It was formed from the civil parishes of Eltham, Plumstead and Woolwich.

The borough was formed from three civil parishes: Eltham, Plumstead and Woolwich.

[1] Previous to the borough's formation it had been administered by three separate local bodies: Lee District Board of Works, Plumstead Vestry and Woolwich Local Board of Health.

The population, as recorded at the census, was:[2] Constituent parishes 1801-1899 Metropolitan Borough 1900-1961 The borough was divided into eleven wards for elections: Burrage, Central, Dockyard, Eltham, Glyndon, Herbert, River, St George's, St Margaret's, St Mary's and St Nicholas.

[4][5] For elections to Parliament, the borough was represented by one constituency: In 1918, the borough's representation was increased to two seats: Most of it was amalgamated with the Metropolitan Borough of Greenwich to form the London Borough of Greenwich, but small parts north of the river, including North Woolwich, were instead included in the London Borough of Newham.