Green’s Dictionary of Slang

the borough of Wapping, site of the Ratcliff Highway, once London’s tough port area.

c.1698		B.E. Dict. Canting Crew n.p.: Little Barbary Wapping.
1725		New Canting Dict. [as cit. c.1698].
1737, 1759, 1760, 1776		Bailey Universal Etym. Eng. Dict. [as cit. c.1698].
c.1750–1855		B.M. Carew Life and Adventures.
1785, 1788, 1796		Grose Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.
1811		Lex. Balatronicum.
1823		Egan Grose’s Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue.
1835		G. Kent Modern Flash Dict.
1848		Flash Dict. in Sinks of London Laid Open.
c.1850		Duncombe New and Improved Flash Dict.
1929		Lancs Eve. Post 23 Dec. 4/2: What part of London was once known as Little Barbary? [...] Wapping, because sailors from Barbary ports congregated there.