hidden europe 36

Agar Town

by hidden europe

Summary

We remember Agar Town, an area of London that simply disappeared from the maps when in 1866 the Midland Railway edged south towards St Pancras.

In 1842, an article in Punch magazine poked fun at Britain’s railway mania, suggesting that even St Paul’s Cathedral might be knocked down to make way for a railway terminus. That, naturally, was not to be, but in London — as indeed in other European cities — entire districts were sacrificed for railways. Agar Town simply disappeared from maps of London. This little area by the Regent’s Canal, just north of St Pancras, was never a pretty place.

Agar Town was grimy and overcrowded, yet there were mulberry orchards and space for kids to play.

Related articleFull text online

Conflicts of interest: Mining and World Heritage

UNESCO's World Heritage List includes many citations which showcase former mining activities. The extractive industries have led to the development of some of Europe's most distinctive cultural landscapes. But the recent addition of a gold mining site in Romania to the list sparks tensions between conservation and economic interests.

Related articleFull text online

The lost kingdom

A 1924 essay by Joseph Roth on an unsung railway station in Berlin fired our imagination and inspired us to take the train to Gleisdreieck - an elevated station that in Roth's day looked down on a tangled maze of railway lines and sidings. Nowadays, nature is reclaiming the industrial landscapes of yesteryear.

Related articleFull text online

The last poet: Farewell, Pushkin

The last of the Soviet Union's great ocean liners outlived the Soviet Union. The MS Aleksandr Pushkin made her first visit to Tilbury (in the lower reaches of the River Thames) in April 1966. For over half a century, this classic ship was a regular visit to Tilbury. Renamed the MS Marco Polo, she arrived in Tilbury the very last time in March 2020.