The nineteenth century saw rapid population growth as many people moved from rural areas to work in increasingly industrialised towns and cities. By the end of the century, London’s population was over five times what it had been in 1800. This led to overcrowded and unsanitary living conditions, and a growth in the rate of crime in the metropolis. The Metropolitan Police was formed in 1829 by Sir Robert Peel to create a more organised and efficient policing system. LPA: 290627. London was divided into 17 police district that were each denoted by a letter, and each district had a local police station. LPA: 31075.

Several prisons were built in London during the nineteenth century to manage the increasing number of people being convicted of crimes. Millbank Prison opened in 1816 and was the first modern prison in London, and at one time housed prisoners before they were transported to Australia. LPA: 176598. This was followed by Brixton Prison in 1820 and Pentonville Prison in 1842. LPA: 314022 and LPA: 303330. Conditions in Victorian prisons were poor, and punishments included whipping and running on a treadmill. LPA: 18778 and LPA: 17586. Violent crimes such as murders were sensationalised in newspapers, cheap print books known as Penny Dreadfuls, and in illustrations. One such crime was the murder of Jane Jones in Roehampton in 1842 by the murderer Daniel Good. LPA: 20201. Daniel Good was later executed outside Newgate Prison. LPA: 18775.