Introduction
A New Home in Canning Town was a community heritage project which involved research and the collection of oral histories by local people, volunteers, and university students, and the support of heritage staff from Newham Archives and other organisations. It culminated in exhibitions at three Newham venues in 2014 and 2015.
About A New Home in Canning Town
The migrants who moved to Canning Town after the First World War included Caribbean, African and Asian ex-service men and mariners.
They settled with their local wives and families, alongside English, Irish and German residents in a part of Canning Town that came to be known as ‘ Draughtboard Alley’. The district encompassed Crown Street, Catherine Street, Cundy Street, Victoria Dock Road, and Tidal Basin, along with other streets.
A New Home in Canning Town celebrates the determination of these men and their local spouses to live ordinary lives, bringing up their families within the local community in what was often a hostile and unfriendly environment.
Photos of launch exhibition at St Luke’s Church