James Gray: The end of the trams. The last car at the junction of Upper Rock Gardens and St James’s Street, on the Queens Park route. The time – early hours of Friday 1 September 1939, just two days before the outbreak of War. The car then returned to the Lewes Road depot and the trams had ceased to run. jgc_22_084
2018: Upper Rock Gardens bus stop for the east bound No 7 and No 1 routes: the stop location and adjacent buildings largely unchanged from Gray’s 1939 photograph. (Photographer: Jayne Paulin)
James Gray: Tramcar No 77 at its terminus at the foot of Upper Rock Gardens and bound for Seven Dials on its next journey. Date not known but probably the late 1930s, not long before the trams ceased to run. Note the rather slender traffic light. jgc_22_089
James Gray: In the photograph, the tram is at the foot of Upper Rock Gardens, at the junction with St James’s Street This was the terminus of Queens Park Route, which was almost a circular one. Date – 6 March 1938. jgc_10_068
2018: View north, looking across the junction of St James’s Street and Lower/Upper Rock Gardens, and largely unchanged. The No 77 tram has been replaced by the No 7 bus, but the location of the stop remains unchanged. (Photographer: Jayne Paulin)
James Gray: This church was erected in 1877-1879, at a cost of £20,000, on the site of a former ecclesiastical building. This was St Mary’s Chapel, a much smaller edifice that dated from 1827. This photograph, showing a strangely quiet St James’s Street, was taken in the early 1880s. Additional Information: Architect: William Emerson; architect of previous chapel on the site, which collapsed, A H Wilds. jgc_22_028
2019: St Mary’s Church remains today largely as it was built. (Photographer: Kate Ormond)