City of London, King William Statue and Eastcheap c1913

City of London, King William Statue and Eastcheap circa 1913. In this animated postcard by the publishers C. & A. G. Lewis of Nottingham we can see the King William IV statue that was erected in 1844. The statue faced London Bridge. The statue was moved to King William Walk, Greenwich Park in 1938. It now stands on a far less impressive plinth. In the distance on the left we can see Eastcheap. Unfortunately only one building from the postcard's time has survived into the 21st century - the domed building in the middle distance directly above the rear part of the bus on the left. This bus is on its way to Croydon from Liverpool Street. The bus on the right has come from Ealing and is nearly at its destination, London Bridge Station, just over the river. Behind the statue is one of the entrances to Monument Underground station. For a couple of other views of the King William IV statue and this area have a look at this earlier post. Postcards by C. & A. G. Lewis are often of the highest quality and are very collectable. This one is no exception. I am particularly struck by the woman on the extreme left of the picture and the old man wearing a boater talking to a policeman on the right. This postcard has been scanned at 300dpi (1575 x 988 pixels) so it may be worth downloading to your computer to see all of the detail. Click the postcard to enlarge (then right-click, 'save image as' if you wish to save it to your computer).

For more old images have a look at this week's Sepia Saturday blog.

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Brentford, Middlesex, The High Street c1922

Brentford, Middlesex, The High Street circa 1922. Almost nothing in the modern Google Street View has survived from the postcard's time. I had to use the excellent Brentford High Street Project website to identify the location of this postcard. There is a picture from 1981 on the Brentford Dock website which shows the building on the left of the postcard in its last days. There is an old looking building in the Google Street View on the left - you can just see its roof on the old postcard. The pub on the right was called 'The Feathers'. The postcard was published by the well-known publishers C. & A. G. Lewis of Nottingham. Click the postcard for an enlargement (300dpi).

For more old photos you may care to visit the Sepia Saturday blog.

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Knightsbridge, West London, Brompton Road showing Harrods c1918

Though unposted, the original owner of the card has written a message on the back that says 'This is where we do our shopping. You will notice Harrods Stores with the great dome. The Windows are lit up until 10 o'clock every night and are a wonderful sight'. The postcard was published by C. & A. G. Lewis of Nottingham. Their postcards are well known for their excellent photography. When the Google Streetview photo was taken Harrods was undergoing some restoration, hence the scaffolding and hoardings.
*Edit, December 30, 2013. The scaffolding and hoardings are no longer present on the updated Google Street View, but now the view is from the other side of the road. Scan of the back of the postcard added as requested.

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