Stoke Newington

The Metropolitan Borough largely adopted the Ancient Parish's boundaries, including the eastern boundary which followed the A10 road, though there were minor rationalisations, notably the transfer of areas of Hornsey.

Stoke Newington's northern and western boundaries have become the north-west borders of the modern London Borough. The eastern boundary was formed by the A10 road where it goes by the name Stoke Newington High Street (originally High Street, until a name change in 1937[2]) and Stoke Newington Road (meaning the road to the hamlet of Stoke Newington), further south.

These boundaries included the sites of the small hamlet of Stoke Newington and part of Newington Green, however it excluded the open space known since the early 20th century as Stoke Newington Common (originally Cockhangar Green), and Stoke Newington railway station was built close to, but just outside this area.

More recently, Stoke Newington has come to be viewed by many as extending east of the A10 to overlap the AP\MB of Hackney to include West Hackney, an ill-defined area of the N16 postal area which includes Stoke Newington railway station, Rectory Road railway station and Stoke Newington Common.

As a consequence Stoke Newington, like nearby Stamford Hill, has become closely associated with the N16 postcode, though a significant part of western Stoke Newington is covered by the N4 postcode district.

The Manor (estate) of Stoke Newington was part of a huge block of land around London held by the Diocese of London. This broad area comprised many estates, stretching from the Manor of Stepney in the east (of which neighbouring Hackney was a part), to Willesden in the west and Hornsey in the north. The Manor is recorded, as Neutone, in the Domesday Book of 1086, as being part of the Ossulstone hundred of the county of Middlesex.[3] Domesday also records that the Manor was held by St Paul's both before and after the Norman Conquest. Stoke Newington was a Prebendary Manor, providing an income to the work of the cathedral.

The Ancient Parish of Stoke Newington was established to serve the area of the Manor with which it was coterminous[4] and, like other parishes would have had its boundaries permanently fixed by the 1180s,[5] even if the boundaries of the underlying Manor changed (though manor boundaries were generally stable at this early date).

From the Tudor period, parishes were obliged to take on a civil as well as ecclesiastical role, with the administration of the new Poor Law of 1601.

In the 17th century, the Ossulstone Hundred was sub-divided, with the parish of Stoke Newington, lying on the west side of Stoke Newington High Street, becoming part of the new Finsbury division and the parish of Hackney to the east becoming part of the Tower division.

The Ancient Parishes provided a framework for both civil (administrative) and ecclesiastical (church) functions, but during the nineteenth century there was a divergence into distinct civil and ecclesiastical parish systems. In London the Ecclesiastical Parishes sub-divided to better serve the needs of a growing population, while the Civil Parishes continued to be based on the same Ancient Parish areas.

The Metropolis Management Act 1855 merged the Civil Parishes of Hackney and Stoke Newington under a new Hackney District. This proved very unpopular, especially in more affluent Stoke Newington and after four unsuccessful attempts the two parishes regained their independence when they were separated by mutual consent under the Metropolis Management (Plumstead and Hackney) Act of 1893.[6]

The London Government Act 1899 converted the parishes into Metropolitan Boroughs based on the same boundaries, sometimes with mergers or minor boundary rationalisations . Stoke Newington was smaller than the desired size for the new boroughs, and there were proposals to re-merge Stoke Newington and Hackney, or to detach the northern part of Hackney and join it with Stoke Newington. These proposals were rejected due to the experience of "intolerable and interminable feuds" between the districts when they were previously "forced together", and because Parliament recognised that there was "great ill-feeling and mutual ill-will... between the inhabitants of the two districts".[7]

Coat of Arms of the Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington – the motto means 'Look to the past and look to the future'

Stoke Newington was permitted to become an independent Borough, and most of South Hornsey (also a part of the Finsbury Division was transferred to Stoke Newington in order to increase the size of the new authority. Parts of South Hornsey had previously been exclaves which separated southern Stoke Newington from the rest of the area. The Finsbury Division was abolished at that time.

