Category: Vintage Postcards

Snakes And Branches

This view of Elland is taken from an old picture postcard, published more than 120 years ago. Of course, Elland has changed; most of those mill chimneys have gone, and blocks of flats stand where back-to-back houses once clung to the hillside. The river remains, and those roads that either snake along the valley bottom … Continue reading Snakes And Branches

Having Fun At Hall End

It took me a few moments to fit the scene depicted in this 1908 postcard of Hall End, Halifax, into my late twentieth-century perceptions of the town. "Hall End" was not a description I was immediately familiar with, nor were the buildings in the center of the scene. The rather grand building which is center-left … Continue reading Having Fun At Hall End

Fur Stoles And Soot-Black Buildings

This is how I remember Princess Street in Halifax. There was a degree of sophistication about the street; it was Halifax's answer to Knightsbridge. There were shops with exotic names and a hotel with AA rosettes. There were women with fur stoles and men wearing trilby hats. There were chrome headlights on black cars and … Continue reading Fur Stoles And Soot-Black Buildings

A Paper Portal To The Past

If there is one thing you would have needed in 1919, it is a bit of a tonic. The memories of the carnage on the fields of Flanders are still raw, and the influenza epidemic is now picking off many of the people who survived. So this old photographic postcard from exactly 100 years ago … Continue reading A Paper Portal To The Past

Forgotten Scenes And Forgotten Stamps

1905 Postcard Of Bradford Road, Brighouse : Dear Dorothy, It is only about three week off Easter now. Do you know you forgot to put a stamp on the postcard you sent me and I had to pay a penny for it. From Walter. (It is interesting to note that whilst this stretch of Bradford … Continue reading Forgotten Scenes And Forgotten Stamps

That Face

There is something so simple about this little image that comes from an early twentieth century picture postcard from the German publishing firm, Meissner & Buch. The card hasn’t been used in the century and a quarter since it was printed, so I could dash off a message to someone and pop it in the … Continue reading That Face

Markets

I worked in Bradford for a time just after leaving school, and at lunchtime I would explore the wonderful old Kirkgate Market. It always seemed slightly more imposing than Halifax's Borough Market, as perhaps befits a city rather than a humble town. Bradford's market was torn down in the early 1970s and replaced with a … Continue reading Markets

John Hodge And The Overdue Stove

This picture postcard of the Labour politician and Member of Parliament John Hodge dates from October 1911. He was 51 years old when he was elected as the MP for Manchester Gorton in the 1904 General Election which saw 29 members of the new Labour Party being returned to Parliament. It was a time when … Continue reading John Hodge And The Overdue Stove

Such A Lovely Place

A small, 120 year old piece of cardboard. On one side, history is captured in the form of a picture of North Bridge, Halifax flanked by long-lost mills and theatres. On the other side, life is captured in the form of a prehistoric text message to Miss Speechley who lives in the Isle of Man. … Continue reading Such A Lovely Place