Remembering HISTORIC NEWCASTLE - Old Photos, Maps, even Stories . . .

[Newcastle Historian]

St George's Church, Osborne Road, Jesmond - in 1927
From the "Britain from Above" Website.

If you know the Jesmond area of Newcastle, this Aerial Photo may look a bit unusual, at first sight. It certainly did to me!

1 - I never realised how close the back of St George's Church is to the Tennis Courts, as they are 'accessed' from some distance away around the corner. I should have realised it, because they are still the same today!

2 - I have NEVER seen a photo of that area "pre the construction" of the houses of Newbrough Crescent, just off Osborne Road on the right as you go north. It is just a green field surrounded by trees, in this photo!



Source - http://www.britainfromabove.org.uk/a...arch=newcastle


Here is the same area today, from Google Earth. You can see Newbrough Crecent as it now is (to the left of St George's Church) and the Tennis Courts (where the Northumberland Tennis Tournament used to be played) are still there but with a more modern Centre Court.





An old "pre-demolition of the original Vicarage" photo of St George's Church HAS already appeared on the forum. It was in a Quiz Question over on the 'Test your General Knowledge' thread.

While it showed the church and vicarage from a similar era (the Vicarage can also be seen in the 1927 Aerial photo) it still gave NO clue about the undeveloped area of green to the left, where Newborough Crescent now is . . .

Originally Posted by Newcastle Historian; June 13th 2011; Newcastle "Genral Knowledge" Thread

.
Well done Anger!!

It is indeed 'St Georges Church' and the road in the foreground is Osborne Road, which seems to be just grass on the nearside, where the New Kent Hotel is!




It was indeed the missing spire in the original version of the photo that I showed, that (deliberately!) made it tricky to spot, though from what he said in his earlier post I think Steve Ellwood got it as well!

The vicarage on the left of the photo is long gone, and the present day houses were built on the site in the mid 1960s.

[DXNewcastle]

I agree that the 'missing' Newbrough Crescent is at first dis-orientating, despite knowing that its dwellings were constructed long after the Victorian Terraces elsewhere in Jesmond.

I found other features interesting in that aerial photo - how near Heaton Grammar School appears (and its not just an artifact of the long lens but the direct line of sight over the Dene which creates the sense of proximity), and the relatively large number of substantial dwellings in Adderstone Crescent which had already been built by 1927. Conversely, there appear still to be many undeveloped gaps in Lindisfarne Road (leading directly away from the camera towards Jesmond Dene).

Finally, there appears to be a formal garden laid out in what is now bounded by Castleton Grove (to the far right) whose centre-piece gives it the appearance of an Italianate layout.

[Newcastle Historian]

Originally Posted by Newcastle Historian

Newcastle's Historic Bigg Market Toilets up for sale
by Dan Warburton, Evening Chronicle, August 8th 2012

THESE landmark Public Loos are for sale - but you’ll have to spend more than a penny to snap them up. Newcastle’s Bigg Market underground toilets have been a fixture in the City Centre for more than a century.

Read More (Two Pages) - http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/north...#ixzz22xft5yMb

Now . . .

Evening Chronicle, Thursday 9th August 2012 . .



.

[Newcastle Historian]

Originally Posted by Newcastle Historian; 9th August 2012

.
Sid Chaplin's residence in Newcastle up for sale
by Dan Warburton, Evening Chronicle, August 8th 2012



HIS TALES OF the industrial North East inspired a generation of authors. Now the Newcastle home where pitman turned writer Sid Chaplin penned his renowned collection of books is up for grabs. Number 11 Kimberley Gardens was bestowed with a blue plaque to mark the achievements of Sid a decade ago, more than 15 years after his death.

Read More (Two Pages) - http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/north...#ixzz22xlUsrPI

This was in yesterday's 'hard-copy' of the Chronicle . . .

[Ken O'Heed]

Searching for something else I came across the following that have been placed on YouTube on 3 Jul 2012 by NewcastleLocaI


A history of Newcastle upon Tyne:1920s to 50's








Not sure if these have been noted by anyone else

KEN

[Ken O'Heed]

Searching for something else I came across the following that have been placed on YouTube on 6 Jul 2012 by NewcastleLocaI








KEN

[wychwood]

Originally Posted by Newcastle Historian

St George's Church, Osborne Road, Jesmond - in 1927
From the "Britain from Above" Website.

If you know the Jesmond area of Newcastle, this Aerial Photo may look a bit unusual, at first sight. It certainly did to me!

1 - I never realised how close the back of St George's Church is to the Tennis Courts, as they are 'accessed' from some distance away around the corner. I should have realised it, because they are still the same today!

2 - I have NEVER seen a photo of that area "pre the construction" of the houses of Newbrough Crescent, just off Osborne Road on the right as you go north. It is just a green field surrounded by trees, in this photo!

