Matlock Bank
Both postcards were posted in 1905, but the
tinted PC is much earlier, judging by the number
of houses built and the size of the trees.
The Rockside Hydro tower (just behind the
huge Smedley's Hydro) is missing. Rockside
is first mentioned in the
1871 Census, and the
tower was built 1903-6. Perhaps the tinted photo
was taken around 1880? The Church on Bank Road has
no steeple, which was built in 1904, so the b/w
postcard must be 1903 or 1904.
The two houses SW of Smedleys seem to have changed their style over the years.
According to
Madstone Developments website
"Rockside was built in 1862 at the height of
the Victorian fashion for hydropathic treatments.
Built by Charles Rowland of Burton-on-Trent,
Rockside quickly became one of the most popular
and successful Hydros in Matlock. The building
was altered and extended by the eminent architects
Barry Parker and Sir Raymond Unwin in 1903-6, who
added the twin turreted building we see today."
Click on photo for enlargement (on CD only)
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