Doomed to Repeat Ourselves

A trip down the Thames. Again.

Most Fridays I send out an email that features photos from the Rupert Leach Collection, snaps taken from the personal reels of View-Master’s Director of Photography in the 1940s and ‘50s. These never-before-published images show alternative shots of some commercial View-Master reels and personal photos of Leach, his wife Poppy, and others.

I try to get to the bottom of the people and places pictured within despite the limited context provided by mostly unmarked reels. Let’s dig in.

---

We’ve been here before. And no matter how much I hate doing it a second time, let’s take a look at the River Thames. Again.

This reel is marked “Thames Trip” and features shots of the river that slices through London in the mid-1950s, an era many apparently long for.

The first stop is the Royal Festival Hall, which was brand new in the 1950s. Here’s a link to a fun video detailing its building and opening.

I believe this is one of London’s famed red buses going over Waterloo Bridge.

I believe this is the HMS Wellington, moored at the Temple Stairs at the Victoria Embankment. It’s been there since about 1948 when it was retired as a Royal Navy warship during WWII. Here’s a little more detail if you’re interested.

I believe this is a shot of St. Paul’s Cathedral.

A closer shot of St. Paul’s Cathedral. With some glimpses of fetching tourist fashions of the 1950s.

I believe this is Adelaide House, as seen from the Thames. If I’m correct, I liked this bit of history from it’s wiki page:

Adelaide House was the first building in the city to employ the steel frame technique that was later widely adopted for skyscrapers around the world, and also the first office block the United Kingdom to have central ventilation and telephone and electric connections on every floor. In addition, on opening the building featured a roof garden including an 18-hole putting course, rockeries, fruit trees and beehives.

That is incredibly modern, which is kinda fascinating since it opened in 1925!

Sometimes it’s important to remember that what is happening and trending now is certainly just a little bit of history repeating itself.

And our final snap is Adelaide House, with a better view of London Bridge.

And that’s it for this week!

Thanks for reading! If you made it this far, you should smash that ❤️ button, so I know you’re out there and following along. Thanks for reading, friends!

And if you haven’t already, please subscribe!

---

Check out these related posts: