The Day The City Split In Two / A River Full Of Stories
Hull South Bridge Company 1886 South Bridge is somewhat of an enigma. It crossed the river roughly where the tidal barrier is, as can be traced through Victoria Dock's South Bridge Road to link the east with the pier and ferries and markets of the west. It was built for the passage of pedestrians, horse … Continue reading 20 South Bridge
Hull's River Bridges: Engines and Insects - Richard Duffy-Howard Engines and Insects started life with the hydraulics in the spine of Scale Bridge in 2017. The idea is not new. The premise follows the famous 20th century fashion photographer Horst P Horst. Away from the high glamour and sensual sophistication of taking photographs for Vogue, Horst’s … Continue reading 25 Richard Duffy-Howard – Engines and Insects
Hull's River Bridges: Myton SWing Bridge 1980 Myton Bridge is a two-span single-pylon cable-stayed steel construction swing bridge designed by Freeman Fox and built by Redpath Dorman Long Ltd. It spans the River Hull at Castle Street carrying six lanes of traffic on the A63 and opened in December 1980. Its main span is 55 metres … Continue reading 18 Myton Bridge
Hull's River Bridges: Peter Marshall – River Hull’s Bridges 1977 - 1988 We came across photographer Peter Marshall when starting the book A River Full of Stories and discovered, via his Cafe Royal publication The River Hull 1977 - 85, an unrivalled body of work that documents the changing landscape of Hull from the early 1970s … Continue reading 30 Peter Marshall – River Hull’s Bridges 1977 – 1988
Hull's River Bridges: The New North Bridge 1931 North Bridge is a Scherzer rolling bascule bridge, designed by City Engineer, T Thomas in 1927, built by the Widnes Foundry (1925) Ltd., with Sculcoates firm Sangwin contracted for the tramway. It opened on Monday 10th August 1931, for motor transport, trams and foot crossings. We've restored the … Continue reading 11 North Bridge
Hull's River Bridges: Syd Young - Hull's Bridges from a Bicycle Syd Young is an artist and photographer. His most recent exhibition - Relics and Rails - at Goole Museum and Gallery and Nordic House in Hull, was a multi-media retrospective of over 40 years' work. The photographs below show how he's captured the beauty of … Continue reading 41 Syd Young – Hull’s Bridges from a Bicycle
Yesterday belied the thunderous downpour warnings as we ventured south to Newark to visit Les Reid, as part of our new Open Bridges Project for Heritage Open Days – Hull’s River Bridges. It turned out to be a glorious day as we met Les and jumped aboard Les’s workboat the Ruffian and headed down the … Continue reading Adventure on the Ruffian
Hull's Waterfront In the late Fifties We came across the work of Frank Drasdo when we were working on the book ‘A River Full of Stories’. Frank’s work features extensively in the book and we are indebted to Frank’s nephew, photographer Dave Drasdo, for permission to publish them there and in this new gallery of … Continue reading Frank Drasdo
We came across this fascinating message on the back of a Half Penny Packet Post Panoramic Card of Victoria Pier sent in 1905 to May Brewin in Burnley from her friend, W, who was having a great time in Hull. I've carefully restored the photographs below the letter from the original glass plate negatives. All … Continue reading Victoria Pier and a Postcard from 1905
Wawne and Stoneferry Wawne This magic lantern slide of the ferry at Wawne on the River Hull was taken at some point in the late 1890s. By the time I came across it, it had gathered about 125 years’ worth of dirt and dust. However, after a few days of careful restoration this remarkable image … Continue reading Ferry Part 4
