East Street

East Street Market

Entrance to the market
Location	Walworth, Southwark, Greater London
Coordinates	51°29′22″N 0°05′20″W / 51.48944°N 0.08889°W / 51.48944; -0.08889Coordinates: 51°29′22″N 0°05′20″W / 51.48944°N 0.08889°W / 51.48944; -0.08889
Address	East Street
Management	Southwark London Borough Council
Owner	Southwark London Borough Council
Environment	Outdoor
Goods sold	General goods
Days normally open	Tuesday–Sunday
Number of tenants	252

East Street Market also known locally as 'The Lane', or 'East Lane', is a busy street market in Walworth in South London. It is large and vibrant and is good for African and Caribbean fruit and vegetables, material and household goods.

East Street is in the London Borough of Southwark and is between Walworth Road on the western side and the Old Kent Road on the Eastern side.

The market runs down East Street from the junction with Walworth Road to Dawes Street, passing East Street Baptist Church and a multitude of shops. The main entrance to the market is from Walworth Road. A bus stop on Walworth road serves the market, with a large number of buses arriving from Elephant and Castle or Camberwell Green. These include bus numbers 12, 35, 40, 45, 68, 148, 171, 176 and 468.

There has been street trading in the Walworth area since the 16th Century, when farmers rested their livestock on Walworth Common before continuing to the city. During the industrial revolution, stalls lined the whole of the Walworth Road, but the market has only been officially running since 1880.

In the 17th century, the area through which East Street now runs was rural fields and ‘common’ land where people could graze their animals. The area to the north was known as ‘Lock’s Field’ and, in 1878, was described as little more than ‘a dreary swamp’. Conditions improved and by 1881 it was recorded as a site for gypsies to stay during the winter months. To the south was Walworth Common; a popular point for the farmers of Kent and Surrey to stop overnight before making their journey into the city. People would buy produce directly from these drovers and eventually a market was established.

Most of the land in the area was owned by the Church, but some was eventually sold or leased. By the 1770s, some land near the junction with Old Kent Road (known then simply as The Kent Road) was cultivated as a flower nursery by the Driver family, who were also responsible for commissioning the grand buildings at nearby Surrey Square. A legal document from 1780 describes the sale of the land which led to the creation of East Street as a public highway, connecting Walworth Road with the Kent Road. By the 1800s London was expanding rapidly. Open fields were built upon and in the 1860s, Walworth Common was developed. The old markets were moved onto the Walworth Road and the vegetable sellers (Costermongers) were joined by an array of other traders. In 1875, the electric tram ran down Walworth Road bringing to an end the market. After heated negotiations with the traders, the market was split up and moved into the side streets of Westmoreland Road, East Lane and Draper Street. Draper Street was built over in the 1960s by the Elephant and Castle development. The construction of the Aylesbury Estate led to the decline of the Westmoreland Road market.