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Old Photographs, Recognition, Handwriting Deciphering => Free Photo Restoration & Date Old Photographs => Topic started by: farmeroman on Saturday 26 January 13 12:14 GMT (UK)
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This is a street party in Chester Road, Seven Kings, Ilford, Essex at the junction of Spencer Road to the right. My grandfather, Howard Kent, is standing in the road to the left of the table in a dark suit and was likely the organiser (the table is outside his house, number 81) . Am I correct in assuming that this is a VE party in 1945 (my grandfather woudl have been 47) or could it be later, say the coronation in 1953? Clothing experts please...
I wonder if the brick structure in the road could be a bomb shelter, which would of course help confirm the date and put it at the end of the war rather than in the early fifties.
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I would guess Coronation?
Not sure, but I don't think there were children's street parties for VE-Day?
Partly due to rationing; partly due to the time needed to organise such a party?
Also, I don't think that's a bomb shelter, as they were built underground.
I still remember the Anderson shelter in my grandmother's back garden!
And that would have been some 20 years after the war!! ;D
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Is it a bit unusual that there are only children at the tables? For either VE day or the Coronation wouldn't there be flags or bunting of some sort?
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Not sure, but I don't think there were children's street parties for VE-Day?
My husband hates to admit it ;D but he can clearly remember attending a VE party in Camden Town.
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Tend to agree with KG that it's more likely the Coronation as I would expect to perhaps see a couple of uniforms if it was VE day. Then again I am bit wary with the lack of flags and bunting seen in so many Coronation street parties.
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If you put VE street parties in G**Gle it comes up with lots of references including photos , so it could be VE celebrations , One item I was reading refers to ' everyone helped with food ' and refering to ' butter rations being mixed with something else ( can't recall what) to make it go further '
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Also, I don't think that's a bomb shelter, as they were built underground.
I still remember the Anderson shelter in my grandmother's back garden!
Apparently there were some surface shelters built in streets for passing pedestrians to take shelter in. I agree that they wouldn't offer much protection in the case of a direct hit, but then again I doubt that Anderson shelters would either, some of which were also built on the surface.
I wonder what is was if it wasn't a shelter of some kind though?
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Women's clothes are more 1945 than 1953 :)
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I defer to the superior knowledge of RC experts!
After all, I wasn't born until after the Coronation!
Well, 20 days after, but I still missed it!
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I would agree with Peace Party Celebration too...a shortage of men in the photo and as Brevitas has said...the female fashion.
Carol
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I would agree with a peace Party too...There is a shortage of men and as Brevitas has pointed out...the ladies fashion.
Carol
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The image could be a VE celebration party for the children or a VJ one, both would have been held within months of each other, May/June for VE Day and August for VJ Day. The Surface Shelter to the right of the image which would have held up to 50 people and was used as a shelter by those living in the area as well as members of the general public and was designed to give some form of protection from falling buildings, air bursts and shrapnel, appears to be in the process of being dismantled rather than being built re start of scaffolding going up. Many such celebrations where held around the UK with most people supplying one thing or another be it food, soft drinks or someone doing a turn to entertain the children.
OR.
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Surface air-raid shelters
http://liverpoolblitz70.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/fay-street-air-raid-shelter-1939.jpg
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My husband hates to admit it ;D but he can clearly remember attending a VE party in Camden Town.
I have a photo of me as a wee baby on VJ day - waving a flag ;D
refering to ' butter rations being mixed with something else ( can't recall what) to make it go further '
Butter remained on ration until 1954 and they often mixed it with margarine to make it go further. I could always tell and wouldn't eat bread spread with it <yuk>
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If you could do a better scan then it just might be possible to read what the notice on the building says
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If you could do a better scan then it just might be possible to read what the notice on the building says
I've tried, but this is the best I can do and still can't read it. It would have been cosy with 50 people in that shelter though!
I have noticed that there are a number of adults wearing badges or disks on their lapels which may or may not be relevant to the period.
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What you need to do is drag a box around just the sign and scan that area only, as high as possible like 1200dpi or even more. That should give you better use of the high-resolution without handing you a huge file.
Was going to agree with the 1940s clothing styles, as well :)
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I also think that it is a victory celebration rather than coronation. I was a tot at the time of the coronation (oh dear) but I clearly remember that it was a very rainy day (in S E Kent at least) so the party was moved inside (into a barn on the farm my family worked on) but that there was loads of bunting and all the little girls were wearing ankle socks with red, white and blue around the top and/or red, white and blue hair ribbons. This photo looks way too sombre for the coronation. Chrisann
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I can remember the Coronation and the children's party very well. There is a degree of austerity everywhere in this photograph, which tells me that it's earlier. There would have been street bunting too and most houses would be displaying some flags etc. from their upper windows, as was the case in 1953. We had to take with us our own knife fork and spoon, with a beaker and a plate, [all identifiable] and there would have been much more evidence of food than there is in this image. We also had crackers and party hats!
That IS a bomb/blast shelter, so that convinces me that it's late 1940s. John CH.
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I would say it was a VE day celebration party, the air raid shelter has a blast wall in front of the door, the entrance was through the narrow gap seen between the wall and the main building, they usually smelt terrible, many children who had been evacuated had returned by then,(including me) often a piano would appear from nowhere, houses with gardens large enough usually had an anderson shelter some without gardens had morrison shelters indoors.
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1945 it is then. Thanks to you all for your contributions to the discussion.