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The 'Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury' was a metropolitan borough within the County of London from 1900 to 1965, when it was amalgamated with the Metropolitan Borough of Islington to form the London Borough of Islington.

Contents

Boundaries

Town hall

Area and population

Coat of arms

Politics

Sources

References

See also

Boundaries

It was created by the London Government Act 1899 from the parishes of Charterhouse, Clerkenwell, Glasshouse Yard, St Luke and St Sepulchre. The borough replaced local government structures created by the Metropolis Management Act 1855: Clerkenwell and St Luke's had previously been administered by separate parish vestries; the extra-parochial Liberty of Glasshouse Yard and St Sepulchre had formed part of the Holborn District Board of Works; Charterhouse, also extra-parochial, had no vestry.
The borough covered the areas of Finsbury, Moorfields, Clerkenwell, and St Luke's. It bordered Islington, Shoreditch, the City of London, Holborn and St Pancras.

Town hall

The metropolitan borough was administered from the town hall on Rosebery Avenue, originally built as Clerkenwell Town Hall in 1895.

Area and population

Although metropolitan boroughs only dated from 1900, the London County Council compiled statistics in 1901 that show the population growth in London over the preceding century.
The area of the borough in 1901 was 587 acres (approximately 2.4 km²). The populations recorded in National Censuses were:
'Constituent parishes 1801-1899'

Year[1]	1801	1811	1821	1831	1841	1851	1861	1871	1881	1891
Population	55,515	68,811	86,223	100,521	112,938	125,360	129,031	124,766	119,382	111,225

'Metropolitan Borough 1900-1961'

Year[2]	1901	1911	1921	1931	1941	1951	1961
Population	101,463	87,923	75,995	69,888	[3]	35,370	32,887

By comparison, after amalgamation with Islington, to form the modern London Borough of Islington, the combined area became 14.86 km² - approximately 3,672 acres; in 2005, this had a population of 182,600,^[4] or a population density of 12,288/km². In 1901 Finsbury, the population density was 42,276/km².

Coat of arms

When the borough was incorporated in 1900, the corporation adopted a complicated seal bearing six shields for each of the constituent parishes and extra-parochial places from which it was formed.
At the top were shields depicting the old Cripplegate of the City of London and the arms of Charterhouse.
At the centre of the seal, on the left, is the shield of Clerkenwell Vestry. The parish church was dedicated to Ss. James and John, and the shield showed St. James on the left and the cross of St. John on the right.
To the right of this was the emblem of St Luke's parish: as patron saint of artists, Luke was shown seated at an easel.
At the left base of the seal was a depiction of the gate of St. Botolph, representing the Liberty of Glasshouse Yard.
The design was completed by the shield of the parish vestry of St. Sepulchre. This parish was originally partly in the City of London, and partly in the county of Middlesex, and the shield combined the arms used bt the city and county.

In 1931 the borough received a grant of arms from the College of Arms. This also included references to Finsbury's constituent parts, but in a more unified design.
The shield had the cross of St John, on which were placed a heraldic "fountain" for the New River and roundels and rings from the arms of Charterhouse School. At the top of the shield was a representation of the city wall and its gates.
The crest on top of the helm was for St sepulchre's parish, the shield held by the hand again combining elements of the arms of the City of London and Middlesex.
The supporters were a winged bull, emblem of St. Luke; and an heraldic dolphin, symbol of St. James. The dolphin supporter was "charged" with a well in reference to Clerkenwell.
The Latin motto chosen by the borough was ''Altiora Petimus'' or ''We seek higher things''.

Politics

The first borough council was elected on November 1, 1900, when Conservative-supported Unionist and Moderate candidates took control. From 1903 to 1906 the Progressive Party held power. From 1906 to 1925 the Municipal Reform Party (allied to the Conservatives) controlled the borough. In 1925 a Ratepayer's Association stood in place of the Municipal Reformers, replacing them as majority party. From 1928 to 1931, the Labour Party held control, with the Ratepayers holding power from 1931 to 1934. In 1934 Labour regained power, which it held until the abolition of the borough in 1965.
The number of councillors returned at each election to the council was as follows:^[5]

★ 1900: Unionists 14, Moderates 4, Progressives 10, Liberals 5, labour 1

★ 1903: Progressives 32, Pro-Conservatives 22

★ 1906: Municipal Reform 34, Progressives 14, Independent 1

★ 1909: Municipal Reform 46, Progressives 8

★ 1912: Municipal Reform 48, Progressives 5, Independent 1

★ 1919: Municipal Reform 32, Progressives 17, Labour 5

★ 1922: Municipal Reform 47, Labour 7

★ 1925: Ratepayers Association 40, Labour 14

★ 1928: Labour 29, Ratepayers Association 27

★ 1931: Ratepayers Association 47, Labour 9

★ 1934: Labour 47, Ratepayers Association 9

★ 1937: Labour 48, Ratepayers Association 8

★ 1945: Labour 47, Municipal Reform 6, Unofficial Labour 2, Communist 1

★ 1949:

★ 1953: Labour 24, Conservative 5, 5 Vacancies

★ 1956: Labour 37, Conservative 2

★ 1959: Labour 29, Conservative 5

★ 1962: Labour 32, Conservative 2
For elections to Parliament, the borough initially formed the two constituencies of Finsbury Central and Finsbury East. In 1918 a new constituency of Finsbury was formed which was identical with the metropolitan borough. By 1950 the population of the borough had declined to such an extent that the Finsbury constituency was merged with the neighbouring constituency of Shoreditch to became Shoreditch and Finsbury.

Sources

★ Census Tables for Metropolitan Borough of Finsbury, from Vision of Britain

★ ''London's Coats of Arms and the Stories They Tell'', Richard Crosley, 1928

★ ''London 1900 - 1964, Armorial Bearings and Regalia of the London County Council, The Corporation of London and The Metropolitan Boroughs'', J F Beningfield, 1965

References

1. Statistical Abstract for London, 1901 (Vol. IV)
2. Islington MetB: Census Tables at ''Vision of Britain'' accessed on 14 Dec 2006
3. ''The census was suspended for World War II
4. 2005 estimate
5. Times Digital Library

See also

★ London Government Act 1899

★ Metropolis Management Act 1855