preston

Fishergate c.1901

Preston Past: Fishergate,100 years of change (Part 5)

16th, May 2012 by

 This week we take the final part of our journey along the south side of Fishergate looking at the buildings, shops and alleyways going in a westerly direction. Looking at the above image from 1901, we can see a view of part of the south side of Fishergate and how splendidly ornate the shops looked at that time. The street just to the right of centre is Guildhall [...]

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river ribble

Preston in the Picture: Flood Risk?

13th, May 2012 by

I had planned a completely different photo for this week but the lousy weather and other commitments have combined to scupper my plans. Instead my picture this week is one grabbed during the few hours of sunshine that we did get during the recent Bank Holiday weekend. This photo was taken outside the New Continental pub looking back up the River Ribble towards Avenham/Miller Park. [...]

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1902 Preston Guild Trades Procession, Fishergate.

Preston Past: Fishergate,100 years of change (Part 4)

9th, May 2012 by

Southeast side of Fishergate during 1902 Preston Guild  In this weeks Preston Past we continue with the changing views over 100 years along the south side of Fishergate in a westerly direction. In the above splendid image of Fishergate in 1902, we can see a view of the buildings from Glover’s Court to the west side of Cannon Street. The shop premises on the far left was originally Woolworth & [...]

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preston bus station

Preston in the Picture: The Bus Station at Night

6th, May 2012 by

As a photographer, I’m a fan of Preston Bus Station. Some people think it’s ugly but I love its curves and I also love the fact that my pictures of Preston Bus Station have sold well, appearing in the national press and on-line; they even got a mention on Radio 4s Today programme! There’s hardly a week goes by when Preston Bus Station isn’t in [...]

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Looking down on the shop frontages of the south side of Fishergate 1950

Preston Past: Fishergate,100 years of change (Part 3)

3rd, May 2012 by

 In this weeks Preston Past we take a look at the south side of Fishergate from where it meets with Church Street and continues in a westerly direction. At the junction of Church Street and Fishergate on the south side there is a narrow passageway, which is the site of one of the many ‘Burgess plots’ (see footnote) that there is in this area of Preston. This passageway is known [...]

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lamb and flag

Preston in the Picture: The Lamb and Flag

29th, April 2012 by

There are many views on Preston’s association with the Lamb and Flag emblem. One of the most commonly held views is that it is associated with days gone-by when Preston was called Priest Town and the lamb signifies the Prince of Peace or ‘lamb of god’. The lamb is also linked to St. Wilfrid who is the Patron Saint of Preston. The ‘PP’ on the [...]

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Fishergate c.1898

Preston Past: Fishergate,100 years of change (Part 2)

25th, April 2012 by

 Compare the above image of Fishergate around 1898 with the Fishergate 1952 below. It is interesting to note how much changed in only 50 years or so. Both images show the Gilbert Scott Town Hall, except that in the 1898 image the Town Hall was still in remarkably fine condition; whereas, in the lower 1952 image the Town Hall tower is somewhat truncated due to the fire damage it suffered in 1947. [...]

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preston skyline

Preston in the Picture: The Guild Wheel – Preston Skyline

22nd, April 2012 by

This picture was taken from the banks of the River Ribble, close to the entrance to Preston Docks. It’s a stretch of the river that was once referred to locally as ‘Little Blackpool’, due to the small piece of ‘sandy’ shore by the river at low tide – oh happy days! The path that runs by the river now is part of the Guild Wheel, [...]

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Fishergate 1862 near the railway station. Photograph by Robert Pateson

Preston Past: Fishergate,100 years of change (Part 1)

18th, April 2012 by

The three oldest streets in Preston are, Churchgate (now Church Street), Friargate and Fishergate. The latter has always been a thriving area for shoppers, places of entertainment and eventually the emergence of the railway station. The image below shows a photograph of Fishergate taken by Robert Pateson in 1862. The photographer would have been situated with Butler Street a little further behind him to the right. The [...]

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preston temple

Preston in the Picture: The Preston Temple

15th, April 2012 by

Ok, I know this isn’t really a photograph of Preston but there is definitely a link here and it’s another ‘claim to fame’ as far as Preston goes. Back in 1837, a small group of missionaries were sent to Britain by the relatively new Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints. The Church had only been formed seven years so this was very [...]

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The Fountain At Millar Park

Preston Past: Avenham & Miller Parks (Part 2)

11th, April 2012 by

Avenham and Miller parks were both opened in 1867, however, Miller Park was created on land extending from the East Lancashire Railway to the North Union Railway embankments and was laid out on eleven acres of land which was donated to Preston Corporation by Alderman Thomas Miller, a principal partner in the  firm of cotton manufacturers, Horrocks, Miller & Co. As with Avenham Park, Miller Park [...]

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brockholes nature reserve visitor centre

Preston in the Picture: Brockholes

8th, April 2012 by

It was Easter Sunday 2011 when Brockholes Nature Reserve opened its doors to the public for the first time and as the nature reserve is in effect celebrating its first birthday, I thought it would be appropriate to make this view of the visitor centre my ‘Preston in the Picture’ for this week. I think the magnificent floating visitor centre looks great in the late [...]

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Avenham Park on Easter Monday in 1956

Preston Past: Avenham & Miller Parks (Part 1)

4th, April 2012 by

  Avenham Valley from the Vicarage Grounds,Preston 1862 (Courtesy of Preston City Council) A very early image of the area that was soon to be transformed into Avenham Park. This photograph was taken from the back of the old Vicarage garden in East Cliff. It appears that sleepers, rails and a quantity of cast iron chairs are stacked at the bottom of the slope in [...]

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