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School Lane


Standing in School Lane in 1941 the photographer has captured the view towards Hanover Street with Church Alley to the left and the Bluecoat Chambers stands to the right. The Bluecoat was heavily damaged by enemy action with its concert hall, several adjoining rooms and a rear wing mercilessly destroyed. Construction began in 1716 funded by wealthy mariner Byran Blundell and the Reverend Robert Styth. It was their vision to create new premises for the boys of the Liverpool Bluecoat School, a charitable establishment set up to educate poor children of the area. Despite the damage of war the Bluecoat remained intact and Liverpool managed to save its most ancient inner city building. High up in the centre of the shot is perched the advertisements for Cranes & Sons Instrument sellers whilst straight up the street stands a large warehouse, the home of a number of businesses including a café and restaurant, a gown manufacturer, a tobacconist and an advertising agency. These all survived the German air raids, but many other buildings in the locality such as Magnet House, were left as nothing more than heaps of bricks and mortar.


School Lane has become useful passageway for pedestrians to reach the new shops of Peter’s Lane and Paradise Street but this route is no longer accessible to moving vehicles. The affordable Irish fashion retailer that is Primark opened its maze-like Liverpool store here in 2007. It manages to eclipse the firm’s flagship London store by some 14,000sq ft and employs a small army of 800 members of staff to run this five floor outlet. The old Cranes & Sons property is hidden in this view by summer foliage but the company has long ceased trading from this address and the building is now used as a bar and Chinese restaurant. The small Neptune Theatre, also housed in the old Crane building, is soon to reopen as the Epstein Theatre. The Bluecoat was revived in the 1950s and used as a display and craft centre for many years. In 2008 it received heavy investment to become a showcase of creative talent of all kinds. It is now home to over 30 creative industries including artists, graphic designers, small arts organisations, craftspeople and retailers all under one roof. To left of shot is a commemorative plaque highlighting the birth place of the M.P and diarist Thomas Creevey.

New Brighton

New Brighton and its beach have been popular places to visit for generations. The town was the creation of Liverpool merchant James Atherton who brought nearly two hundred acres of land to develop a rival to the much-respected royal playground of Brighton in the early nineteenth century. He envisioned grand houses, large gardens and reputable residents, but sure enough New Brighton became a resort for the working classes who came in their masses to enjoy the fresh sea air and open spaces. This image from 1902 captures one such day at the beach with a multitude of formerly dressed people strolling along the sands. In the distance stands the New Brighton Fort which was built in 1829 at a cost of just under twenty-seven thousand pounds. Fear of a Napoleonic attack upon the city of Liverpool forced officials to make plans to protect the strategic seaport. Sixteen large mounted guns were installed about the defensive battery, along with enough accommodation to house one hundred military personnel. By the time this image was taken the forts importance as a military outpost had declined but it still processed the deadly artillery to fire upon enemy vessels entering our waters.


Visiting New Brighton you cannot fail to notice the golden sands of the past now lie several feet under water. An artificial marine lake, part of the Kings Parade, was built on reclaimed land in the 1930’s during a coastal redevelopment by Wirral Council. It now covers a large part of the old seashore. The sturdy fort known as Perch Rock remains intact but no longer has any military use. In 1939, fifteen minutes after the announcement of war, Fort Commander Cocks gave the order for two shots to be fired at a mysterious vessel seen entering the closed waters. The boat turned out to be an innocent fisherman, but these may well have been the first ever shots of World War Two. The structure was eventually demobilised in the 1950’s and sold at auction to private owners. It has changed hands several times but is now owned by the Darroch family who have opened it to the public with a number of displays and exhibitions on show. After dipping popularity for decades there are plans for New Brighton to be given a new lease of life with the addition of a supermarket, a new hotel, a cinema, bars, restaurants, and a water sports centre with a new model boating lake.

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Excuse me if I'm nitpicking, but it wasn't 'Wirral Council' yet, as of then, was it? Wouldn't it have been the County Borough of Wallasey (Cheshire)?

Ah, touché. Good point. Will make amends.

i used to work in Mckenzies a few doors down from Dashleys,its now the casino,i had to do the pie run at iiam each day,they made the best pork oies i ever tasted,the whole family worked there,mr and mrs dashley sons and wives that was 1970