Friday 22 July 2011

Halifax, Yorkshire, The Picture House 1913

Halifax, Yorkshire, The Picture House 1913. It is nice to be able to date a postcard so accurately. The Picture House opened in October 1913. The film advertised here is 'Sixty Years A Queen', a film about the life of Queen Victoria which came out in November 1913. The poster states that it will be shown on Monday December the 8th. The 8th of December 1913 was on a Monday, so we can say that the picture was taken sometime between October and December 1913. You can see more old postcards of this cinema on Malcolm Bull's Calderdale Companion here. The cinema closed its doors in 1960 and became a bingo hall. It is now a nightclub called 'Liquid'. We must be thankful that the building still stands. Postcard published by Lilywhite Ltd, Dunkirk Mills, Halifax. The postcard publisher has retouched the negative in several places. For more old photographs please visit Sepia Saturday. As always, click the picture to enlarge.



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17 comments:

  1. I enjoyed comparing the then and now photos - grand old building. Glad to see it is still in use.

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  2. Fantastic building! It must have been a grand night out to go to the flicks!

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  3. Lovely building; and panning round it looks as if there a couple more. As you say that’s a pretty accurate dating of the picture.

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  4. I'm pleased to see a building like this still in use and not lost to the developers. Yorkshire's towns and cities are renowned for imposing buildings like this. It's a joy to see them.

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  5. Oh I know the building well. During my youth in Halifax it was the Royal Cinema and a bit of a flea-pit. But you remind me what an handsome building it was - and indeed is.

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    1. The building was the GAUMONT cinema .Still a flea pit though .

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  6. Kudos to this community for not letting its history make way for bulldozers.

    And how neat to see the then-and-now.

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    1. That's just one of our beautiful buildings we have loads of them. Google The Piece Hall.

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  7. Oops, not sure where my comment went. But lovely building and I really enjoy your before and now look into everything, but mostly I just like the ring to The Picture House! Great post as always!

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  8. What a great building.

    I had a friend who used to always say she was going to the "pictures", never the movies. It always made me smile because it was old-school.

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  9. I would have loved to see a picture there in 1913. How wonderful that you were able to determine the date.

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  10. I hope it has a preservation order on it.

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  11. Magnificent building! What a unique structure. I love the then and now shots, too. Thanks for posting!

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  12. That is a fantastic postcard. The signs sure stand out. I don't think theaters were called "picture houses" here, so I pictured a different kind of picture house when I read your title.

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  13. The other theater across the street looks the same age and better preserved. It must have been a real bright spot in its time.

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  14. nice indeed that some buildings endure. we're not so lucky around here...
    :/~
    HUGZ

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  15. the whole town is all listed buildings ----shops it is unique
    in the whole of west yorkshire and lovely to browse in summer
    when the flowertubs are out

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