This is the story......During the early 19th Century one of the most celebrated characters in the Market was Old Tom, a gander from Ostend who came to England by chance, due to his fascination with one of the lady members of his flock. It is recorded that over two consecutive days 34,000 geese were slaughtered in the Market - but Old Tom managed to escape execution. He became a great favourite in the Market and was a regular customer at the local inns where he was fed titbits. He died in 1835 at the formidable age of 38 and was buried in the Market.
This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Old Tom
Commemorated atInformation
Leadenhall Market
Leadenhall Market The meat and fish Market first occupied a series of courts,...
Other Subjects
Battersea Dogs & Cats Home
Founded by Mary Tealby in 1860 as the Temporary Home for Lost and Starving Dogs. She established a place where people could send lost dogs from the streets and where their owners could retrieve th...
Mrs Catherine Smithies
Born as Catherine Bywater. Founded the Band of Mercy movement in Britain. She also campaigned against slavery but we can find no details. Her home, Earlham Grove House, built c.1865, has also been...
donkeys of Covent Garden
100,000 costermongers' donkeys worked in and around the market. The picture source says: "In the 1860s there were as many as 2,000 donkey barrows on a Saturday morning in Covent Garden Market."