History of Limehouse Chinatown In the 1880's, immigrant Chinese began to settle in Limehouse, in particular Pennyfields and Limehouse Causeway. The Chinese had restaurants, grocery stores and laundry houses where lime was used to clean clothes. In many of these places, opium was smoked as a recreational activity. This gave rise to the invented notion of Limehouse as a den of iniquity where wily Chinese hung out to prey on unsuspecting passersby.

There was a case where the young actress Billie Carlton died in circumstances that pointed to a heavy addiction of opium, fanning further the impenetrable image of a secret society. The real clans called Tongs, were setup to support Chinese in this country and their relations in their countries of origin. There were no Chinese women in the early days and wives were British. Their descendants were of mixed blood. In the 1930's, some of the area was cleared in the drive to clear the Stepney slums.

The Blitz in the 2nd World War destroyed the remainder. At the time, Soho was a low dive area and the Chinese gravitated there to develop the Chinatown that survives to this day. At Westferry DLR station, you can see a piece of metallic curling dragon public art erected to mark London's first Chinatown.