Saffron Hill

Clerkenwell (EC1) Derives its name from the crops of saffron which it bore. This hill, now divided and subdivided into courts and alleys, was long a rookery; yet many of the lodging-houses were evidently erected with some regard to the comfort of their inhabitants. The ground on which this rookery stood formerly belonged to the Bishops of Ely; it was originally Ely Gardens. (Reference: Timbs's London and Westminster, vol. I, p. 279)