History Shorts: snippets of local history

My last station was Brompton Road, this photograph of the Leslie Green designed facade taken on Cottage Place. The building was used as an Anti-Aircraft Operations Room during the Second World War, and apparently was also used to question Rudolf Hess. It was a long day, sore on the feet, and yet I had covered so little. Hopefully this little project can be revisited in the future. Update 17/11/2011 : The Today show on BBC Radio 4 had a feature on this station, in the context of a developer who wants to open restaurants and visitor attractions at some of these ghost stations. Interesting to hear, but would have enjoyed photos! Inside a 'ghost' Tube station

South Kentish Town disused tube station on Kentish Town road featuring the distinctive ox-blood facade of a Leslie Green designed building. It first opened in 1907 but was abandoned in 1924 as a result of low passenger numbers - a timely strike at a local power station took the station out of use and it wasn't returned to operation. During the Second World War, it served as an air raid shelter while in 1951 it featured as the subject of a short story written and performed by John Betjeman on the BBC Home Service. Retail units now occupy the surface building that once led to the underground railway. Its basement currently hosts an Escape Room . The Abandoned Stations website has photos from inside the former station.

Back on the street, I had to take a photo of the Eisenhower bunker on Chenies street. Used during the Second World War as a deep level shelter and by Eisenhower as a command centre, it was more recently used to store documents and television news footage.

Strand entrance , a photo by bishib70 on Flickr. This was the entrance to the Strand/Aldwych underground station on the Strand itself.

Aldwych station , a photo by bishib70 on Flickr. First called Strand station, then Aldwych station, this Tube station was closed in 1994. During the Second World War it served as an air raid shelter. It has also been used for testing Tube services and as a filming location. This photo was taken on Surrey Street.

Down Street , a photo by bishib70 on Flickr. This disused Tube station was on the Piccadilly line. During the Second World War it was used as an air raid shelter, including by Churchill's War Cabinet. The frontage is Leslie Green era.

Alleged secret passage door , a photo by bishib70 on Flickr. The door up close.

Duke of York column in full, with now closed viewing platform at the top , a photo by bishib70 on Flickr. A doorway at the base of this column has been rumoured to be the exit/entrance to a secret passageway to nearby Buckingham Palace. Could it be so? In case of aerial bombardment, it's a safe bet the Royal Family would be escorted to safety... The door in the base was certainly used as an entrance to the viewing platform around the foot of the statue. This has long been closed. Security in this area of London is particularly heavy as it is in the environs of landmarks such as Buckingham Palace, Horse Guards Parade, the back of Downing Street etc. Maybe just one or two of these security agents are also keeping an eye on who emerges from this door...

My fascination with the history of London extended a few years back to its history underground. A number of excellent books have been written exploring this hidden side of the city, from secret passages to rerouted rivers and of course disused railway lines. In May 2008, I took a day trip to London to try to find some of the signs of this aspect of London for myself. Suffice to say, a day is nowhere near long enough! But here is a short photoblog series of what I managed to cover. 1.  Hidden History Day: Duke of York column 2. Hidden History Day: Alleged secret passage door 3. Hidden History Day: Down Street 4. Hidden History Day: Aldwych Station 5. Hidden History Day: Strand entrance 6. Hidden History Day: British Museum spirals 7. Hidden History Day: Eisenhower bunker 8. Hidden History Day: South Kentish Town 9. Hidden History Day: Old railway sign 10. Hidden History Day: Passing Brompton Road