Stoke Newington lost its independence in 1965, when it merged with the Metropolitan Boroughs of Hackney and Shoreditch to form the new London Borough of Hackney.

Stoke Newington is part of the Hackney North and Stoke Newington constituency which has been represented by Labour MP Diane Abbott since 1987.

Stoke Newington retains two parish churches. St Mary's Old Church (left) and New Church (right).

Stoke Newington or 'new town in the wood', has been lightly settled for hundreds of years, close to larger neighbouring Saxon settlements near the River Lea. In the 19th century it was discovered that Stoke Newington Common and Abney Park Cemetery had been part of a Neolithic working area for axe-making, some examples of which can be seen in the Museum of London.

In the Middle Ages and Tudor times, it was a very small village a few miles from the city of London, frequently visited by wayfarers as a pit stop before journeying north, Stoke Newington High Street being part of the Cambridge road (A10). At this date the whole manor was owned by St. Paul's Cathedral and yielded a small income, enough to support part of their work. During the 17th century the Cathedral sold the Manor to William Patten, who became the first Lord of the Manor. His initials 'WP' and the motto 'ab alto' can be seen inscribed above the doorway of the old church next to Clissold Park.

A century later, it passed to Lady Mary Abney who drew up the first detailed maps of field boundaries and began to lay out a manorial parkland behind today's fire station on Church Street, with the aid of her daughters and Dr Isaac Watts. During the course of the century, given its proximity to the city a number of Quaker and nonconformist families became settled in the area.

During the early 19th century, as London expanded, the Manor of Stoke Newington was "enfranchised" to be sold in parcels as freehold land for building purposes. Gradually the village became absorbed into the seamless expansion of London. It was no longer a separate village by the mid-to-late 19th century.

Being on the outskirts at this time, many expensive and large houses were built to house London's expanding population of nouveau riche whose journey to the commercial heart of the capital was made possible by the birth of the railways and the first omnibuses. The latter were first introduced into central London in the 1820s by George Shillibeer, following his successful trial of the world's first school bus for William Allen and Susanna Corder's novel Quaker school, Newington Academy for Girls. By the mid-19th century, Stoke Newington had "the largest concentration of Quakers in London", including many who had moved up the A10 from Gracechurch Street meeting house in the city. A meeting house was built in Park Street (now Yoakley Road) by the architect William Alderson, who later designed Hanwell Pauper and Lunatic Asylum.[8] The Anglican St Mary's Church, designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott in 1854–58, replaced the older parish church (also St. Mary's), which survives on the opposite side of Church Street.

St Mary's Lodge on Lordship Road, the 1843 home of architect and district surveyor John Young, is the last-surviving (though now ruined and derelict) of several grand detached houses built in the area around that time for well-off members of the new commuter class. Gibson Gardens, an early example of quality tenement buildings erected for the housing of 'the industrious classes', was built off Stoke Newington High Street in 1880 and still stands today.

As a late Victorian and Edwardian suburb, Stoke Newington prospered, and continued in relative affluence and civic pride with its own municipal government until changes brought about by the Second World War.

Between 1935 and 1937, the curved brick and Portland stone Town Hall was built for the Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington by J. Reginald Truelove.[9]

Abney Park Blitz memorial. Most of the space is taken up with the names of the victims of the 1940 Coronation Avenue incident.

During World War II, much of the area was damaged in the Blitz and many were made homeless, although the level of destruction was much lower than in those areas of East London further south such as Stepney or Shoreditch or even in next-door Hackney. The death toll was also relatively low: almost three-quarters of civilian deaths being due to one incident on 13 October 1940 when a crowded shelter at Coronation Avenue off the high street received a direct hit. The memorial to all the residents of the Borough who died in the air raids, including local Jewish people, can be seen in Abney Park Cemetery. Like Hackney, Stoke Newington avoided most of the later V-weapon attacks, which fell disproportionately on South London; seven V-1s and two V-2s hit the borough.

