as potentially the common transport of residents of the densely-populated shore.” Egerton’s main character makes this journey in “A Lost Masterpiece,” which is significant because Chelsea Bridge and wharf is what connects the Western wealthy end of London to the slummy, factory ridden east end. The Booth Poverty map shows that during the Victorian era, the areas in and around Chelsea were populated well-to-do- middle-classers, while the area around London Bridge is shaded to indicate the poverty and crime. Chelsea’s bringing together of the contrasting regions of London is also apparent in the way the main character describes his observations once getting off the steamer by London Bridge. He does not see the filth and poverty surrounding him, rather finds the east-end of London delightful and curious:

“The youth played mechanically, without a trace of emotion; whilst the harpist, whose nose is a study in purples and whose bloodshot eyes have the glassy brightness of drink, felt every touch of beauty in the poor little tune, and drew it tenderly forth. They added the musical note to my joyous mood ; the poetry of the city dovetailed harmoniously with country scenes too recent to be treated as memories—and I stepped off the boat with the melody vibrating through the city sounds.”

Although his main character sees the industrial area through an optimistic lens, Egerton’s mention that the music was played mechanically and without emotion is indicative of the actual situation and quality of life that was present in the eastern portion of London. Although the music the main character hears adds more joy to his already joyous mood, the way in which the music is produced is melancholy and representative of the proletariat’s factory labor, which only benefits the bourgeoisie, as the sad music only benefited the seemingly wealthier observing character. Through his mention of Chelsea, especially as the port town the main character uses to access the slums, Egerton is calling attention and awareness to the two extremely opposing “Londons” within the City of London.

 

Works Cited

Booth, Charles. “Booth Poverty Map & Modern Map (Charles Booth Online Archive).” Booth Poverty Map & Modern Map (Charles Booth Online Archive). London School of Economics & Political Science, n.d. Web. 09 Sept. 2015.

Egerton, George [Mary Chavelita Dunne Bright]. “A Lost Masterpiece.” The Yellow Book 1 (Apr. 1894): 189-96.The Yellow Nineties Online. Ed. Dennis Denisoff and Lorraine Janzen Kooistra. Ryerson University, 2010. Web. 09 Sept. 2015.

‘Settlement and building: From 1680 to 1865, Chelsea Village or Great Chelsea’, in A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 12, Chelsea, ed. Patricia E C Croot (London, 2004), pp. 31-40. Web. 09 Sept. 2015.

‘The parish of Chelsea: Communications’, in A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 12, Chelsea, ed. Patricia E C Croot (London, 2004), pp. 2-13. Web. 09 Sept. 2015.

 

London Bridge in “A Lost Masterpiece”

~ Daniela ~ 2 Comments

 

Screen Shot 2015-09-04 at 9.27.22 PM

The bridges of London are crossroads of international commerce and markets but they are also a place for crime especially during the Victorian Era. There was everything from pocket picking to assaults. One case I found in the Old Bailey Proceedings that occurred in the summer of 1894 documents a case in which a bargeman pulled a gun and fired at a group of boys that were noted to have been seen throwing stones at boats from the London Bridge (. Not much else is noted about the individual who was injured and brought charges against the bargeman but modern readers can almost picture such a bustling waterway full of commerce and life but also conflict.

30
http://www.victorianweb.org/victorian/art/architecture/feist/30.html

 

London Bridge was an especially busy place with a very rich history. In Old and New London¸ writer Walter Thornbury states that London Bridge “was a battle-field and a place of religious worship, a resort of traders and a show-place for traitors’ heads.” During the Tudor reign, it was regularly used to showcase the heads of those convicted of treason. It has a dark history its transformation into one of the main trade centers in London makes it a perfect place to examine in the context of “A Lost Masterpiece.” London was still advancing technologically and socially before the turn of the century when this short story takes place. The movement of time as well as modern movement is important to understand Victorian texts.

The narrator in “A Lost Masterpiece,” states that she “boarded a river steamer bound for London Bridge.” There is a theme of social mobility present in London society at this time which is why so many people came in from the countryside for the opportunities London had. The narrator herself establishes this by stating she had come in from the countryside because she was bored with life there and missed the excitement of London and all the inspiring material it presented for her literary endeavors. Physical mobility is also represented by the steamer the narrator boards at Chelsea and London Bridge. The travel from West to East along the Thames could be a symbol for the migration of individuals from the country to the city. It also represents the movement occurring within London itself, which the narrator observes as she simultaneously acknowledges her role in the scheme of things. She declares, “I was simply an interested spectator of a varied panorama.” As the keen observer, she is capturing images of several different kinds of Londoners as she herself becomes part of this inner city movement. The language she uses to describe her thoughts are also tied to movement, she is “touching a hundred vagrant things with the magic of imagination, making a running comment on the scenes we passed.” By transitioning to using the word ‘we’ instead of the word ‘I’ as she frequently does in the beginning, the narrator has moved from an outsider in London to part of the London dwellers she describes. Additionally, she describes her thoughts as ‘running’, which further reinforces the theme of movement.

 

 

 

 

 

Works Cited

Egerton, George. “A Lost Masterpiece.” The Yellow Nineties Online. The Yellow Nineties Online, n.d. Web. 05 Sept. 2015.

Old Bailey Proceedings Online (www.oldbaileyonline.org, version 7.2, 05 September 2015),   July 1894, trial of WILLIAM BAVINGTON (50) (t18940723-626).

Walter Thornbury, ‘London Bridge’, in Old and New London: Volume 2 (London, 1878), pp. 9-17 http://www.british-history.ac.uk/old-new-london/vol2/pp9-17 [accessed 1 September 2015].

“Victorian Google Maps.” Victorian Google Maps. Google, n.d. Web. 05 Sept. 2015.

http://www.victorianweb.org/victorian/art/architecture/feist/30.html