Sandhill 1966 & 2010

 

  

At the Newcastle end of the Swing Bridge, taken from the High Level Bridge. Click on pics for larger versions.

All of the old sailors pubs and suppliers on the quayside are now bars and nightclubs, as is the building top right of the picture with the copper dome, now the Akenside Traders on Side. The dome, bright and shiny in 1966, is tarnished now but the building itself has been cleaned.

Bessie Surtees' House (the old black and white building to the right), the Moot Hall (top left corner) and the Church of St Willibrord with All Saints (top right corner) are unchanged, as are the three tower blocks on the horizon; Lort House, Pandon Court and King Charles Tower were built between 1961 and 1966 so would have been brand new when the first picture was taken.

The new building in front of the church is part of All Saints Business Centre which now surrounds it, the three office buildings being named Aidan House, Bede House and Cuthbert House after the three great north-eastern saints.

The large tower block, familiar to anyone crossing the tyne bridge into Newcastle, is Cale Cross. It had a major renovation in 2002 when it received the distinctive green paneling it has now. It takes its name from the market cross which stood at the junction of Queen Street and Akenside Hill, now under the Tyne Bridge.

1966 photo © newcastle libraries

2010 photo © Chris Perriman