Check Out These Old Postcards Of The Square Mile

M@
By M@ Last edited 87 months ago
Check Out These Old Postcards Of The Square Mile

A traffic policeman performs his duties at Ludgate Circus in this postcard from the early 20th century. Behind him, we see a busy Fleet Street, decorated with advertising even more ubiquitous than in our own times. On the far left is a sign for the Punch Tavern, still trading today. The number 15 bus is also to be found on Fleet Street in our own era, though it no longer runs as far as East Ham.

This is just one of dozens of evocative views in a book of postcards and photos, drawn from the archives of Judges of Hastings, and put together by Blue Badge guide Warren Grynberg.

Below, we see the familiar Tudor frontage of High Holborn, taken about 100 years ago where the early motor car shares the road with horse-drawn vehicles.

More horses on Tower Hill (below). This one has quite a load to pull. Note the overhead cables — now a rare sight in the capital, but commonplace throughout the 20th century.

Not all the images are quite so ancient. Below, for example, is a shot of St Paul's undergoing restoration work in the 1960s. According to the book, the photographer had travelled to the cathedral to get a shot for a postcard, only to find the dome in scaffolding.

Below, a better view of St Paul's, taken from Watling Street, sometime before the war.

Another familiar landmark, the junction of the Bank of England and the Royal Exchange, has always been a busy place. Note the mix of horse and motor buses, indicating that the photo is probably from the first decade of the 20th century.  

The City of London book is out now, reissued from Amberley publishing, and follows on from an earlier photo book of Westminster.

Last Updated 14 December 2016