Inventory Site Record

Trinity Hospital or Almshouses were built in 1695 by the Corporation of Trinity House to house retired master mariners or their widows. The land was donated by Captain Henry Mudd of Ratcliffe. The almshouses formed two rows either side of a small oblong green, with a central chapel. The path layout remains little changed, although the green was once enclosed by a wooden palisade fence and there are now two rows of dwarf trees. The almshouses were purchased by the LCC in 1954 then transferred to Stepney Borough Council for rented accommodation and renamed Trinity Green.

Previous / Other name:

Trinity Almshouses; Trinity Hospital

Site location:

Mile End Road

Postcode:

E1

What 3 Words:

fluid.curiosity.worked

Type of site:

Private Garden

Borough:

Tower Hamlets

Open to public?

No

Opening times:

private

Special conditions:

Facilities:

Events:

Public transport:

Tube: Whitechapel (District, Hammersmith & City)

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Research updated:

01/09/2011

Last minor changes:

14/07/2022

Please check with the site owner or manager for latest news.

Trinity Green was formerly known as Trinity Hospital or Trinity Almshouses, which were built in 1695 by the Corporation of Trinity House, for the purpose of housing retired master mariners or their widows, described as '28 decayed Masters and Commanders of Ships or ye widows of such'. Trinity House, which controlled navigation around Britain, also had almshouses at Deptford. The land at Mile End was donated by Captain Henry Mudd of Ratcliffe and Captain Richard Maples also contributed financially; they are both commemorated in the stone cartouches either side of Trinity Green. The almshouses design is a conventional C17th U-shaped composition with two rows of almshouses either side of a small oblong green, with a central chapel with cupola; it was probably the work of William Ogbourne, a master carpenter who was knighted in 1727. A view of 1696 shows the green area enclosed by a wooden palisade fence. The path layout remains unchanged, although today the green is planted with two rows of dwarf trees. Trinity Green has Portland stone gate piers and metal screen to Mile End Road.

When Trinity Hospital was threatened with demolition in 1895/6 there was a successful public campaign to save it. The buildings were damaged in WWII and again threatened with demolition but saved by local campaigning. The LCC purchased them in 1954 and they were restored and used to house social workers. They were later transferred to Stepney Borough Council and converted to provide rented accommodation and re-named Trinity Green. The green and almshouses that were formerly north of the chapel were destroyed by bombing and are now a council estate. The chapel suffered most damage but the local council carried out restoration to the triangular pediment and roof, clock turret and bell-cupola and converted the interior for community use, which is now named the Trinity Centre. The building is occupied mainly by the Breakthrough Trust, a charity for deaf-hearing integration.

The bronze bust memorial to William Booth at the end of the gardens on a Portland stone pedestal was unveiled in December 1927 by John Scurr, Labour MP for Mile End 1923-31.

Sources consulted:

Bancroft Library, Clippings. Exploring England's Heritage: London; Tom Ridge, Central Stepney History Walk, (Central Stepney Regeneration Board) 1998; Clive Berridge, The Almshouses of London (Southampton), 1987. See www.eastlondonpostcard.co.uk

Grid ref:

TQ350820 (535063,182009)

Size in hectares:

Site ownership:

LB Tower Hamlets

Site management:

Date(s):

1694-97

Designer(s):

Listed structures:

LBI: Trinity Green Almshouses and Chapel, Gates, Railings, Walls and Piers

On National Heritage List for England (NHLE), Parks & Gardens:

No

Registered common or village green on Commons Registration Act 1965:

No

Protected under London Squares Preservation Act 1931:

No

Local Authority Data

The information below is taken from the relevant Local Authority's planning legislation, which was correct at the time of research but may have been amended in the interim. Please check with the Local Authority for latest planning information.

On Local List:

No

In Conservation Area:

No

Tree Preservation Order:

No

Nature Conservation Area:

No

Green Belt:

No

Metropolitan Open Land:

No

Special Policy Area:

No

Other LA designation:

None

Entrance to Trinity Green, View of Chapel behind, June 2009. Photo: S Williams

Click a photo to enlarge.