Off Toynbee Street, Spitalfields, Whitechapel, London Borough of Tower Hamlets With thanks to Dwight for informing me of this Survivor. Located towards the rear of a small yard area between two properties is a 15 ft (5 m) GEC concrete column and top-entry swan neck bracket supporting a lantern from that company's Z5560 range; the exact part code depending on the lamp type and bowl employed. This installation is likely to date from the 1950s, but now stands abandoned. Even when in use, its purpose seems to have existed solely to illuminate the yard - there is no thoroughfare (pedestrian or vehicular) to anywhere else, although there may once have been a connection to the nearby alleyway known as Ann's Place. The building beyond the yard (fronting present-day Commercial Street) is described as "Ruins" in many historical 20th Century maps (it may have been destroyed by a Second World War bomb and left in this state for many years afterwards), but is depicted as an infant school on older maps.

The column is positioned in the back-right corner of the yard, and is probably long-forgotten by the relevant authorities.

Heavy spalling is present between the swan neck bracket and column connection.

The lantern's prismatic glass refractor bowl still survives.

The column's position means that it is easily overlooked, which is probably how it has avoided removal.

A lamp still appears to be present within the lantern.

The column door is missing, revealing a cast iron Henley cut-out, rear section of a Venner time switch case, and a sizeable ballast for the (assumed) 80 Watt MBF (mercury vapour) lamp. A length of rubber-insulated cable is seen emerging from the shaft hole in the top of the base. This confirms the installation's 1950s' heritage, as rubber insulation gave way to the then-new PVC insulation in the 1960s.

< Previous | Next >


BACK TO SURVIVORS IN TOWER HAMLETS

BACK TO SURVIVORS IN GREATER LONDON

BACK TO SURVIVORS

BACK TO INDEX

CLICK HERE TO MAKE A MONETARY DONATION

© 2002 - English Street Lights Online