No. 55 Farringdon Within Ward Volunteers

Farringdon Within is one of the 25 wards of the City of London, the historic and financial centre of London. (See maps – click to enlarge). It was formed in the 14th century from the sub-division of the pre-existing Farringdon Ward into Farringdon Within (inside the line of the Former London Wall), and Farringdon Without, beyond the Wall.
Farringdon Without and Farringdon Within are unconnected to the Farringdon area to the north, outside the City, in Clerkenwell. Southern Clerkenwell is sometimes referred to as Farringdon due to the presence of Farringdon Station, which was named after Farringdon Street and originally named Farringdon Street Station.
The Wards of London appear to have taken shape in the 11th century, before the Norman Conquest. Their administrative, judicial and military purpose made them equivalent to Hundreds in the countryside. The primary purpose of Wards like Farringdon, which included a gate, appears to be the defence of the gate, as gates were the weakest points in any fortification. Farringdon was a very large ward and had two gates, Ludgate and Newgate lying just outside the gate). Early charters show that the western boundary of the City and Westminster was pushed back to approximately its current position in around 1000, though the area outside the walls is thought to have been sparsely populated, if at all, at this time.
Farringdon was later named after Sir Nicholas de Faringdon, who was appointed Lord Mayor of London for “as long as it shall please him” by King Edward II. The Ward had been in the Faringdon family for 82 years at this time, his father, William de Faringdon preceding him as Alderman in 1281, when he purchased the position. William de Faringdon was Lord Mayor in 1281–82 and also a Warden of the Goldsmiths’ Company.