London's Social Evolution, 1898-2006

How London has changed in the past 108 years -- and how it hasn't. Comparing the results of an 1898 study with today's census figures reveal much about the social makeup of neighborhoods.

1 minute read

May 8, 2006, 11:00 AM PDT

By issiromem


"In many ways, London has changed dramatically in the past century. It has sprawled far beyond its 1898 boundaries. The network of underground transport has expanded, and cars have appeared. The city has been bombed in two world wars. The middle classes fled, then returned. Yet when color-coded socio-economic maps from 1898 are updated using data from the last census, the changes are less striking than what has stayed the same. Not only do the broad patterns found in the 19th century holdâ€"the East End is still poor, the West End still richâ€"but so do many local ones."

Thursday, May 4, 2006 in The Economist

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