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Standard Motor Company

The Standard Motor Company Limited was a motor vehicle manufacturer, founded in Coventry, England, in 1903 by Reginald Walter Maudslay. For many years, it manufactured Ferguson TE20 tractors powered by its Vanguard engine. All Standard's tractor assets were sold to Massey Ferguson in 1959. Standard purchased Triumph in 1945 and in 1959 officially changed its name to Standard-Triumph International and began to put the Triumph brand name on all its products. A new subsidiary took the name The Standard Motor Company Limited and took over the manufacture of the group's products.

The Standard name was last used in Britain in 1963, and in India in 1988.

1903–14
Maudslay, great-grandson of the eminent engineer Henry Maudslay, had trained under Sir John Wolfe-Barry as a civil engineer. In 1902 he joined his cousin Cyril Charles Maudslay at his Maudslay Motor Company to make marine internal combustion engines. The marine engines did not sell very well, and still in 1902 they made their first engine intended for a car. It was fitted to a chain-drive chassis. The three-cylinder engine, designed by Alexander Craig was an advanced unit with a single overhead camshaft and pressure lubrication.

Realising the enormous potential of the horseless carriage and using a gift of £3,000 from Sir John Wolfe-Barry, R. W. Maudslay left his cousin and became a motor manufacturer on his own account. His Standard Motor Company was incorporated on 2 March 1903 and he established his business in a small factory in a two-storey building in Much Park Street, Coventry. Having undertaken the examination of several proprietary engines to familiarise himself with internal combustion engine design he employed seven people to assemble the first car, powered by a single-cylinder engine with three-speed gearbox and shaft drive to the rear wheels. By the end of 1903 three cars had been built and the labour force had been increased to twenty five. The increased labour force produced a car every three weeks during 1904.

The single-cylinder model was soon replaced by a two-cylinder model quickly followed by three- and four-cylinder versions and in 1905 the first six. Even the first cars boasted shaft drive as opposed to chains, and the engines were not merely "square" but had 6" diameter pistons with a 3" stroke. As well as supplying complete chassis, the company found a good market selling engines for fitting to other cars, especially where the owner wanted more power. Although Alex Craig, a Scottish engineer, was engaged to do much of the detail work, Maudslay himself was sufficiently confident to undertake much of the preliminary layout. One of the several derivations of the name "Standard" is said to have emanated from a discussion between Maudslay and Craig during which the latter proposed several changes to a design on the grounds of cost, which Maudslay rejected, saying that he was determined to maintain the best possible "standard". In 1905 Maudslay himself drove the first Standard car to compete in a race. This was the RAC Tourist Trophy in which he finished 11th out of 42 starters, having had a non-stop run. In 1905 the first export order was also received, from a Canadian who arrived at the factory in person. The order was reported in the local newspaper with some emphasis, "Coventry firm makes bold bid for foreign markets".

The company exhibited at the 1905 London Motor Show in Crystal Palace, at which a London dealer, Charles (later Sir Charles) Friswell 1872-1926 agreed to buy the entire factory output. He joined Standard and later was managing director for many years.

In late 1906 production was transferred to larger premises and output was concentrated on 6-cylinder models. The 16/20 h.p. tourer with side-entrance body was priced at £450. An indication of how much this was can be gained from the fact that a draughtsman earned £3 a week. In 1907 Friswell became company chairman. He worked hard to raise its profile, and the resulting increase in demand necessitated the acquisition of a large single-storey building in Cash's Lane, Coventry. Even this was inadequate after the publicity gained when a fleet of 20 cars, 16/20 tourers, were supplied for the use of Commonwealth editors attending the 1909 Imperial Press Conference in London. In 1909 the company first made use of the famous Union Flag Badge, a feature of the radiator emblem until after the Second World War. By 1911 the range of vehicles was comprehensive, with the 8-horsepower model being produced in quantity whilst a special order for two 70 hp cars was at the same time executed for a Scottish millionaire. Friswell's influence culminated in supplying seventy 4-cylinder 16 hp cars for King George V and his entourage, including the Viceroy of India, at the 1911 Delhi Durbar. In 1912 Friswell sold his interest in Standard to C. J. Band and Siegfried Bettmann, the founder of the Triumph Motor Cycle Company (which became the Triumph Motor Company). During the same year the first commercial vehicle was produced, and the 4-cylinder model "S" was introduced at £195, the first to be put into large-scale production. 1,600 were produced before the outbreak of the First World War, 50 of them in the final week of car production. These cars were sold with a three-year guarantee. In 1914 Standard became a public company.

First World War
During the First World War the company produced more than 1,000 aircraft, including the Royal Aircraft Factory B.E.12, Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8, Sopwith Pup and Bristol F.2-B in a new works at Canley that opened on 1 July 1916. Canley would subsequently become the main centre of operations. Other war materials produced included shells, mobile workshops for the Royal Engineers, and trench mortars.

1919–39
Civilian car production was restarted in 1919 with models based on pre-war designs, for example the 9.5 model "S" was re-introduced as the model SLS although this was soon superseded by an 8 h.p. model.

In the early 1920s saloon bodies were first offered; previously all cars had been tourers. The bodies had, since the move to Bishopsgate Green, been made in Coventry by the company itself, but it was not until 1922 that they were mass-produced, using a wooden track along which they were pushed by hand. The company was justifiably proud of the modern factory at Canley, boasting in its advertisements "It is a beautifully lighted and well-aired factory standing on the edge of a breezy common away from the city din and smoke, that the finishing touches and test are given to the All British 'Standard' Light cars which issue there to almost every quarter in the world".

It was about this time during the early 1920s that the slogan "Count them on the road" appeared on every advertisement. By 1924 the company had a share of the market comparable to Austin Motor Company, making more than 10,000 cars in 1924. As the immediate post-war boom faded, many rival marques were discontinued. Cars became steadily larger and more elaborate as manufacturers sought to maintain sales. During the 1920s all the models were named after towns, not only near the factory such as Canley and Kenilworth but also further afield – Teignmouth, Falmouth and Exmouth.

By the late 1920s profits had decreased dramatically due to great reinvestment, a failed export contract and bad sales of the larger cars. In 1927 the inadvisability of matching the larger more elaborate trend became apparent and the 9 hp Fulham with fabric body was introduced at £185. Production was concentrated mainly on one basic chassis with a 9 hp engine. The importance of standardisation was now appreciated and only one alternative was offered. In 1929 John Black, a joint managing director of Hillman, took up an appointment at Standard as joint managing director.

Standard Swallow and Jaguar
Black encouraged the supply of chassis to external coachbuilders such as Avon and Swallow Coachbuilding and Jensen. The coachbuilding company of Avon during the early 1930s commenced producing cars with a distinctly sporty appearance, using as a foundation, a complete chassis from the Standard Motor Company. These chassis were ordinary production units, used because of their sound engineering design and good performance. Known as Avon Standard Specials they catered for a select market too small for Standard themselves.

It was not until 1930, after the replacement of artillery wheels by spoke wheels that the distinctive radiator shape first used on the 6-cylinder models in 1906 was finally abandoned. In 1930, before the worst of the Depression, the Big Nine was introduced which together with the 6-cylinder Ensign and Envoy constituted the complete range. Here standardisation was taken a step further with the bodies on 9 hp four-cylinder and 15 hp six-cylinder being almost indistinguishable except for bonnet length. The Big Nine was soon followed by the Big Twelve and sales for the second six months of 1931 exceeded those of the whole of the previous year. In 1932 there was a Royal visit to the Canley works by the Duke of Gloucester who came to open the Canley Pavilion outside which he took delivery of a new 6-cylinder model.

Founder and Chairman Reginald Maudslay retired in 1934 and died soon afterwards on 14 December 1934 at the age of 64. Charles James Band 1883–1961, a Coventry solicitor and a Standard director since 1920, replaced him as chairman and served in that capacity until the beginning of 1954 though Sir John Black briefly held the appointment before he retired. 1935 saw all production transferred to the Canley site. Extensive re-organisation occurred including a continuous track being laid down in the paint shop on which the cars were completely painted.

Through the 1930s, fortunes improved with new models, the Standard Nine and Standard Ten addressed the low to mid range market. At the 1935 Motor Show the new range of Flying Standards was announced with (semi) streamlined bodies. The Flying Standards came to the market in 1936 with their distinctive streamlined sloping rears virtually replacing the existing range of Nine, Twelve, Sixteen, and Twenty. The Flying Standards were so-called because of the major radiator shell change to a waterfall grille topped by the Union Jack badge apparently streaming backwards in contrast to its previous forward-facing position. In 1938 a new factory was opened at Fletchampstead. That year, Standard launched the Flying Eight. The Flying Eight had a new four-cylinder engine smaller than that in the Flying Nine, and was the first British mass-produced light saloon with independent front suspension. The Flying Ten and Flying Twelve were also given new chassis with independent front suspension in 1938.

The aero engine plant at Banner Lane, a shadow factory, began construction in mid 1939 and production began in 1940. It was managed by Standard for the Air Ministry. After the war Standard leased Banner Lane and, in partnership with Harry Ferguson, used it for the manufacture of Ferguson tractors.

By the beginning of the war, Standard's annual production was approximately 50,000 units.

Second World War
The company continued to produce its cars during the Second World War, but now mainly fitted with utility bodies ("Tillys"). However, the most famous war-time product was the de Havilland Mosquito aircraft, mainly the FB VI version, of which more than 1100 were made. 750 Airspeed Oxfords were also made as well as 20,000 Bristol Mercury VIII engines, and 3,000 Bristol Beaufighter fuselages.

Other wartime products included 4000 Beaverette light armoured cars and a prototype lightweight "Jeep" type vehicle.

Post-war years
With peace, the pre-war Eight and Twelve fitted with 1776cc engine sold as 14 hp cars were quickly back in production using tools carefully stored since 1939. Of greater significance was the 1945 purchase, arranged by Sir John Black for £75,000, of the Triumph Motor Company. Triumph had gone into receivership in 1939, and was now reformed as a wholly owned subsidiary of Standard, named Triumph Motor Company (1945) Limited. The Triumph factory was near the city centre and had been completely destroyed in the blitz. A lucrative deal was also arranged to build the small Ferguson Company tractor. This arrangement was considered primarily by Black as a means to securing increased profits to fund new car development.

