Photochrome prints of England

Photochrom or photochrome prints are a type of color prints that were very popular between 1890 and 1910. The photochrome process was mainly used to print postcards. Below is a collection of such historical photographs from various places in England.

Our trip starts in Oxford with a view across the river Sherwell of the bell tower that forms part of Magdalen College.

Old postcard of Oxford
Magdalen Tower in Oxford

Whitby Abbey, built in the 7th-century, was confiscated by the crown and disestablished in the 16th century. Nowadays it is a classified monument where it is tourists rather than cows that get milked.

Old postcard of Whitby abbey
Whitby abbey in Yorkshire

Tunbridge Wells was a popular spa in the mid-1700s.

Old postcard of Tunbridge Wells
Penshurst Place in Tunbridge Wells

Stratford-upon-Avon is the birthplace of the poet, playwright, and author William Shakespeare (1564-1616). The Shakespeare Memorial Theatre shown below opened in 1879 and was destroyed by fire in 1926.

Old postcard of Shakespeare Memorial Theatre
Shakespeare’s Memorial Theatre in Stratford-on-Avon

In this beautiful 500 year old cottage Shakespeare courted his bride-to-be, Anne Hathaway. The cottage still looks the same nowadays.

Old postcard of an English cottage
Anne Hathaway’s cottage in Stratford-upon-Avon

Lowestoft on the North Sea coast is the most easterly settlement of the United Kingdom.

Old postcard of Lowestoft
The pier of Lowestoft

Clovelly is a small harbor village in Devon. 

Old postcard of the Clovelly high street
The high street of Clovelly

Kew Gardens is a botanic garden in southwest London. It used to have four museums, of which only the one below is still in use as a museum. It is aptly called museum number 1.

Old postcard of Kew Gardens
The museum in Kew Gardens

Some barges in front of the Palace of Westminster on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. The palace serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

Houses of Parliament in London

Bognor Regis on the south coast of England became a seaside resort in the late 18th century.

Old postcard of Bognor beach
East Parade in Bognor

According to Wikipedia Chester Rows consist of covered walkways at the first floor behind which are entrances to shops and other premises. At street level is another set of shops and other premises, many of which are entered by going down a few steps. The Rows, found in each of the four main streets of the city of Chester are unique.

Old postcard of Chester
The Cross and Row in Chester

The Valley Gardens in Harrogate contain a great number of mineral springs. It is still a popular tourist destination today.

Old postcard of Harrogate
Valley Gardens in Harrogate

Our trip ends at The Isle of Man, situated in the Irish Sea between Great Britain and Ireland. 

Old postcard of Douglas
The beach of Douglas, the capital of the Isle of Man

Can’t get enough of these historical photographs?  Check out additional photochroms of North America, Ireland, the European continent and of sailing boats and steamers.

Old postcard of the Vicotry
The ‘Victory’, Admiral Nelson’s flagship in Portsmouth

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