48 fascinating photos from decades ago show how Liverpool city centre streets have changed
These photos from our archives show just how much has changed over the decades
The rising sun lights up Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral this morning
Liverpool has undergone a huge transformation over the years.
The ways we live, work, shop and socialise have changed in many ways over the decades – and these photos show what life used to look like. One photo shows the aftermath of a bomb attack during WWII in the Castle Street area.
It serves a stark reminder of what people went through during the war. The city has undergone many transformations, including lost shops and department stores, expansions to create shopping areas and new restaurants and bars.
However some iconic and much loved landmarks and buildings remain at the heart if the city. If you spot anyone you recognise or have any memories from that decade that you would like to share let us know in the comments below.
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Tithebarn Street shown in the late 19th century. Exchange Station in centre of picture.
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Rail passengers outside Exchange Station in Tithebarn Street Liverpool. June 1964
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Exchange Station on Tithebarn Street in May 2022. (Pic Andrew Teebay).
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Shops at Cavern Walks. February 14, 1987.
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Queue at Cavern Walks which began on Christmas Eve. December 1985.
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A sign pointing to The Cavern Club, 'The Birthplace of the Beatles', at 10 Mathew Street in Liverpool, UK, May 1966.
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Picture shows The Grapes Pub in Mathew Street, Liverpool. Picture taken circa June 1980
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Cold winter night in Liverpool's pictured Mathew Street December 2022. Photo by Colin Lane
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Shoppers walking through Lord Street now the shops are opening on Sunday. Picture taken circa December 1991
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Lord Street, and North John Street, Liverpool, Merseyside. Picture taken August 4, 1986.
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Picture features the pedestrianisation on Lord Street, The Gold Centre, Wimpy restaurant, and Greenwoods Department Store. Picture taken July 24, 1989
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Lord Street, Liverpool, City Centre, Merseyside. Picture taken December 20, 1975
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Lord Street, Liverpool, City Centre. Picture taken circa December 1990
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Liverpool City Centre, in the Lord Street, area of the city. Picture taken circa March 1990
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Lord Street, Liverpool. Taken January 2022
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Pedestrians in Church Street, Liverpool, benefit from the the new elevated rostrum specifically installed for policewomen on point-duty, here directing two Corpy buses and a Standard 10, June 1955
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Church Street in 1959, and shoppers are completely unfazed by traffic, wandering across the road in front of passing cars and buses.
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Church Street in Liverpool in July 1960
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Dolcis Shoe Shop on Church Street in Liverpool in July 1989
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Hepworths Tailoring on the corner of Church Street and Paradise Street in Liverpool circa 1980
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Shoppers on Church Street in Liverpool circa 1975
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George Henry Lee and Ratners on Church Street in October 1989
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F W Woolworth department store on Church Street in Liverpool in November 1970
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A busy Church Street in Liverpool in January 1962
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General scene of Church Street in Liverpool with Top Shop on the left in October 1989
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Boxing Day sales 2022 shoppers on Church Street, Liverpool.
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Queues in Hanover Street Post Office, Liverpool, for petrol coupons. November 29, 1973
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An early Victorian photograph of the Sailors Home at the junction of Paradise Street and Hanover Street, Liverpool.
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Hanover Street, Liverpool in 2021
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Bold Street, November 20, 1968.
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Christmas Lights, Bold Street, Liverpool, Merseyside, November 23, 1961.
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Photograph of the Lyceum, Bold Street, Liverpool in the later part of the 20th century.
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The Bombed Out Church seen from Bold Street in Liverpool city centre in 2023
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Dale Street, Liverpool, March 13, 1984.
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Dale Street, Liverpool, May 9, 1962.
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Dale Street, Liverpool, October 22, 1977, New Oxford House, home of Nationwide Building Society, adjacent to Princes Building, with Liverpool Magistrates Court further down
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Dale Street, Liverpool, January 21, 1967, Municipal Buildings
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Dale Street, Liverpool, September 12, 1958, Blackburn Assurance Company Limited
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Dale Street, Liverpool, July 1, 1994, Vernon Arms
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Dale Street, Liverpool, July 1, 1994, JA Webster, Confectionary and Tobacconist, Municipal Buildings.
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Dale Street, Liverpool, July 1, 1994, Midland Bank
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Dale Street, Liverpool, December 9, 1985
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Dale Street, Liverpool, December 11, 1974, Horfields Health Food Store
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Dale Street in 2020. Photo by Colin Lane
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Lord Street, South Castle Street rebuild sites, with Paradise Street rebuild site in the background. Liverpool, Merseyside in September 1952.
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Bomb damage in Liverpool. South Castle Street, Liverpool, which was attacked by a Nazi bomb. July 1941
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Castle Street in Liverpool city centre today
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