|
|
Belgrave Square
Westminster. (SW1) In 1824 the site of this and Eaton Square and the radiating streets was "the Five Fields," intersected by mud-banks and occupied by a few sheds. The clayey swamp retained so much water that no one would build there ; and the" Fields "were the terror of foot-passengers proceeding from London to Chelsea after nightfall. At length Mr. Thomas Cubitt found the strata to consist of gravel and clay, of considerable depth: the clay he removed and burned into bricks; and by building on the substratum of gravel, he converted this spot from the most unhealthy to one of the most healthy, to the immense advantage of the ground - landlord and the whole metropolis. (Reference: Timbs's Curiosities of London, p. 43)
|
|
|