Ferguson tractor
In December 1945 Standard Motor Company Limited announced that an arrangement had been made to manufacture Harry Ferguson's tractors and the Air Ministry's shadow factory at Banner Lane Coventry run by Standard during the war would be used for the project. These tractors would be for the Eastern hemisphere, Ferguson tractors built by Ford in America for the Western hemisphere. Production was expected to start in 1946. Implements would be sourced separately by Ferguson who would also merchandise the tractors and the implements.

Standard Vanguard
A one-model policy for the Standard marque (alongside a range of new Triumphs) was adopted in 1948 with the introduction of the 2-litre Standard Vanguard, which was styled on American lines by Walter Belgrove, and replaced all the carry-over pre-war models. This aptly named model was the first true post-war design from any major British manufacturer. The beetle-back Vanguard Phase 1 was replaced in 1953 by the notch-back Phase 2 and in 1955 by the all-new Phase 3, which resulted in variants such as the Sportsman, Ensign, Vanguard Vignale and Vanguard Six.

Standard Eight and Ten
The one-model policy lasted until 1953, when a new Standard Eight small car was added. This was introduced at £481. 7. 6. the cheapest four-door saloon on the market, yet it boasted independent front suspension, hydraulic brakes and an economical O.H.V. engine. At the same time in another part of the same building Standards were producing a very different engine, the Rolls-Royce Avon jet aero engine of which 415 were made between 1951 and 1955. In 1954 the Eight was supplemented by the slightly more powerful Standard Ten which featured a wider chrome grille.

Engines
The Phase II Vanguard was powered, like the Phase I, by a 2088 cc 4-cylinder "wet sleeve" engine, now with a modestly increased compression ratio, and producing 68 hp. This engine could be modified by using an additional intake system and two single-barrel Solex carburettors, producing 90 hp. Typically, the Phase II engine was one Solex carburettor, with 85 mm by 93 mm pistons. Standard Motors at the time supplied many of these engines to Ferguson Tractor distributed in the United States.

Standard Pennant
The Ten was followed in its turn in 1957 by the Standard Pennant featuring very prominent tail fins, but otherwise little altered structurally from the 1953 Standard Eight. An option for the Ten, and standard fitment to the Pennant, was the Gold Star engine, tuned for greater power and torque than the standard 948 cc unit. Another tuning set, featuring a different camshaft and twin carburettors, was available from dealers. As well as an overdrive for the gearbox, an option for the Eight, Ten and Pennant was the Standrive, a semi-manual transmission that automatically operated the clutch during gearchanges.

Triumph TR2
During the same year that the '8' was introduced, another car was displayed at the London Motor Show. This was the Triumph 20TS, a sports two-seater with a modified Standard '8' chassis and a Vanguard engine. The 20TS's lack of luggage space and unsatisfactory performance and handling resulted in production being delayed until the next year when the chassis and drivetrain were developed and the body was restyled to incorporate a generous boot. The car was badged as a 'Triumph' rather than a 'Standard' and the Triumph TR2 was a winner. Ken Richardson achieved 124 mph on the Jabbeke Highway in Belgium in a slightly modified car. As a result of the publicity, small manufacturers, including Morgan, Peerless, Swallow, and Doretti, bought engines and other components from Standard Motor Company.

Standard Atlas van
In 1958 the Standard Atlas panel van and pick-up was first marketed, a cab-over-engine design. It initially used the 948 cc engine from the Standard 10, making the resulting vehicle woefully underpowered, even with its 6.66:1 final drive ratio. In 1961, the Atlas Major was introduced, and sold alongside the original 948 cc Atlas. This variant was powered by the Standard 1670 cc wet-liner engine, as used with different capacities in the Vanguard cars, and the Ferguson tractor. The same engine was also used in Triumph TR2, TR3 and TR4 sports cars. To use this larger engine, a substantial redesign of the cab interior and forward chassis was necessary. The vehicles were of a high standard but not priced competitively, which resulted in relatively few sales. In 1963 the Atlas Major became the Standard 15, with a new long-wheelbase variant, with 2138 cc engine, which became the Standard 20. Later that year, the Standard name was dropped by Leyland, and these models were rebranded hastily as the Leyland 15 and 20. By 1968 when production ended in the UK, all variants were powered by the 2138 cc engine and badged as Leyland 20s. These vehicles were badged as Triumphs for export to Canada, and possibly other overseas markets. The van's tooling was also exported to India after UK production ceased, where the resultant vehicle continued in production until the 1980s.

Triumph Herald
By the later 1950s the small Standards were losing out in the UK market to more modern competitor designs, and the Triumph name was believed to be more marketable; hence the 1959 replacement for the Eight, Ten and Pennant was badged as the Triumph Herald; with substantial mechanical components carried over from the small Standards. Despite the separate chassis and independent rear suspension, the differential, hubs, brakes, engine and gearbox were all common to the last Standard Pennants. In order to build the Herald the company invested £$2 1/2$ million in a new assembly hall extension at the Canley plant which Standard had acquired in 1916. The builders of the three-storey building excavated 250,000 tons of soil and rock. Inside the building were three 1300 ft assembly lines equipped to be one of the most modern car assembly plants in the world. This turned out to be the company's last investment on such a scale at Canley: investment decisions after the merger with Rover would favour the newer plant at Solihull.

Overseas plants
Overseas manufacturing plants were opened in Australia, France, India and South Africa. Overseas assembly plants were opened in Canada, Ireland and New Zealand.

Sir John Black
During the year ended 31 August 1954 Standard made and sold 73,000 cars and 61,500 tractors and much more than half of those were exported. Since the war Standard had made and sold some 418,000 cars and 410,000 tractors and again much more than half were exported. Appointed to Standard's then ailing business in 1929, director and general manager since 1930 and appointed managing director in 1934 energetic Sir John Black resigned as chairman and managing director of Standard that year following a serious motorcar accident. He was advised (after consultations with his wife and close friends) to relinquish his offices of chairman and managing director and his membership of the board of directors. His deputy and long-time personal assistant, Alick Dick 1916–1986, took his position as managing director. Air Marshal Lord Tedder was appointed chairman, Tedder would hold that position until the Leyland Motors takeover at the end of 1960. Alick Dick resigned in August 1961 when the board was reorganised by Leyland in view of the substantial losses Standard was accumulating.

The company started considering partners to enable continued expansion and negotiations were begun with Chrysler, Massey-Harris-Ferguson, Rootes Group, Rover and Renault but these were inconclusive.

Standard's Vanguard engine
The Vanguard's engine, later slightly enlarged, powered two saloons, a tractor and three sports cars

Leyland Motors
The Standard-Triumph company was eventually bought in 1960 by Leyland Motors which paid £20 million and the last Standard, an Ensign Deluxe, was produced in the UK in May 1963, when the final Vanguard models were replaced by the Triumph 2000 model. Triumph continued when Leyland became British Leyland Motor Corporation (later BL) in 1968. The Standard brand was ended on 17 August 1970 when a sudden announcement said that henceforth the company was to be known as the Triumph Motor Company. The Standard name has been unused in Europe since then and the Triumph or Rover Triumph BL subsidiary used the former Standard engineering and production facilities at Canley in Coventry until the plant was closed in 1980.

BMW
BMW acquired the Standard and Triumph brands following its purchase of BL's successor Rover Group in 1994. When most of Rover was sold in 2000, BMW kept the Standard brand along with Triumph, Mini and Riley. The management of British Motor Heritage, gained the rights to the Standard Brand upon their management purchase of this company from BMW in 2001.

There was talk of a possible revival of the Standard name by MG Rover for its importation of the Tata Indica. However, for reasons relating to the ownership of the brand by BMW, the car was finally launched as the Rover CityRover.

Standard in India
The Standard name had disappeared from Britain during the 1960s but continued for two more decades in India, where Standard Motor Products of India Ltd manufactured the Triumph Herald badged as the 'Standard Herald' and with the basic 948 cc engine during the 1960s, with increasingly local content and design changes over the years, eventually producing additional four-door and five-door estate models exclusively for the Indian market by the late 1960s.

After 1970, Standard Motor Products split with British Leyland, and introduced a bodily restyled four-door saloon based on the Herald known as the Standard Gazel in 1972, using the same 948 cc engine but with a live rear axle, as the Herald's swing-axle was not liked much by Indian buyers and mechanics alike. Allegedly India's first indigenous car, the Gazel was built in small numbers – it has been suggested that it did so to keep its manufacturer's licence – until 1977. With the company concentrating solely on producing commercial vehicles based on the Leyland 20 model, badged as "Standard 20", production of Standard cars ceased until the Standard 2000, a rebadged Rover SD1, was introduced in 1985. The car was higher and had a slightly modified old 1991 cc Standard Vanguard engine, as the company could not procure the licence to use the original Rover engine on this car. Being expensive and outdated it was not successful, apart from the reasons that it had competition from cars with Japanese and other newer, fuel-efficient technology in India. It ceased production in 1988, with the factory in Perungalathur near Chennai also closing its operations at the same time, around the same time that the last examples of the SD1 left British showrooms (production had finished in 1986 but stocks lasted for around two more years). After feeble efforts over successive years to revive the company, the premises were auctioned off in 2006 and Britain's Rimmer Bros. bought up the entire unused stock of SD1 parts. This also signalled the end of the Standard marque.

Pre World War 1
(Sources—Standard Motor Club and Graham Robson Book of the Standard Motor Company, Veloce, ISBN 978-1-845843-43-4)

title: Standard Motor Company


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Metropolitan Borough of Kensington

The Metropolitan Borough of Kensington was a metropolitan borough in the County of London from 1900 to 1965, which since 1901 was known as the Royal Borough of Kensington, following the death of Queen Victoria, in accordance with her wishes.

History
It bordered Chelsea, Fulham, Hammersmith, Paddington, and Westminster.

It included Kensington, South Kensington, Earls Court, Notting Hill, Brompton and part of Kensal Green.

In 1901 it was granted the status of a royal borough, and therefore from then was also known as the Royal Borough of Kensington. The status was granted after the death of Queen Victoria, in accordance with her wish (she was born at Kensington Palace in the borough).

In 1965 it was amalgamated with the Metropolitan Borough of Chelsea to form the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.

A number of street signs in the area still bear the designation "Royal Borough of Kensington".

The old Town Hall was demolished "in controversial circumstances" involving an impending conservation order in June 1982.

