The changes that have happened in Watford over the years makes it easy to forget how old parts of the town are, but the picture above shows how one of the busiest roads looked more than a century ago.
The Watford Observer has again teamed up with Watford Museum and is delighted to showcase some pictures from its archive – this week we recall how part of St Albans road once looked.
The museum's volunteer archivist Christine Orchard said: "Martindale Terrace, in St Albans Road, is just before the railway bridge and was built in the 1850s by, I assume, the builder John Martindale as he was living in one of the six houses. The terrace did not, however, look exactly as we see today.
"This picture (above), from a lantern slide created by Downer, is the earliest image I’ve seen of the terrace (foreground on right) with front doors and garden brick walls. Tenants in 1861 included an annuitant, a retired surgeon, an artist, a school teacher (with her pupils), a fundholder and of course, the builder John Martindale.
Martindale Terrace with the ground floor shop extensions, pre-1914
"It seems between 1891 and 1901 the ground floor of the houses were converted to shops and later images show the ground-floor shop extension we see today."
Nos. 125 to 133 St Albans Road in 1990. Picture: Private collection
Watford Museum is open Thursday to Saturday, 10am to 5pm. No booking is necessary but Covid prevention measures are still in place to keep visitors safe.
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