Oriel Street

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1919 photogravure of Oriel College from the north, with the Rhodes Building in the foreground and Oriel Street to the right.

Oriel Street is a narrow but historic street running between the High Street to the north and Oriel Square to the south in central Oxford, England. The street is now blocked off to traffic by bollards at the High Street end.

It passes between the main site of Oriel College (hence its name) to the east and Oriel's newer "Island" site to the west. At the High Street end to the east is the 1911 Rhodes Building, named after the former Oriel student Cecil Rhodes, who went on to colonize the African state of Rhodesia (also named after him).

History

The name Oriel Street was in use by 1850; from 1210 it was called Schidyard Street, and between 1542 and 1772 it was known as St Mary Hall Lane.'Street-Names', A History of the County of Oxford: Volume 4: The City of Oxford (1979) — Oxford University Press, pp. 475-77. [British History Online] ISBN 0197227147 Until 1838, it was also known as Skimmery Hall Lane and Oriel Lane was is use from around the mid-19th century. [Oriel Street, Oxford], headington.org.uk. URL last accessed on <2006-05-31>

In 1833, the first of a number of theatres in Oxford to be known as "The New Theatre" was opened in St Mary Hall Lane. It is generally thought that this refers to the Oriel Square tennis court.'Social and Cultural Activities', A History of the County of Oxford: Volume 4: The City of Oxford (1979) — Oxford University Press, pp. 425-41. [British History Online] ISBN 0197227147

References