Our black and white photo gallery shows some of south Essex’s most notable landmarks and buildings from a bird’s eye view.
The images were all taken from an aeroplane back in 1969.
Well known landmark – Runwell Hospital in Wickford as it was in 1969 (Image: Newsquest) Historic remains – An aerial view of Hadleigh Castle (Image: Newsquest)
And how things have changed in the 55 years since they were snapped.
Although some are still standing, many of the buildings and sites featured are no longer here, including Runwell Hospital in Wickford and parts of Victoria Circus in Southend.
Plant – The Ford Tractor plant in Basildon with its eye-catching water tower (Image: Newsquest) Transport hub – Southend’s Central Station (Image: Newsquest)
One building that’s still standing – well sort of – however, is Hadleigh Castle, the ruins of which have inspired plenty of artists, including John Constable himself.
The artist created his famous oil painting of our south Essex landmark in 1829.
Ship – An eye-catching vessel snapped in the estuary (Image: Newsquest) Back in its heyday – Plenty going on at Tilbury Docks in this photo (Image: Newsquest)
Out of interest, if you wanted to see the painting today you’d have to make a trip across the pond to Yale University in Connecticut, where it is on display.
Some shots demonstrate just how far we’ve come over the past five-plus decades – such as Southend Airport, which today is a bustling transport hub, yet back then was little more than a rural landing strip.
Changed over the years – Southend Airport is now, of course, a lot bigger than how it was in 1969 (Image: Newsquest) Different now? – Victoria Avenue in Southend (Image: Newsquest)
Others show less positive effects of modernisation.
Tilbury Docks, for example, once a hive of activity, as the photo in our gallery shows, is much quieter today.