I said we would come down to street level for this next installment of Bernard Selwyn pictures, so here you are:
Tidy’s, for toys, hardware, confectionery and many other items I suspect, located at 20-22 Bramley Road at an intersection with Treadgold Street which no longer exists (the intersection no longer exists – Treadgold Street has been truncated since 1971 but still goes on). You can also see St Ann’s Road on the far left of the picture. We’ll go for a bit of a walk around here.
I said we’d come down to earth but it might help if we look at another of Selwyn’s bird’s eye views from Frinstead House.
You can make out Tidy’s on the left side of the picture two thirds up from the bottom. Bramley Road runs diagonally past it and St Ann’s Road heads south. The main road running under the railway was called Latimer Road in 1971 but now this section is called Freston Road.
This map also dates from 1971 and shows the layout of the streets.
Across the road from Tidy’s a man in shirtsleeves stands near Leone, the hairdressers.
Further up the road the Bramley Arms which we first saw along the roofline a couple of weeks ago in front of the brewery building.
Looking back at Latimer Road, the Zenith Cafe.
In close up Gene and Pearl, button manufacturers. A woman looks back as she walks.
A view further back, showing the Trafalgar pub. Do you see the building on the left, in the foreground?
Here it is looking south.
From Kelly’s Directory: M Gold and Co (Rags) Ltd non-ferrous scrap metal merchants 119-121 Latimer Road. Take another look back up Latimer Road.
I know some people will be interested to see the Champion Dining Rooms.
At the end of this stretch of road:
The Enterprise, an off-license rather than a pub was on the corner of Mortimer Square. This is where we turn off.
This view of Mortimer Square looks north again. Many of the buildings in these pictures no longer exist but that double fronted resturant is still there under a new name. The street on the right is St Ann’s Road and it will take us back to where we started.
There were some gaps in the rows of house where there were yards and small businesses, and an MGB for those of us who like such things. (As always identifications of vehicles featured are welcome.There are no spectacular cars here but they’re alll of interest.)
This view includes the other side of the street.
There’s some roadside activity by the post box. (What is happening there?) and in the distance, one of those towers is Frinstead House, from which Selwyn took many of his pictures.
Closer to the top of the road, another gap in the row of houses, another view of the towers and painted on the back of a building on Treadgold Street …a couple of words.
That phrase was painted on other walls around this time I think. There’s a new edition of Roger Perry’s book about graffitti, the Writing on the Wall in which you can find other examples (and see my post on graffitti in K&C).
We’re back now facing Bramley Road. Peggs and Dolls. a boutique at number 11, next to Curtiss and Sons, furniture removers. And finally:
At Tidy’s, “for your entertainment” posters for White City Stadium – stock car racing. The stadium hosted speedway, greyhound racing and even football and rugby, not to mention events in the 1908 Olympics. But that’s a Hammersmith and Fulham matter, so let’s stop here.
Postscript
Of course as historians of local government know although all the streets in this week’s posts are in Kensington and Chelsea today, back in 1971 they were in Hammersmith (the Borough had yet to add the “and Fulham”). Which is why our libarary photographer never got there and we have to be grateful to Bernard Selwyn whose work and interests crossed Borough boundaries. There will be more from him in the future. (He also went over this ground in some colour pictures).
This post is dedicated to my friend Cy, who knows the area as it is now well.
Dave Walker