Сообщение Sleeping on a rope in London, 1930s появились сначала на Old Pictures.
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Sleeping on the rope was the cheapest option in the flophouses of London in the 1930s.
Look at this photo every time your own mattress feels too hard for you.
People who like to lament about what terrible time we live in, what terrible air we breathe, and what disgusting GMO we eat, obviously, have little idea of how our ancestors lived.
We thought that these eye-grabbing pictures belong to the Victorian era. People often did some bizarre things during this period. Everything looked weird: the way people swam in the sea, visited dentists, or even smiled.
But here’s a surprise, this photograph was taken in London in the 1930s. The scene is pretty clear: people are sleeping, hanging on ropes.
Sleeping on a rope cost 2 pence
Sleeping on the rope was a challenge
This comfort cost 2 pence and was called “twopenny suspension” among the townspeople. Orwell described it in detail in his book “Pounds of Dashing in Paris and London.”
“Overnight stay in a class slightly higher than the street class. In a two-penny hanger, clients are seated on a long bench with a rope stretched in front of them, which holds the sleepers like a transverse rail of a sloping rotten hedge. At five in the morning, a man mockingly called a valet removes the rope. I myself have not been in suspensions, but Chumar spent the night there often, and when asked if it was possible to sleep in such a position at all, he replied that it’s not so bad as weaklings ringing about it – it’s better than on a bare floor. There is a similar type of refuge in Paris, only there are not two pence, but twenty-five centimes (half a penny)”.
But if you were a lucky owner of four pence you, could afford to settle in one of the hard boxes covered with tarpaulin. A solid luxury option when compared with a “two-penny suspension.”
Read more: 100 most important pictures in history
These Sleeping boxes were a more luxurious option in the 1930s.
Сообщение Sleeping on a rope in London, 1930s появились сначала на Old Pictures.
]]>Сообщение Vintage photo of football in London fog, 1937 появились сначала на Old Pictures.
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This vintage photo is nothing special: a goalkeeper is playing football during a heavy fog. Nevertheless, there is a funny story behind this picture.
Famous London’s fog
Football life in the 1930s was pretty bright and bizarre. The game was only gaining its popularity, and even World Cup required an extra promotion. At the same time, football players could greet the public with the Nazi salute. Sometimes the weather caused the Black Swan effect.
In 1937, the Charlton Athletic and Chelsea teams played at Stamford Bridge Football Stadium in Fulham, London. Everything went wrong from the very beginning, for both players and the fans. The football players could barely see each other due to the heavy fog. The referee stopped the game, but a few minutes later, he resumed again. He decided that the London fog was not an obstacle for an English football player.
And the game continued. At least that’s what Charlton Athletic goalkeeper Sam Bartram thought. He honestly guarded the goal, peering into the fog. The tried to find figures of the players with the ball. He tried to find opponents as a goalkeeper needed to defend his net. But the figures did not appear in any way. The field was unusually quiet. So he stood with maximum concentration and tension for about 15 minutes. Someone took this vintage football photo during this quarter of an hour.
A weird football situation
Bartram recalled later in his autobiography: “A long time passed, and then a figure emerged from the fog. It was a policeman who looked at me: ” What are you doing here? – he asked. – The game has been canceled for a quarter of an hour. There is nobody on the field.”
It turned out that the referee decided to interrupt the game after a short resumption. Disappointed spectators dispersed to their homes, and the players streamed to the dressing rooms. And no one bothered to warn Charlton Athletic goalkeeper. He was at the opposite end of the field during the match cancellation. Bartram caught his luck when a policeman found him. Otherwise, Sam could guard the gate until the next match.
Сообщение Vintage photo of football in London fog, 1937 появились сначала на Old Pictures.
]]>Сообщение A street traffic police with a torch, London, 1935 появились сначала на Old Pictures.
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The New York Times published this photo of the street traffic controller from London on October 23, 1935. Do you want to know what so special with this image? Why respected publication put featured a photo of respected traffic professional with a torch?
A bit of history
The first traffic light was deployed in London in 1930, at the intersection of Fleet Street. It was a primitive signal installation of three lights: red, yellow, and green. But not every intersection could count on such a technological luxury. Here’s why traffic police controlled the streets of London for many years more.
The traffic controller wore a white uniform for safety reasons. You should differ from the gray London landscape. This form was particularly relevant in the autumn and winter months when the brand heavy fog shrowds London.
A traffic torch in the fog
But the white cloth is not enough when you manage traffic in the heart of the capital of Great Britain. Here’s why you have to use a torch. These hand-made lanterns were stationary and connected to a gas pipeline. The traffic controller opened the hatch, laid out the light, and could easily direct the movement under its protection. It’s hard not to notice a bright flame, even in the thickest fog.
This torch was in the focus of the publication in the New York Times.
The caption for the image said, “This device can be folded and hidden in a metal box recessed into the pavement.” We assume that traffic police in New York didn’t have such “traffic lights.”
Read more: 100 most important pictures in history
Сообщение A street traffic police with a torch, London, 1935 появились сначала на Old Pictures.
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