| STMW History |
The ‘Devil’s acre’: the coffee house in Old Pye StreetDean Buckland of Westminster, was taken ill at the time that St Matthew’s Church was built. According to his biography (Life of Dean Buckland), his wife continued his plans to alleviate the condition of the poor. Mrs Buckland established a ‘Coffee house’ in Old Pye Street to which Queen Victoria subscribed £50. Mrs Buckland permitted the Revd Richard Malone to oversee the coffee house and she brought in lecturers, including Frank Buckland, to give weekly lectures and established a library. This institution was very successful for two years but it was then discovered that the coffee house was not always being used for its original aims. The Revd Richard Malone described in his memoirs what happened: ‘Alas! The Police reported that the room was largely being used by burglars who met there to concoct their plans. After much consideration, it was decided to close the building as a coffee house and open it as an Industrial School for boys.’ [5] |
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