Whistler wandered all over western Europe doing sketches, mostly street scenes he found interesting. 
In an age before autos streets were generally safer and people would hang out near their favorite shops or even play in the streets.
Furthermore, in an age before TV and air conditioning, people did not want to spend too much time indoors in warmer weather, which meant for Whistler that he had constant human subject matter to draw or paint just by walking around a town.
Whistler clearly had an affinity for children and frequently painted them when they were out and about.
Besides London the place in England Whistler spent the most time seems to have been Chelsea, even drawing scenes there which were drab or dark.
He was fascinated by butcher’s shops as well.
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