Did you know that...
This part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets takes its name from the Black Poplar tree, which once flourished in the area. This exceptionally large tree thrived in the wet conditions formerly brought to the neighbourhood by the River Thames and the River Lea. Black Poplar is a very rare specimen and it persisted in the area until at least 1986.
The constant arrival and departure of new inhabitants along with their ideas and cultures have resulted in the diversity and colour of this mainly working-class and seafarers residential area. The list of notable residents is impressive and includes a number of decent people.
Richard Spratly, the salesmen and discoverer of the Spratly Islands.
John Mucknell, “The King’s Pirate”, a ship commander, who sided with Charles I during the English Civil War, and later was knighted and appointed as a Vice Admiral by the future Charles II.
Teddy Baldock, an English professional lightweight boxer of the 1920s and 1930s, who has received his nickname “The Pride of Poplar” after becoming the Commonwealth Boxing Bantamweight Champion 1928–30 and winning plenty of other titles.
Will Crooks, a social reformer and first Labour Mayor in London, remembered for his campaigning work against poverty and inequality, originated in this area.
Tommy Flowers, designer of the world’s first programmable electronic computer named Colossus that helped break the code and solve encrypted German messages at Bletchley Park.
Finally, Poplar became the inspiration for Jennifer Worth, a British nurse, midwife, and author of the trilogy of memoirs about her work as a midwife in the 1950s. These books provided a basis for a television series, Call the Midwife, first broadcasted on BBC One in 2012.
Many sports personalities such as Arsenal FC coach Neil Banfield, football manager Harry Redknapp, cyclist David Marsh, cricketer William Constable, and footballer John Sainty lived in Poplar E14.
