Steven Orland's Coventry, Now & Then

Page 3

It's nice to see that some things don't change too much, especially when they are nice things like Lady Herbert's Garden. You can see that Cook Street gate is still behind the garden on the left.

The only thing that is different is that the Ring Road is now in the background. Back in the 1930s photograph, the buildings behind the garden were properties in Swanswell Terrace and Henry Street.

Please click here if you wish to see the photo's separately.

Now we can see what Hales Street used to look like before the war - 1937 in this photo. The old Hippodrome was still there - about to be demolished and replaced by a new theatre. (See my dad's page showing the New Hippodrome.) The old Fire Station was smaller then too, and behind that is the Art School in Ford Street, (with the pointy roof) and further back, a row of shops in White Street, which all disappeared so the Ring Road could be built.

At least Swanswell Gate is still there, and the Fire Station too, which as you can see was made larger after the war, but is now a restaurant, opened in 2006.

Standing in almost exactly the same place as above, we now turn to our left and look towards the Old Grammar School. On the very last day of 1900 there was a terrible flood in Coventry when the River Sherbourne burst its banks, and most of the city centre was under water.

My 2010 photo shows how Hales Street now takes a different direction, partly because of the building of Millennium Place around 2000.

The Old Grammar School in this picture is now the only remaining building if we compare it to how this looked back in 1939. Bishop Street was once a busy shopping street where trams trundled up and down the hill.

Please click here if you wish to see the photo's separately.

Back to.... Now and Then page 1 - Now and Then page 2

All "old" photographs are taken from early postcards.

All photographs by Steven Orland except where stated.

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