Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives

Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives, 277 Bancroft Road, London.

Tower Hamlets' Local History Library and Archives covers the area of the present-day London Borough of Tower Hamlets; the original East End of London which, until 1965, comprised of the Boroughs of Bethnal Green, Poplar and Stepney. If you are interested in a building in the borough, tracing your ancestors who lived here, doing a school or college project on some aspect of the borough or are just feeling nostalgic, we may well be able to help you.

After a break in April & May. Our Stay & Play Session is Back! Join us this Friday ! Look forward to seeing you there :)
03/06/2026

After a break in April & May. Our Stay & Play Session is Back! Join us this Friday ! Look forward to seeing you there :)

We had a lovely donation of vintage books by local author W.W. Jacobs this week 📚 Jacobs was born in Mile End and grew u...
03/06/2026

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 đŸ” đŸ€š

We hope that all who celebrated had a happy Eid al-Adha last week!Our collections include wonderful flyers and materials...
01/06/2026

We hope that all who celebrated had a happy Eid al-Adha last week!

Our collections include wonderful flyers and materials from past Eid celebrations in Tower Hamlets put on by local organisations such as South Poplar and Limehouse Action for Secure Housing (SPLASH) and the London Muslim Centre.

We’d love to grow this part of our archive, so if you have any flyers or photos from Eid events in the borough (printed or digital), we’d be delighted to hear from you. Your contributions help preserve the stories of our great borough.

New Event!London’s Lost Black Pubs & TavernsThursday 18 June 6.00-7.30pmJoin author S.I. Martin for an introduction to t...
15/05/2026

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.
Starting in Whitechapel and East Smithfield and ending in Leicester Square and Wigmore Street, Martin will explore how pubs with Black clientele or Black 'guvnors' were sites of change, resistance and community.

Book via Eventbrite https://orlo.uk/M6Be8

We've been busy adding new books to our Local History Library this week, on everything from the General Strike to grime ...
15/05/2026

We've been busy adding new books to our Local History Library this week, on everything from the General Strike to grime 📚 ✊ đŸŽ€

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.

Today marks 100 years since the end of the 1926 General Strike, when the country came to a standstill for nine days as w...
12/05/2026

Today marks 100 years since the end of the 1926 General Strike, when the country came to a standstill for nine days as workers downed tools in solidarity with locked-out coal miners.

Tower Hamlets was a site of militant action as the docks shut down and troops were sent in to break the strike. There were clashes between police and strikers on East India Dock Road, and Joseph Hammond, the Mayor of Poplar, was injured by a police baton.

To find out more, you can explore our collections relating to the strike which include bulletins, newspaper articles, photos and Council minutes!

Happy St George's Day!St George in the East Church in Shadwell is one of the six church designed by architect Nicholas H...
23/04/2026

Happy St George's Day!

St George in the East Church in Shadwell is one of the six church designed by architect Nicholas Hawksmoor. Built between 1714 to 1729 the Grade I listed building has used by local communities for centuries. The church baptised many individuals of African Heritage with over 150 baptisms identified in parish records.

A celebration of some of these individuals lives will be on display at St George in the East church from today 4-8pm. Visit the exhibition daily 10-4pm until 23 May 2026

Image - Engraving of St George in the East Church, 1818

Protest Then and Now: Digital Tools for Collective ActionWorkshop | Saturday 16 May | 12-3pmVenue: Tower Hamlets Loca...
23/04/2026

Protest Then and Now: Digital Tools for Collective Action
Workshop | Saturday 16 May | 12-3pm
Venue: Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives, Education Room

We are delighted to be hosting Protest Then and Now: Digital Tools for Collective Action, a unique workshop which features some of our collections, to be led by Derek Curry and Jennifer Gradecki.

Participants will explore how digital technologies and artificial intelligence are transforming the way communities organise, communicate, and resist. Drawing on the story of the Poplar Rates Rebellion as a starting point, we'll examine what it means to campaign, advocate, and build solidarity in the digital age — and what the rebels of 1921 can still teach us about doing it well.

Through a mix of discussion, practical activities, and live experimentation with digital tools, participants will explore how movements craft and spread their messages across platforms.

No technical knowledge is required. Whether you're an experienced organiser or simply curious about the relationship between protest and technology, this workshop is designed to be accessible, participatory, and grounded in a rich local history.

Derek Curry and Jennifer Gradecki are media artists who critique the dominant technological powers by hacking technologies to reveal underlying assumptions and effects. They recreate technologies used for social control, including open-source surveillance systems, financial technologies, and artificial intelligence. They are Associate Professors in Art + Design at Northeastern University in Boston.

This workshop is part of The Art of Protest project, exploring the legacy of the Poplar Rates Rebellion, which also includes a walking tour of the sites and stories of the 1921 rebellion in Poplar, East London, by Sam Kemp.

Spaces are limited so please only book is you are able to attend. Book here https://orlo.uk/jMVgu!

New Exhibition Sneak Peak!Communities of Liberation is now preparing for a re-launch at the Tower Hamlets Local History ...
06/03/2026

New Exhibition Sneak Peak!

Communities of Liberation is now preparing for a re-launch at the Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives, after its successful display at Tower Hamlets Town Hall in 2025. Join us on Thursday 26 March 6-8pm for the unveiling of the new exhibition. With added unseen pieces interpreting the collections at the archives. Alongside an exhibition installation from Archaeology South-East UCL, you can explore objects unearthed in Whitechapel that uncover more stories of Black Communities living Tower Hamlets.

Book your place at the launch via link in our Bio

https://orlo.uk/VmfiA

Join us at for Threads of Liberation: Women’s Liberation in East London past, present, and future Location: G.47, Mile ...
27/02/2026

Join us at for Threads of Liberation: Women’s Liberation in East London past, present, and future

Location: G.47, Mile End Library, Queen Mary University of London, Mile End Rd, Bethnal Green, London, E1 4NS

Date: 5:30-8:30pm, Wednesday 25 March

Join the Centre for Public Engagement for Women’s History Month as we explore Women’s Liberation in East London. View materials from Queen Mary and Tower Hamlets Archives, and reflect on what liberation means to you through a Nakshi kantha embroidery workshop with OITIJ-JO Collective. Connect with others passionate about gender equity and women’s justice in East London.

This event is free and open to people of all genders.

Book via Link in our bio 🔗

Address

277 Bancroft Road
London
E14DQ

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 4:30pm
Wednesday 10am - 4:30pm
Thursday 10am - 7pm

Telephone

+442073641290

Website

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