The records of the Marquess of Northampton's London Estates in Holloway and Canonbury form a considerable collection of material from the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries relating to the development of Islington.
Estate Records (E/NOR/E): These relate almost entirely to the Northampton Estates in London in Clerkenwell and Canonbury, Islington. There is a fine series of eighteenth century rentals and accounts which extend into the twentieth century. These can be used in conjunction with the leases and maps in E/NOR/L.
Also included in this section are records of Estate administration in the twentieth century, relating to legislation under the Housing Acts of 1925, 1930 and the Town and Country Planning Act 1947, together with more local orders by Finsbury Justices. In particular, there is a lot of material relating to the Clearance of the Northampton Road area in the 1930s and the building of new flats in Canonbury via the Compton Housing Association in the same decade. By 1954 at least part of the Canonbury Estate had been sold by the Northampton trustees to property companies Western Ground Rents and the Oriel Property Trust.
The development of the Canonbury Estate is outlined in the Victoria County History of Middlesex vol VIII pp 54,55.
Leases (E/NOR/L): There are a number of schedules of leases giving an insight into the running of the Estates in the nineteenth century; these are complemented by the Maps of Estates which vary in date from 1809 to 1947 (E/NOR/L/2), the maps in the Map and Print Section of the LMA, and Estate Records mentioned above.
The leases have been split into two groups: one covering the geographical area of Clerkenwell (E/NOR/L/3) and one covering Canonbury (E/NOR/L/4). They include documents from all forms of transfer of property and other related records: bargain and sale, demises, assignments, abstracts of title, building agreements, mortgages. Most of these have been kept in original bundles where possible.
For ease of access the leases have been listed in alphabetical order of streets and within each street by the numbered property. An attempt has been made to give alternative street names. Similarly cross references to properties mentioned in other deeds have been added. However, it has not been possible (or considered necessary) to produce a totally comprehensive appendix of street numbering changes. Individual instances of street numbering can be further clarified by reference to the LCC's published Names of Streets and Places and the accompanying list of Street Naming and Numbering records in the Catalogue Room.
Many of the nineteenth century leases have plans on them, but a number of separate plans of buildings are included separately at the end of the leases section (E/NOR/L/5).
Among the leases of Clerkenwell properties belonging to the Marquess of Northampton are the London Spa, Wilmington Square, Exmouth Market, the Sheep Skin Market at Woods Close, and Northampton Square.
Canonbury leases include Canonbury Tower, Canonbury House, Canonbury Square and Northampton House. Pevsner describes Canonbury as "especially illuminating for the development of domestic building in London."
Other Records: Apart from the Estate Records there are a number of significant small collections and individual items in this archive.
The Sheep Skin Market run by the Skinners Company in Woods Close is documented by three volumes of market books 1754-1772 (E/NOR/S/1-3).
Among items of local historical interest there are photographs of Canonbury (E/NOR/X) and a small amount of printed material on Clerkenwell including a History of Spa Fields Burial Ground (E/NOR/Y/2), and a sketch of Finsbury Health Centre (E/NOR/Y/7).
Away from Clerkenwell and Canonbury, there are some records concerning the Northampton family's involvement in the Ragged School at Hertford Place, Mile End Old Town (E/NOR/R) and the Northampton Training Ship (E/NOR/Y/8).
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