CHAPTER 14
THE HOPES, KING'S ARMS STAIRS AND JENKINS (FORMERLY COLLEGE) STREET
The ground between the site of Hungerford Bridge and of the old
Tramways Building in Belvedere Road was formerly known as the Hopes
and was granted to Jesus College, Oxford, in 1685 (for its previous history
see pp. 25 and 137). At that time it was drained by a cut or dock on the
north and south sides, known as Theobald's Dock and Chambers' Dock
respectively, and by and open ditch on the east side. (fn. a) The shape of the
ground can be seen in the 1804 plan on p.60. King's Arms Stairs, a public
landing place (see Plate 48), lay halfway along the river side of the property
and was connected by a path with Narrow Wall on the east. The path later
became College Street or Jenkins Street.
At first Jesus College leased the Hopes and the Three Acres by
Cuper's Bridge to the same family, the Cupers of Coopers after whom Cuper's
Bridge and Cuper's Gardens were named. (ref. 60) In 1753, when Mrs. Evans took
over the lease of Cuper's Gardens, the Hopes were leased to a John Brown,
who is described as a merchant. A beautifully drawn plan in the possession
of the college shows the uses to which the ground was then put. The site of
the King's Arms Glasshouse is marked to the north of King's Arms Stairs.
Brown's successors were Elizabeth Haines (1762), John Biggin
(1769), Eleanor Biggin (1778) and Martineau's Brewery (1800) (ref. 60) A fine
series of maps shows the steady
development of the property, but the
leases up to the beginning of the
19th century usually repeat previous
descriptions of the buildings, etc.,
without reference to the changes
that were taking place.
Figure 16:
Delft Plate
In 1828–29 Narrow Wall,
later renamed Belvedere Road, was
extended straight across the Jesus
College property, cutting off the
bend of the former Narrow Wall to
the east. The older portion of roadway, which had become known as
Ragged Row, probably from the
tumbledown condition of the old
cottages which bordered it, was renamed Belvedere Crescent. The
whole of the houses in College Street, as well as those in Belvedere Crescent,
were rebuilt at this time and new houses were erected along the new section
of Belvedere Road. Most of these buildings were put up by William, Bailey,
and Newman Sherwood of Belvedere Road, builders. (ref. 60) From this time on wards the ground was let to individual tenants and not to one lessee.
Martineau's Brewery stood on the ground later known as College
Wharf, just north of King's Arms Stairs. It was founded by David Martineau in 1784 (ref. 48) and remained in existence until 1842 though it had been
taken over by Whitbread's thirty years previously. (ref. 124)
In 1861 (ref. 74) the authorities of Jesus College leased part of the ground
south of College Street, with a river frontage of about 110 feet, to the Secretary of State for India, and there the building known first as the East India
Military Stores, and later simply as
the India Stores was erected in
1861–2, the architect being Sir
Matthew Digby Wyatt. (ref. 125) In 1873
the stores were extended to include
the remaining property of the college
to the south, and in 1899 the Secretary of State for India purchased
the freehold of both portions. (ref. 126)
Figure 17:
India Stores, Belvedere Road, in course of demolition, 1949. Sketch by F. A. Evans.
In 1935 the London County
Council promoted a bill in parliament
to acquire the remainder of the college property and some adjoining
ground, for the improvement of the
South Bank. The college petitioned
against the bill and the matter was deferred until 1937 when the Council
promoted a second bill. The college again petitioned against it and the Port
of London Authority objected to the closing of the public landing place
formerly known as King's Arms Stairs. In the end the Council came to terms
with the petitioners and the land passed to the Council in March, 1940. (ref. 126)
The property was serverely damaged by bombing during the war of 1939–45.
When the site was cleared in 1949–50 for the Festival of Britain many pieces
of delft pottery, wasters and parts of saggars were found. They were
probably waste materials from nearby potteries dumped to fill in the water
channels. There do not seem to have been any pottery kilns on this property.