Why did leather concentrate in Bermondsey?

Water from the river and streams, hides from the city’s slaughterhouses, and a location outside the walls where a foul-smelling trade could operate — tanning was an industry pushed out of the centre.

What traces can I see today?

The old Leather Market on Weston Street, the Leather, Hide and Wool Exchange with its carved roundels, and the street names: Tanner Street, Leathermarket Street, Morocco Street.

When did the industry end?

It declined through the twentieth century; the trade’s last remaining firm left the district in 1990.

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Bermondsey: London’s Larder · 2

The land of leather: an industry in street names

Ep. 2 · Where a third of England’s leather was made

FitTrip Editor · 2026.07.16

Tanning in Bermondsey goes back to at least the fifteenth century, and by about 1792 a third of England’s leather came from the district. In 1832–33 the principal tanners built the Leather Market on Weston Street, and the Leather, Hide and Wool Exchange still stands nearby. The trade’s last firm left in 1990, but street names — Tanner, Leathermarket, Morocco — and the Exchange’s carved roundels preserve the industrial map.

In Bermondsey you learn industrial history just by reading the map. Tanner Street, Leathermarket Street, Morocco Street — the street names are a list of trades.

A third of England

Tanning here goes back to at least the fifteenth century Fact. Riverside water, hides from the city’s slaughterhouses, and a site outside the walls for a foul-smelling trade concentrated the industry, and by about 1792 a third of England’s leather came from this district Fact. In 1832–33 the principal tanners built the Leather Market on Weston Street Fact.

Buildings and roundels

Around Leathermarket Street the era’s buildings survive. The Leather, Hide and Wool Exchange carries carved roundels of the tanning process on its facade Fact — worth stopping to look up. The last firm of the trade left in 1990 and the industry closed Fact, but as the biscuits of Episode 3 and the beer of Episode 6 will show, in this district “making things” continues — it only changes trade.

FAQ

Why did leather concentrate in Bermondsey?: Water from the river and streams, hides from the city’s slaughterhouses, and a location outside the walls where a foul-smelling trade could operate — tanning was an industry pushed out of the centre.
What traces can I see today?: The old Leather Market on Weston Street, the Leather, Hide and Wool Exchange with its carved roundels, and the street names: Tanner Street, Leathermarket Street, Morocco Street.
When did the industry end?: It declined through the twentieth century; the trade’s last remaining firm left the district in 1990.

Checklist

Find the roundels on the Exchange facade, Leathermarket Street
Spot the Tanner and Morocco Street signs
See the old Leather Market on Weston Street
Continue the walk along Bermondsey Street

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