Saturday 23 March 2013

Wandsworth, South West London, The High Street c1910

Wandsworth, South West London, The High Street circa 1910. In this slighty out-of-focus photographic postcard by Young & Co of Teddington we can see the premises of Read & Wilkinson, Builders, of 20 High Street Wandsworth. Below the Google Street View is an advertising postcard for Read & Wilkinson showing the same premises. It is interesting to note that the advertising postcard makes the shop to the right appear flush with Read & Wilkinson's. The Young & Co postcard clearly shows that this is not the case for the upper floors. The sign in Read & Wilkinson's window says "This contrast shows what we can do with old and shabby work". Unfortunately the only thing to have survived from the postcards' time is the Spread Eagle Pub in the middle distance on the left. Click the postcards to enlarge.

For more old images visit the Sepia Saturday blog.




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13 comments:

  1. The Spread Eagle seems a fairly common name for a pub - I wonder why?

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  2. Interesting postcards, is it possibly an optical illusion regarding the upper floors of the building next to Read & Wilkinsons? I've looked at both several times now and still can't quite decide, those bricks do look like they run continuously between the buildings, but on the other hand there isn't much space between the windows and the R&W wall.

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  3. Whatever the equivalent of Photoshopping was in those days?

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  4. Quite a contrast for this view. Brett asked a question that has intrigued me too, so I looked it up. Spread Eagle could refer to heraldry like the German/Russian Eagles; or to a horse that won the Epson Derby in 1795; or the naval practice of flogging a sailor. One pub history ascribes to the last meaning, but I suspect like all pub names the appeal is in the double (or triple) entendre.

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  5. Wow - if it weren't for the Spread Eagle in both photos, I would have bet you were just messing with us. The street changed quite a bit over the years.

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  6. The placement of the buildings on the advertising postcard is really puzzling.

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  7. The advertising card is well worth seeing, Your cards are nearly always more interesting than what Google shows.

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  8. Wandsworth looked so much nicer in 1910 then when I was last there. A customer at work is old bill based in the area, he describes it as "Eventful". Still, I haven't been there for twenty or more years, so, like much of London, my frame of reference is very out of date. Cracking post card though :)

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  9. Okay! Finally I like today better than the before. I think I even remember that building or one like it when we were in London! We did a lot of walking, every where, it was so interesting !

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  10. Once again you've shown us an interesting comparison.

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  11. Plenty of scope for wandering around within both the old and the new photographs this week - like a day out in Wandsworth.

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  12. Once again, it's sad to see the changes to those wonderful old streets.
    Nancy

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  13. Ooh, I just love the "then and now" photos. There certainly was a lot more charm in the "then."

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