@LBTHArchives

Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives • Free public access to collections documenting the histories of London's East End • Related events & exhibitions

 277 Bancroft Rd, London E1 4DQ
ideastore.co.uk/local-history
Joined July 2015
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1.9KMedia
For the closing event of the Communities of Liberation programme, join us for a detailed exploration of 18th century 'runaways' advertisements. With Dr Peggy Brunache Book via Eventbrite orlo.uk/Book_Here_gWcvb
Flyer for a free workshop titled 'Seeking Liberation' with Dr Peggy Brunache on 17 October, featuring a QR code to book.

ALT Flyer for a free workshop titled 'Seeking Liberation' with Dr Peggy Brunache on 17 October, featuring a QR code to book.

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Exhibition 01 Oct 2026 - 20 Feb 2027 Battle of Cable Street exhibition at Tower Hamlets Archives explores the events of 4 October 1936 — from the immediate aftermath to its reception in local and political culture decades later.
Exhibition poster for 'Battle of Cable Street' featuring a historical photo of a large crowd on Gardiner's Corner.

ALT Exhibition poster for 'Battle of Cable Street' featuring a historical photo of a large crowd on Gardiner's Corner.

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Join us to explore a lesser-known history of the Royal Menagerie at the Tower of London. As part of the Communities of Liberation events programme and Imagining Animals, a new commission by Historic Royal Palaces. orlo.uk/8Ib7e
Event flyer for a talk on the history of the Royal Menagerie at the Tower of London and the story of Edward Francis.

ALT Event flyer for a talk on the history of the Royal Menagerie at the Tower of London and the story of Edward Francis.

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⚠️ UPDATE ⚠️ Due to high temperature on Thursday 13 August, our Reading Room will be closed all day. Our exhibitions and ground floor event room will remain open as usual. We are really sorry for any inconvenience this will cause. Stay well and hydrated!
images of poster of building closure due to extreme heat

ALT images of poster of building closure due to extreme heat

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We're delighted to announce that we have completed the digitisation of our East London Advertiser collection! 📰 🎉 You can now use our fully searchable PDFs to look up any name, street, or business in the East End's most important local paper from 1913-2003.
A digital microfilm reader scanning a page of the East London Advertiser.

ALT A digital microfilm reader scanning a page of the East London Advertiser.

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Join us for a day of celebration of West African Culture and an exploring the fascinating life of a woman called Hope. orlo.uk/yM0Hg
Event flyer for Hope's Story: Bondage, Freedom, Culture & West African Heritage at Tower Hamlets Library on 1 August.

ALT Event flyer for Hope's Story: Bondage, Freedom, Culture & West African Heritage at Tower Hamlets Library on 1 August.

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❗ Update ❗ On Thursday 9 July 2026, due to the heatwave our Reading Room will be open 10am-1pm only. Our exhibitions and ground floor events space will remain open as usual. We are sorry for any inconvenience caused
A temperature reader showing 30.2 degrees celsius inside our Reading Room

ALT A temperature reader showing 30.2 degrees celsius inside our Reading Room

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Happy Pride Month! Victoria Park hosted a Pride Music Fest on Saturday 24 June 1995. With an estimated 60,000 people joining the two and a half mile march, from Hyde Park to the Houses of Parliament. Then off to Vicky Park from 3pm to see headline acts !
Pride Festival Victoria Park, 1995

ALT Pride Festival Victoria Park, 1995

Pride Festival Victoria Park, 1995

ALT Pride Festival Victoria Park, 1995

Grove Road, 1995

ALT Grove Road, 1995

Newspaper Cutting, 1995

ALT Newspaper Cutting, 1995

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Join us for a creative workshop to re-create an East End High Street. Design your own shopfront or bring back to life a shopfront long-gone. Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archive | Saturday 4 July 2-4pm Drop in All ages welcome
Image : Mile End Road, 1989

ALT Image : Mile End Road, 1989

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New Exhibition! Lost Shopfronts of the East End showcases the history of shops locally from the Victorian period until the 21st century.
The Image : (ref. P21419) shows Scotts bakery at the end of Roman Road, which later became Percy Ingle.

