The wall of names inside Blackfriars Station, London, March 2018
In 1886 the London, Chatham and Dover Railway (LCDR) opened St Paul’s Station, which took on and expanded the passenger offering of Blackfriars Bridge Station, and was renamed Blackfriars in 1937 to avoid confusion with St Paul’s underground station. St Paul’s had a pink-red brick facade, embellished with 54 sandstone blocks bearing the names of destination cities. The named cities vary massively in required distance time, from Bromley to Dover to Vienna and St Petersburg, with this range and variety indicating the importance of the station, and London as a whole, as a European hub.
The station was substantially redeveloped in the 1970s and the name blocks were rescued and displayed inside the new concourse. Another major renovation of the station in the 2000s saw them cleaned and gilded, then redisplayed in the North Bank entrance when it opened in 2011.
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Copyright Debbie Smyth, 11 March 2018
Posted as part of Becky’s March Square
Travel with Intent 
There are some lovely juxtapositions there. I especially like Westgate on Sea between Dover and St Petersburg!
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good thing the blocks were rescued and used. And earlier this year I was watching an old show called “Vincent” – and it is filmed in England and I was wondering how they deal with modernizing – (how to respect the old while moving into the new) and this gives me one example….
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Bar of Bourneville!
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Ooh feeling very proud as thought it must have something to do with trains!
How marvellous they have conserved them.
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Well done Becky!
I keep thinking “bar of chocolate”
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Oh no so do I now but I want to eat some!!!
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I always want to eat some!
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