Opening of the new bathing pool at Whipps Cross, 7th May 1932. Swimming was a major leisure pursuit at the beginning of the 20th century. Swimming baths were being provided by the local councils as a way to provide facilities for their constituents to remain fit. Some of these pools were open air.
The Walthamstow palace Theatre was opened in 1903 and became a focal point of the High Street, Walthamstow. It remained in use until the 1950s but suffered from the competition with the cinemas and it was demolished in 1960.
The Bell Public House, Forest Road and Chingford Road Junction, Walthamstow, 1930s. Public houses have been a major way of passing leisure time for many centuries. They initially developed at major road junctions to attract the passing trade.
