The collection comprises an album containing 43 high quality black and white photographs, and eight loose photographic prints, chronicling the construction and opening of the Queensway Tunnel, one of three tunnels carrying road and rail traffic between Liverpool and Birkenhead beneath the River Mersey. Construction of the Queensway Tunnel began in 1927 and the tunnel officially opened on the 18th July 1934. The album was compiled for Edmund Nuttall, Sons & Co., Ltd., the main contractor for the project. The photographs were taken by the Liverpool based photographic firm Stewart Bale Ltd.
The majority of the images show the interior of the tunnel during construction, many featuring the men who worked on it. Each is annotated with the date and subject. At the back of the album are a further group of high quality photographs showing exterior views (including the opening of the tunnel on the 18th July 1934) and scenes around St John’s Gardens and the Liverpool entrance to the tunnel. There are also views of ancillary structures including the ventilation stations and the Liverpool and Birkenhead Art Deco lamp pillars, of which only the Birkenhead one survives and is now the official Monument to the Mersey Tunnel.
The album also contains a small number of photographic copies of plans and architectural drawings.
Acquired via Peter and Jennie McKenzie.
Source: Historic England Archive
Early 20th Century Road Tunnel, Construction, Engineering, People At Work
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