Photograph of the Broadway, Winchester
Taken about 1870
This view of the Broadway looking north-west includes the small Chapel of St John which served the ancient charitable institution of St John's Hospital, whose origins may be traced back to the tenth century. Immediately to its right can be seen the entrance to the almshouses which lay to the north.
To its left is St John's House, a building much altered over the centuries. While vestiges of its mediaeval past remain, an Assembly Room was created in the later 1700s with a legacy bequeathed by George Brydges, who was M.P. for Winchester from 1714 to 1751; here were held balls and concerts as well as public meetings.
In the foreground to the right is the west end of Eastgate Street; the Misses Smith, whose name can be seen over the door, ran a shoe shop at number two at this time.
The photograph was taken by Winchester photographer William Savage (1817-87) and is found in an album entitled 'Hampshire Views of Churches, Country Houses and Public Buildings'.
