History of North campus
The area where London Met’s predecessor colleges developed is now the Borough of Islington, one of London’s liveliest, and home to many leading figures in politics, the media and creative industries. It has excellent street markets, theatres, numerous cafes, pubs and shops and has been the home of Arsenal football club since 1913.
Most of North campus’ buildings are on Holloway Road, which gained its name in medieval times from being a heavily used section of the Great North Road (A1). Holloway and Highbury & Islington were semi-rural villages until around 1800 when they became noted for their teahouses and pleasure gardens that City people went to for outings. Later in the 19th century these gave way to the rapid development of housing, shops and light industries for London’s burgeoning population.
The Polytechnic of North London (a precursor of The University of North London and London Met) was founded as the Northern Polytechnic Institute with aid from London Parochial Charities funds, under a scheme of 1892, and substantial donations from the Clothworkers' Company of London. 
The first building, designed by Charles Bell, was opened in 1896 fronting Holloway Road, with blocks added on one-and-a-half acres. The great hall (later the theatre) was opened in 1897 and large additions were made in 1902, designed by AW Cooksey. In 1923 the polytechnic acquired 3/4 of an acre. between the existing buildings and Hornsey Road, which had been cleared of slums, and the women's department rooms were built in 1927. Nevertheless, in 1929 overcrowding had led to the use of Forster board school nearby, and a grant was received to extend the building department. Pictured left is a drawing, c1950, of the original building on Holloway Road.
Further extensions were needed in 1937 but prevented by war. New premises for the National College of Rubber Technology were opened in Benwell Road in 1952 and additional catering facilities in 1954 and 1955. Shortage of space persisted, despite a tower block opened in 1966 and the use of Marlborough House office block from 1974, and in 1980 the polytechnic had annexes in Prince of Wales Road, St Pancras, Ladbroke House, Highbury Grove, nos. 207-225 Essex Road, and nos. 2-16 Eden Grove.
Early courses were varied, mainly in evening classes, providing technical instruction for mechanics and artisans, besides general education for 14-year olds. There was also a training school for teachers and a day school, which in 1902 became a mixed secondary school and later Highbury Grove school. 
Among the first courses were natural sciences, engineering, architectural and building studies, and domestic subjects for women, and the polytechnic was soon approved by the University of London for teaching internal degrees in sciences. A domestic economy school, started in 1899 to train girls for domestic service, from 1916 evolved into a secondary school with a domestic bias and in 1930 made way for more advanced work in the women's department. Pictured right is a household cookery course, c1950.
From 1913 rationalization amongst polytechnics caused the Northern to give up engineering and the arts, and concentrate on sciences, building, and women's classes. From 1915 a music trades' school trained apprentices in local industries, especially the making of pianos, organs, and brass instruments. It gave rise to radio courses in 1929 and eventually to the department of Electronic and Communications Engineering. In 1920 courses in rubber technology were started, forming in 1948 the foundation for the polytechnic's College of Rubber Technology, which had its own building from 1952. The School of Architecture also emerged as a major training centre, with courses recognized by the RIBA from 1925.
After the Second World War full-time day courses became more important than evening and part-time. The three secondary schools associated with building, rubber, and music trades, which had 236 boys, had been reduced by 1939 and in 1951 were moved out, but facilities for post-graduate research remained restricted until the polytechnic became one of the 24 regional colleges set up in 1956 to cater for advanced study, and more premises were built. In the 1960s the major departments were rubber; electronic engineering; architecture (pictured left), surveying and building; chemistry; physics; mathematics.
In 1967 the polytechnic covered four-and-a-half acres with 200 full-time and 250 part-time staff, and 1,100 fulltime and 4,000 part-time students, including 360 taking postgraduate courses or research and 800 taking postgraduate short courses. In 1971 the Northern polytechnic was amalgamated with the North-western to form the large Polytechnic of North London, with 4,000 full-time and 3,000 part-time students in addition to those taking specialised short courses.
Text reproduced from A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume VIII - Islington and Stoke Newington parishes, T.F.T. Baker (Editor) (1985).
After various rises and falls in prosperity, Islington is currently one of the most diverse and sought-after inner London boroughs. Holloway in particular is due to be transformed by the opening of Arsenal FC’s new Emirates Stadium and all its associated developments, that are taking place right behind North campus’s main buildings.
There have been more new buildings added to the North campus in recent years. The Learning Centre, that includes library, IT and language learning facilities, the Tech Tower, with 700 computer terminals, a new building for architecture, the Arcade Hall of Residence and the Daniel Libeskind designed Graduate Centre. Nor is that the end; a new Science block is under construction and due for completion in 2006.
