Coleman Street, EC2R

Place Name

Most likely after the coalmen or charcoal burners who used to live in this area in the Middle Ages, the name was first recorded in the 12thCentury, written as Colemanestrate in 1182. Coal was a scarcity and charcoal was the main fuel, with its preparation being a valuable skill passed down by family members. Other suggestions are that it may have been named after a former landowner or that there was a church dedicated to the 7thCentury Celtic saint Stephen Coleman, who was Abbot of Lindisfarne and died in AD676.

 

Coleman Street spelt as Colman in Ralph Aga’s woodcut map of London from 1561 is clearly shown

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