The railway swing-bridge over the River Ouse at Goole was designed by Sir William Armstrong and opened in 1869. It's Grade II listed and has a couple of different names: Hook Bridge (if you come from Hook) and the Skelton Viaduct (if you live in Skelton) but if you're on a train it's more than … Continue reading Railway Swing Bridge over the Ouse at Goole 2023
Goole by Train My husband and fellow band partner Rich and I were invited, as part of our Open Bridges project, to produce photographs and art content about the renovation of the railway swing bridge over the Ouse at Goole. With this in mind we travelled both to and from Saltmarshe to Thorne, either side … Continue reading Goole By Train
Syd Young, Ferry Memories My mum had an Auntie who owned the Welbeck Guest House in Cleethorpes. In the 1960s and early 70s, we'd go and stay occasionally on a weekend when there were no guests. Her husband, "Uncle George", was a retired sailor and made wooden model boats, some of which he gave to … Continue reading Ferry Part 2 by Syd Young
It’s seven years today since Open Bridges night! We chose the autumn equinox for the event, to draw attention to, and celebrate the lifeblood of the city, the River Hull, by separating the city east and west, raising or closing all the bridges over the river simultaneously with priority to river vessels. The equinox is … Continue reading Open Bridges 7th Anniversary
Barges, Tugs and Blue Star Line This is the second set of images taken one grey day in May in 1961, by an unknown photographer. The cleaning and restoration took me days, but I think it was definitely worth the effort. The second seven show more of the tugs and barges and I've cropped some … Continue reading King George Dock, May 1961 Part 2
We would like to thank everyone who came to, and contributed to, Goole by Barge at Goole Museum and helped to make it happen. We are really pleased that 2200 people visited the exhibition and we had a lovely response. We both had a great time working with the Goole Museum team, Alex Ombler, Richard … Continue reading Goole by Barge – Thankyous
Steven Oakden contacted us last year with his own personal story about the river. His story evocatively captures the last movements of the motor barge Swinderby in 2022. Part 4 is the final part of his story. All text and photographs copyright Steven Oakden. DEcember 5, 2022 A cold and dull day as I ventured … Continue reading Chasing the Swinderby by Steven Oakden – Part 4
Steven Oakden contacted us last year with his own personal story about the river. His story evocatively captures the last movements of the motor barge Swinderby in 2022. This is the third of four parts. All text and photographs copyright Steven Oakden. River Hull visit - November 16, 2022 A glorious sunny autumn day with … Continue reading Chasing the Swinderby by Steven Oakden – Part 3
We had a good day at the Redeye Photography Network's Hothouse conference of presentations on Saturday. International photographers were invited to speak on the themes of sustainabilty and their work and practice as part of Humber Eco Fest. We enjoyed the whole day of varied presentations. Rich spoke about the 'What Makes the Humber' exhibition … Continue reading Presentation at RedEye Photography Network Hothouse
Great piece in the Yorkshire Post about our 'What Makes the Humber' exhibition at Hull Truck as part of Humber Eco Fest. It's free and on until November 11 th at Hull Truck Theatre and via QR code at the exhibition to unlock the full 160 images in the online gallery.
