Stewart Bale: Photographs of Liverpool and Merseyside

National Museums Liverpool

  1. Photograph of Jacob's Biscuit Factory, Aintree, 1935. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/11756.
    Photograph of Jacob's Biscuit Factory, Aintree, 1935. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/11756. The Archives Centre, National Museums Liverpool

    Stewart Bale: Photographs of Liverpool and Merseyside

    Stewart Bale Ltd. was a Liverpool-based photography practice which specialised in commercial, architectural and industrial photography. 

    These photographs are a stunning record of 20th century British architecture, industry, leisure and commerce, including images of factories, shops, cinemas, exhibitions, churches, libraries not only in Liverpool but across the North West and the entire country.

    Volunteers at the Archives Centre at National Museums Liverpool are currently cataloguing and digitising this incredible collection. Explore some of the images we have digitised using this interactive map...

    Any comments or questions, feel free to contact Emily Beswick, Curator of Photographic Collections, via email: emily.beswick@liverpoolmuseums.org.uk 

    The map will continue to be updated with new images as the project unfolds.

  2. Photograph of St. George's Hall, Liverpool, March 1922. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/3054.
    Photograph of St. George's Hall, Liverpool, March 1922. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/3054. The Archives Centre, National Museums Liverpool

    St George's Hall

    Country Life magazine commissioned several atmospheric photographs of Liverpool's iconic St George's Hall in 1922. 
  3. Photograph of the Empire Theatre, Liverpool, 1925. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/4726-3.
    Photograph of the Empire Theatre, Liverpool, 1925. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/4726-3. The Archives Centre, National Museums Liverpool

    Empire Theatre

    The present-day Empire Theatre opened in 1925, on the site of the previous Prince of Wales Theatre and Opera House built in 1866. Today's building is the work of Milburn Architects, who commissioned this photograph from Stewart Bale Ltd.
  4. Photograph of library shelves at the Athenaeum, 1932. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/9342-2.
    Photograph of library shelves at the Athenaeum, 1932. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/9342-2. The Archives Centre, National Museums Liverpool

    Liverpool Athenaeum

    The Liverpool Athenaeum is a private members club originally founded in 1797. The current building was built in 1924. Stewart Bale Ltd. photographed the library shelves and safe doors. The image was commissioned by Milners Safe Co.
  5. Photograph of tenement housing, Liverpool, 1935. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/11658-1.
    Photograph of tenement housing, Liverpool, 1935. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/11658-1. The Archives Centre, National Museums Liverpool

    Tenement Housing, St. James Street

    This photograph shows the exterior of  St. James Street Tenements 'U' block, also known as St. James Gardens, in January 1935. St. James Gardens was a block of tenement housing located on the corner of Hardy Street and St. James Street, since demolished. Tramlines and blurred pedestrians are also visible. In the 1920s and 1930s, Liverpool Corporation built many tenements to replace perceived 'slum housing', including St. Andrew's Gardens and Speke Road Gardens. This photograph was commissioned by Trussed Concrete. 
  6. Photograph of the Mersey Tunnel (Queensway) under construction, 1930. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/6788-182.
    Photograph of the Mersey Tunnel (Queensway) under construction, 1930. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/6788-182. The Archives Centre, National Museums Liverpool

    Queensway Tunnel

    The Queensway Tunnel is a road tunnel under the Mersey river. When it was completed in 1934, it was the longest road tunnel in the world. Mersey Tunnels commissioned Stewart Bale Ltd. to document its construction. The Archives Centre holds 16 prints showing the construction process from May 1928 to December 1931, including a photograph of workers observing an Armistice Day service in the tunnel in November 1930.
  7. Photograph of roadway construction, Hamilton Square, Birkenhead, July 1928. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/6905-1.
    Photograph of roadway construction, Hamilton Square, Birkenhead, July 1928. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/6905-1. The Archives Centre, National Museums Liverpool

    Hamilton Square

    Commissioned by Ship Canal Portland Cement, based in Ellesmere Port, this photograph shows roadway construction in Hamilton Square.
  8. Photograph of Heath Hotel, Liverpool, June 1931. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/8954-2.
    Photograph of Heath Hotel, Liverpool, June 1931. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/8954-2. The Archives Centre, National Museums Liverpool

    Heath Hotel, Allerton

     This photograph shows the bar inside the Heath Hotel, Allerton, in June 1931. The building has since been demolished. 
  9. Photograph of Alexandra Dock silo, Liverpool, 1921. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/2904-2.
    Photograph of Alexandra Dock silo, Liverpool, 1921. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/2904-2. The Archives Centre, National Museums Liverpool

    Alexandra Dock

    On the back of the photograph, commissioned by Spencer and Co., is the inscription 'LGS & T Co. Ltd, Alexandra Dock Silo No. 2'. Originally opened in 1881, Alexandra Dock near Bootle is still operational today. 
  10. Photograph of the Church of English Martyrs, Liverpool, 1935. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/11842.
    Photograph of the Church of English Martyrs, Liverpool, 1935. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/11842. The Archives Centre, National Museums Liverpool

    Church of English Martyrs, Litherland

    Built in the brick Romanesque style, the church was designed by L. A. G. Prichard and opened in 1935.
  11. Photograph of Jacob's Biscuit Factory, Aintree, 1935. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/11756.
    Photograph of Jacob's Biscuit Factory, Aintree, 1935. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/11756. The Archives Centre, National Museums Liverpool

    Jacob's Biscuit Factory, Aintree

    The Jacob's factory in Aintree was the company's first factory in England, and is still operating today. Stewart Bale's images show the modernist exterior, factory floor and staircase, and were commissioned by the Building Times.
  12. Photograph of Bathing Lake, Southport, October 1928. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/7074-3.
    Photograph of Bathing Lake, Southport, October 1928. Stewart Bale Collection, SB/P/7074-3. The Archives Centre, National Museums Liverpool

    Southport Bathing Lake

    This photograph shows the now-demolished Southport Sea Bathing Lake, an open-air swimming baths which opened in May 1928. Stewart Bale photographed the lake only five months after it opened, commissioned by Rowe Bros. and Co., a building and plumbing company.
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