Coat of arms
The coat of arms is derived from those of the former Lords of the Manor, and that of the parish church, which is dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

Population and area
The Kensington borough covered 2291 acre once part of Kensal New Town (a detached part of Chelsea before 1901) became incorporated. The population of Kensington recorded in the Census, which excludes Kensal New Town before 1901, was:

Kensington Vestry 1801–1899 Metropolitan Borough 1900–1961

Politics
Under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 any parish that exceeded 2,000 ratepayers was to be divided into wards; however the parish of St Mary Abbots Kensington had already been divided into three wards by the Kensington Improvement Act 1851 (14 & 15 Vict. c. cxvi). So the incorporated vestry inherited these wards and assigned vestrymen to them: The Holy Trinity Brompton (27), St John's Notting Hill & St James' Norland (27) and St Mary Abbots (30).

In 1894 as its population had increased the incorporated vestry was re-divided into eight wards (electing vestrymen): Golborne (18), Norland (15), Pembridge (15), Holland (15), Earl's Court (12), Queen's Gate (15), Redcliffe (15) and Brompton (15).

The metropolitan borough was divided into nine wards for elections: Brompton, Earl's Court, Golborne, Holland, Norland, Pembridge, Queen's Gate, Redcliffe and St Charles.

Parliament constituency
For elections to Parliament, the borough was divided into two constituencies: In 1950 the borough's representation was increased to two and a half seats, when part of it was merged with Chelsea: In 2010, the constituencies of Kensington North and South were merged to create a single constituency once again and Chelsea was branched off to create a new constituency.
 * Kensington North
 * Kensington South
 * Chelsea
 * Kensington North
 * Kensington South
 * Kensington
 * Chelsea and Fulham

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Metropolitan Borough of Kensington


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Spotted salamander

The spotted salamander or yellow-spotted salamander (Ambystoma maculatum) is a mole salamander common in eastern United States and Canada. It is the state amphibian of Ohio and South Carolina. The species ranges from Nova Scotia, to Lake Superior, to southern Georgia and Texas. Its embryos have been found to have symbiotic algae living in and around them, the only known example of vertebrate cells hosting an endosymbiont microbe (unless mitochondria are considered).

Description

The spotted salamander is about 15 - 25 cm long, with females generally being larger than males. They are stout, like most mole salamanders, and have wide snouts. The spotted salamander's main color is black, but can sometimes be a blueish-black, dark gray, dark green, or even dark brown. Two uneven rows of yellowish-orange spots run from the top of the head (near the eyes) to the tip of the tail (dorso-lateral ranging). The spotted salamander's spots near the top of its head are more orange, while the spots on the rest of its body are more yellow. The underside of the spotted salamander is slate gray and pink. Sexual dimorphism, physical differences between males and females, is displayed in the form of larger-bodied females having brighter-coloured spots. Males will have a larger portion of their dorsal surface covered in spots that are less bright. There is also a correlation between body condition and spots having lower chroma.

The scientific name Ambystoma maculatum comes from Ambystoma– amblys (Greek) for blunt; -stoma (Greek) meaning mouth; or anabystoma (New Latin) meaning ‘to cram into the mouth’ maculatum – macula (Latin) for spot; maculosus (Latin) for spotted.

They developed larger tail fins and bodies to compete with other predators. They typically live around 20 years, but some have lived up to 30 years. ("Spotted Salamander")

Habitat and dispersal
The spotted salamander usually lives in mature forests with ponds or ephemeral vernal pools for breeding sites. Vernal pools are suitable breeding sites for these amphibians as they dry often enough to exclude fish that eat the salamander eggs and larvae, while retaining water long enough to allow amphibian larvae to complete development and metamorphose into terrestrial adults. A study showed larger pools (as opposed to smaller pools) had more egg masses, higher occupancy, and higher larval survival rates for spotted salamanders. Outside of the breeding season, these salamanders spend their time in forests with well-drained soils that contain many burrows dug by small mammals. They have also been known to be absent from landscapes and forest with canopy cover below 30%.

Salamander populations from nearby pools form genetically-distinct metapopulations. Subpopulations within 4.8 kilometers share a higher proportion of genes, while populations greater than 4.8 kilometers share a smaller proportion of genes. Inter-population dispersal is likely mediated by both species-specific behaviors and natural limitations.

Behavior
Spotted salamanders are fossorial, meaning they spend most of their time underground. They rarely come above ground, except after a rain or for foraging and breeding. During the winter, they brumate underground, and are not seen again until breeding season in early March–May.

In North Amherst, Massachusetts, United States Spotted salamanders cross the street to get from their overwintering sites in the wooded area east of the roadway to their breeding sites to the west. Local officials built Amphibian and reptile tunnels called the Henry Street salamander tunnels to help the salamanders cross the road to get to vernal pools. In the spring after rain and when temperatures rise above 40 F, salamanders emerge from underground. They cross Henry Street to get to their breeding grounds, vernal pools which form on the other side of the road, an event common among amphibians and known as the Big Night.

Ambystoma maculatum has several methods of defense, including hiding in burrows or leaf litter, autotomy of the tail, and a toxic milky liquid it excretes when perturbed. This secretion comes from large poison glands around the back and neck. The spotted salamander, like other salamanders, shows great regenerative abilities: if a predator manages to dismember a part of a leg, tail, or even parts of the brain, head, or organs, the salamander can grow back a new one, although this takes a massive amount of energy. As juveniles, they spend most of their time under the leaf litter near the bottom of the pools where their eggs were laid. The larvae tend to occupy refuges in vegetation, and lower their activity in the presence of predators.

Ambystoma maculatum tend to follow the same path in their migration to and from their burrows and breeding pools. They accomplish their journey in conditions that lack visual cues, since it is usually during periods of cloud cover. Some studies show evidence of landmark learning in spotted salamanders. Researchers found that spotted salamanders can associate visual landmarks with food. Thus spotted salamanders may learn landmarks in their habitat that are reliable indicators of resource locations or provide orientation clues for migration to and from breeding ponds.

Male salamanders come out earlier than females due to different responses in temperature than females. According to a study there is a correlation between the salamander's spot coloration and body condition. Salamanders' in lower body condition had less color and those with a better body score had brighter colored spots.

Diet
Spotted salamanders feed on earthworms, slugs, snails, spiders, millipedes, centipedes, insects, algae and other invertebrates. The spotted salamander larvae have been known to cannibalize others when food is scarce. They sometimes also feed on smaller salamanders, such as the red-backed salamander. The adult spotted salamander uses its sticky tongue to catch food.

Lifecycle
During the majority of the year, spotted salamanders live in the shelter of leaves or burrows in deciduous forests. However, when the temperature rises and the moisture level is high, the salamanders make their abrupt migration towards their annual breeding ponds. Recent studies, however, indicate that temperature may be a more important factor than precipitation, as precipitation in winter months increase, yet salamanders do not migrate. In just one night, hundreds to thousands of salamanders may make the trip to their ponds for mating. Males will start a dance-like behavior called a liebsspiel, where afterward they lay down their spermatophore. This dance includes the salamanders circling around one another and putting their head's on one another's tail. Then, the male will swim away wiggling his tail. If the female wants to mate she will follow him to a sperm pack he made earlier. ("Spotted Salamander Ambystoma Maculatum") Males will migrate at higher rates than females early in the migration season. This could be due to different responses to temperature between males and females. Mates usually breed in ponds when it is raining in the spring. Females usually lay about 100 eggs in one clutch that cling to the underwater plants and form egg masses.

The egg masses are round, jelly-like clumps that are usually 2.5 - 4 in long. The spotted salamander produces a unique polymorphism in the outer jelly layers of its egg masses: one morph has a clear appearance and contains a water-soluble protein, whereas the other morph is white and contains a crystalline hydrophobic protein. This polymorphism is thought to confer advantages in vernal pools with varying dissolved nutrient levels, while also reducing mortality from feeding by wood frog larvae.

Adults only stay in the water for a few days, then the eggs hatch in one to two months. When the eggs hatch depends on the water temperatures. Eggs of A. maculatum can have a symbiotic relationship with the green alga Oophila amblystomatis. A dense gelatinous matrix surrounds the eggs and prevents the eggs from drying out, but it inhibits oxygen diffusion (required for embryo development). The Oophila alga provides increased oxygen and supplemental nutrition from fixed carbon products via photosynthesis and removes the embryo's nitrogenous waste (ammonia) in the egg capsule, aiding in the salamander's embryonic development and growth. The developing salamander thus metabolizes the oxygen, producing carbon dioxide (which then the alga consumes). Photosynthetic algae are present within the egg capsule of the developing salamander embryo, enhancing growth. However, the widely used herbicide, atrazine, has been found to significantly lower hatching success rate by eliminating the symbiotic algae associated with the egg masses.

As larvae, they are usually light brown or greenish-yellow. They have small dark spots and are born with external gills. In two to four months, the larvae lose their gills, and become juvenile salamanders that leave the water. Spotted salamanders have been known to live up to 32 years, and normally return to the same vernal pool every year. These pools are seasonal and will usually dry up during the late spring and stay dry until winter.

Spotted salamanders are often preyed on by raccoons, skunks, turtles, and snakes. For this reason they perform an important function by connecting the food chain. Moreover, one of their predators is humans since they are popularly sought out through the pet trade.

title: Spotted salamander


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Metropolitan Borough of Fulham

The Metropolitan Borough of Fulham was a metropolitan borough in the County of London between 1900 and 1965, when it was merged with the Metropolitan Borough of Hammersmith to form the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. It was a riverside borough, and comprised the many centuries-long definition of Fulham so included parts often considered of independent character today Walham Green, Parsons Green, Hurlingham, Sands End and that part of Chelsea Harbour west of Counter's Creek. The SW6 postal district approximately follows this as does the direct, though less empowered, predecessor Fulham civil parish.

Coat of arms
When the metropolitan borough was formed it carried on using the unofficial arms adopted by its predecessor, Fulham vestry in 1886. This was a quartered shield, with a depiction of a bridge in the first and fourth quarters. The bridge in the first quarter was the original wooden Putney Bridge, opened in 1729 with its toll houses. Its replacement, the present Putney Bridge, constructed of stone, was shown in the fourth quarter. The new bridge was opened in 1886, when the arms were designed. The second quarter showed crossed swords, from the arms of the Bishop of London. The manor of Fulham was held by the bishop from 691, and his official residence, Fulham Palace, was built in the area. The third quarter was the arms then associated with the county of Middlesex, in which Fulham lay until 1889. The three seaxes on a red field was also regarded as the arms of Essex.

