IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
South Street, ROMFORD, RM1 1QL

South Street in Romford, in London's outer suburbs.

A large telephone exchange is to the rear (left) of this block, and apparently attached to it. The block itself seems to be offices.

Composed of rotating triangular prisms, it cycles between three displays, pausing for less than ten seconds on each. For the other displays, see Image and Image

Composed of rotating triangular prisms, it cycles between three displays, pausing for less than ten seconds on each. For the other displays, see Image and Image

Composed of rotating triangular prisms, it cycles between three displays, pausing for less than ten seconds on each. For the other displays, see Image and Image

If the food is as good as the website http://www.giorgiosessex.com/default.asp then this restaurant comes highly recommended. The pale blue tablet high up on the left side of this Art Deco building reveals its original owners to be "P.C. & Co Ltd", but a brief Google search failed to provide any clues as to who this organization was. As a contrast in building styles to the right is the modern office block of Stolt-Nielsen House. Stolt-Nielsen is a Norwegian shipping and seafood company, and this is the office of its Stolt Tank Containers UK Limited subsidiary. Update October 2010 I am very grateful to a lady correspondent who informs me that "P.C. & Co Ltd" stands for the builders' merchants "Page Calnan & Co Ltd". In fact following on from that advice I have now found the property as the Page Calnan Building in the London Borough of Havering's List of Buildings of Local Heritage Interest. Alas the link to the Giorgios Restaurant menu does not work any more, and a quick Google search did not provide an alternative. A look at the old Ordnance Survey maps in the area shows that Stolt-Nielsen House occupies the site of what was firstly an ancient church, and secondly a Corporation Yard with a mortuary!

This does not seem to be on the local authority's listed building register, but has somehow survived the redevelopment of this area. I am fairly sure this was originally the front for some sort of builder's yard, if not a brickyard.

Looking towards South Street

The Rom is a tributary of the Thames, and its name changes to the River Beam as it gets closer to London. A large part of it is culverted, such as the stretch that runs through Romford's town centre. To me it seems that much of the uncovered parts of the river have been neglected and disregarded by many of the town planners and local powers-that-be of the past, however recently there have been proposed moves by local people and Havering Council to improve the condition and appearance of the river.