London locations linked to Darwin
A blue plaque on one of Darwin's London homes © Robert Siegel Md, PhD, Standford University
Darwin lived in several locations in London and is buried in Westminster Abbey.
Great Marlborough Street
Great Marlborough Street © David Leff
Darwin lived in rented accommodation here from 1837-8, soon after his return from the Beagle voyage.
Upper Gower Street
Number 12 Upper Gower Street, which later became number 110, was the first home of Charles and Emma Darwin after their marriage in 1839. Charles Darwin moved in on 31 December 1838, and Emma joined him after their wedding on 29 January 1839. They rented it, furnished, and called it Macaw Cottage after the gaudy colours of its furnishings.
Their eldest two children, William Erasmus and Anne Elizabeth, were born here. They moved out in September 1842.
The house was bombed in 1941 and the site is now part of the Department of Biology, University College London. A modern block called the Darwin Building stands on the exact site of Macaw Cottage.
Grant Museum
The Darwin Building, which bears a blue plaque commemorating Darwin, houses the Grant Museum of Zoology and Comparative Anatomy. The collection was started by Robert Grant, an early mentor of Darwin’s at Edinburgh University.
Westminster Abbey
Charles Darwin was buried in Westminster Abbey in April 1882. His gravestone and a bronze memorial relief are inside the Abbey.
Toolbox
Last year nearly 100,000 specimens were loaned to scientific institutions and researchers worldwide.
