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The little green huts that are now protected London icons
Only 13 remain, and conservationists say the listed huts still give licensed taxi drivers a weatherproof place to wait and eat.
- London's iconic green cabmen's shelters remain a functional part of the city's heritage, with just 13 of the original structures surviving today and all now listed under the Cabmen's Shelter Fund.
- George Armstrong, editor of The Globe, campaigned in 1874 against drivers abandoning vehicles to shelter in pubs, prompting philanthropists including the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury to found the Fund in 1875.
- Originally built at a cost of £150–£200 each, more than 60 wooden, green-painted huts adhered to Metropolitan Police rules limiting their size to accommodate around a dozen cabmen with a kitchen and wood-burning stove.
- Following the arrival of motor taxis, many shelters were lost to traffic and wartime bombing, spurring 20th-century conservation efforts. In 2024, the Wellington Place shelter became the last of the remaining 13 huts to receive listed status.
- Other surviving examples demonstrate diverse architectural histories, including the 1935 Rosslyn Hill shelter in Hampstead and the Russell Square kiosk donated by Sir Squire Bancroft, which features a unique mosaic panel inscribed THE WHARRIE SHELTER.
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The little green huts that are now protected London icons
When a little green hut in Wellington Place, St John's Wood was granted listed status two years ago - it was the final protection for a quirky slice of London history. We explore the story of Cabmen's shelters in the capital.
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