Newham at Work: People and Industries Through the Years

The London Borough of Newham was created in 1965 by the merger of the County Borough Councils of East Ham and West Ham. At first, industry was concentrated on the banks of the river Lea (or Lee). The coming of the railways coupled with the rise of new technologies in the Victorian era, and legislation prohibiting many of the smellier and noisier industries from operating within London led to the rapid growth of industry and population within Newham from the 1840s onwards. The area grew rich...