Bow history

Bow is surely the shortest place name in London, and also the one with the most unlikely story behind it. Back in the 11th century Maud, the wife of Henry I, had a stone bridge built here over the River Lea and since it was shaped like a bow, it gave Bow its name. Apparently the Bow locals didn’t travel much or they would have noticed that every bridge in the country had to be built that way to avoid falling down. I bet someone in the local Bow mediaeval tourist board just invented the story later. In the 18th century Bow was famous for a particular type of blue and white porcelain known as Bow China. (Actually it was manufactured in Stratford, but ‘Made in Bow’ was obviously quicker to etch).