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Between the World Wars 1919 – 1939
the history of Leyton and Leytonstone
from . dot to … dots – with plenty of spaces
The population
The 1921 Census calculated that, whilst Leyton’s population was greater than in 1911, this came from the number of babies born, and that well over 11,000 more people moved away from Leyton and Leytonstone than moved into the area 1. But those who died fighting the First World War abroad were treated as ‘emigrations’ 2. There was a high number of families who shared their ‘dwelling’, a characteristic also of West and East Ham 3, and a high housing density 2. Though it might be expected that the number of soldiers killed in the First World War would have altered the balance of men to women, females including children were only 0.7% higher in 1921 compared with 1911 4.
The 1930s were a time of enormous housing construction but there was little land in Leyton for this. For those whose families had come to Leyton to improve their standard of living, and had a reasonable income, a new home in Chingford or Woodford might very well tempt them to move. Leyton and Leytonstone declined somewhat in population and, from an exodus of the relatively affluent, in prosperity real or apparent. >>
