William Richardson (fl. 1842-1877) The Tower of the Church of St Mary-le-Strand from Holywell...

William Richardson (fl. 1842-1877) The Tower of the Church of St Mary-le-Strand from Holywell Street Signed and dated 1870 Watercolour 62 x 46cm; 24½ x 18in This bustling view of Holywell Street is a snap shot of a part of London that was radically re-shaped around 1900 when the Kingsway was created along with the semicircular Aldwych that we know today and a significantly wider Strand. This was necessary because of the rapid increase in traffic and trade in this area which was a network of small Victorian streets. Holywell Street became famous in the early 1800's as the location for the publication of radical political pamphlets and print making. This was often a thorn in the side of the authorities who attempted to control it, often prosecuting the publishers, but it persisted. Later in the century it became more bawdy and many of the publishers turned to pornography. Perhaps it is no coincidence that the street was totally demolished in the scheme outlined above and absorbed into the wider Strand.