Originally called Ayliff Street, it was named after a relative of
William Leman, whose great-uncle,
John Leman had bought
Goodman's Fields earlier in the seventeenth century. Alie Street ran along the northern side, with
Leman Street to the east,
Prescot Street to the south, and Mansell Street to the West. These new streets developed in the late seventeenth century while Goodman's Fields was used as a
tenterground. From the 1800s to the late 20th century, the western section from Mansell Street to Leman Street was known as Great Alie Street, with an extension going east from Leman Street to Commercial Road being known as Little Alie Street. Symons House, 22 Alie Street, is the former headquarters (from 1923) of the radical Jewish
Workers’ Circle Friendly Society, linked to its New York counterpart
The Workers Circle, and known accordingly as Circle House. ==References==