In 1927 councillor F. H. Barber, proprietor of Barber's Department Store in the borough, offered to pay the costs of a grant of arms and new civic regalia. Accordingly, an official grant was obtained from the College of Arms on 12 October of that year, blazoned as follows:
 * Barry wavy of ten, Argent and azure, on a Saltire gules, two swords in Saltire points upwards of the first enfiled of a Mitre Or, and for the Crest upon a Mural Crown of Seven turrets Or and Ancient Rowing Ship in full sail Sable, the Flags per fesse Argent and Azure charged on the sail with a Rose Gules, surmounted by a Rose Argent barbed Vert and seeded proper.

The silver and blue wavy field was for the River Thames, the swords and mitre signifying the Bishop of London.

The crest rose from a gold mural crown, resembling a city wall, and thus municipal government. The crest itself was a black ship, recalling an expedition to Fulham by the Danes in 879. The main sail was charged with a Tudor rose, recalling the importance of the area in that era, when Fulham Palace was rebuilt.

The Latin motto, Pro Civibus Et Civitate, was translated as "for citizens and state".

The waves from the shield, the two swords, the mitre and most of the crest was brought to the coat of arms of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham when Fulham and Hammersmith merged to form a new London borough in 1965.

Population and area
Over its existence the borough's area varied from 1,704 to 1707 acre. The population, as recorded at the census, was:

Fulham Vestry 1801-1899 Metropolitan Borough 1900–1961

Town Hall
The borough was administered from Fulham Town Hall, on Fulham Broadway, in Walham Green. The hall had been built in 1888 – 1890 for the Fulham vestry, and was in the classical renaissance style. When the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham was formed, Hammersmith Town Hall was adopted as the administrative centre. Some offices remain at Fulham however, and contains a registry office. The grand hall is a popular venue for concerts and dances. The london borough council also makes the building available for filming purposes.

Politics
Under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 any parish that exceeded 2,000 ratepayers was to be divided into wards; however the parish of Fulham did not exceed this number so was not divided into wards.

In 1883-84 the population had increased enough for the parish to be divided into three wards (electing vestrymen): North End (27), Walham (27) and South Fulham (18).

In 1894 as its population had increased the newly incorporated vestry was re-divided into eight wards (electing vestrymen): Baron's Court (12), Margravine (9), Munster (9), Lillie (12), Walham (12), Town (6), Hurlingham (3) and Sands End (9).

The metropolitan borough was divided into eight wards for elections: Baron's Court, Hurlingham, Lillie, Margravine, Munster, Sands End, Town, and Walham.

Parliament constituency
For elections to Parliament, the borough for 18 years amounted to one seat: In 1918 such representation was increased to two seats: In 1955 such representation was reduced to $1 1/2$ seats. The half seat shared was with part of the Metropolitan Borough of Hammersmith and was named: The other seat was:
 * Fulham
 * Fulham East
 * Fulham West
 * Barons Court
 * Fulham (reduced period of the seat mentioned in the bullet point above)

title: Metropolitan Borough of Fulham


text:
Metropolitan Borough of Hammersmith

Hammersmith was a civil parish and metropolitan borough in London, England. It was formed as a civil parish in 1834 from the chapelry of Hammersmith that had existed in the ancient parish of Fulham, Middlesex since 1631. The parish was grouped with Fulham as the Fulham District from 1855 until 1886, when separate parish administration was restored. In 1889 it became part of the County of London and in 1900 it became a metropolitan borough. It included Hammersmith, Wormwood Scrubs, Old Oak Common and Shepherd's Bush. In 1965 it was abolished and became the northern part of the London Borough of Hammersmith, since 1979 renamed the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham.

History
Hammersmith was part of the ancient parish of Fulham, Middlesex which occupied broadly the same area as the current London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in Greater London.

A chapel of ease was built for Hammersmith in 1631 and the chapelry developed its own independent vestry. This was recognised in 1834 when the parish of Hammersmith was split from the parish of Fulham. In 1855 the two parishes were combined for civil purposes as the Fulham District, governed by the Fulham District Board of Works. This coincided with the parish becoming part of the area of responsibility of the Metropolitan Board of Works.

In 1886 the district was dissolved and the parish was governed by the Hammersmith Vestry. It was transferred from the County of Middlesex to the County of London in 1889. The parish became a metropolitan borough in 1900 and the Hammersmith Vestry became Hammersmith Borough Council.

In 1965 it was merged with the Metropolitan Borough of Fulham to form the London Borough of Hammersmith and was renamed Hammersmith and Fulham in 1979. The new London borough council retained Hammersmith's motto of Spectemur Agendo, although it was spelled out in English ("Let us be judged by our acts") in the new coat of arms for the first few years.

Coat of arms
The coat of arms of the Metropolitan Borough of Hammersmith was granted in 1897. It was Per pale azure and gules on a chevron or between in chief two cross crosslets and in base a scallop argent, three horseshoes of the second. The cross crosslets come from the arms of Edward Latymer, who founded schools in Hammersmith in the seventeenth century which later evolved into Latymer Upper School and the Godolphin and Latymer School (both feature cross crosslets in their coats of arms). The horseshoes come from the arms of brickmaker Nicholas Crisp, who introduced his technique into Hammersmith and who helped build a chapel, which was to become Hammersmith's parish church of Saint Paul; and the scallop comes from the arms of George Pring, a surgeon who projected Hammersmith Bridge. The crest was a castle tower surmounted by two hammers, a pun on the name Hammersmith.

Poor law
With the introduction of the New Poor Law the parish became part of the Kensington Poor Law Union in 1837. From 1845, it was grouped with Fulham as the Fulham Poor Law Union. In 1889 Hammersmith became a single parish for poor law purposes and this lasted until the boards of guardians were abolished in 1930.

Population and area
The borough covered 2286 acre. It included Hammersmith, Wormwood Scrubs, Old Oak Common and Shepherd's Bush.

The population in each census was:

Hammersmith Vestry 1801–1899 Metropolitan Borough 1900–1961

Politics
Under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 any parish that exceeded 2,000 ratepayers was to be divided into wards; however the parishes of Fulham District Board of Works did not exceed this number so were not divided into wards.

In 1873 the population had increased enough for the parish of Hammersmith to be divided into three wards (electing vestrymen): North (24), Centre (27) and South (21).

In 1894 as its population had increased the newly incorporated vestry was re-divided into six wards (electing vestrymen): No. 1 (12), No. 2 (18), No. 3 (15), No. 4 (15), No. 5 (6) and No. 6 (6).

The metropolitan borough was divided into seven wards for elections: No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 4, No. 5, No. 6 and No. 7.

Parliament constituency
For elections to Parliament, the borough was represented by one constituency: In 1918 the borough's representation was increased to two seats: In 1955 the borough's representation was reduced to one and a half seats, when part of it was merged with Fulham:
 * Hammersmith
 * Hammersmith North
 * Hammersmith South
 * Barons Court
 * Hammersmith North

title: Metropolitan Borough of Hammersmith


text:
Metropolitan Borough of Battersea

Battersea was a civil parish and metropolitan borough in the County of London, England. In 1965, the borough was abolished and its area combined with parts of the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth to form the London Borough of Wandsworth. The borough was administered from Battersea Town Hall on Lavender Hill. That building is now Battersea Arts Centre.

Ancient parish
As an ancient parish, Battersea was part of the hundred of Brixton and county of Surrey. It included the exclave of Penge.

Parish in the Metropolis
In 1855, under the Metropolis Management Act 1855, the civil responsibilities of the parish were passed to the Metropolitan Board of Works. The two parts of the parish were assigned to different districts by the act establishing the MBW: Battersea was included in the area of the Wandsworth District Board of Works and the hamlet of Penge in that of Lewisham District Board of Works. Penge became a civil parish in its own right in 1866.

On 25 March 1888, a separate vestry was formed as a local authority for The parish of Saint Mary Battersea excluding Penge. In 1889, the Local Government Act 1888 reconstituted the area of the Metropolitan Board of Works as the County of London, and Battersea was transferred from Surrey to the new county.

The population of the parish in 1896 was 165,115 and it had adopted the Public Libraries Act 1850 immediately upon obtaining local independence in 1888, with its own vestry. For electoral purposes, the parish was divided into four wards and had 120 elected vestrymen.

Metropolitan borough
In 1900, the London Government Act 1899 divided the County of London into twenty-eight metropolitan boroughs. The vestries and district boards were dissolved. The parish became the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea, with the borough council replacing the civil vestry.

The Metropolitan Borough included within its bounds Battersea, Battersea Park, Clapham Junction and parts of Wandsworth Common and Clapham Common.

In 1913, John Archer became mayor of the borough and the first black mayor in the capital.

Ecclesiastical parish
The ancient parish, dedicated to St Mary, was in the Diocese of Winchester until 1877, then the Diocese of Rochester until 1905, and then finally in the Diocese of Southwark. From 1851, as the population of Battersea increased, a number of new parishes were formed:
 * St George, Nine Elms in 1853
 * Christ Church, Battersea Park in 1861
 * St John, York Road Battersea in 1863
 * St Philip, Queen's Road, Battersea in 1870
 * Church of the Ascension, Lavender Hill in 1871
 * St Saviour, Battersea Park Road in 1872
 * St Peter, Plough Road, Battersea in 1876
 * St Mark, Battersea Rise in 1883
 * All Saints, Queen's Road, Battersea Park in 1884
 * St Michael, Wandsworth Common in 1884
 * St Andrew, Stockdale Road, Battersea in 1886
 * St Stephen, Battersea Bridge Road in 1887
 * St Barnabas, Clapham Common in 1895
 * St Luke, Ramsden Road, Battersea in 1901
 * St Bartholomew, Wickersley Road, Battersea in 1906

A number of new parishes were also formed within the detached part of Battersea parish, the hamlet of Penge:
 * St John the Evangelist, Penge in 1851
 * St Paul, Penge in 1869
 * Holy Trinity, Anerley Road, Penge in 1873
 * Christ Church, Penge in 1886

Coat of arms
In 1901, the borough adopted an unofficial coat of arms, consisting of a shield vertically divided blue and white, the division line being indented (in heraldry-speak Party per pale indented azure and argent). This design was taken from a flag dating from 1803. On top of the shield was a dove bearing an olive branch. The Latin motto was Non Mihi, Non Tibi, Sed Nobis, or "Neither for myself, nor for yourself, but for us".

