Little Paternoster Row was once known as French Alley.
Little Paternoster Row was a narrow alleyway that ran from Brushfield Street to Dorset Street, emerging between Nos.35 (Crossingham’s Lodging House) and 36 Dorset Street. Access to Little Paternoster Row from Brushfield Street was through a covered archway next to the Oxford Arms public house at No.62.
In 1888, the west side of Little Paternoster Row was lined with a row of tenements, while Crossingham’s occupied the east side. The area of Little Paternoster Row was classified as "black" in Charles Booth’s 1898 map of London Poverty, indicating its association with vicious and semi-criminal activities. Descriptions in the surveyor’s original notebook portray a scene of poverty and destitution, with ragged women and children, worn-out boots with holes, dirty and patched windows using brown paper, and the presence of prostitutes, thieves, and criminals. The buildings themselves were owned by Jack McCarthy, a notorious figure from Dorset Street.
In 1928, Little Paternoster Row, along with the north side of Dorset Street, was demolished to make way for extensions to Spitalfields Market. The redevelopment of the area resulted in the disappearance of Little Paternoster Row and significant changes to the surrounding landscape.
