Half and half
Another then and now scene from Fortune's Well, Isle of Portland , which is very much one where one half of the street is still easily recognisable whilst the other side of the street has completely disappeared in modern times.
The main photo is undated but probably from the 1920s. Note the shop "Comben" on the right. That company name still exists on Portland albeit in an industrial unit in Top Hill. We bought a washing machine from them a couple of years ago! Also note the building behind the traction engine. Dating from the 1700s, early Methodists met there and apparently they were such a rowdy lot that the locals nicknamed it "Bedlam", a name that has stuck to that corner of Fortune's Well to this day. By the way, it also where the gentleman we talked to mentioned in the last Portland then and now post lives. It can easily be picked out behind the car in the modern photo below.
So what happened to the other side of the road? Some buildings suffered bomb damage during WW2. Don't forget a major naval harbour was nearby. In the end, the whole row was demolished in the 1950s to enable road widening. The area below the railings is a car park.
Half and half
Another then and now scene from Fortune's Well, Isle of Portland , which is very much one where one half of the street is still easily recognisable whilst the other side of the street has completely disappeared in modern times.
The main photo is undated but probably from the 1920s. Note the shop "Comben" on the right. That company name still exists on Portland albeit in an industrial unit in Top Hill. We bought a washing machine from them a couple of years ago! Also note the building behind the traction engine. Dating from the 1700s, early Methodists met there and apparently they were such a rowdy lot that the locals nicknamed it "Bedlam", a name that has stuck to that corner of Fortune's Well to this day. By the way, it also where the gentleman we talked to mentioned in the last Portland then and now post lives. It can easily be picked out behind the car in the modern photo below.
So what happened to the other side of the road? Some buildings suffered bomb damage during WW2. Don't forget a major naval harbour was nearby. In the end, the whole row was demolished in the 1950s to enable road widening. The area below the railings is a car park.