Most of the historic buildings at the heart of Stoke Newington survived, at least in a repairable state. Two notable exceptions are the classically grand parish church of West Hackney, St James's, on Stoke Newington Road, which dated from 1824, and St Faith's, a Victorian Gothic church by William Burges. Both were so severely damaged, the former in the October 1940 bombing, and the latter by a flying bomb in 1944, that they were entirely demolished. St James's was replaced after the war by a much more modest structure, St Paul's, which is set well back from the street. Traces of the old church's stonework can still be seen facing Stoke Newington Road.

During the war a substantial amount of residential housing had been destroyed, and in the armath much was demolished, being considered beyond economic repair. Postwar redevelopment has replaced many of these areas with large estates, some more successful than others. Much of this residential redevelopment was planned by Frederick Gibberd, the designer of Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral.

Communist Party meetings were held in the Town Hall in the post-war years. From the 1970s onwards the area has experienced, or been associated with, a number of terrorist acts. The 'Stoke Newington 8' were arrested on 20 August 1971 at 359 Amhurst Road for suspected involvement in The Angry Brigade bombings.

Stoke Newington Bookshop, one of the many independent retailers in Stoke Newington

Stoke Newington residents Patrick Hayes and Jan Taylor (not originally from the area) were convicted of two IRA bombings and had substantial links to lorry bombs in the 1990s. Both were arrested, firing at officers in Walford Road and later sentenced to thirty years imprisonment.

Muktar Said Ibrahim was convicted, as the ring leader, on an indictment of conspiracy to murder. He planted a failed bomb on a 26 bus, which misfired later on the Hackney Road on 21 July 2005. In February 2005, police were seeking Ibrahim on an arrest warrant for an outstanding public order offence. After the attack, Ibrahim was seen on the run in Farleigh Road and was later arrested in Dalgrano Gardens. He was sentenced to life imprisonment, to serve a minimum of forty years before being considered for release.

These days, Stoke Newington is a very multicultural area, with large Asian, Irish, Turkish, Jewish and Afro-Caribbean communities. The area continues to be home to many new and emerging communities such as Polish and Somali immigrants.

Stoke Newington has undergone major gentrification, as have neighbouring Newington Green, Canonbury and Dalston. Church Street includes many independent shops, pubs, bars and cafes.

In 2022 traders formed the Stoke Newington Business Association and launched "See you in Stokey" - a website dedicated to the area including event listings, articles, area guides and much more.

• Benthal Primary
• Betty Layward Primary
• Grasmere Primary
• Grazebrook Primary
• Holmleigh Primary
• Princess May Primary
• Jubilee Primary
• Simon Marks Jewish Primary School[15][16]
• Sir Thomas Abney
• Saint Mary's Church of England Primary
• Saint Matthias Church of England Primary
• William Patten Primary

• Stoke Newington School
• Our Lady's Catholic High School
• Skinners' Academy
• Tawhid Boys School

• Newington Academy for Girls, a Quaker school established 1824 by William Allen
• Fleetwood Primary School
• Palatine School, Palatine Road.
• William Wordsworth Secondary School, Wordsworth Road (but official address Palatine Road). This was the old Palatine School.
• Daniel Defoe Secondary School, Ayresome Road. William Wordsworth Secondary School merged with Daniel Defoe Secondary School in 1965 to become Clissold Park School. Both buildings were used until a new school building was built in Clissold Road. The school merged with Woodberry Down Comprehensive to become Stoke Newington School.

