In the late Georgian era, Britain’s urban population began to grow rapidly as the country’s economy shifted from agricultural to industrial. Many people left their country homes to pursue life in one of the newly developing industrial towns. To house these industrial workers near their workshops and manufactories, a new type of low-cost, high-density housing was developed—called the back-to-backs.

These houses in Birmingham are the city's last surviving court of back-to-back houses. Photo credit: Tony Hisgett/Flickr