Building    From 1887  To 1931

People's Palace

Proposed by Walter Besant, the first People's Palace was built by the Beaumont Trustees, ‘Unitarian philanthropists’, to replace Beaumont's Philosophical Institution which had been in Beaumont Square. 

It was built on 5 acres of land on the Mile End Road, starting with the Queen's Hall, opened in 1887. By 1892 a library, swimming pool, gym and winter garden had been added. Entertainment and education were provided and by 1900 the University of London introduced a Bachelor of Science degree. It burnt down in 1931 but the educational sections were quickly rebuilt as Queen Mary College. In 1937 a hall, called the People's Palace (pictured here), was built and in 1954 was subsumed into QMC.

Queen Marys hold a plan of the original Palace (annoyingly that link is dead, 2024).

The Theatre Trust has a description of the 1937 hall and how it has been restored and used.

Sources include: Elizabeth Doyle Research, Queen Mary College archives.

Comments are provided by Facebook, please ensure you are signed in here to see them

This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
People's Palace

Commemorated ati

Baron de Stern clock tower

Ornamental Passions has a photo of the seagull relief and explains that "Time...

Read More

Clement Attlee statue

It's rather disconcerting that the plaque refers to "Queen Mary College" as "...

Read More

People's Palace

The plaque names only 6 relief panels but there are 7, music being represente...

Read More

Other Subjects

Anne Winifrede O'Reilly

Anne Winifrede O'Reilly

Schoolteacher. Headteacher at Peckham Emergency Central School, 1940 - 46, and the first head at Walworth's first comprehensive school, 1947 - 55, when she retired.   Founding member of the All En...

Person, Education, Politics & Administration

1 memorial
Frederick Craufurd Goodenough

Frederick Craufurd Goodenough

Chairman of Barclays Bank, Ltd., chairman of the London Bankers Clearing House. With a group of friends founded Goodenough College. Born Calcutta, died in London.

Person, Commerce, Education, India

1 memorial
Joint Services School for Linguists (JSSL)

Joint Services School for Linguists (JSSL)

Trained linguists for covert work, mainly with Russian during the Cold War. The Army was based near Bodmin, the Navy at Coulsdon Camp (1952 - 4, at the Fox pub building), the RAF at Salisbury Villa...

Group, Armed Forces, Education, Russia

1 memorial
Naonobu Sameshima

Naonobu Sameshima

Became a student at UCL in 1865.

Person, Education, Japan

1 memorial
Coborn Girls School

Coborn Girls School

From the picture source website: "Prisca Coborn, the widow of a brewer, founded a School for both boys and girls in 1701, as a result of the terms of her will published in the year of her death. Th...

Group, Children, Education

2 memorials