TRAVEL

TRAVEL

Saturday, April 15, 2017


From the 1930s reveal a bustling pre-Blitz London


  • The men from nearby St. Thomas' Hospital are pictured resting in their beds in open air while being tended to
  • At nearby Hyde Park three women are seen carrying their gas masks while going for a swim in the Serpentine
  • The shots are from Getty Images - which holds tens of millions of historical negatives in hundreds of archives

These fascinating black and white pictures turn back the clock to a bygone era - revealing bustling city scenes in pre-Blitz 1930s London.The collection of images shows everything from swimsuit-clad women carrying their gas masks to tuberculosis patients enjoying the sun on the banks of the Thames.The men - who were wheeled out from nearby St. Thomas' Hospital - are pictured resting in their beds in the open air while being tended to by a nurse.The Houses of Parliament can be seen in the background in the historical photograph from 1936. 


Tuberculosis patients from St. Thomas' Hospital rest in their beds in the open air by the River Thames, opposite the Houses of Parliament, in May 1936
Tuberculosis patients from St. Thomas' Hospital rest in their beds in the open air by the River Thames, opposite the Houses of Parliament, in May 1936


Three women pictured going for a swim in the Serpentine, Hyde Park, London, while carrying their gas masks
Three women pictured going for a swim in the Serpentine, Hyde Park, London, while carrying their gas masksEmergency buses leaving Victoria station in London, following an underground train crash on the District Line in May 1938
Emergency buses leaving Victoria station in London, following an underground train crash on the District Line in May 1938Meanwhile at nearby Hyde Park three women are pictured carrying their gas masks while going for a swim in the Serpentine.The stunning collection also shows American silent film actress Phyllis Gordon window-shopping with her four-year-old cheetah.The animal was flown to Britain from Kenya and she happily walked it around the capital on a chain and collar while she was on shopping trips.
American silent film actress Phyllis Gordon window-shopping in Earls Court, London with her four-year-old cheetah who was flown to Britain from Kenya
American silent film actress Phyllis Gordon window-shopping in Earls Court, London with her four-year-old cheetah who was flown to Britain from KenyaChildren pour out of their school in Drew Street, Silvertown, in the east end of London, with the liner Rajputana in the background in January 1932
Children pour out of their school in Drew Street, Silvertown, in the east end of London, with the liner Rajputana in the background in January 1932Two divers jumping off the Embankment into the River Thames in London, near Westminster Bridge
Two divers jumping off the Embankment into the River Thames in London, near Westminster BridgeA water cart man turns the water main on a group of boys to help them cool off in a street in Westminster, London during a heatwave in August 1930
A water cart man turns the water main on a group of boys to help them cool off in a street in Westminster, London during a heatwave in August 1930A Black & White milk bar on the corner of Whitefriars Street and Fleet Street, London in August 1935
A Black & White milk bar on the corner of Whitefriars Street and Fleet Street, London in August 1935
Other images show relics of the past such as a Black & White milk bar on the corner of Whitefriars Street and Fleet Street - as well as Finch's wine bar in Oxford Street, London, next to John Lewis & Co.The property was due to be auctioned the following March and was expected to fetch an extremely high price - after a £100,000 offer had already been turned down.In other pictures women can be seen enjoying themselves while on holiday and nannies are photographed pushing prams through Hyde Park - which appears to be far less crowded than it is nowadays.The shots are from Getty Images - which holds tens of millions of negatives in hundreds of archives chronicling some of the most important periods in history.Early morning rush hour traffic crossing London Bridge, central London in January 1933
Early morning rush hour traffic crossing London Bridge, central London in January 1933Victor Berlemont, a moustachioed French publican working in an establishment of London's Soho
Victor Berlemont, a moustachioed French publican working in an establishment of London's SohoA crowd of people wearing swimwear bathing in the Serpentine during the high temperatures in London's Hyde Park in August 1930
A crowd of people wearing swimwear bathing in the Serpentine during the high temperatures in London's Hyde Park in August 1930Nannies push prams in Hyde Park, London alongside Rotten Row in 1936
Nannies push prams in Hyde Park, London alongside Rotten Row in 1936Two holidaymakers amuse themselves with a porter's trolley whilst waiting for their train at Euston Station, London, in August 1939
Two holidaymakers amuse themselves with a porter's trolley whilst waiting for their train at Euston Station, London, in August 1939A young exhibitor arrives with her kitten on a lead at the National Cat Club show at Crystal Palace, London, in December 1931
A young exhibitor arrives with her kitten on a lead at the National Cat Club show at Crystal Palace, London, in December 1931Finch's wine bar in Oxford Street, London, next to John Lewis & Co. The property was due to be auctioned the following March and was expected to fetch an extremely high price - after a £100,000 offer had already been turned down.
Finch's wine bar in Oxford Street, London, next to John Lewis & Co, in January 1936. The property was due to be auctioned the following March and was expected to fetch an extremely high price of £100,000 offer having already been turned down
Finch's wine bar in Oxford Street, London, next to John Lewis & Co, is pictured left in January 1936. The property was due to be auctioned the following March and was expected to fetch an extremely high price - after a £100,000 offer had already been turned down. Pictured right is a swimming pool on the roof of the Piccadilly London hotel in August 1932
School children play in Hyde Park on a sunny day in 1935.
School children play in Hyde Park on a sunny day in 1935.
Londoners in bathing suits taking advantage of a heat wave at Hyde Park lido in June 1933
Londoners in bathing suits taking advantage of a heat wave at Hyde Park lido in June 1933
Two young boys are pictured out for a walk wearing shorts because of the heatwave in London, England in August 1932
Two young boys are pictured out for a walk wearing shorts because of the heatwave in London, England in August 1932
Children playing cricket in a street in Millwall, east London in August 1938. A liner on the Thames is seen in the background
Children playing cricket in a street in Millwall, east London in August 1938. A liner on the Thames is seen in the background
Four swimmers enjoy an ice-cream at the water's edge in Roehampton swimming pool in May 1936
Four swimmers enjoy an ice-cream at the water's edge in Roehampton swimming pool in May 1936
Queen Victoria's Jubilee Clock is moved to another place in front of a crowd of spectators in August 1938
Queen Victoria's Jubilee Clock is moved to another place in front of a crowd of spectators in August 1938
A cleaner dusts a cast of a dinosaur skeleton at the Natural History Museum in London in November 1936. The cast was made from the D. Carnegiei diplodocus at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh in the US state of Pennsylvania
A cleaner dusts a cast of a dinosaur skeleton at the Natural History Museum in London in November 1936. The cast was made from the D. Carnegiei diplodocus at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History in Pittsburgh in the US state of Pennsylvania
Alittle girl drinking from a fountain with a lion's head at Finchley Swimming Pool, London in August, 1937. Outdoor swimming pools became popularly known as 'lidos' in the 1930s - and proved to be very popular during the first half of the 20th century in Britain. This photograph has been selected from the Daily Herald Archive, a collection of over three million photographs. The archive holds work of international, national and local importance by both staff and agency photographers.
A little girl drinking from a fountain with a lion's head at Finchley Swimming Pool, London in August 1937. Outdoor swimming pools became popularly known as 'lidos' in the 1930s - and proved to be very popular during the first half of the 20th century



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