Thanks to everyone who came to the opening of 'What Makes The Humber' exhibition at Hull Truck Theatre and online via a QR code at the exhibition. And thanks to Steve Morantz for his photo and words: "An extensive project portraying the Humber and its multitude of sources. A visual taste treat of which is … Continue reading ‘What Makes the Humber’ Open at Hull Truck
What Makes the Humber The next chapter of Open Bridges, 'What Makes the Humber' exhibition opens at Hull Truck Theatre as part of Humber Eco Fest. If you'd like to come along to the opening night Tues 24th at 6pm we'd be very pleased to see you. We will be there, the bar is open … Continue reading ‘What Makes The Humber’ Invitation
This is the final part of our series of Bernard Sharp's photographs from the 1980s. This chapter encompasses the north bank of the Humber Estuary from Hessle Haven in the west to Hedon Haven in the east. Thanks very much to Bernard for the permission to use both the images and text – all copyright … Continue reading Humber Estuary by Bernard Sharp
Princes, Humber, St Andrews and Railway Thanks very much to Bernard for the permission to use both the images and text – all copyright Bernard Sharp and published under licence. All of the photographs are numbered with the corresponding text by Bernard to accompany each photograph below the gallery. St Andrew's Dock, Kingston upon Hull, … Continue reading Hull Docks 1980s Part 3 by Bernard Sharp
Queen Elizabeth and William Wright Thanks very much to Bernard for the permission to use both the images and text – all copyright Bernard Sharp and published under licence. All of the photographs are numbered with the corresponding text by Bernard to accompany each photograph below the gallery. Queen Elizabeth Dock, Kingston upon Hull, Tuesday, … Continue reading Hull Docks 1980s Part 2 by Bernard Sharp
Here's the first in a series of posts of the docks in Hull as documented by Bernard in the 1980's. Thanks very much to Bernard for the permission to use both the images and text – all copyright Bernard Sharp and published under licence. All of the photographs are numbered with the corresponding text by … Continue reading Hull Docks 1980s Part 1 by Bernard Sharp
This is the third gallery of Brian Latus' photographs this time of the River Hull in the 1960s after Brian's story below. We recently came across these fantastically evocative photographs of the River Hull and Docks taken by Brian Latus in the 1960s. Brian’s son, Martin, tells his story: “My father was born in Lime … Continue reading Brian Latus River Hull 1960s
Here is the second gallery of Brian Latus' photographs of Hull Docks in the 1960s below his story. We recently came across these fantastically evocative photographs of the River Hull and Docks taken by Brian Latus in the 1960s. Brian’s son, Martin, tells his story: “My father was born in Lime Street near North Bridge … Continue reading Brian Latus Hull Docks 1960s Part 2
We recently came across these fantastically evocative photographs of the River Hull and Docks taken by Brian Latus in the 1960s. Brian’s son, Martin, tells his story: “My father was born in Lime Street near North Bridge in Hull in 1931, the middle of three children. During the war the family returned from the public … Continue reading Brian Latus Hull Docks 1960s Part 1
1982 - 1984 Bernard’s black and white photographs are all taken between 1982 and 1984 apart from the first photo in the gallery - a 1975 image taken with a Brownie. Along with the River in Colour posts Bernard’s documenting of the River Hull covers almost 50 years capturing the changing landscape with fantastic images … Continue reading The River in Black & White by Bernard Sharp
1982 - 1989 All of the images and accompanying text are copyright Bernard Sharp and used with permission and under licence (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0). All of the photographs are numbered with the corresponding text by Bernard to accompany each photograph below the gallery. River Hull, Stoneferry, Kingston upon Hull Sunday, 15 August, 1982 Upstream of Ferry Lane … Continue reading The River in Colour by Bernard Sharp – Part 4
1990 - 2021 All of the images and accompanying text are copyright Bernard Sharp and used with permission and under licence (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0). All of the photographs are numbered with the corresponding text by Bernard to accompany each photograph below the gallery. Old Harbour, River Hull, Kingston upon Hull. Friday, 16 March, 1990. At left, the … Continue reading The River in Colour by Bernard Sharp – Part 3
1978 - 1989 All of the images and accompanying text are copyright Bernard Sharp and used with permission and under licence (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0). All of the photographs are numbered with the corresponding text by Bernard to accompany each photograph below the gallery. Old Harbour, River Hull, Kingston upon Hull. June 1978. A busy harbour, looking towards … Continue reading The River in Colour by Bernard Sharp – Part 2
