| Hammersmith | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Civil parish | |||||||||
| 1834–1965 | |||||||||
 Hammersmith within the County of London | |||||||||
| Area | |||||||||
| • Coordinates | 51°29′29″N0°14′03″W / 51.4915°N 0.2341°W /51.4915; -0.2341 | ||||||||
| Population | |||||||||
• 1801 | 5,600 | ||||||||
• 1851 | 17,760 | ||||||||
• 1901 | 112,239 | ||||||||
• 1951 | 119,367 | ||||||||
• 1961 | 110,333 | ||||||||
| • Type | Civil parish | ||||||||
| Legislature |
| ||||||||
| Historical era | 19th century–20th century | ||||||||
• Established | 1834 | ||||||||
• Disestablished | 1965 | ||||||||
| |||||||||
| Today part of | London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham | ||||||||
 Map of parish boundary | |||||||||
Hammersmith was acivil parish in London, England, from 1834 to 1965. The hamlet of Hammersmith in the parish of Fulham had been governed by theHammersmith Vestry following the construction of the chapel ofSt Paul's in 1629–1631. TheHammersmith Parish Act 1834 (4 & 5 Will. 4. c. lxxv) made formal the separation from Fulham. The parish was recombined with Fulham as theFulham District for civil purposes from 1855 to 1886 and for theNew Poor Law from 1845 to 1889. In 1900 the parish was superseded for local government by theMetropolitan Borough of Hammersmith. The parish continued to be used for election ofboards of guardians until 1930 and was abolished in 1965. Its former area now forms the northern part of theLondon Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham.
Hammersmith originated as ahamlet within the ancient parish ofFulham, withAll Saints Church as theparish church.[1]
In 1629, inhabitants ofHammersmith, including theEarl of Mulgrave andNicholas Crispe, successfully petitioned theBishop of London for a chapel of ease to be built atSt Paul's Church.[1]
On 7 June 1631, thechapelry was consecrated byBishop Laud. A perpetualcuracy was established and thechapelry developed its own independentvestry.[1]
In 1834, upon the passing of theHammersmith Parish Act 1834 (4 & 5 Will. 4. c. lxxv), Hammersmith became a distinct parish withSt Paul's as theparish church andvicarage, governed by theHammersmith Vestry.[2]
In 1855, following the passing of theMetropolis Management Act 1855 (18 & 19 Vict. c. 120), the parishes of Fulham and Hammersmith were combined for civil purposes as theFulham District, governed by theFulham District Board of Works, abolishing the firstHammersmith Vestry.[3] This coincided with the parish becoming part of the area of responsibility of theMetropolitan Board of Works.
In 1873 the parish of Hammersmith was divided into three wards for the purposes of electingvestrymen. They were North (24), Centre (27) and South (21).[4][5]
On 25 March 1886, following the passing of theMetropolis Management Amendment Act 1885 (48 & 49 Vict. c. 33), theFulham District Board of Works was dissolved and vestries ofHammersmith andFulham were incorporated, with elections to theMetropolitan Board of Works to be held on that date.[6][7]
On 21 March 1889, following the passing of theLocal Government Act 1888 (51 & 52 Vict. c. 41), the parish transferred from theCounty of Middlesex to theCounty of London.[8] The parish formed theHammersmith constituency for elections to theLondon County Council with the first election taking place on17 January 1889.
In 1894 the parish was re-divided into six numbered wards.[9][10]
TheLondon Government Act 1899 (62 & 63 Vict. c. 14) reformed the administration of London by dividing theCounty of London into 28metropolitan boroughs, replacing the 41parish vestries anddistrict boards of works administering the area.[11] On 15 May 1900, theMetropolitan Borough of Hammersmith was created from thecivil parish of Hammersmith, governed byHammersmith Borough Council, abolishing theHammersmith Vestry.[12]
TheLondon Government Act 1963 createdGreater London, divided into 32London boroughs, abolishing civil parishes in London.[13] In 1965, the parishes of Hammersmith andFulham ceased to exist and were merged to form theLondon Borough of Hammersmith.
With the introduction of theNew Poor Law the parish became part of theKensington Poor Law Union in 1837. From 1845, it was grouped with Fulham as theFulham Poor Law Union.[14] In 1889 Hammersmith became a single parish for poor law purposes and this lasted until theboards of guardians were abolished in 1930.
The population of the hamlet and then parish of Hammersmith at each census was:
| Year | 1801 | 1811 | 1821 | 1831 | 1841 | 1851 | 1861 | 1871 | 1881 | 1891 | 1901 | 1911 | 1921 | 1931 | 1941 | 1951 | 1961 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 5,600 | 7,393 | 8,809 | 10,222 | 13,453 | 17,760 | 24,519 | 42,691 | 71,939 | 97,239 | 112,239 | 121,521 | 130,295 | 135,523 | [a] | 119,367 | 110,333 |