In 1955, the borough received an official grant from the College of Arms, based on the old device. The colours in the shield were reversed, and a bordure or heraldic border added. The bordure consisted of silver and blue waves, representative of the River Thames, and bore sixteen gold stars for the sixteen wards of the borough. The new crest on top of the helm was the dove of the 1901 design, with the addition of sprigs of lavender, for the old lavender fields of the area, and Lavender Hill, the main road of Battersea. The old motto was retained.

Population and area
The area of the borough was 2163 acre. The population recorded in the Census was:

Battersea Vestry 1801–1899 Metropolitan Borough 1900–1961

Politics
The first election to the council was on 1 November 1900, with the Progressive Party taking control of the new borough. They retained power until 1909, when the Municipal Reform Party (allied to the Conservatives) gained a majority. The Progressives regained the council in 1912, holding power until 1919 when the Labour Party gained control. In 1931 the borough come under Municipal Reform control again. Labour regained power in 1934, retaining it for the rest of the borough's existence.

Elections of the whole council were held every three years. Elections were cancelled during the two world wars (1914–1918 and 1939–1945). The 1952 election was postponed for a year so that it did not clash with elections to the London County Council. The number of councillors returned at each election was as follows:.

No Municipal Reform candidates were nominated after 1946, and Conservative candidates were nominated at local elections for the first time.
 * Local elections

Wards
From 1900 to 1949 the borough was divided into nine wards, returning either three, six or nine councillors:
 * Bolingbroke (6 councillors)
 * Broomwood (6)
 * Church (6)
 * Latchmere (6)
 * Nine Elms (9)
 * Park (6)
 * St John (3)
 * Shaftesbury (6)
 * Winstanley (6)

In 1949 the wards were redrawn, with fourteen wards returning three to five councillors each:
 * Bolingbroke (3)
 * Broomwood (3)
 * Church (4)
 * Latchmere (4)
 * Lavender (3)
 * Newtown (3)
 * Nightingale (5)
 * Nine Elms (3)
 * Park (4)
 * Queenstown (4)
 * St John (4)
 * Shaftesbury (3)
 * Stormont (3)
 * Thornton (3)
 * Vicarage (3)
 * Winstanley (3)

The latest ward to be redrawn was Fairfield ward, with three councillors.

Parliamentary constituencies
For elections to parliament the borough was originally part of the parliamentary borough of Battersea and Clapham, which consisted of two divisions, Battersea and Clapham.

In 1918 the metropolitan borough was divided into two constituencies:
 * Battersea North (Church, Latchmere, Nine Elms and Park wards) and
 * Battersea South (Bolingbroke, Broomwood, St John, Shaftesbury and Winstanley wards)

The boundaries of the two constituencies were adjusted in 1949 to reflect the redrawn borough wards:
 * Battersea North (Church, Latchmere, Newtown, Nine Elms, Park, Queenstown, Vicarage and Winstanley wards)
 * Battersea South (Bolingbroke, Broomwood, Lavender, Nightingale, St John, Shaftesbury, Stormont and Thornton wards)

The constituencies continued unchanged until 1983 when the Battersea constituency largely succeeded these two.

title: Metropolitan Borough of Battersea


text:
Crawford Automobile

The Crawford Automobile Company was an American automobile manufacturing company based in Hagerstown, Maryland which produced cars from 1905 to 1923. After the Crawford Automobile Company was purchased by the M. P. Moller Pipe Organ Co., they produced a sporting version of the Crawford called the Dagmar (in production until 1927).

Crawfords were chain-driven until 1907, and the 1911–1914 models featured transaxles. Later cars featured brass trim, disc-covered wooden artillery wheels, and Continental six-cylinder engines.

title: Crawford Automobile


text:
Metropolitan Borough of Hackney

The Metropolitan Borough of Hackney was a metropolitan borough of the County of London from 1900 to 1965. Its area became part of the London Borough of Hackney.

Formation and boundaries
The borough was one of twenty-eight metropolitan boroughs created by the London Government Act 1899. It was the successor to the vestry of the parish of Hackney, which had been the local authority since 1894. Between 1855 and 1894 the parish had been administered with Stoke Newington as the Hackney District.

The boundaries of Hackney with the neighbouring boroughs were adjusted slightly in 1900: Hackney gained the east side of Bethune Road from Stoke Newington and the south side of Balls Pond Road from Islington; it lost the west side of Southgate Road to Islington. The boundary with Shoreditch was altered to run along the Regents Canal, Albion Road and Brougham Road, while the boundary with Bethnal Green, which had formed a straight line, was changed to follow the line of Gore Road. A further adjustment was made in 1908, when areas were exchanged with Tottenham Urban District, Middlesex. It had a border with Leyton Urban District (a municipal borough from 1926) in Essex to the east and to the north, from which it was divided by Hackney Marshes.

The metropolitan borough included the districts of Hackney, Upper and Lower Clapton, Homerton, Dalston and Kingsland. It also included Stoke Newington Common, and the entire eastern side of Stoke Newington High Street.

Population and area
The metropolitan borough was almost coterminous with the ancient parish of Hackney. Statistics were compiled by the London County Council in 1901 to show population growth in London over the preceding century.

The area of the borough in 1901 was 3289 acre. The populations recorded in National Censuses were:

Hackney Vestry 1801–1899 Metropolitan Borough 1900–1961

By comparison, after amalgamation with Shoreditch and Stoke Newington, to form the modern London Borough of Hackney, the combined area became 19.06 km² - approximately 4710 acre; in 2005, this had a population of 207,700, or a population density of 10,900/km². In 1901 Hackney the population density was 16,475/km².

Incorporated vestry
Under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 any parish that exceeded 2,000 ratepayers was to be divided into wards; as such the parish of St John at Hackney within the Hackney District Board of Works was divided into seven wards (electing vestrymen): No. 1 or Stamford Hill (15), No. 2 or West (18), No. 3 or De Beauvoir Town (18), No. 4 or Dalston (18), No. 5 or Hackney (18), No. 6 or Homerton (15) and No. 7 or South (18).

The Hackney Vestry was controlled by the Progressive Party, the grouping linked with the parliamentary Liberal Party. Opposition on the body was provided by the Conservative-backed Moderate Party. The vestry had 119 members, with one third elected annually.

In 1894 as its population had increased the incorporated vestry was re-divided into eight wards (electing vestrymen): Stamford Hill (15), West (18), Kingsland (12), Hackney (12), Mare Street (15), South (15), Clapton (12) and Homerton (21).

Borough council
The London Government Act 1899 replaced the incorporated vestries with borough councils consisting of a mayor, aldermen and councillors. All councillors were to be elected every three years. There was one alderman for every six councillors, and these were elected by the council itself.

Boundary commissioners were appointed under the London Government Act 1899 to divide the new boroughs into wards, and to apportion councillors to each ward. It was decided to continue to use the eight vestry wards. The Moderates claimed that Stamford Hill and West Hackney wards were under-represented and should be given nine councillors, with the remaining six wards having six each. In the event, the commissioners apportioned 60 councillors between the eight wards: Clapton Park, Hackney, Homerton and Stamford Hill having nine councillors and Downs, Kingsland, South and West wards having six a piece. With 10 aldermen, the borough council thus had 70 members.

1900–1919
The boundary changes seem to have favoured the Moderates, as at the first elections to the council on 1 November 1900 they won a majority with 37 seats to 18 won by the Liberal Party and Progressives, with 3 independent Conservative and 2 independent councillors also returned. At the next election in 1903 the Progressives won control with 49 seats to 11 Conservatives. Three years later the Conservatives ran under the Municipal Reform label. Municipal Reformers won 18 seats and independents supported by them won 20, giving them a majority over the Progressives with 22 seats. The Progressives regained the council in 1909 with a narrow majority, losing power to the Municipal Reform party again in 1912.

1919–1937
The next elections, postponed until 1919 due to the First World War, were won by the Labour Party: Labour won 32 seats, Municipal Reform 15 and Progressives 13. At the next elections in 1922 a "Progressive Reform" anti-Labour alliance won all seats on the council, and held them at the subsequent polls in 1925. The 1928 election was partly run on party lines: the Municipal Reform party won control with 31 seats, other Anti-Labour candidates won 15, Labour won 12 and Progressives 1. In 1931 Municipal Reformers won all but one seat, which was held by Labour. Labour gained control of the borough council in 1934, and held power for the rest of the borough's existence. In 1934 they won 45 seats to 15 won by Municipal Reformers.

1937–1965
In 1937 the borough's ward boundaries were redrawn: sixteen wards were created (Chatham, Culford, Dalston, Downs, Graham, Leaside, Marsh, Maury, Park, Ridley, Southwold, Springfield, Stamford, Town Hall, Tudor and Wick), each represented by three councillors. To the forty-eight councillors thus elected were added 8 aldermen. Labour won 41 seats in 1937 to Municipal Reform's 7. Local elections were postponed due to the Second World War, and from 1945 the only non-Labour councillors were Communists: 1 was elected in 1945, and 2 in 1949. At the last four elections to the council in 1953, 1956, 1959 and 1962 Labour won all the seats.

Parliament constituency
For elections to Parliament, the borough was divided into three constituencies: In 1950 the borough's representation was reduced to one and a half seats, when part of it was merged with Stoke Newington: In 1955 the borough's representation was reduced to one and two half seats, when another part of it was merged with Bethnal Green:
 * Hackney Central
 * Hackney North
 * Hackney South
 * Hackney North and Stoke Newington
 * Hackney South
 * Hackney Central
 * Hackney North and Stoke Newington
 * Bethnal Green

Coat of arms
The seal of the Hackney Vestry bore a representation of St Augustine's Tower, the remains of the 13th-century parish church. When the metropolitan borough was formed in 1900, the vestry seal was altered by the addition of the Latin motto Justitia Turris Nostra or Justice is our tower.

In January 1924 the borough council resolved to seek a formal grant of armorial bearings from the College of Arms. These were duly made by letters patent dated 31 May 1924. The arms were blazoned as follows: Per fesse, the chief per pale gules and per fesse Sable and Argent, and the base barry wavy of six Argent and Azure, in the dexter chief a representation of the Hackney Tower proper and in the sinister chief a Maltese Cross per fesse Argent and Gules.

