Blue Plaques

Blue plaques on famous residences in London were first proposed by William Ewart MP in 1863. The scheme was founded by the Society of Arts, later the Royal Society of Arts, in 1866. The first was placed on the birthplace of Lord Byron in 1867. The oldest surviving plaque is to Napoleon III from 1867 and unique in being the only one erected in the candidate's lifetime.

The London County Council took over in 1901 and put up 250 over 60 years. During this time a standard design was adopted and criteria formalised. The scheme was suspended during both world wars. In 1965 the LCC was replaced by the Greater London Council who broadened the range and put up another 262 plaques. This included one to cricketer W G Grace, the first sportsman. Unfortunately the house in Sydenham was demolished soon after so the plaque was repositioned on his Mottingham home. Similarly one of their last plaques was for Mary Seacole (the first black person commemorated) whose house was demolished in the 1990s.

Since 1986 the scheme has been administered by English Heritage who to date have added some 200 (about 20 each year) making the total over 750. To qualify a person must have been dead 20 years or have passed the centenary of their birth but an exception was made for Gandhi who had only been dead 6 years. Each person can now have only one plaque (Thackeray has three) and they can have spent any length of time at the address. The owners/tenants of the property have to give their consent. About one in three of the suggestions made is adopted and can take 2-5 years to implement. There is sometimes a ceremony to unveil a new plaque.

The glazed ceramic plaques are 50mm thick and 495mm diameter. For the Society of Arts they were made by Minton Hollis & Co in a chocolate brown as this was less expensive. The border incorporated the lettering of 'Society of Arts' in its design. Minton continued to make them until 1921 when Doulton took over (until 1955). From 1901 most had a wreath & ribbon border and in the mid 1920s a coloured leaf wreath was used. In 1938 a new simpler design was introduced with the first one being used for Mozart at 180 Ebury Street. They are now made by independant craftspeople in Blackheath and Burton-on-Trent and take about 2 months to produce. Some early LCC ones were made in bronze but this was too costly and the legibility was poor. The circle is a symbol of eternity and blue is the colour of peace, constancy and serenity.

Guide books are available including 'The Blue Plaques of London' by L M Palis and 'London Blue Plaque Guide' by Nick Rennison. 'Track the Plaque' by Derek Sumeray has 32 walking routes featuring plaques.
A searchable database of over 700 plaques is available on www.blueplaque.com Contributions of photos, additional information or details of plaques not listed can be submitted using an online form.

English Heritage and HandHeld History are making information on blue plaques available to mobile phones.
VOICE SERVICE: tel 0901 8143210 then enter dates (eg 19131967) as an 8 digit code for a 5 minute mini-biography.
TEXT SERVICE: text hhh followed by initial and surname of person (eg hhh cdarwin) to 82222 (25p charge).
WAP SERVICE: go to wap.handheldhistory.com

	12 Westwood Hill was the boyhood home of the Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton (1874 - 1922). It is a large house but Shackleton's father Henry practised as a GP from there and the family consisted of 2 sons and 8 daughters as well as servants. He attended nearby Fir Lodge School (since demolished) and then Dulwich College. Sydenham Common walk
	Sir John Vanbrugh (1664-1726) had a varied career. Whilst a soldier he was arrested for espionage and spent 2 years in the Bastille, as a playwright he wrote the Relapse & the Provok'd Wife and as an architect he designed Castle Howard & Blenheim Palace. Whilst surveyor to the Royal Hospital at Greenwich he had Vanbrugh Castle built for himself (in 1719) on Maze Hill and lived there until his death. It later became a school, a private house and an orphanage but is now apartments. Greenwich Park walk
	Sir James Clark Ross (1800-62) entered the Navy at the age of 11 and served initially with his uncle. He explored the Arctic from 1818-33 (discovering the North Magnetic Pole) and the Antarctic from 1839-43. He was knighted and married on his return and lived at 2 Eliot Place, overlooking Blackheath, for some 3 years. He made a further voyage in 1848 in search of the lost Franklin expedition. He died in Aylesbury. Blackheath walks