ALT The Image : (ref. P21419) shows Scotts bakery at the end of Roman Road, which later became Percy Ingle.

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It’s a scorcher! Our Reading Room will close tomorrow and Thursday due to heatwave and being without air conditioning. There will be no access to onsite collections. Our exhibitions will remain open 10-5 both days. Stay cool
Millwall Recreational Ground Open Air Swimming Bath, 1925

ALT Millwall Recreational Ground Open Air Swimming Bath, 1925

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We had a lovely donation of vintage books by local author W.W. Jacobs this week 📚 Jacobs was born in Mile End and grew up in Wapping. His most famous story 'The Monkey's Paw' is a horror classic which has inspired everyone from Stephen King to the Simpsons 🐵 🤚
Books by author W.W. Jacobs.

ALT Books by author W.W. Jacobs.

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We hope all who celebrated had a happy Eid al-Adha! Our collections include wonderful flyers from past Eid events in Tower Hamlets. We’d love to grow this part of our archive, so if you have any flyers or photos from Eid events in the borough, we’d be delighted to hear from you!
A display of flyers for Eid events around Tower Hamlets

ALT A display of flyers for Eid events around Tower Hamlets

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New Event! London’s Lost Black Pubs & Taverns Thursday 18 June 6.00-7.30pm Join author S.I. Martin for an introduction to the forgotten world of London's Black pubs in the 1700s and 1800s. Book via orlo.uk/qTjVA
Poster for 'London's Lost Black Pubs & Taverns' event on Thursday 18 June, featuring author S.I. Martin.

ALT Poster for 'London's Lost Black Pubs & Taverns' event on Thursday 18 June, featuring author S.I. Martin.

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We've been busy adding new books to our Local History Library this week, on everything from the General Strike to grime 📚 ✊ 🎤 You can find the latest titles on all things East End in our Reading Room, but we also have books dating back to 1583 if you're feeling nostalgic.
A new books display showing eight titles on various East End-related topics.

ALT A new books display showing eight titles on various East End-related topics.

Part of a new books display showing four titles.

ALT Part of a new books display showing four titles.

Part of a new books display showing four titles.

ALT Part of a new books display showing four titles.

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Today marks 100 years since the end of the 1926 General Strike, when the country came to a standstill for nine days. To find out more, you can explore our collections relating to the strike which include bulletins, newspaper articles, photos and Council minutes!
A display of library and archive material relating to the General Strike of 1926, including photographs, bulletins and newspaper articles

ALT A display of library and archive material relating to the General Strike of 1926, including photographs, bulletins and newspaper articles

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Happy St George's Day! St George in the East Church in Shadwell is one of the six church designed by architect Nicholas Hawksmoor. A celebration of St George in the East church launches today 4-8pm. Visit the exhibition daily 10-4pm.
St George in the East church

ALT St George in the East church

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Sat 16 May, 12-3pm Protest Then and Now: Digital Tools for Collective Action, a workshop be led by Derek Curry & Jennifer Gradecki. Participants will explore how digital technologies and artificial intelligence are transforming the way communities organise and resist.
Black and white image of Poplar Rates rally that has been photoshopped to include a man taking a photo on his mobile phone

ALT Black and white image of Poplar Rates rally that has been photoshopped to include a man taking a photo on his mobile phone

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New Exhibition Sneak Peak! Communities of Liberation is now preparing for a re-launch at the Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives. Join us on Thursday 26 March 6-8pm for the unveiling of the new exhibition. Book Here orlo.uk/yYg1v
exhibition at THLHLA

ALT exhibition at THLHLA

Map of tower hamlets

ALT Map of tower hamlets

UCL South East Exhibition

ALT UCL South East Exhibition

Workshop with co-producers

ALT Workshop with co-producers

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Women and the Regent's Canal, and its industries 12 Mar 6-7.30pm For Women's History Month Carolyn Clark will present stories and images of women's lives, both on and living by the eastern reach of the Regent’s Canal. Details orlo.uk/X1ISr
event poster with yellow background, black white image of a woman on a barge on the canal. event copy in black

ALT event poster with yellow background, black white image of a woman on a barge on the canal. event copy in black

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