Crest: On a Wreath of the Colours a representation of the Hackney Tower Or.

The "Hackney Tower" appeared in the upper portion of the shield, and formed the crest, placed on a helm and mantling. The 1900 motto was also retained. The Maltese Cross represented the Knights Templar and the Knights Hospitaller. These orders successively held the manor of Hackney, until the Reformation. The Templars wore red crosses on white mantles, and the Hospitallers white crosses on black: these were combined in the design. The wavy white and blue bars at the base of the shield represented the River Lea and the many canals crossing the borough.

These arms gave much inspiration to the coat of arms of the London Borough of Hackney when the London borough was created in 1965.

Town hall
The borough council was initially based in a "French-Italian" style town hall in Hackney Grove, dating from 1866. The building was extended in 1898. A new Art Deco town hall in Mare Street was begun in 1934, and opened in 1937. It is now the headquarters of the London Borough of Hackney.

title: Metropolitan Borough of Hackney


text:
Metropolitan Borough of Bethnal Green

Bethnal Green was a civil parish and a metropolitan borough of the County of London between 1899 and 1965, when it was merged with the Metropolitan Borough of Stepney and the Metropolitan Borough of Poplar to form the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

It was formed as a civil parish in 1743 from the Bethnal Green hamlet in Stepney ancient parish, and the church of St Matthew, Bethnal Green, was dedicated in 1746.

The vestry became an electing authority to the Metropolitan Board of Works in 1855 and in 1889 it became part of the County of London. In the 1900 reform of local government caused by the London Government Act 1899 the parish became a metropolitan borough which bordered Hackney, Poplar, Stepney and Shoreditch. In 1965 it was abolished and merged into the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

Origins

Until 1743 Bethnal Green formed a hamlet within the large parish of Stepney. By the 17th century the settlement had achieved a measure of self-government, with its own overseer, constable and beadle. It remained a rural area until the beginning of the 18th century, when the expansion of suburban London saw the development of the Brick Lane area in the south west of the hamlet. The population rapidly increased and in 1743 an act of parliament, the Bethnal Green Parish Act 1742 (16 Geo. 2. c. 28), constituted Bethnal Green as a separate parish.

As well as forming a parish for ecclesiastical purposes, Bethnal Green was also created a civil parish with responsibility for relief of the poor and maintenance of highways. The government of the parish was shared by a vestry, governors of the poor and two separate bodies of trustees. A further board of paving and lighting commissioners were established in 1843.

In 1855 the parish was included within the area of the Metropolitan Board of Works to which it nominated one member and the various local government bodies were replaced by a single incorporated vestry which consisted of 48 elected vestrymen.

Under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 any parish that exceeded 2,000 ratepayers was to be divided into wards; as such the incorporated vestry of St Matthew Bethnal Green was divided into four wards (electing vestrymen): No. 1 or East (9), No. 2 or North (9), No. 3 or West (15) and No. 4 or South (15).

In 1889 the Metropolitan Board was replaced by the London County Council, and Bethnal Green was formally removed from Middlesex to the new County of London.

Ecclesiastical parish
Bethnal Green was part of the ancient parish of St Dunstan's, Stepney, in the Diocese of London; in 1743 the area was split off to form a new parish dedicated to St Matthew. From 1837, as the population of Bethnal Green increased, a number of new parishes were formed:
 * St John, Bethnal Green, in 1837
 * St Peter, Bethnal Green, in 1843
 * St Andrew, Bethnal Green, in 1843
 * St Philip, Bethnal Green, in 1843
 * St James the Less, Bethnal Green, in 1843
 * St Bartholomew, Bethnal Green, in 1844
 * St James the Great, Bethnal Green, in 1844
 * St Jude, Bethnal Green, in 1844
 * St Matthias, Bethnal Green, in 1844
 * St Simon Zelotes, Bethnal Green, in 1844
 * St Thomas, Bethnal Green, in 1844
 * St Paul, Bethnal Green, in 1865
 * St Barnabas, Bethnal Green, in 1870

In addition, as the population increased, western parts of Bethnal Green were transferred into neighbouring Shoreditch as the new parish of Holy Trinity, Shoreditch, in 1866.

Creation of the borough
Under the London Government Act 1899 the various vestries and district boards within the County of London were abolished and replaced by metropolitan borough councils. Accordingly, in 1900, a borough council consisting of a mayor, five aldermen and 30 councillors replaced the vestry. The boundaries of the borough and parish were realigned at the same time.

Bethnal Green Town Hall in Patriot Square was opened in 1910, and extended in 1936–9. The architects were Percy Robinson and William Alban Jones. In 2010 the building was reopened as a hotel; much of the original art deco interior has been retained.

Borough seal
The borough seal depicted a scene based on The Beggar's Daughter of Bednall Green, a poem in Percy’s Reliques of Ancient English Poetry, published in 1765, but probably dating from the era of Elizabeth I. According to the legend related in the poem, a blind beggar living in Bethnal Green was in fact Henry de Montfort, eldest son of Simon de Montfort, having escaped from the field of the Battle of Evesham in 1265. His identity was revealed at the wedding feast of his daughter Bessie. A depiction of the beggar had appeared on the head of the beadle's staff dating from 1690.

Politics
In the first election to the borough council, held on 1 November 1900 the Progressives gained a majority, with 22 of the 30 councillors. The Moderates (supported by the Conservative Party) formed the 8 member opposition group. The Progressives increased their majority to 24 at the 1903 elections, and in 1906 they won all the seats on the council. The Progressives held the council against the Municipal Reform Party until 1919 when the Labour Party gained a majority. Progressives and Liberals regained control at the 1928 election, holding power until 1934.

In 1934, Labour again took control, and from that date held all the seats on the council until the borough's abolition.

For parliamentary elections, Bethnal Green was divided into two constituencies in 1885. Each consisted of two wards of the borough and earlier vestry:
 * Bethnal Green North East (north and east wards)
 * Bethnal Green South West (south and west wards).

In 1950, the borough's representation was decreased to a single constituency of Bethnal Green, which in 1955 was expanded to also include three wards from the neighbouring Metropolitan Borough of Hackney.

Population and area
The area of the borough was 760 acre. It included the districts now known as Bethnal Green, Cambridge Heath, Bow, Whitechapel and Shoreditch, stretching to include part of the Boundary Estate in the west and parts of Mile End Park and Victoria Park in the east. In the south its boundary stopped just short of The Blind Beggar pub on Whitechapel Road. The populations recorded in National Censuses were:

Bethnal Green Vestry 1801-1899 Metropolitan Borough 1900-1961

Second World War
During World War II, the Borough suffered from heavy aerial bombing. It is estimated that 80 tons of bombs fell on this area alone, affecting 21,700 houses, destroying 2,233 and making a further 893 uninhabitable. During the course of the aerial bombardment, 555 people were killed, and 400 were seriously injured.

title: Metropolitan Borough of Bethnal Green


text:
Ambystomatidae

Ambystomatidae is a family of salamanders belonging to the Suborder Salamandroidea in the class Amphibia. It contains two genera, Ambystoma (the mole salamanders) and Dicamptodon (the Pacific giant salamanders). Ambystoma contains 32 species and are distributed widely across North America, while Dicamptodon contains four species restricted to the Pacific Northwest. These salamanders are mostly terrestrial and eat invertebrates, although some species are known to eat smaller salamanders. They can be found throughout the US and some areas of Canada in damp forests or plains. This family contains some of the largest terrestrial salamanders in the world, the tiger salamander and the coastal giant salamander. Some species are toxic and can secrete poison from their bodies as protection against predators or infraspecific competition. Neoteny has been observed in several species in Ambystomatidae, and some of them like the axolotl live all of their lives under water in their larval stage.

Characteristics and Behavior
Ambystomatids have chunky bodies with broad, flat heads and short legs. Tails are long and flattened. Colors range from black, brown, or a dull grey and can have brightly colored speckles or spots. Their skin is smooth and shiny. Most adults lack gills/gill slits and moveable eyes. There are no nasolabial grooves on the snout. Lungs are well-developed and functional. They have 10 costal grooves. Adult males have 6 sets of cloacal glands. Adult females have spermathecae in cloaca. Ambystomatids are nocturnal. Although they are more active at night, they may be found on cool days under moist leaf litter, logs, or rocks near water bodies.

The vomerine teeth, which are teeth only located on the upper jaw and in the front part of the mouth, are arranged essentially transversely, not parallel to the maxillary tooth row, which are the other teeth formed along the top jawbone; in mature metamorphosed individuals the dorsal premaxillary fontanelle, a pair of small cranial bones at the very tip of the upper jaw in many animals, is nearly or completely obliterated and the maxillae are not reduced (Tihen, 1969).

Adults tend to live in burrows and only return to waterbodies or streams to breed in early Spring. Fertilization is internal. Courtship occurs in water; males "dance," nudging the females then deposit numerous spermatophores. Most species have a larval period that extends for 3–4 months. Ambystomatids can be found in temperate forests and wetlands.

Taxonomy
The genus Rhyacotriton was formerly included in this family, but is now usually placed into its own family Rhyacotritonidae. In 2006, a large study of amphibian systematics (Frost et al., Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, 297 (2006) placed Dicamptodon back within Ambystomatidae, based on cladistic analysis. This has been accepted by the Center for Indian Herpetology.

title: Ambystomatidae


text:
Metropolitan Borough of Poplar

Poplar was a local government district in the metropolitan area of London, England. It was formed as a district of the Metropolis in 1855 and became a metropolitan borough in the County of London in 1900. It comprised Poplar, Millwall, Bromley-by-Bow and Bow as well as Old Ford, Fish Island and Cubitt Town.

Formation and boundaries
The borough formed part of the then London suburbs and was bordered the metropolitan boroughs of Hackney, Stepney, and Bethnal Green to the west and north, and the county borough of West Ham then in Essex to the east. To the south, the River Thames formed borders with the metropolitan boroughs of Bermondsey, Deptford and Greenwich.

It was formed from three civil parishes: St Mary Stratford-le-Bow, St Leonard Bromley and All Saints Poplar. In 1907 these three were combined into a single civil parish called Poplar Borough, which was conterminous with the metropolitan borough. In 1965 the parish and borough were abolished, with their former area becoming part of the newly formed London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

It included the districts of (from north to south):

 * Bow
 * Bromley St Leonard
 * Poplar
 * Blackwall
 * Isle of Dogs

History

In 1921 the borough council, under George Lansbury and the Poor Law Union were engaged in a dispute with the London County Council and central government over poor law rates – it wished to pay out of work people more than usually permitted; and to get wealthier West End boroughs to contribute to its expenses. Several councillors were imprisoned briefly in 1921 in relation to this. See Poplar Rates Rebellion.

