New England Road

There is so much of interest in this photo that it is difficult to know where to begin. But to start with the date, the detached villa in the foreground, 74 London Road, was demolished in 1935. I suspect this photo, described as an "aeroplane" view, was not much earlier than that. 74 London Road, on the corner with New England Road, had earlier been the home of Henry Longhurst, the owner of the large Amber Brewery which once occupied the site on the opposite side of Preston Circus between Viaduct Road and Stanley/Clyde Roads. 

The shops in the right foreground date from the 1860's and replaced New England Farm after which the road is named. Farther up New England Road can be seen the old goods railway bridge which is now used as a footbridge for the Greenway which runs behind the row of pillars on the left. These are still standing. Behind the pillars is a brick wall with arched recesses supporting the extensive sheds of the locomotive works. The wall now supports the modern apartments blocks of the New England Quarter development.

Lastly, seen hazily above the locomotive works on the left is the Belle Vue Inn on the junction of Buckingham and Howard Places. Below is a view from the Bell Vue Inn in roughly the opposite direction and probably dating from the 1950s.