The Thames Through Time: A Liquid History

Description

A history of the Thames and a history of photography The London Stone at Staines marks the ancient western boundary of the jurisdiction of the City of London. The Lord Mayor and Corporation's conservancy of the Thames extended east from there as far as Yantlet in Kent. This is the stretch of the river documented in 'Liquid History'. Drawing on the resources of English Heritage's unrivalled photographic archives, the book records a journey along the length of the tidal river and over almost 150 years. We see the rural Thames as it approaches London, riverside towns, the civic and commercial development of the riverbanks, the working docks and warehouses, the development of the web of bridges that now links north and south, barges, sailing ships and warships, the great flood defences and a tiny beach that flourished briefly at the Tower of London. Featuring the work of pioneers of photography and some of the great topographical photographers of the 20th century, and with a fascinating commentary by Stephen Croad, 'The Thames Through Time' chronicles the ebb and flow of the life of the river.

Stephen Croad was born in Bridgwater, Somerset, in 1946 and was educated at the local grammar school. After reading the History of European Art at the Courtauld Institute of Art, he joined the staff of the National Monuments Record in 1968. He became Head of the architectural record in 1981, retired in 1996 and was appointed MBE in the following year. He is the author of London's Bridges (1983) and has been a member of the committee of the national Inventory of War Memorials at the Imperial War Museum since its inception in 1989. He was elected to the Council of the London Topographical Society in 1996 and elected a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries in 1990 and of the Royal Geographical Society in 2000.