In 1951 Poplar was chosen as the site of the Festival of Britain's 'Exhibition of Live Architecture'. The East End of London had been heavily bombed during the war and its reconstruction was showcased at the new Lansbury Estate. New building materials and planning concepts were demonstrated. The first example of 'live architecture' on the exhibition trail was the Trinity Congregational Church and Hall, just across from the main reception area with their Town Planning and Building Research Pavilions on East India Dock Road. The trail continued with the Lansbury Estate and Chrisp Street Market.

The former Poplar Town Hall in Bow Road, designed by Culpin & Son (1937–38), is now a listed building, as is its predecessor (1870) in Poplar High Street.

Population and area
Poplar covered an area of 2328 acre. The population as given in the census from 1801 to 1961 was:

Constituent parishes 1801-1899 Metropolitan Borough 1900-1961

Borough seal
The borough had no coat of arms, using instead a seal originally designed for the Poplar District Board of Works, its predecessor, created by the Metropolis Management Act 1855. The seal depicted the emblems of the three parish vestries merged into the board.

The top shield was the seal of Poplar Vestry, and showed the 'Hibbert Gate' of the old West India Docks, with a sailing ship on top of the shield. A similar representation of the gate and ship formed the head of the vestry's civic mace, which was used by the board of works and borough council until 1965. The model ship from atop the gate, which was demolished in 1932, was placed by the borough council in Poplar Recreation Ground and Poplar Library before it collapsed.

The shield on the left was the seal of Bow Vestry, and showed a bridge between two bows. This represented the bow-shaped bridge over the River Lea.

The shield on the right was the seal of Bromley St Leonard Vestry, and depicts the saint dressed as a bishop.

There remain a number of street signs which have been preserved with the name of the former borough.

Politics
Under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 any parish that exceeded 2,000 ratepayers was to be divided into wards; however the parishes of Poplar District Board of Works did not exceed this number so were not divided into wards.

In 1880 the population had increased enough for the parish of All Saints Poplar to be divided into three wards (electing vestrymen): South (27), East (27) and West (30).

In 1885 the population had increased enough for the parish of Bromley St Leonard to also be divided into three wards (electing vestrymen): West (39), East (36) and South (33).

In 1894 the population had increased enough for the parish of St Mary Stratford Bow to be divided into four wards (electing vestrymen): No. 1 (15), No. 2 (15), No. 3 (36) and No. 4 (18).

In 1894 as its population had increased the parish of All Saints Poplar was re-divided into four wards (electing vestrymen): Cubitt Town (15), Millwall (15), Blackwall (24) and West India Dock (30).

The metropolitan borough was divided into fourteen wards for elections: Bow Central, Bow North, Bow South, Bow West, Bromley Central, Bromley North East, Bromley North West, Bromley South East, Bromley South West, Cubitt Town, Millwall, Poplar East, Poplar North West and Poplar West.

Parliament constituency
For elections to Parliament, the borough was divided into two constituencies: In 1918 the boundaries of the borough's two seats were adjusted, and one was renamed: In 1950 the borough's representation was reduced to one seat:
 * Tower Hamlets, Bow and Bromley division
 * Tower Hamlets, Poplar division
 * Bow and Bromley
 * Poplar South
 * Poplar

title: Metropolitan Borough of Poplar


text:
Metropolitan Borough of Stepney

The Metropolitan Borough of Stepney was a Metropolitan borough in the County of London created in 1900. In 1965 it became part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

Formation and boundaries
The borough was formed from thirteen civil parishes and extra-parochial places: Christchurch Spitalfields, Liberty of Norton Folgate (part), Mile End New Town, Mile End Old Town, Old Artillery Ground, Ratcliff, St Anne Limehouse, St Botolph without Aldgate, St George in the East, St John of Wapping, St Mary Whitechapel, St Paul Shadwell and Tower of London.

In 1901 Tower of London was merged with St Botolph without Aldgate. In 1921 Ratcliff, St John of Wapping and St Paul Shadwell were merged with St Anne Limehouse; and Christchurch Spitalfields, Liberty of Norton Folgate, Mile End New Town, Old Artillery Ground and St Botolph without Aldgate were merged with St Mary Whitechapel. In 1927 the remaining four civil parishes were combined into a single civil parish called Stepney, which was conterminous with the metropolitan borough.

Previous to the borough's formation it had been administered by four separate local bodies: Limehouse Board of Works, Whitechapel Board of Works, Old Town Vestry and St George in the East Vestry.

The area maps roughly to the London postcode E1.

The road sign in front of Mile End tube station and a street sign on Leman Street in Aldgate still have the wording "Borough of Stepney" just visible on them.

Borough seal and coat of arms
On the formation of the metropolitan borough the corporation adopted a seal depicting the patron saints of the parishes that made up the borough. These were St Anne, Limehouse, St Mary Matfelon, Whitechapel, St Dunstan, for Stepney and St George in the East. In the centre was a depiction of the Tower of London. At the top of the seal was a sailing ship, recalling the legend that all persons born on the high seas, could claim Stepney as their birthplace. The more modern ship and quayside at the bottom of the seal was for the borough's docks. On the left of the seal was a picture of a steam locomotive, for the London and Blackwall Railway, and on the right a loom for the historic weaving industry.

In 1931 the seal was replaced by an official coat of arms, granted by the College of Arms. The main item on the shield is a ship on the waves of the sea, for the various maritime interests of Stepney. At the top of the shield are shown a version of the arms of the City of London, but with an anchor replacing the sword in the city's arms. On either side of this were placed smith's tongs, symbol of St Dunstan, patron saint of Stepney. The crest on the top of the helm featured a mural crown, representing the battlements of the Tower of London. Atop the crown were two crossed gold anchors. The Latin motto: A magnis ad maiora, can be translated as from great things to greater. When Stepney became part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, the arms of the new borough were based on Stepney's, and an English-language version of the motto was adopted.

Population and area
The area of the borough was 1766 acre. The populations recorded in National Censuses were:

Constituent parishes 1801-1899 Metropolitan Borough 1900-1961

Politics
The borough was divided into nineteen wards for elections: Centre, Limehouse North, Limehouse South, Mile End New Town, North East, North, Ratcliffe, Shadwell, South East, South, Spitalfields East, Spitalfields West, St George in the East North, St George in the East South, The Tower, West, Whitechapel East, Whitechapel Middle and Whitechapel South.

Parliament constituency
For elections to Parliament, the borough was divided into five constituencies: In 1918 the borough's representation was reduced to three seats: In 1950 the borough's representation was reduced to one seat:
 * Tower Hamlets, Limehouse division
 * Tower Hamlets, Mile End division
 * Tower Hamlets, St George division
 * Tower Hamlets, Stepney division
 * Tower Hamlets, Whitechapel division
 * Limehouse
 * Mile End
 * Whitechapel and St George's
 * Stepney

title: Metropolitan Borough of Stepney


text:
Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington

The Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington was a metropolitan borough in the County of London between 1900 and 1965 when it became part of the London Borough of Hackney.

Predecessor authorities
The borough was the successor to two local authorities: the vestry of Stoke Newington parish in the County of London and the South Hornsey Urban District Council in Middlesex.

Under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 Stoke Newington had been grouped with the neighbouring parish of Hackney under the administration of the Hackney District Board of Works. The union with Hackney was very unpopular with the inhabitants of Stoke Newington, and following unsuccessful attempts to end it in 1864, 1880 and 1890, the parish regained independence in 1894. Stoke Newington Vestry consisted of 60 vestrymen, elected from five wards.

South Hornsey formed the southern part of the parish of Hornsey, consisting of the Brownswood Park area south of Finsbury Park, 29 acre of Clissold Park and two detached areas entirely surrounded by the parish of Stoke Newington. The exclaves of South Hornsey effectively cut off the south-eastern section of Stoke Newington from the rest of the parish. A local board was formed to govern the area in 1867, becoming an urban district under the Local Government Act 1894.

Formation
The London Government Act 1899 provided that the County of London should be divided into metropolitan boroughs. The new authorities were to based on existing parishes with simplified boundaries. It was intended that each borough would have a population of between 100,000 and 400,000 inhabitants. Where an area fell below the threshold of 100,000 inhabitants, it might still be constituted a borough if it had a rateable value exceeding 500,000 pounds.

Stoke Newington presented a problem, as its population fell well below the prescribed limits. It was recognised that there were three possibilities: to recombine the parishes of Hackney and Stoke Newington into a single borough; to divide the existing parish of Hackney and combine the wealthier northern section with Stoke Newington to form a municipality with the boundaries of the Hackney North parliamentary constituency; or to add neighbouring areas of Middlesex to increase the population.

The first two options were rejected due to the experience of "intolerable and interminable feuds" between the districts when they were previously "forced together", and because the First Lord of the Treasury, Arthur Balfour recognised that there was "great ill-feeling and mutual ill-will... between the inhabitants of the two districts"; it was therefore decided to merge the bulk of South Hornsey, with a population about 20,000, with Stoke Newington. While this still created a borough of only about 50,000 inhabitants, and thus "the smallest borough in London, the anomaly would be a gradually diminishing one, because the population in this district was rapidly increasing. When dividing London up into boroughs they could not avoid creating some anomalies as to size."

Boundaries
Under the 1899 legislation, boundary commissioners were appointed to set the boundaries of the new boroughs. The existing parish boundaries frequently divided houses or related to field boundaries that had disappeared with the urbanisation of the area. The commissioners realigned the boundary lines so that for the most part they ran down the centre of roads, railways or watercourses.

To the north, the borough had a boundary with Middlesex, marked by the course of the New River and the Seven Sisters Road. Stoke Newington's boundaries with the two neighbouring metropolitan boroughs within the County of London were as follows:
 * Islington to the west and south: the centres of Blackstock Road, Mountgrove Roads, Green Lanes, (diverting to take in Petherton Road and Leconfield Road) Matthias Road and Boleyn Road.
 * Hackney to the east and north east: the centre of the ancient Ermine Street, known here as Kingsland High Street, Stoke Newington Road and Stoke Newington High Street, then following the North London Railway from Stoke Newington railway station to Bethune Road. (The area to the east of the main road, including Stoke Newington Common, never formed part of Stoke Newington administratively, lying within the parish of Hackney).

Coat of arms
The long association with the dean and chapter of St Paul's Cathedral is represented by the red background and crossed swords. The cross is from the arms of William Patten, first lord of the manor and rebuilder of the church of St Mary, in 1550. The trees represent the ancient forest, and the green lion, that of John Dudley. The griffin refers to Daniel Defoe, and the banner, the arms of Sir Thomas Abney.

The Latin motto translates as Look to the past and the future, the arms were granted on 12 June 1934.

When merged to found the London Borough of Hackney in 1965, oaks from these arms were put in the new coat of arms of the London Borough of Hackney.

The coat of arms of 1934 replaced an unofficial device adopted by the council on incorporation in 1900. At the top of the shield was a representation of the parish church. The lower part of the shield featured the arms of the cities of London and Westminster on the left, and the attributed arms of the Kingdom of Essex representing Middlesex on the right. These armorial devices were chosen to represent the union of Stoke Newington in the County of London and South Hornsey in Middlesex. The crest was formed by a tree, recalling Stoke Newington's origin as a village in the Middlesex Forest.

Population and area
Constituent parishes 1801-1900 Statistics compiled by the London County Council, in 1901 show the population growth in London, over the preceding century. The figures compiled by the council for 1891 do not agree with those that appear in the census reports, however which gave a population of 47,988 for the area.

Metropolitan Borough 1900-1961 The area of the parish of Stoke Newington was 639 acre in 1891. Following the addition of most of South Hornsey and the boundary adjustments with Hackney and Islington, the area of the borough in 1901 was 863 acre. The populations recorded in National Censuses were:

Incorporated vestry
In 1891 as its population had increased the parish of St Mary Stoke Newington was divided into five wards (electing vestrymen): Lordship (15), Church (15), Manor (12), Clissold (9) and Palatine (9).

Borough council
The borough council consisted of 30 councillors and 5 aldermen. In 1900 the boundary commissioners divided the borough into six wards for the election of councillors:

The first council elected consisted entirely of "Non-Party" candidates, although The Times noted that they were "Conservative in character". The entire council continued to be described as Independent or Non-Party until the 1934 election when the Labour Party gained 13 seats to the Independents' 17. Labour gained control of the council in 1945, taking all of the seats on the council. The Conservative Party first ran in the 1949 election, winning control from Labour by 23 seats to 7.

The wards of the borough were redrawn in 1953, with the area divided into ten wards, each electing three councillors. This reflected the change in settlement in the area, in particular the construction of new estates of council flats, including the London County Council's large Woodberry Down development which housed about a seventh of the borough's population. The names of the wards, a number of which were named after famous residents of Stoke Newington, were as follows:

 * Brownswood
 * Church

 * Clissold
 * Defoe

 * Lordship
 * Manor

 * Milton
 * Palatine

 * Wilberforce
 * Woodberry

Labour regained power at the 1953 election with 24 seats to 6 Conservatives. They held control at subsequent elections, taking all the seats in 1959. The final election of the council on 10 May 1962 saw four Liberal Party councillors elected to form an opposition group to the 26 Labour members.

Parliamentary constituency
Until 1918 the area formed part of the constituency of Hackney North. In 1918 a new constituency of Stoke Newington identical with the metropolitan borough was created. Due to loss of population, the two constituencies were merged in 1950 as Hackney North and Stoke Newington.

title: Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington


text:
Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch

The Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch was a metropolitan borough of the County of London between 1899 and 1965, when it was merged with the Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington and the Metropolitan Borough of Hackney to form the London Borough of Hackney.

The borough was made up of three main districts, Shoreditch, Hoxton and Haggerston, and covered much of the north-western and northern East End of London. An individual coat of arms was never granted to the metropolitan borough council; they adopted the arms of the second lord of the manor of Shoreditch, John de Northampton.

Boundaries
The borough was in east London and comprised the area of the ancient parish of Shoreditch (St Leonard's) plus part of the ancient liberty of Norton Folgate to the south The parish vestry had taken on local administration from the 17th century onwards.

Civic buildings
The civic buildings of the borough included the Town Hall (originally the Vestry Hall) in Old Street with the Magistrates Court (derelict in 2007), the Coroner's Court in Boundary St and other civic offices nearby.

Motto
The borough motto commemorates the provision of electric power to the borough from the Vestry of St Leonard Shoreditch Electric Light Station later known as the Shoreditch Borough Refuse Destructor and Generating Station on Coronet Street. The building on Coronet Street is embellished with the motto E PULVERE LUX ET VIS (Out of the dust, light and power). It was built in 1896 and burned rubbish, to provide steam for the electricity generator. The waste heat was used to heat the public baths next door (and now demolished). The building is now home to the National Centre for Circus Arts.

Population and area
The metropolitan borough was conterminous with the Vestry authority, when it was formed in 1900. Statistics compiled by the London County Council, in 1901 show the population growth in London, over the preceding century.

The area of the borough in 1901 was 658 acre. The populations recorded in National Censuses were:

Shoreditch Vestry 1801-1899 Metropolitan Borough 1900-1961 By comparison, after amalgamation with Hackney and Stoke Newington, to form the modern London Borough of Hackney, the combined area became 19.06 km² - approximately 4710 acre; in 2005, this had a population of 207,700, or a population density of 10,900/km². In 1901 Shoreditch the population density was 44,600/km².

Coat of arms
The borough used coat of arms, but these were never formally granted and, therefore, not official. When the borough was merged to found the London Borough of Hackney, other charges were used to represent Shoreditch in the new coat of arms of the London Borough of Hackney.

Politics
Under the Metropolis Management Act 1855 any parish that exceeded 2,000 ratepayers was to be divided into wards; as such the incorporated vestry of St Leonard Shoreditch was divided into eight wards (electing vestrymen): No. 1 or Moorfields (18), No. 2 or Church (21), No. 3 or Hoxton (21), No. 4 or Wenlock (18), No. 5 or Whitmore (12), No. 6 or Kingsland (12), No. 7 or Haggerstone (9) and No. 8 or Acton (9).

The metropolitan borough inherited these eight wards for elections: Acton, Church, Haggerston, Hoxton, Kingsland, Moorfields, Wenlock and Whitmore.

Parliament constituency
For elections to Parliament, the borough was divided into two constituencies: In 1918 the borough's representation was reduced to one seat: In 1950 the borough's representation was reduced to half a seat, when it was merged with Finsbury:
 * Haggerston
 * Hoxton
 * Shoreditch
 * Shoreditch and Finsbury

title: Metropolitan Borough of Shoreditch


text:
User talk:CGd

Yes I do like men. I am a gay journalist, Ok? If you have a problem with that, I suggest you keep it to yourself and not vandalise other people's pages. Adam 11:00, 8 Dec 2003 (UTC)

title: User talk:CGd


text:
Talk:DCide

Untitled
This page is an archive of the discussion surrounding the proposed deletion of a page entitled DCide.

 * DCide "is a Washington, DC based independent record label most noted for releasing various compilations of unsigned artists in the Washington, DC area." There are lots of independent record labels, given how inexpensive it is to press CDs with modern technology. This seems another case of Wikipedia being used for Google-farming. orthogonal 00:22, 21 Nov 2003 (UTC)
 * Keep. We have List of record labels. Some labels certainly have much more historic importance than others, but I have no objection to NPOV articles about lesser labels if someone cares to add them. Wikipedia is not paper. -- Infrogmation 16:56, 23 Nov 2003 (UTC)
 * Can we find one example of a well-known band name signed to thatlabel? Someone should do a little searching on that. Wiwaxia 03:14, 25 Nov 2003 (UTC)
 * The label published a compilation CD that included a song by Easter Bradford, who is clearly well-known. Well-known thanks to misusing Wikipedia. Oh, wait, never mind. orthogonal 09:05, 25 Nov 2003 (UTC)
 * It's v. stubby, and they don't have a huge web presence. Delete based solely on dislike of Easter Bradford stubs. Martin 19:45, 25 Nov 2003 (UTC)
 * Delete. Not because it is a small label, but because it is self-promotion. That label supports eight bands. That is impressive. But the entry was not meant to be part of an encyclopedia, as far as I can tell. Kingturtle 18:08, 26 Nov 2003 (UTC)
 * Delete. Maximus Rex 06:22, 27 Nov 2003 (UTC)
 * Delete. Rollo 00:53, 30 Nov 2003 (UTC)

Hmm, Infrogmation is the dissenting voice - I've dropped a note on hir talk page - I wonder if sie still feels keeping is appropriate. Martin 18:58, 28 Nov 2003 (UTC)

 * Having articles on things like obscure record labels, musicians, historical figures, archeological sites, sports teams, etc that there is no room for in non-specialist encyclopedias is one of the things I like about Wikipedia. This particular article is stubby; I'd rather see it improved than deleted. However having expressed my opinion, I'll accept deletion if that's the consensus. -- Infrogmation 03:01, 30 Nov 2003 (UTC)

 * I just did a little research on their homepage and Cherrywine is signed to DCide. Wiwaxia 03:41, 1 Dec 2003 (UTC)
 * So far Infrogmation and I are the only two who have "yes" votes recorded on this page. Has anyone who voted "no" changed his/her mind since they first voted? I made the decision on November 25 that if I could find at least one artist I had heard of under the DCide record label, I would vote in favor of keeping the article. Yesterday I discovered that Cherrywine has their records published by DCide. Anyone else want to add a vote? Wiwaxia 09:20, 2 Dec 2003 (UTC)

Well, I've never heard of Cherrywine, but if you have then that's a good argument against deletion. It would be more convincing if we had an article on that band, but that's not necessarilly required. Martin 19:00, 2 Dec 2003 (UTC)

Convincing enough. Cherrywine get 2,690 Google hits. Cherrywine+band gets 1500. I've removed it from VfD. Angela 21:29, 3 Dec 2003 (UTC)

It seems like a debate of this nature could have been avoided if someone had just, say, visited the link to the label's web page and read up on their history. P.S., article is no longer a stub. 66.157.29.22 06:16, 22 Jan 2004 (UTC)

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 * Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20111031124228/http://www.dcide.com:80/p-about.htm to http://dcide.com/p-about.htm

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title: Talk:DCide