Esher, Surrey, Portsmouth Road, c1912 and c1918

Esher, Surrey, Portsmouth Road, circa 1912 and circa 1918. These two old postcards show the same location, one before the First World War, the other after. The pub we can see was called 'The Orleans Arms', it is now a branch of the Café Rouge restaurant chain. Outside the pub is a magnificent milestone erected in 1767 which is called 'The White Lady'. I have driven past this place many times in the past and I'd never noticed the milestone until I'd seen these postcards. You can also see what I think is an old weighing machine outside the pub in the postcards. The first postcard was photographed and published in about 1912 by William Henry Applebee of Ashford, the second postcard was photographed and published by Andrew Smith of Surbiton in about 1918. Click the postcards to see enlarged versions at 300dpi. Note - the darker colour of the buildings in the first photo is due to the photography or printing process, they were not actually darker than they were in the second photo.

For more old images why not visit this week's Sepia Saturday blog.

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Brooklands Flying Grounds, Weybridge, Surrey, c1908-1913

Brooklands Flying Grounds, Weybridge, Surrey, circa 1908-1913. Brooklands motor racing circuit was opened in 1907. It also housed one of Britain's first aerodromes, opened in 1908, where aviation pioneers would try out their latest aircraft. Later there were flying schools and aircraft factories on the site. Much of the site still exists and is owned by the Brooklands Museum. In the bottom two postcards you can see part of the banked racing circuit that Brooklands was famous for.

These postcards were published by Andrew Smith of Surbiton and W. H. Applebee of Ashford. The aeroplanes in the Andrew Smith postcard (AS113) look a little earlier (c1908) than the WHA postcards (c1912). Smith was producing postcards from about 1903, eight years before Applebee who started in 1911. Smith continued producing postcards until the late 1920s. Click the postcards to enlarge.

Please visit the Sepia Saturday blog where the theme this week is 'Flight'.