.
.

Hi,

The Northumberland Tennis Tournament is still played here every year– it was played just last week, finals were on Saturday. It’s not as big an event as it was – it used to be one of the biggest events in the country after Wimbledon, and Fred Perry played it. It’s now called the Northumberland Open (it was briefly an ITF event attracting professionals and played at the (now) David Lloyd Centre in Castle Farm Road for a few years in the 1990s).

Anyway the Ground next to St George’s Church was bought from the Trustees of the Mitchell Estate (he of Jesmond Towers) in 1925 to provide a permanent home for Brandling Tennis Club and the Northumberland Tournament. It was formerly St George’s Cricket Ground (I have a picture from a book – my 1st post so don’t know the rules about posting pics). This aerial pic must have been taken just after the courts (mostly grass) were laid out. It was home to a variety of other clubs which leased the courts over the years in addition to Brandling – Portland Park, Lindisfarne, Osborne etc. The original entrance can be seen in the bottom left hand corner running behind the Lodge (which was one of the (three?) lodges of Jesmond Towers). When the Lodge was sold as a private house the entrance moved further north.

The early 1970s saw the construction of one indoor tennis court and clubhouse and the clubs on the Ground were replaced by one club. The late 1990s saw the construction of the three indoor courts (the building with the grey curved roof in the Google Earth view) which replaced the three grass showcourts and old grandstand.

The Ground (now under the control of the Northumberland LTA) is home to the Northumberland Club and the Northumberland Tennis Academy.

.

[Newcastle Historian]

Thanks for the above wychwood.

The dates tie in pretty much with what I remember, but that clarification is really useful.

In the 1960s I lived in one of the houses along Adderstone Crecent that overlook the tennis ground (you can see it in the aerial photo) and even entered the Northumberland (Junior) Tournament in a couple of years.

I comfortably lost in the first round each time!

Welcome to the forum.

[Newcastle Historian]

Rain causes Newcastle Castle Keep ceiling to fall in
by Tony Henderson, The Journal, August 16th 2012


IT has stood for more than 800 years as a fortress to defend the city of Newcastle – but even the Castle Keep could not withstand the rain of the 2012 summer. The medieval Keep at Newcastle has been closed since the most recent deluge on August 5th, when drainage on its flat roof could not cope with the storm and water poured down the spiral staircases of two of its roof turrets. Water cascaded into the castle’s Great Hall and then found its way to the ceiling of the Lower Hall.

It is now thought that rainwater which had poured into the castle in the storm of June 28 had become trapped and undetected in the ceiling. The new deluge was enough to bring down most of the Georgian plaster ceiling of the Lower Hall, which houses items found in archaeological digs around the castle site. The June storm had left four inches of water in the ground floor garrison room.

Castle manager Tony Ball said: “The water coming through the castle on August 5 was spectacular. We just felt powerless. The ceiling has now been completely removed, exposing important Georgian wooden joists. We also found that the ceiling had been patched up many times previously,” said Mr Ball.

It has now been decided that the ceiling will not be replaced, leaving the joists on show and meaning it will now be possible to see from the Lower Hall up to the floor of the Great Hall.


Read More - http://www.journallive.co.uk/north-e...#ixzz23h9KKup7

[aufpet]

Hi,

I run a website all about Auf Wiedersehen, Pet and one of the locations that featured on the show was in the Bigg Market area. The building was where T J Hughes stood, and next door to Binns originally I think. It was a hairdressers called 'Coiffure'.

Does anyone have any pictures that might possible feature this shop?

Thank you so much.

I also have many other locations that have now changed dramatically or have been demolished, if you want to help, then please get in touch. It would be from 1985, as this is when the scenes were filmed, or near enough this time period.

Many thanks, Lee.

[Newcastle Historian]

Murky world of 1930s Newcastle is now exposed - GALLERY
by Kim Swan, Evening Chronicle, August 21st 2012

PEERING out from the past, these convicts were once the most notorious men on Tyneside. From thieves and safe-breakers, to robbers and fraudsters, police had their work cut out keeping tabs on this lot, but their fearsome reputations had long been forgotten until a rare book of mugshots was unearthed on Tyneside.

The images give a fascinating glimpse into the murky world of Tyneside’s 1930s criminal fraternity. The mysterious photographs of the criminals of yesteryear had lain hidden for decades, until a chance discovery saw the book uncovered in a junk shop and handed to experts. They are thought to be from a police identification book, used to document habits and descriptions of known criminals in 1930s Newcastle, and today we can publish the forgotten images for the very first time . . .