• Lady Mary Abney (1676–1750), inherited the manor and commissioned the first map-based survey.
• George Maxwell Alagiah(1955-2023) Ceylonese-born British newsreader, journalist and television presenter.
• William Allen (1770–1843), Quaker, philanthropist, scientist, abolitionist, and pioneer of girls' education – lived most of his life in Stoke Newington.
• Anna Laetitia Barbauld (1743–1825), writer and poet, lived at 113 Stoke Newington Church Street
• Wynne Edwin Baxter (1844–1920), coroner for several of the Jack the Ripper murders of 1888, died at his home in Church Street in 1920.
• Joseph Conrad (1857–1924), author of Heart of Darkness, lived in Stoke Newington.
• Susanna Corder (1787–1864), educationist and Quaker biographer
• Daniel Defoe (c. 1660–1731), writer—born and lived on Church Street.
• Charles Fleetwood (1618–1692), Parliamentary General during the English Civil War, later Lord Deputy of Ireland and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces lived in Stoke Newington.
• Joseph Jackson Fuller (1825–1908), Jamaican missionary to precolonial West Africa.
• Leopold George Hill (1866-1922), English medical missionary to South China
• Samuel Hoare (1751–1825), Quaker and abolitionist lived in Paradise Row, Stoke Newington.
• John Howard (1726–1790), founding father of the prison reform movement, lived in Stoke Newington.
• Joseph John Jefferson (1795–1882), pacifist, minister for Abney Park Chapel and cemetery.
• Joseph Jackson Lister (1786–1869), Quaker, amateur opticist and physicist, inventor of the modern microscope and the father of Joseph Lister; spent his early married life in Stoke Newington.
• Thomas Manton (1620–1677), appointed minister of St Mary's Church 1644/5; a forthright defender of Reformed principles and one of Oliver Cromwell's chaplains.
• Marguerite Merington (1857–1951), writer, was born in Stoke Newington.
• Samuel Morley MP (1809–1886), businessman, statesman, philanthropist and abolitionist—lived in Stoke Newington.
• Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849), American writer – attended Rev’d. John Bransby's Manor School on Church Street about 1818 while his Scottish-born foster parents visited the United Kingdom.
• John Scott (1757–1832), evangelical pacifist, one of the founders of the Peace Society moved to Stoke Newington in 1826.
• James Richardson Spensley (1867–1915), doctor, Genoa CFC footballer, manager, Scout Leader and medic was born in 1867 in Stoke Newington.
• James Stephen (1758–1832), slavery abolitionist—his father moved the family home to Stoke Newington in 1774.
• Felix Swinstead (1880-1959), pianist and composer, was born in Stoke Newington
• Isaac Watts (1674–1748), theologian, logician and hymnwriter—lived and died at Abney House.
• Joseph Woods (1776–1864), Quaker, botanist and architect, son of a founding abolitionist by the same name.
• John Young (architect) (1797–1877), a Suffolk man who settled in the area and moved in lofty professional circles, but retained his link with the earth through highly creative brickwork.

