Many of my audience have lived in Streatham for all or most part of their lives, and one lady moved to Streatham as early as 1929 when she was 5 years old. It was interesting and fascinating to see the reaction to my pictures and speak to people who have known Streatham for such a long time. They have seen Streatham change over the years, and have known it with all its grandness of beautiful Victorian shopping arcades, and beautiful buildings such as the Ice Rink or the Astoria Cinema opening their doors with splendid celebrations in the 1930’s.
Much has changed since then- while Streatham recovered after the second world war to being a very busy shopping street in the 1950s a gradual decline started in the 1970s with many people telling me that the closure of the Pratt department store in 1990 had the most significant and negative impact on Streatham.
Change can be very difficult to accept, and Streatham has definitely seen a decline in offers for entertainment & retail, and a lack of redevelopment over the last decades. Most recently, Streatham Baths and the Ice Rink, both buildings from the 1930s, have had structural difficulties due to a lack of investment. However, despite its struggles to return to its former glory I feel that Streatham as we know it today holds an incredible diversity, beauty, and history which deserves to be recognised and cherished in its own right.
George Pratt & Co., Boys Outfitters (opposite of Pratts department store), Streatham High Road c.1899
©SusanneHakuba2010
You can find more old images from Streatham at: http://landmark.lambeth.gov.uk
Contemporary ones you can see at : www.susannehakuba.com
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