Read More (Two Pages) - http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/north...#ixzz24BVuNPTV

[Steve Ellwood]

Originally Posted by Newcastle Historian

Murky world of 1930s Newcastle is now exposed - GALLERY
by Kim Swan, Evening Chronicle, August 21st 2012

PEERING out from the past, these convicts were once the most notorious men on Tyneside. From thieves and safe-breakers, to robbers and fraudsters, police had their work cut out keeping tabs on this lot, but their fearsome reputations had long been forgotten until a rare book of mugshots was unearthed on Tyneside.

The images give a fascinating glimpse into the murky world of Tyneside’s 1930s criminal fraternity. The mysterious photographs of the criminals of yesteryear had lain hidden for decades, until a chance discovery saw the book uncovered in a junk shop and handed to experts. They are thought to be from a police identification book, used to document habits and descriptions of known criminals in 1930s Newcastle, and today we can publish the forgotten images for the very first time . . .

Must say I have reservations about publicising this type of thing in the media when it is more than likely that the descendants of these criminals still live in the area. Could cause great embarrassment and perhaps shame.

[newcastlepubs]

Originally Posted by Steve Ellwood

Must say I have reservations about publicising this type of thing in the media when it is more than likely that the descendants of these criminals still live in the area. Could cause great embarrassment and perhaps shame.

I was looking for relatives .

[AngerOfTheNorth]

Half of them look, well, a bit... simple..?

[newcastlepubs]

Originally Posted by AngerOfTheNorth

Half of them look, well, a bit... simple..?

Is that a clinical term .

I doubt that they photographed them when they were at their best....

but even today more than 70% of the prison population has two or more mental health disorders. (Social Exclusion Unit, 2004, quoting Psychiatric Morbidity Among Prisoners In England And Wales, 1998) and the Prison reform Trust found that:

'7% of the prison population had an IQ of less than 70 - a level that would qualify them for social services aid. Up to 30% of prisoners were found to have some form of learning disability or difficulty that impaired their ability to cope with the criminal justice system'.

[AngerOfTheNorth]

Originally Posted by Steve Ellwood

Must say I have reservations about publicising this type of thing in the media when it is more than likely that the descendants of these criminals still live in the area. Could cause great embarrassment and perhaps shame.

I see where you're coming from, but I'm sure most reasonable people would accept that every family has its black sheep. I'd be over the moon if I had to go this far back to find the most recent dodgy characters in mine...

And sorry NewcastlePubs, maybe "simple" wasn't the best term. But several look either drugged or drunk. I suppose in an age when you'd rarely be so lucky to have your photo taken, you wouldn't have learned to close your mouth when being photographed!

As for our prison population, maybe that's one for the Skybar, but it does seem littered with many who haven't had much chance in life for one reason or another - that and a decent chunk of our ex-servicemen population, who are hardly helped after the country has finished with them.

[AngerOfTheNorth]

Although the last one, Arthur Bell - a touch of the Daniel Craig look, anyone?

[newcastlepubs]

Originally Posted by AngerOfTheNorth

I see where you're coming from, but I'm sure most reasonable people would accept that every family has its black sheep. I'd be over the moon if I had to go this far back to find the most recent dodgy characters in mine...

At the risk of sounding really harsh it's either:

• Long enough ago to be a vaguely interesting or amusing black sheep, or
• A continuing badge of honour, see son, you re from a long line of burglars.

I don't see any difference to a sort of 'perp walk' or where the Polis provide the media with mugshots of villains today. I'd be mortified if a close relative appeared on Crimewatch today.

Originally Posted by AngerOfTheNorth

And sorry NewcastlePubs, maybe "simple" wasn't the best term. But several look either drugged or drunk. I suppose in an age when you'd rarely be so lucky to have your photo taken, you wouldn't have learned to close your mouth when being photographed!

As for our prison population, maybe that's one for the Skybar, but it does seem littered with many who haven't had much chance in life for one reason or another - that and a decent chunk of our ex-servicemen population, who are hardly helped after the country has finished with them.

Don't worry, I wasn't being critical of simple - it's sort of from another age, but it's an effective shorthand...Actually at that time photography - professional, off to the studio, that is - was way more common than it is now. Mind you police questioning then wasn't covered by PACE so they might be nursing a bruise or two. The slack jaw might have been broken a'hem falling down the stairs.

Originally Posted by AngerOfTheNorth

Although the last one, Arthur Bell - a touch of the Daniel Craig look, anyone?

Is it just me or does the 'dead one' have something of the Gordon Brown after a serious night on the beer about him...





John, your icon is even closer than the GB pic I found

[battlefieldjohn]

I like the sound of William Jones, guy in the middle, "died in action Benwell Hotel"!

[Helen Grace]

Originally Posted by maxtoon

Here's a few nice historic arial shots of the city to add to our thread .. first two from the 30's,40's respectively.

image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr


image hosted on flickr
.. West End in the 60's

Sorry to drag up an old post but can anyone identify which street is East Parade in this old photograph of Elswick?

Many thanks!