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12
Considerable alteration has taken place during the post-war
period by the erection of modern houses and blocks of flats and the
Borough Council, still pressing ahead with its new housing schemes,
has behind it a record of sound achievement.
The part situated near the River Thames is, generally speaking,
an industrial area, and is more densely populated than the upper
parts of the Borough. In recent years, however, the commencement
of a gradual movement of people away from the river-side has been
witnessed.
The majority of the industries and sources of employment in
the Borough are to be found in close proximity to the River Thames
which forms the Borough boundary on the north side. Chief
among these are large Cable and Engineering Works, Ship Repairing
Works, Gas Works, Soap and Candle Works, L.T.E. Generating
Station and Carriage Repair Depot, The British Electricity
Authority's Works, Glass Bottle Works, Rope Works, Ship Propelling
Works, Merryweather's Works (Fire Engines), Cement and Stone
Works, Asbestos Works, Cold Meat Storage, Pressed Tool Works,
Constructional Engineering Works, Galvanising and Sheet Metal
Works, Brewery, Flour Mills, Aero Parts, Wireless and Vehicle
Parts and Tin Box Manufacturing Works.
The numbers employed at 11 of the larger factories range
between 500 and 5,000 each, whilst 17 smaller works each employ
between 100 and 400.
POPULATION
The Registrar General has submitted his estimate of the
population of Greenwich, computed at mid-year 1953, upon which
the Statistics of this Report have been based. The figure returned
is 90,440 indicating a decrease in the population of 440 since last
year but nevertheless showing an advance of 26,640 since 1945.
The natural increase for the year, i.e., excess of births over
deaths, was 533.