The photo shows a van driving (or perhaps stranded!) on a flooded road on the outskirts of Rugby: the B 4112 at its junction with the A 426. The village of Newbold was completely cut off for a time (you can see from the map how vulnerable this stretch of road is, next to the river Avon). It is rather surprising that it was early summer – rather than winter – so the flood may have been the result of flash floods from thunderstorms.
Photographer Victor W. Long
The photographer – Victor W. Long – lived at 7 Sidney Road, Rugby from 1928 until his death in 1963, aged 67. He was listed in directories as a pianoforte teacher but was also a keen freelance photographer. He took many pictures of Rugby from the 1920s to the 1950s, and his photographs of local events were published in the Rugby Advertiser from 1928 onwards. His photographs are easy to identify because they include his initials ‘VWL’ as you can see from this example.
Do you have other interesting photos of floods in Warwickshire? I remember seeing the Jephson Gardens inundated a few years ago, but sadly didn’t have my camera with me at the time.
Comments
Thanks for this photo — you’ve saved my sanity! A few weeks ago I had a vivid dream of a flooded field on the outskirts of Rugby (more in the Long Lawford area than near Newbold), which occurred two or three times during the late 1930s and 1940s. There was a low wooden footbridge across the field, and the flooding was fairly shallow. The River Avon meandered… I’m sure that the dream was based on reality. We played regularly in the fields and swam in the streams (one had many leeches) past the cement works, always returning home for meals!
Edward.
I have some poorer quality photographs of the same bridge and intersection. They look to be during the same event. Also some photos of a bus or tram of some sort my cousin gave me last year. My Dad was born and raised in Rugby and I have been researching family history. Only one or two left on his side now. Will be back in September 2016 to comb the churches and cemeteries.
We’d be delighted to have sight of your photos Brock to add to this article. You can upload them to this website by clicking on ‘get involved’. If they are prints then you’ll need to scan them or take a photo with a digital camera. (And if they are not personal family photos we might need to check out the copyright situation.)
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