{"id":1174,"date":"2025-04-14T11:03:46","date_gmt":"2025-04-14T11:03:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.merlinscove.com\/?p=1174"},"modified":"2025-04-20T08:07:09","modified_gmt":"2025-04-20T08:07:09","slug":"londons-stink-pipes-are-the-bizarre-structures-hiding-right-under-your-nose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.merlinscove.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/14\/londons-stink-pipes-are-the-bizarre-structures-hiding-right-under-your-nose\/","title":{"rendered":"London\u2019s \u2018stink pipes\u2019 are the bizarre structures hiding right under your nose"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Ever wondered what these vast metal poles are for? (Picture: Metro\/Facebook)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There was a time when London became so smelly that politicians had to intervene – and the solution is still dotted across streets to this day.<\/p>\n

Ever seen one of those super tall structures that almost resembles a giant lamppost, but with no light and a completely open top? They\u2019re called stink pipes \u2013 and we have the Victorians <\/a>to thank for them.<\/p>\n

They were built not only in London but across the UK following the particularly pungent summer of 1858, popularly known as The Great Stink<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For years, the River Thames <\/a>had been used to dump the city\u2019s waste as there was no centralised sewage system, and as more and more people flocked to the Big Smoke, the problem only grew.<\/p>\n

In 1858, a heatwave warmed the human waste coursing through the capital, and residents were enveloped in a haze of fumes so strong that politicians were forced to act \u2013 and so the stink pipes, as well as the blueprints for a proper sewage system, were born.<\/p>\n

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Stink pipes were introduced by the Victorians (Picture: Bromley Gloss\/facebook)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

According to Historic England<\/a>, they functioned by \u2018allowing gases from below ground sewers to vent out and dissipate high above the level at which they would be smelled or breathed in,\u2019 and were built not only in London, but across the UK.<\/p>\n

While it\u2019s not known exactly how many of these stinky pipes were built across the capital specifically, it\u2019s estimated that there were around 158 in the Borough of Lambeth alone.<\/p>\n

Today, they\u2019re no longer in use as sewage systems have since advanced beyond the need to use them \u2013 but many of them still remain, often puzzling onlookers below.<\/p>\n

Stink pipes continue to offer value to society in other ways, though. In 2023, a particularly rare one in Shifnal, Shropshire was granted Grade II-listed status.<\/p>\n

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Stink pipes are no longer in use today (Picture: Bromley Gloss\/Facebook)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This particular pipe was constructed following the passing of the Public Health Act in 1875 \u2013 which is when the town\u2019s sewers got a considerable upgrade.<\/p>\n

As Historic England notes, the Shifnal pipe displayed a \u2018degree of artistic interest\u2019 which showed it had in fact been designed for \u2018public pride\u2019 as well as serving an important function.<\/p>\n

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