Postcards put travel in the picture

TRAMS through Accrington’s history are shown in this week’s looking back. These images are taken from picture postcards of Lancashire’s trams.

They are featured in the Yesterday Lancashire book series, compiled by noted postcard collector and social historian Norman Ellis.

Picture postcards were an important form of communication in the early 20th century, as well as showing a snapshot of places and times.

Our first picture shows Accrington’s electric tram system, with the doubledecker car pictured on Whalley Road in Accrington in 1907 in the year it entered service, top.

The next photograph shows Accrington Corporation electric tramcar number four, which was decked out in bright red and cream livery and is shown being inspected by the Board of Trade in 1907.

The electric trams ran until January 5, 1932.

The final picture shows a postcard sent soon after steam trams were first introduced to the streets of Accrington in 1886.

The colour photograph, published in 1905, shows the tram near the Bay Horse in Baxenden.

The Yesterday’s Lancashire series also includes history books containing picture postcards on Lancashire’s railway stations and collieries and pit brow girls.

Copies of the 40-page books are available from the publishers Reflections of a Bygone Age at postcardcollecting.co.uk.