Routledge Revivals: Charles Booth's London

by Albert Fried (editor), Richard M. Elman (Editor)

First published in 1969, this book presents a one-volume anthology of Charles Booth’s Life and Labour of the People in London , the classic early study of the poor in the urban environment. The original text consists of a vast compendium of descriptions of families, homes, streets, conditions of work, cultural and religious practices, much of it illustrated with charts, maps and statistics ― giving the public an idea of the dimensions and meaning of poverty. The editors have selected the extracts in this book for their vividness, readability and intrinsic interest, and their introduction conveys the context of 1880s London ― relating Booth’s investigations to contemporary concerns.

384 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1969

Reviews

[Dorothy Piper · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is hard to sum up in a few words what I gleaned from this long, deeply detailed record, which was devoted to excerpts from Charles Booth's original work. Suffice it to say I was shocked to the core while reading about the atrocious living conditions of Londoners (particularly those trapped in Wapping, Stepney and Whitechapel) in the 19th century. The demon drink accounted for much of their misery, coupled with the hopelessness of their existence. Conditions were so bad it was impossible to bring about the necessary reformations, and several governing bodies gave up trying. It was a sobering read, but having had great-grandparents who ran a public house in Wapping in the 1880s, I wanted to read about their daily lives. Family historians might find this book useful when looking for old relatives as the names of many streets and families are given in it.