Londoners are seen adopting ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’ spirit by planting flowers, parading in the street and rebuilding post-war Britain after Blitz bombing
- Post-war Wapping has been brought to life in a series of images from 1948
- London’s docks were rebuilt from the rubble after they were targeted in the Blitz
- Striking images of generations of the community working together to rebuild have emerged from a collection taken after the Second World War
Post-war Wapping has been brought to life in a series of striking images showing how the community came together to rebuild the city from the rubble left by the Blitz.
Stunning shots of dock workers pausing for a chat in the middle of the bomb ravaged buildings, destroyed in the German bombardment in World War Two, show how stoic Londoners rebuilt parts of the city.
Children of the east end also helped out, images from 1948 from website Retronaut have shown.
The ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’ attitude is clear from the images from the ancient area of Wapping, at the heart of London’s Docklands.
The Blitz of WWII devastated Wapping, where the building of the docks was completed in 1815, including extensive damage to the church of St Peter.
One touching image shows children looking after the flowers in the garden at St Peter’s Church.
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With a backdrop of funnels and masts and wartime bomb damage in 1948, two workers stop to smoke and chat as Wapping, London is rebuilt from the rubble after the Second World War. The German airforce -Luftwaffe – used bombs to damage industrial areas like factories and docks
Even children adopted the Keep Calm and Carry On ethos as they looked after flowers at St Peter’s Church in London’s Docklands. The images were taken in 1948 as the east London area was rebuilt from the rubble. Building the church began in 1856 but it was damaged in the war
Wapping was a construction site in 1948 as the community in east London pulled together to try to rebuild it from the ground up. People of all ages did their bit to piece the city back together again
In another picture, Wapping’s children celebrate St Peter’s Day on June 29th, 1948, with a parade through the specially decorated streets.
Other stunning shots show a band of young boys armed with toy bows and arrows playing ‘Robin Hood and his Merry Men’ in the cemetery.
Many of the pictures centre around St Peter’s Church, where Father Fox, the parish priest, campaigned vigorously to have the church restored, and the work was completed within four years.
Working on the docks was insecure and poorly paid for many. Although new modern housing was constructed to replace buildings lost in the War, poverty returned in the 1960s with the inexorable closure of the docks.
The arrival of the global containerisation system relied on ships too large to navigate the Thames as far as Wapping.
A small number of physical features have survived both the 1815 redevelopment and the Blitz – the old steps down to the edge of the Thames, and the pub, ‘The Prospect of Whitby’, which backs onto the edge of the river.
Today, the warehouses have become apartments.
Children took part in a procession down Wapping High Street during the St Peter ‘ s Day celebrations on June 29, 1948. Despite their community being attacked in the war which lasted from 1939 until 1945, people of all ages came together
Images from 1948 have shown how east London communities rebuilt after the war. A mother plays with her little girl in Wapping in this striking black and white image
Real east enders wear coats and cover their hair as they hang out in Wapping. The women had lived through years of war and the Blitz in their city
Stunning images of the Docklands after the war. A woman plays with a little girl in the street while huge prams are parked in the walkway. The terraced houses were battered by bombs but rebuilding works began to bring the area back to life
Father Fox of St Peter’s Church puts up Union jack bunting in Wapping with two of his parishioners ahead of the celebrations which take place on June 29 in England. St Peter’s Church was a beacon of light in the area as the first Anglican mission to the poor of London
A view down Wapping High Street which was lined with wharves and warehouses for the London Docks which were targets for the German airforce
Three generations: Stoic women who survived the Blitz hold small children as they peer out of a window in Wapping – three years after the end of the Second World War
Back to school: Children play at St Peter’s school in long coats while masts can be seen in the background from the docks in Wapping which were under major construction
Fascinating pictures centering on St Peter’s Day in Wapping show children clambering all over a car outside the church as they wait for festivities to begin. Women with their hair covered watch over the young ones
Boys armed to the teeth with arrows and bows gather in the cemetery as they find a place to play while their community is rebuilt from the rubble of the war
The pub, the Prospect of Whitby, which is on the banks of the River Thames at Wapping Wall can be seen in the distance. The historic pubsite dates back to around 1520, it is claimed
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