Ropery Street approximates to the northern edge of the Common with Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park laid out on adjoining land to the north.

In 1883 anti-poverty campaigner Andrew Mearns commented on the lack of church attendance amongst locals, and Charles Booth described it as 'worse than almost any district in London.

'[3] Slums were cleared during the course of the 20th century, most hastened by bomb damage in the Second World War when Bow was targeted for it being an important artery to feed the demands of the city at that time.

[3] St Paul's Church was rebuilt in the fashionable 'new brutalism' style of 1960 (replacing one damaged in the war) and is now a Grade II* listed building.

[7] Professor Brian Cox and Baron Mawson opened the new £500,000 Lincoln Pharmacy in 2019, featuring a robot that fulfills customer prescriptions, freeing up staff for health advice.