Fleet Street Fleet Prison, but other accounts suggest the area was too marshy for regular inhabitation by the Romans. The Saxons did not occupy the Roman city but established Lundenwic further west around what is now Aldwych and the Strand. Many prelates lived around the street during the Middle Ages, including the Bishops of Salisbury and St Davids and the Abbots of Faversham, Tewkesbury, Winchcombe and Cirencester. Tanning of animal hides became established on Fleet Street owing to the nearby river, though this increased pollution leading to a ban on dumping rubbish by the mid-14th century. Many taverns and brothels were established
Fleet Street II listed pub. Since 1971, the southern side of the street has been part of the Fleet Street Conservation Area, which ensures buildings are regularly maintained and the character of the street is preserved. The area expanded to the north side in 1981. The area around Fleet Street contains numerous statues and memorials to prominent public figures. At the north-eastern corner is a bust of Edgar Wallace, and a full-length representation of Mary, Queen of Scots in a first-floor niche at No. 143–144 by John Tollemache Sinclair. Above the entrance to the old school-house of St Dunstan's is a statue