whatever happened will happen again · 2009-10-14 20:40
Last Friday I gave a talk at last.fm about modern London, looking at what modernity means, and focussing on the period 1850 to about 1910 – what may sometimes be called the second Industrial Revolution. I showed a few maps, a few travel guides, and some other ephemera. My slides alone don’t do much of explaining, but I’ve included below the main timelines of London infrastructure, and links to various videos and books. I don’t think a lot of people really understand how much of London that they use and experience today was constructed before 1900.
Anyway, it seemed to go well and there was a great discussion about cities and their growth afterwards. It’s always nerveracking doing a new talk, and even more so this time, in a completely new area for me. I’ve really only just scratched the surface of London, even just the last 150 years.
BFI Youtube channel – Solarflares burn for you
London Bridge
Blackfriars Bridge
Rush Hour
Old London Street Scenes
Greenwich Observatory
Colour On The Thames
Google Books – London: being an accurate history and description of the British Metropolis
The history and antiquities of London, Westminster, Southwark, and Parts Ajacent, Vol III
Edifices of London, Public Buildings Vol II
Victorian London – London at Dinner, or Where to Dine
A Dictionary of London on British History Online
London Online Books
Internet Archive Texts (often have things that have disappeared from Google Books)
Project Gutenberg
Steen Eiler Rasmussen’s London: The Unique City (out of print, but mentioned here)