A busy, sunny day....
Today's forecast: 22C/71F and very sunny. Today we travelled to London by train to join a 'Ghost Signs of Fitzrovia' guided walk. A ghost sign is an advertising sign painted or tiled onto a building in the past at some point in its life and survives despite the building changing its use. They are a fascinating glimpse into the past and are often left by new owners because they are expensive to remove, and these days would involve hiring scaffolding with all the health and safety implications....
Under the cut for a bit of history in London...
We started the walk close to the BT Tower and our route took us in almost a circle around it over the two-hour walk.
This J&J Goddard sign on the building around halfway down the street is made from tiles on the wall and is from a former piano tools manufacturer right up until 1968. They made tuning handles for pianos and other replacement parts. The whole area of Fitzrovia had instrument makers back in the day.
This is a bit of an unexplained ghost sign. This building has little plaques around it which indicate that it was a lampshade frame maker and some research showed they also made other wired products.
Plaque indicating the makers
This sign is the name of the manufacturer, probably from around the 1920s or 30s. The 'Museum 4645' is a reference to the telephone number. When numbers were first assigned to people as phones became more popular the different areas of London were used to direct a call (e.g. Whitehall 1212). So this is the Museum area with the number 4645.
This is The Pollock's Toy Museum which survived right up until Covid but sadly has now gone. We rather liked the faux windows.
Next door is the Pollock's Theatrical Print Warehouse - owned by the same people and used to show what a print warehouse would have been like. I rather like the examples of prints in the window. Sadly also gone now.
Inside they have retained much of the original Victorian interior.
Another faded sign - for BUCKNALL HIGH CLASS SECOND HAND FURNITURE, ANTIQUE & MODERN. It's so faded as the sun catches the sign so it's only just possible to make out the words.
This was one of the more spectacular ghost signs. High up on the building is the sign for T J Boulting & Sons. Range and Stove Manuractory Established 1808 picked out in gorgeous turquoise and blue tiles with gold tiles to form the lettering. Above the doorway it says the name again but on that sign says Gas & Electrical Engineers Est. 1808.
At the side of the building they repeat the signage.
The sign above this door shows that the building was originally built as a Nurses Home. This is part of the Howard de Warden estate which still owns 92 acres of the area and 800 of the buildings in it (worth billions!).
This is the whole building which is stunning - it's now a hotel.
And example of a pointing hand (a manicule) showing where the entrance to a manufacturer is.
This building has ghost signs for the original owners E.E. Pither & Sons.
Inside the doorway there's a touching dedication to honour the memory of the mother.
The Ancient Lights on this building are there to point out that this building has the right to light and no other building should be higher than it is so that it is in the shade. This legislation was binding for the first 20 years of ownership of the building. This legislation was drawn up in 1663.
Finally, there's this one: PRING & ROSE SHOWCARDS, TICKET WRITERS, AND PRINTERS. Tickets were needed in the early 1920s by grocers to identify new products in a shop. So they would have them hand written for the products (which were usually in jars without retail packaging).
It was a fun walk, as you can see from the photos it was a very lovely sunny day! We strolled back towards the station and had lunch before heading home.
We relaxed for most of the afternoon and in the evening Youngest Cee and GF(P) came home from their friend's 30th birthday BBQ and we had a catch up. Then they made us a very delicious dinner before GF(P) drove back to her Mum's place. It's been a nice day!
4 - Cheese Day: There are people who do not like cheese or cannot eat it for health reasons, while other people think it is one of the best foods or ingredients for food recipes that was ever invented! Which category best describes you?
I love cheese!
Under the cut for a bit of history in London...
We started the walk close to the BT Tower and our route took us in almost a circle around it over the two-hour walk.
This J&J Goddard sign on the building around halfway down the street is made from tiles on the wall and is from a former piano tools manufacturer right up until 1968. They made tuning handles for pianos and other replacement parts. The whole area of Fitzrovia had instrument makers back in the day.
This is a bit of an unexplained ghost sign. This building has little plaques around it which indicate that it was a lampshade frame maker and some research showed they also made other wired products.
Plaque indicating the makers
This sign is the name of the manufacturer, probably from around the 1920s or 30s. The 'Museum 4645' is a reference to the telephone number. When numbers were first assigned to people as phones became more popular the different areas of London were used to direct a call (e.g. Whitehall 1212). So this is the Museum area with the number 4645.
This is The Pollock's Toy Museum which survived right up until Covid but sadly has now gone. We rather liked the faux windows.
Next door is the Pollock's Theatrical Print Warehouse - owned by the same people and used to show what a print warehouse would have been like. I rather like the examples of prints in the window. Sadly also gone now.
Inside they have retained much of the original Victorian interior.
Another faded sign - for BUCKNALL HIGH CLASS SECOND HAND FURNITURE, ANTIQUE & MODERN. It's so faded as the sun catches the sign so it's only just possible to make out the words.
This was one of the more spectacular ghost signs. High up on the building is the sign for T J Boulting & Sons. Range and Stove Manuractory Established 1808 picked out in gorgeous turquoise and blue tiles with gold tiles to form the lettering. Above the doorway it says the name again but on that sign says Gas & Electrical Engineers Est. 1808.
At the side of the building they repeat the signage.
The sign above this door shows that the building was originally built as a Nurses Home. This is part of the Howard de Warden estate which still owns 92 acres of the area and 800 of the buildings in it (worth billions!).
This is the whole building which is stunning - it's now a hotel.
And example of a pointing hand (a manicule) showing where the entrance to a manufacturer is.
This building has ghost signs for the original owners E.E. Pither & Sons.
Inside the doorway there's a touching dedication to honour the memory of the mother.
The Ancient Lights on this building are there to point out that this building has the right to light and no other building should be higher than it is so that it is in the shade. This legislation was binding for the first 20 years of ownership of the building. This legislation was drawn up in 1663.
Finally, there's this one: PRING & ROSE SHOWCARDS, TICKET WRITERS, AND PRINTERS. Tickets were needed in the early 1920s by grocers to identify new products in a shop. So they would have them hand written for the products (which were usually in jars without retail packaging).
It was a fun walk, as you can see from the photos it was a very lovely sunny day! We strolled back towards the station and had lunch before heading home.
We relaxed for most of the afternoon and in the evening Youngest Cee and GF(P) came home from their friend's 30th birthday BBQ and we had a catch up. Then they made us a very delicious dinner before GF(P) drove back to her Mum's place. It's been a nice day!
4 - Cheese Day: There are people who do not like cheese or cannot eat it for health reasons, while other people think it is one of the best foods or ingredients for food recipes that was ever invented! Which category best describes you?
I love cheese!