Coal Duty Boundary Marker
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1416560
- Date first listed:
- 01-Nov-2013
- List Entry Name:
- Coal Duty Boundary Marker
Location
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Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- II
- List Entry Number:
- 1416560
- Date first listed:
- 01-Nov-2013
- List Entry Name:
- Coal Duty Boundary Marker
- Location Description:
- South side of Wood Lane, Dagenham, 15m E of Wisdons Close (TQ4982187070).
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- County:
- Greater London Authority
- District:
- Barking and Dagenham (London Borough)
- Parish:
- Non Civil Parish
- National Grid Reference:
- TQ4982087069
Summary
Coal Duty boundary marker. Erected c1881.
Reasons for Designation
The cast iron Coal Duty Boundary Marker on Wood Lane, Dagenham, erected c1861, is listed at Grade II for the following principal reason:
* Historic interest: as a tangible reminder of the tax on coal imported into London from the medieval period until its abolition in 1889. It also marks the position of the Metropolitan Police District boundary when erected in 1861.
History
Taxes had been levied on the importation of coal into the City of London since the medieval period and various successive Acts of Parliament allowed the City to spend the proceeds on public works, notably rebuilding St Paul’s Cathedral and the City Churches after the Great Fire of 1666. Originally, nearly all coal arrived by ship at the port of London and was taxed at the point of embarkation but by the C19 it was increasingly transported overland by canal and rail. Under the Coal Duties (London and Westminster and Adjacent Counties) Act of 1851, Coal Duty markers were erected around London to mark the point where duty became payable. This boundary had been established by the Coal Duty, London Act of 1845 at a distance of 20 miles from the General Post Office. The London Coal and Wine Duties Continuance Act of 1861 established the Metropolitan Police District plus the City of London as the new boundary and around 280 standardised cast-iron markers were installed to mark it. The duty on coal was finally abolished in 1889.
Details
MATERIAL: cast iron, painted white.
DESCRIPTION: between 1.2m and 2m in total height but the post is deeply buried with only around 650mm showing above ground. It is square in plan with chamfered corners and a pyramidal cap. The front face bears a raised shield from the City of London’s Arms with a red painted cross, set between roll mouldings at the top of the post. Below the lower moulding, the Act citation ‘ACT 24 & 25/ Vict Cap 42’ is just legible.
Sources
Websites
City Posts - The coal duties of the City of London and their boundary marks, accessed from http://www.coaldutyposts.org.uk/cityposts.html
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 16-Jun-2026 at 11:36:10.
Download a full scale map (PDF)End of official list entry
All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.