Professionalism, Patronage and Public Service in Victorian London The Staff of the Metropolitan Board of Works, 1856-1889

by Clifton, Gloria

• ISBN13: 9781474241212
• ISBN10: 1474241212
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2015-11-19
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic

Summary

This study of 19th-century local government examines the role of local government officials and the social origins of this growing bureaucracy. As the predecessor of the London County Council, the Metropolitan Board of Works was an important body and its officials formed a large and significant professional group, not hitherto studied in such depth.

Author Biography

Gloria Clifton is Emeritus Curator of the National Maritime Museum and Royal Observatory, Greenwich, UK.

Table of Contents

Abbreviations
Acknowledgements
Preface

1 The Beginning of Modern Local Government in London: A New Middle-Class Element
2 The Background to the Establishment of the Metropolitan Board of Works
3 The New Board's Scope and Structure
4 Achievement, 1856-88
5 Administrative Development
6 Methods of Recruitment
7 Origins and Social Status of Staff
8 Officials' Education and Employment Background
9 Salaries and Promotion Prospects
10 Work Ambitions and Social Aspirations
11 Life at the Office
12 Managing the Staff
13 Scandal in the 1880s and the Board's Demise
14 Some Conclusions

Appendix 1 Members
Appendix 2 Chief Officers and Senior Assistants
Appendix 3 Occupations of Fathers
Appendix 4 Previous Occupations

Notes
Bibliography
Index