Rich & I are thrilled that Open Bridges is featured in arts magazine The Critical Fish. It's full of fantastic photos and especially good to see Rich's Engines & Insects exhibition pieces described and displayed in the article. Thank you to all the team and to Jill Howett for putting this lovely piece together. https://thecriticalfish.co.uk/open-bridges/ … Continue reading The Critical Fish
It three years since Open Bridges! Have a look through our gallery of photo memories: Comrade photo by SydpixA River Full of Stories book launchMemory sharing on board The SyntanBrigham Scows race on the River Hull through Emmotland by RDHKeith and JanetDrypool Bridge by RDHOpen Bridges by Phil WithersOpen Bridges Engines and Insects exhibitionRich & … Continue reading Open Bridges Third Anniversary Photos
The last post of the HDM archive detail posts starts with an intriguing image. At first glance the picture of the BOCM building from 1911 appears deserted but on the bank-side on the left hand edge you can see what appears to be a man and a woman presiding over the contents of a bag, … Continue reading River Hull Archive #27
One of the main threads running through A River Full of Stories is that of the Lighterman. The following photographs and details from the HDM river archive focus on the lighters and Lightermen on the River Hull. The first images below show the lighter Tort and crew just North of the new Myton Bridge in … Continue reading River Hull Archive #26
This series of posts will complete our record of River Hull archive photographs from the Hull Daily Mail which we repaired and restored. They are published with many thanks to Angus Young, and used with permission. This next series of photographs of details were taken on and around the piers, Corporation - Victoria - and … Continue reading River Hull Archive #25
This series of posts will complete our record of River Hull archive photographs from the Hull Daily Mail which we repaired and restored. They are published with many thanks to Angus Young, and used with permission. They've all been published previously on here and some included in the River Full of Stories book. Whilst we were … Continue reading River Hull Archive #24
These next few posts will complete our record of River Hull archive photographs from the Hull Daily Mail which we repaired and restored. They are published with many thanks to Angus Young, and used with permission. This gallery of photographs contain images from 1885 to the 1990s. The following two posts will focus on the … Continue reading River Hull Archive #23
Thanks to Ian Halstead for contributing his superb photograph to A River Full of Stories: River Hull 1993 "Taken one Sunday morning in April or May 1993, a very calm and still day, and I remember the fantastic quality of the light that elevated anything it shone on. You still get a hint of how … Continue reading River Hull 1993
Here's a selection of photographs taken of the working river this year. Click on an image to see the full picture and caption and scroll through. The Open Bridges: A River Full of Stories exhibition is open at Hull Maritime Museum until the end of the year. The films will be on continuous loop throughout the … Continue reading The Working River 2019
Thanks to Mal Scott for these evocative images of an autumn day in 2015 travelling under all of the bridges over the river in a small pleasure craft taken looking north up the Hull. Click on Millenium Bridge to see the full picture and scroll through to travel up the river past each bridge north … Continue reading Journey up the River Hull in 2015
Exploring the Sources of the River Hull Just where does the River Hull start? The Open Bridges exhibition inspired many discussions about its origins. We heard about places to explore the springs and streams – one couple spoke of the spring rising in their own back garden. So, our first outing for A River Full … Continue reading Meander along the Headwaters of the Hull
Saturday 20th April 2019 It was a beautiful day when the Humber keel Comrade sailed down the River Hull to spend the summer in the Marina. We had a great time talking to Bill Midgley in the Comrade at Beverley before the trip. Our friend the photographer Syd Young was cycling from Stoneferry to Scott … Continue reading Comrade down the Hull
Scale Lane is the latest bridge to span the river and connect the city. It became the focus of a number of events during Hull's City of Culture year: used as a musical instrument for Playing the Bridge - an artistic commission and performance devised by bridge architect Jonathan McDowell and composer Nye Parry who are both … Continue reading Open Bridges: Scale Lane Bridge
Open Bridges A River Full Of Stories, River Hull archive photographs #18 1976
This week's focus is on Sutton Road Bridge, built by the Cleveland Bridge and Engineering Company and opened in 1937, with distinctive brick art deco engine rooms. Our gallery of photographs of Sutton Road Bridge below was taken for Open Bridges. Click on an image to see the full picture and scroll through. Rich & … Continue reading Open Bridges: Sutton Road
Open Bridges A River Full Of Stories, River Hull archive photographs #17 1975
Open Bridges A River Full Of Stories, River Hull archive photographs #16 1974