• Diane Abbott, MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington and first black, woman MP, lived in Palatine Avenue.
• Bad Manners come from Stoke Newington. The band were formed at Woodberry Down comprehensive school in 1976.
• Richard Bebb, actor, theatre historian, music archivist—lived in St Mary's Lodge, Lordship Road, as a child.
• Mark 'Bedders' Bedford, bass player with Madness—lives in Stoke Newington.
• Ronan Bennett, writer of BBC Dramas Hidden and C4's Top Boy, born in Ireland, lives in Stoke Newington.
• Violet Berlin, television presenter and script writer for interactive/immersive experiences —lives in Stoke Newington
• Buster Bloodvessel, 1980s pop star, lived on Batley Road.
• Marc Bolan (born, Mark Feld), musician—lived at 25a Stoke Newington Common until age 15 and went to William Wordsworth Secondary School.
• Richard Boon the former manager of Buzzcocks, lives in Stoke Newington and formerly worked at Stoke Newington Library.
• Eric Bristow (1957–2018), five times world professional darts champion—born in Stoke Newington and lived at 97 Milton Grove.
• Catherine Mary Buckton (1826-1904), campaigner and writer
• Saffron Burrows, actress, grew up in Stoke Newington and attended Stoke Newington School.
• Asa Butterfield, actor, attended Stoke Newington School, lives in Islington.
• Clem Cattini, musician—born in Stoke Newington.
• Ralph Cooperman (1927–2009), Olympic fencer born in Stoke Newington.
• Sir Horace Cutler (1912–1997), politician—born in the district.
• Fyfe Dangerfield, lead singer of Guillemots lives in Stoke Newington.
• John Diamond (1953–2001), journalist and radio presenter—born in Stoke Newington.
• Elton Dean, experimental jazz saxophonist from Bluesology lived in Stoke Newington.
• DJ Dextrous, Ivor Novello and BAFTA awards winning Producer/DJ—born in Stoke Newington.
• Rupert Evans, film and theatre actor, lives in Stoke Newington.
• Paloma Faith, singer and actress, raised in Stoke Newington.
• Caroline Flack, TV presenter, died in Stoke Newington
• Paul Foot (1937–2004), political activist and writer—born in Palestine, lived in Stoke Newington.
• Reginald Fox, actor, was born in Stoke Newington on 22 December.
• Jonathan Freedland, journalist and author—lives in Stoke Newington.
• Rebecca Front, actress, was born in Stoke Newington.
• Nick Grimshaw, Radio and Television personality lives in Clissold Crescent, Stoke Newington.
• Maurice Hope, professional boxer, went to William Wordsworth Secondary School, Stoke Newington.
• Gareth Jones, aka Gaz Top, TV presenter and producer—lives in Stoke Newington.
• Paul Jones, lead singer with Manfred Mann (now solo) lived at 110 Milton Grove.
• Hugh Gater Jenkins, Baron Jenkins of Putney (1908–2004), representative 1958–1965 of the Stoke Newington & Hackney constituency on the London County Council.
• Labrinth, singer, went to Stoke Newington School.
• Led by Donkeys founders James Sadri, Oliver Knowles, Will Rose and Ben Stewart came up with their idea in Stoke Newington.
• Stewart Lee, comedian and writer – lives in Stoke Newington.
• Michael Levy, Baron Levy (born 1944), impresario and political fundraiser—born in Stoke Newington.
• Bernard Lewis (1916–2018), historian of Islam and the Middle East, born in Stoke Newington.
• Ken Livingstone (born 1945), former Mayor of London, was the representative for Stoke Newington on the Greater London Council between 1977 and 1981.
• Zöe Lucker, actress in Holbyblue & Footballers Wives lives in Stoke Newington.
• Jean Marsh, actress and writer, was born in Stoke Newington.
• Sheila MacLeod, novelist and reviewer, and ex-Wife of singer Paul Jones, lived at 110 Milton Grove, Stoke Newington.
• Malcolm McLaren, manager of The Sex Pistols, brought up at 49 Carysfort Road, Stoke Newington.
• Warren Mitchell, actor—born in the district.
• Kevin MacNeil, Hebridean-born novelist, poet and playwright, lives in Stoke Newington.
• Rodney Marsh, footballer Queen's Park Rangers FC lived in Palatine Road, Stoke Newington as a child.
• John Matthews, footballer – joined Arsenal as a 16-year-old apprentice, lived at 51 Church Walk.
• Thurston Moore, musician—lives in Stoke Newington.
• David O'Leary, football manager and Arsenal appearance record holder—born in Stoke Newington.
• Roy Pack, footballer – Arsenal and Portsmouth, born in Stoke Newington and lived at 9 Shelley House, Shakespeare Walk, Stoke Newington.
• Professor Green, (real name Stephen Manderson), rapper, went to Stoke Newington Secondary School.
• Pauline Quirke, actress, born in Hackney, brought up at 79 Gibson Gardens, Stoke Newington.
• Andrew Ranken, drummer in The Pogues lives in Stoke Newington.
• Maverick Sabre, singer-songwriter, was born in Stoke Newington.
• Tjinder Singh, lead singer of Cornershop, lives in Stoke Newington.
• Chris Singleton, Irish singer-songwriter, lives in Stoke Newington.
• Barbara Windsor, actress in EastEnders and the Carry On films—born in Shoreditch but grew up in Stoke Newington living in Yoakley Road and Bouverie Road.