Barracks Square

More info on Barracks Square 1926.

I'm pretty sure this is going over the Barracks parade ground in one of those new fangled motor-vehicle thingy's!

The apparent lack of a number plate suggests pre-1904.

I am pretty sure the vehicle in the picture is the vehicle of Samuel Franklin Cody. You can just see on the side the name Cody. Under the heading in the newspaper of Coventry's new industry an article in September 1909 says that fifty Bleriot cross-channel monoplanes were to be manufactured in the works of Humber Ltd in Coventry. Mr S F Cody visited Coventry on his motor tour from London to Manchester in order to study the route of his proposed flight from the Metropolis to the Cottonopolis (that's what the paper says!). Mr Cody intends to fly over Coventry on his journey. Before leaving Coventry he was shown over the Daimler works. This isn't the same Cody who brought his wild west show to Coventry in 1903. That was William (Buffalo Bill) Cody. My cousin who lived with our grandad when she was little always said that he told her he had met Buffalo Bill. I have found that grandad did travel to Brooklyn in 1897 (he had wanted to travel and his mum must have let him go as he had cousins in Brooklyn and he travelled with another man who was related by marriage and something to do with the watch trade) so it is possible or may be just a family tale!

Another cracker from CliffB - The 1921 Police inspection. We have some other pics of these inspections on CD. I think it might be looking East with the old row that was behind Hertford Street visible.

More goodness from the Coventry Smorgasbord page. This one is labelled as Bull Yard car park, Coventry city centre. 16 May 1959. but I think it's looking further North than where Bull Yard originally was over the Barracks and the spot where the later multi-storey (appropriately enough!) was -

I can see what was the Market Tavern pub, with the Woolworth's to the right of the passage way, which suggests the passageway puts Coventry Market at towards the back of the buildings at the top of the photograph. So looking west across the city centre. There was a time when cars could park in Market Way, as late as the 60's, but I don't remember it as chaotic as in the picture shared. Where many of those cars were then, would be where the former Coventry Point tower block once stood. Nice to see and thank you for sharing.

A Riley virtually identical to mine bottom left corner.