Spinner's End

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Spinner's End is the street on which Severus Snape's childhood home is located (DH33); he presumably inherited the estate upon the deaths of his parents, as he lives there when he does not reside at Hogwarts (HBP2).

It is near where Lily and Petunia grow up; Severus, after apparently spying on Lily—whom he had ascertained to be a witch—for a while, meets the two girls while they were playing at a playground one day. Petunia recognizes him, mentioning that Spinner's End is "by the river." She says it in a tone of voice that implies that Spinner's End is not a reputable place to live (DH33).

Spinner's End and its surrounding town are also described as they exist some years later, in Snape's adulthood. It is unclear how much the environment has changed from his youth, but the town now exists in a state of disrepair: the river is dirty and its banks are covered with weeds and garbage, a chimney is all that remains from an old mill, and there is no sign of life (aside from a small fox, which Bellatrix promptly kills). The residential area is separated from the river by a line of railings and consists of deserted and run-down brick houses. Bellatrix's disdain for the town is obvious: "He lives here?...Here? In this Muggle dunghill? We must be the first of our kind ever to set foot—" (HBP2).

Snape's house is at the end of a street called Spinner's End, deep in the maze of houses. The aforementioned mill looms above, and the street is paved with cobblestones (HBP2).