Carlisle: The Postcard Collection

Carlisle has long been a strategically important border city. Close to the English border with Scotland, the city was heavily fortified through the centuries, and its medieval castle and cathedral are still prominent. The city was industrialised in the nineteenth century, and the Victorian era saw the city extended with large areas of new housing built for the workers. Although the city centre has been redeveloped in recent decades, much of the historic city of Carlisle remains today.

In Carlisle: The Postcard Collection author Alan Spree has drawn on a remarkable selection of old postcards to give a pictorial record of life in Carlisle in the past. Although some of the historical Carlisle seen in these views has been lost, many landmarks have remained and will be familiar today. The postcards show the changes in Carlisle’s fabric and its community adapting and changing over the course of this period. This fascinating collection of images will be of interest to those who have lived in Carlisle or know it well.