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'The Fifties on the Thames'

The 1950s witnessed the final heyday of pleasure steamer services on the River Thames. Services were dominated by the sleek motor vessels Royal Daffodil, Royal Sovereign and the Queen of the Channel. But it was also a time when some well-loved paddle steamers that had served generations of Londoners ended their careers. Within a decade, services had ceased on the London River.

The photographs shown here were taken by an amateur photographer and wonderfully evoke the rarely seen daily life of these well-loved pleasure and paddle steamers.

 

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